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4.14 AVERAGE
4.14 AVERAGE
ok, the good news is that overall, i enjoyed this one, and thus i am not deciding that the headmisstress/magdelene nox were outliers and abandoning trying the new books by this author as was almost the case. so, yayy.
there were a couple of things i didn't entierly vibe with: i felt like the pacing in the third act had a couple of whiplash issues and i'd have rather focused on things than a big time jump, personally.
one of my qualms with mckay as an author is that i wish so much she would write dual pov books, but by GOD i would not be mad if this one got the magdelene nox treatment and we got a book from katerina's pov, bc i was DESPRATE to get into her head. there is still so much we don't really know from her pov, and i was aching for it basically the whole novel. (i do gotta say tho, as someone who did dance as a kid [nowhere NEAR to this level, but followed some things/used to enjoy it a lot] it did strike me as kind of fantastical that they wouldn't be saying a shitton of nonsense abt katerina's age being that she was 35-42 and still dancing at the level of prima? i thought ballet ppl were as shitty abt women aging as gymnastics and figure skating and such, but maybe i'm wrong).
however, this is the first book by mckay that i've read recently where i actually liked both mcs!! and was actually rooting for them to get together!! so yayyy there. i really liked juliette and i enjoyed being in her pov. i liked her friendships with gabe and helena and francesca. i loved seeing the ballet world (though, again, found it a little wild that juliette's sexuality seemed almost not a problem/she and gabe were barely in the closet at all in the 80s, but i wasn't alive then and maybe i've just been told too many times that wouldn't be an issue?). i loved the ballet stuff, it made me miss dance. and i really loved katerina (again!! i wish we had her pov). i'm glad that this one isn't leaving me frusturated and deciding mckay is not for me, but it does almost leave me more confused than ever. bc i had figured that i just often don't vibe with her younger mcs, but i liked juliette a lot, here. so maybe it's just hit or miss, for me).
there were a couple of things i didn't entierly vibe with: i felt like the pacing in the third act had a couple of whiplash issues and i'd have rather focused on things than a big time jump, personally.
one of my qualms with mckay as an author is that i wish so much she would write dual pov books, but by GOD i would not be mad if this one got the magdelene nox treatment and we got a book from katerina's pov, bc i was DESPRATE to get into her head. there is still so much we don't really know from her pov, and i was aching for it basically the whole novel. (i do gotta say tho, as someone who did dance as a kid [nowhere NEAR to this level, but followed some things/used to enjoy it a lot] it did strike me as kind of fantastical that they wouldn't be saying a shitton of nonsense abt katerina's age being that she was 35-42 and still dancing at the level of prima? i thought ballet ppl were as shitty abt women aging as gymnastics and figure skating and such, but maybe i'm wrong).
however, this is the first book by mckay that i've read recently where i actually liked both mcs!! and was actually rooting for them to get together!! so yayyy there. i really liked juliette and i enjoyed being in her pov. i liked her friendships with gabe and helena and francesca. i loved seeing the ballet world (though, again, found it a little wild that juliette's sexuality seemed almost not a problem/she and gabe were barely in the closet at all in the 80s, but i wasn't alive then and maybe i've just been told too many times that wouldn't be an issue?). i loved the ballet stuff, it made me miss dance. and i really loved katerina (again!! i wish we had her pov). i'm glad that this one isn't leaving me frusturated and deciding mckay is not for me, but it does almost leave me more confused than ever. bc i had figured that i just often don't vibe with her younger mcs, but i liked juliette a lot, here. so maybe it's just hit or miss, for me).
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
medium-paced
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.5 stars!
I could not put this book down when I got to reading it, I devoured every word. As a queer woman I really appreciated the attention to detail in the whole relationship and while they mentioned struggles of the lgbtq community but didn’t make it the whole plot line.
Loved and would totally read again
I could not put this book down when I got to reading it, I devoured every word. As a queer woman I really appreciated the attention to detail in the whole relationship and while they mentioned struggles of the lgbtq community but didn’t make it the whole plot line.
Loved and would totally read again
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
this book was literally everything.
Reverence has a very promising prompt and plot, a captivating conflict, and a riveting hook. All is well—but only at the start. This novel is as dragging as much as it is gripping.
The first part was almost well established: it has a very great introduction of each characters; it shows a thrilling glimpse at the background of the persons in the story; it has a well-constructed tension between the two main protagonists.
The second part is where the things slowly fall out of their perfect places: the slow burn wasn't built well, a lot of events didn't need much description and are most better cut off; 150+ pages in, almost halfway through the book and yet Katarina is still an enigma, the slow burn isn't really burning since there's no build up—it is only confusing; the history of ballet especially in the story's timeline which is the 80's is not discussed very well. The novel is an ahistorical narrative.
Gave this book a lot of chances and it reached its limit. This is the first book that I did not finish this year and man do I feel bad for it. I guess this is what I get for judging the book by its cover and by its first line.
The first part was almost well established: it has a very great introduction of each characters; it shows a thrilling glimpse at the background of the persons in the story; it has a well-constructed tension between the two main protagonists.
The second part is where the things slowly fall out of their perfect places: the slow burn wasn't built well, a lot of events didn't need much description and are most better cut off; 150+ pages in, almost halfway through the book and yet Katarina is still an enigma, the slow burn isn't really burning since there's no build up—it is only confusing; the history of ballet especially in the story's timeline which is the 80's is not discussed very well. The novel is an ahistorical narrative.
Gave this book a lot of chances and it reached its limit. This is the first book that I did not finish this year and man do I feel bad for it. I guess this is what I get for judging the book by its cover and by its first line.
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes