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kiwij96's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Good, solid worldbuilding alongside character development. From the first page, you know exactly who the main character is and why she does the things she does. Sometimes heavy on the symbolism, but I cannot fault the pacing, the twists, the characters, the romance and friendships that seemingly blossom naturally. Nothing in this story feels forced. Poldi and Ragne honestly have my whole heard, and Barthl is on track to be up there as one of my favourites if he appears in the next book. It was genuinely such a delight to read, but it was also so genuinely heartbreaking at the same time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Slavery, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Classism, Grief, and Body horror
Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, and Injury/Injury detail
abby_can_read's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
đź“–
This book lived up to my expectations. I had a wonderful time reading it. The characters were well-developed and I liked the various relationships. I liked the relationship between Vanja and Emeric. The worldbuilding was good. The plot was a little predictable, there were a few twists that I didn't see, and the writing style was good.
This book lived up to my expectations. I had a wonderful time reading it. The characters were well-developed and I liked the various relationships. I liked the relationship between Vanja and Emeric. The worldbuilding was good. The plot was a little predictable, there were a few twists that I didn't see, and the writing style was good.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, and Child abuse
Moderate: Sexual assault, Violence, and Physical abuse
Minor: Animal death
bequavious's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Abandonment, Drug abuse, Child abuse, Animal death, and Sexual assault
alexiatormen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The humor wasnt always for me, sometimes it broke the imersivo but still its a great book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Animal death, Child abuse, and Abandonment
Moderate: Alcohol, Drug use, and Sexual assault
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Vomit, Toxic friendship, and Death
kemikemi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
It’s a book you finish and just have to sit there in silence reeling and thinking about everything that happened, because there was so much happening at every single point and it was a really fucking good book. I loved the prose and how storytelling and fairytales were weaved into the writing with the presentation of the story and individual chapters. It was playful, and I enjoyed how the narration played games with us and had us guessing and went back for the wild reveal towards the climax. I loved the characters; Vanja was written so well as a morally grey antihero protagonist, and everything about her story hurts so much. She and Emeric have the most complete and best enemies to lovers loveline that I’ve ever seen in a story. Her relationship with Gisele was also so interesting and painful, and I thought the development throughout the book was so good. Ragne became a favorite character of mine, she was so funny and fascinating and the best fucking friend ever. I’m sad I couldn’t get tooooo into her loveline with Gisele just bc we barely saw it develop since it all happened offscreen, but lesbian rep!!!! I loved Ragne’s role in the final plan and their scenes together toward the end, bless them. Despite being so long, this book managed to hold my attention well throughout my listening experience, and I had fun trying to crack the case and problem solve with them despite always being wrong! I think I enjoyed the twists and gotcha moments more because I went into this book not actually knowing the Goose Girl tale; things continuously caught me by surprise and it was a fun ride!!
**To note, I think it would’ve been better to have the main character group be about 20 rather than 16 and have the legal adult age (referenced throughout the book) be 21. They all read as young adults rather than midteens, and the child marriage was really unsettling whenever I was reminded what the girls’ actual ages were.
**To note, I think it would’ve been better to have the main character group be about 20 rather than 16 and have the legal adult age (referenced throughout the book) be 21. They all read as young adults rather than midteens, and the child marriage was really unsettling whenever I was reminded what the girls’ actual ages were.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual harassment, Violence, Eating disorder, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Animal death
blewballoon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Normally I struggle with books where the main character, especially if you're in their perspective, is unlikable. I found Vanja compelling despite her severe flaws, and I had a feeling I'd enjoy following her character journey. I was right. I also found myself getting very immersed in the setting and growing mystery. I loved the group of characters that came along for the ride and pushed Vanja to grow. I felt like the ending was rewarding as it brought different plot points together. I enjoyed the portrayal of the gods. I found myself giddy to read more, and it's that excitement to get back to the book that made me rate it 5 stars. I listened on audiobook and the narrator was great. I was a little worried because the only other book I had listened to narrated by Saskia Maarleveld was one I didn't enjoy, but the problem clearly wasn't the narration. This book is technically the start of a series, but it can be enjoyed as a standalone in my opinion.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Murder, Blood, Abandonment, Physical abuse, Violence, Death, and Body horror
Minor: Vomit, Sexual violence, Animal death, and Sexual assault
peskilanim's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism
Moderate: Rape, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, and Child abuse
Minor: Misogyny, Body shaming, and Animal death
justinekorson's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I didn't think I would like this book so much! (But isn't that how it always goes with really good books?) Vanya's motivations in the novel were based off of self preservation which I could completely understand given the situation she was put in. The scene where Emeric accuses her of killing Hubert was GUT-WRENCHING to say the least. I could feel her terror, her sorrow as she was chased throughout town, as everyone she cared for (besides Ragne) turned on her. When Ragne spoke up for her (the first person in her life to ever do so) and Vanja sobbed her heart out (as I sobbed with her) was so incredible. The apologies from all the characters after the fact (but especially Emeric's wonderful apology) felt very sincere and genuine and made me wish for that similar kind of closure in my own life.
Vanja wasn't a perfect person by any means but she was funny and resourceful and she cared so damn much for the people around her. Her love story with Emeric was perfect. The deceptions and betrayals in the novel were timed fantastically. It was overall a very wonderful story and I can't wait to read the second/third novels.
There is one gripe I do have with the novel. I had read maybe a third of the book before it's revealed that Giselle is a lesbian and while I found no problem with this, I did feel like all the queer representation was pushed to the back end of the novel. I could be entirely wrong about this but it felt like all the mentions of trans people, lesbians, gay people, etc were all mentioned in the last third of the book and was mentioned nowhere in the first two thirds. Maybe I wasn't paying close enough attention but I usually do for books that I like so I doubt I would've missed anything. If anyone has an instance where queer people were mentioned before Giselle tells Vanja she likes women then please let me know.
Vanja wasn't a perfect person by any means but she was funny and resourceful and she cared so damn much for the people around her. Her love story with Emeric was perfect. The deceptions and betrayals in the novel were timed fantastically. It was overall a very wonderful story and I can't wait to read the second/third novels.
There is one gripe I do have with the novel. I had read maybe a third of the book before it's revealed that Giselle is a lesbian and while I found no problem with this, I did feel like all the queer representation was pushed to the back end of the novel. I could be entirely wrong about this but it felt like all the mentions of trans people, lesbians, gay people, etc were all mentioned in the last third of the book and was mentioned nowhere in the first two thirds. Maybe I wasn't paying close enough attention but I usually do for books that I like so I doubt I would've missed anything. If anyone has an instance where queer people were mentioned before Giselle tells Vanja she likes women then please let me know.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Murder, Toxic friendship, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Sexual assault
Minor: War, Animal death, and Vomit
sagec_13's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
“Once upon a time, there was a girl as cunning as the fox in winter, as hungry as the wolf at first frost, and cold as the icy wind that kept them at each other’s throats.
Her name was not Gisele, nor was it Marthe, nor even Pfennigeist. My name was—is—Vanja. And this is the story of how I got caught.”
Do you want a book with impeccable Six of Crows vibes set in a German fantasy world filled with German fae folk? Do you want a chaotic, charismatic, morally-grey MC (who was raised by the gods of Death and Fortune, respectively, which honestly explains so much about why she is the way she is <3)? Do you want DEMI REP?
Her name was not Gisele, nor was it Marthe, nor even Pfennigeist. My name was—is—Vanja. And this is the story of how I got caught.”
Do you want a book with impeccable Six of Crows vibes set in a German fantasy world filled with German fae folk? Do you want a chaotic, charismatic, morally-grey MC (who was raised by the gods of Death and Fortune, respectively, which honestly explains so much about why she is the way she is <3)? Do you want DEMI REP?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Animal death, Blood, and Child abuse
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault
[TW: poisoning, child abuse, child neglect, PTSD, attempted assault (off page), blood, injury, sexual harassment, manipulation, animal death, abusive relationships]sophiesmallhands's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Toxic friendship, Death, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Violence, Sexism, and Sexual assault
Minor: War, Vomit, Death of parent, Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, Murder, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Abandonment