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adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It was...okay.
There's a lot of hype over this book as it has a lot of the popular tropes in new adult romantasy at the moment - enemies-to-lovers, a female main character with a penchant for sarcasm and hitting/stabbing people, a supporting cast of vaguely diverse people that somehow either become friends-for-life with the main character or act like complete psychopaths towards her within a minute of meeting her, and of course an extremely tall, attractive bad-boy male love interest. Does this book do those tropes well? Absolutely. But does the book do much beyond that? Not really.
The world-building was a bit half-hearted and haphazard, with some things not logically making a lot of sense (why have a school based around murdering each other off as the dragons only want the strongest - when the dragons themselves will pick off all the weak ones later anyway?). Violet herself isn't too bad and it was nice to have a main character with an actual disability even if the importance of said disability is unevenly applied during certain parts of the book; however, the supporting characters could have easily been interchanged with each other with how little character development each of them receive. Xaden was fine as a stereotypical male love interest, but his attraction to Violet seems to come out of nowhere and we're not really given many compelling reasons for them getting together beyond the two of them thinking the other attractive.
The main glue of the book is, of course, the dragons. The dragons were easily the best part of the book, but they were still quite lacking in terms of overall character development. Tairn is funny and his interactions with Violet and the other characters were very enjoyable, but he's only introduced a third of the way into the book and Violet and Xaden's romance is emphasised in the latter half of the book compared to developing her companionship with Tairn. Adarna's lack of development is even more egregious; the few lines she has are absolutely adorable, but we're given so little time with her that we're instead directly told what her personality is instead of experiencing it naturally as the story develops.
So if you're the type of person that enjoys the current new adult romantasy tropes as they are, then you will probably like this book. Due to enjoying said tropes myself, I did overall have fun reading the book and will probably pick up the sequel, and it was an easy, fast-paced read. However, the lack of character development and world-building is a sticking point, and one I hope the author can improve upon as she writes the series.
There's a lot of hype over this book as it has a lot of the popular tropes in new adult romantasy at the moment - enemies-to-lovers, a female main character with a penchant for sarcasm and hitting/stabbing people, a supporting cast of vaguely diverse people that somehow either become friends-for-life with the main character or act like complete psychopaths towards her within a minute of meeting her, and of course an extremely tall, attractive bad-boy male love interest. Does this book do those tropes well? Absolutely. But does the book do much beyond that? Not really.
The world-building was a bit half-hearted and haphazard, with some things not logically making a lot of sense (why have a school based around murdering each other off as the dragons only want the strongest - when the dragons themselves will pick off all the weak ones later anyway?). Violet herself isn't too bad and it was nice to have a main character with an actual disability even if the importance of said disability is unevenly applied during certain parts of the book; however, the supporting characters could have easily been interchanged with each other with how little character development each of them receive. Xaden was fine as a stereotypical male love interest, but his attraction to Violet seems to come out of nowhere and we're not really given many compelling reasons for them getting together beyond the two of them thinking the other attractive.
The main glue of the book is, of course, the dragons. The dragons were easily the best part of the book, but they were still quite lacking in terms of overall character development. Tairn is funny and his interactions with Violet and the other characters were very enjoyable, but he's only introduced a third of the way into the book and Violet and Xaden's romance is emphasised in the latter half of the book compared to developing her companionship with Tairn. Adarna's lack of development is even more egregious; the few lines she has are absolutely adorable, but we're given so little time with her that we're instead directly told what her personality is instead of experiencing it naturally as the story develops.
So if you're the type of person that enjoys the current new adult romantasy tropes as they are, then you will probably like this book. Due to enjoying said tropes myself, I did overall have fun reading the book and will probably pick up the sequel, and it was an easy, fast-paced read. However, the lack of character development and world-building is a sticking point, and one I hope the author can improve upon as she writes the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Cursing, Sexual content, Murder
Moderate: Death, Violence, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug use, Torture, Vomit, War
adventurous
challenging
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
If I was asked to rate in after listening to only 1/3 of it, I would have rated it poorly for the following reasons:
1) The narrator wasn't doing the best. There were mouth noises that really made me question whether or not I'd be able to finish the book. The person also sounded congested and pronounced the names differently throughout the book. I'm not sure, maybe that was intentional? But it really set me on edge.
2) It was so predictable. If you read the Hunger Games, Divergent series, or really any mainstream young adult dystopian novel in the past 10 year, you probably could have predicted the first half of the story.
3) I don't see why the
Now, here are the reasons why by the time the second half came around...I was hooked:
1) The battle/flight scenes. The author (and the narrator) did a fantastic job of putting the reader in those scenes without overloading with unnecessary details. When I tell you that my heart was pounding out of my chest during these parts. I thought I could also command the skies.
2) The spice 🔥🌶 OMG Yarros had me grabbing for my pearls. Don't like of me as a person who doesn't consume spicy books like candy (because boy howdy I do). And ranges from cozy romances to romances that need to be deleted from your kindle after reading in case anyone finds it. But by god, the spice and the sexual tension was just freakin' tops.
3) The twist at the end. Honestly, I didn't see that all coming, which is a relief considering the first 1/3 of the book. I did look online for the ending because if
So, I am going to leave this book gasp starless because I don't want to rated low because of how much I ended up enjoying it but I also didn't to rate it high because how it started.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Torture, Death of parent, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Violence, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Blood, Murder, War
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
mysterious
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
I haven’t read much fantasy in quite a while, so I am incredibly grateful that I read this book because now I am out of my fantasy reading slump.
The tension between Xaden and Violet is perfect for a slow-burn enemies-to-lovers Romantasy. The violent family history they share makes them instant enemies and adds yet another life-or-death stake for Violet to overcome.
I enjoyed seeing the different relationship dynamics change throughout the story as Violet’s character develops and grows into her own person.
I loved the fast pace. The constant high risks and jumping straight into action instead of long world-building or history really helped move the plot along. For a 498-page book, it was a fast read that I desperately wanted to finish in one sitting. Unfortunately, I had to put it down and go to work, but trust me; it was all I was thinking and talking about.
The representation throughout the entire book was amazing. There were people of colour, disabled (Deaf character who signed and Violet has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome) and LGBTQIA+ characters. The way Rebecca sprinkled the representation throughout the book instead of info-dumping or shoving wokeness down our through was great.
I especially loved that Violet has EDS because my bookish best friend also has it. Many times throughout reading this, I was reminded of her. Rebecca and her children also have EDS, so this point of view was incredible to see. I found it so beautifully written. The emphasis on different kinds of strength made me, and I imagine many other readers dealing with varying conditions, feel seen and heard.
What I Didn’t Like
Dail.
Seriously there wasn’t anything in this book that I really didn’t like. The character of Dail annoyed and pissed me off, but that’s his character.
I have heard some criticisms from other readers. However, I personally can’t fault this book.
I loved this book. I give it five stars. I cannot thank Rebecca Yarros enough for writing this and getting me out of my fantasy slump.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Murder
Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Racism, Torture, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
I hesitated to go for this book with all the hype around it. I’ve been let down before but honestly? It was the best book I’ve read all year - if not in the last several years.
The world building is unique, the characters are complex, the relationships and political dynamics are intriguing. The FMC best asset is her brain.
I’ve never had a book that I desperately wanted to both savor and devour as I have this one.
The world building is unique, the characters are complex, the relationships and political dynamics are intriguing. The FMC best asset is her brain.
I’ve never had a book that I desperately wanted to both savor and devour as I have this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence, Murder, War
Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Terminal illness, Grief, Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Gore, Terminal illness, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
Animal death refers to dragons. There is a lot of death and loss. If you are sensitive to that, tread carefully. Nothing is too graphic as far as injuries but they are frequent.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Minor: Ableism, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, Violence, War
Minor: Bullying, Gore, Torture, War
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Sexual content, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Torture, Death of parent