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4.14 AVERAGE
4.14 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.25/5 stars
This is one of the hardest books to review I've ever come across.
Firstly because almost everything I want to talk about is a potential or straight-out spoiler, and secondly because I've changed my opinion on it so many times I've lost count.
But if I wanted to sum up what this book is about without giving too much away, I'd say <b>it's a book about treacheries, lies and a familial feud that that imprisons even the reader in its web of lies.</b> This said, it's time to dive deeper into what makes this book brilliant and why, despite that, it didn't get the full five stars. Spoilers (a lot, basically everything) ahead!
♥️ THE STRUCTURE
One novel. Four "books". Four fortunes. Twenty one chapters for each book, exactly like the 21 cards in the decks used by Red to read fortune. For each chapter, a card and a fortune connected to it and to the content of the chapter.
If this isn't already impressive by itself, let me go on.
Two main narrators. Red, in first person, and Darke, in third person.
At a certain point we notice Red starting to directly address the reader, only to realise later on that the chapters in first person are actually chapters from an autobiography that Red publishes to win the trust of the public and the court.
And finally, the revelation: among the things Red has written and has told us, things we've been considering as true up until now, there are massive lies. We've been lied to by the narrator herself. There's not a greater smack for a reader than to realised the writer (even if she's not real) has been toying with them. I'm still in shock and I won't recover any time soon, I'm afraid.
♠️ THE PLOT
Family quarrels, huh. Well, let me tell you that this one is on a whole different level.
And as a proof of this, just now that not only did I end up drawing the family tree of the whole family (without realising there was one in the book), but also started writing down the main events of the whole "scandal" because at a certain point I could not keep up at all.
Lies and secrets will become your best friends right from the start, so get ready for that.
The double POV was excellent to give space to both "sides" of the family, and also to provide with some non-Red-biased opinions on the whole situation. Because the story is obviously extremely Red-biased.
One thing that made me lower my rating a bit was the pacing. Once the initial curiosity wore off, I felt like sometimes there were very long stretches between one discovery/important event and the following. I understand that it was partially necessary and that I'm generally not used to slower writing paces, but it still slightly ruined my reading experience. Yet I admit it added details and credibility.
On the other hand, being told the real truth only during the very last chapter was what made me increase my rating, because realising that I had been fooled all the way through the book was a massive but good shock.
♥️ THE CHARACTERS
The characters were the second reason why I didn't give the book 5 stars.
Do I have to admit that Red is a freaking genious for getting an inheritance that wasn't meant for her by building herself a whole new identity (or rather stealing someone else's who never had the chance to grow old)?
Yes, I'd be dumb if I didn't.
Do I like her?
Mmmmh....
Not really.
I've admired her in several situations and even felt sorry or worried, but since her actions and thoughts tend to be almost obsessive I can't say I feel any attachment towards her. Again, it's impressive how she built an empire from basically nothing at her age, but her personality is not the type I feel the most connected with when it comes to characters.
Most of the other characters are utterly despicable, and those that are not don't get a lot of space in the story.
In any case, it's a book that will indeed test your patience and your memory as well, but that is definitely well-constructed and worth reading!
This is one of the hardest books to review I've ever come across.
Firstly because almost everything I want to talk about is a potential or straight-out spoiler, and secondly because I've changed my opinion on it so many times I've lost count.
But if I wanted to sum up what this book is about without giving too much away, I'd say <b>it's a book about treacheries, lies and a familial feud that that imprisons even the reader in its web of lies.</b> This said, it's time to dive deeper into what makes this book brilliant and why, despite that, it didn't get the full five stars. Spoilers (a lot, basically everything) ahead!
♥️ THE STRUCTURE
If this isn't already impressive by itself, let me go on.
Two main narrators. Red, in first person, and Darke, in third person.
At a certain point we notice Red starting to directly address the reader, only to realise later on that the chapters in first person are actually chapters from an autobiography that Red publishes to win the trust of the public and the court.
And finally, the revelation: among the things Red has written and has told us, things we've been considering as true up until now, there are massive lies. We've been lied to by the narrator herself. There's not a greater smack for a reader than to realised the writer (even if she's not real) has been toying with them. I'm still in shock and I won't recover any time soon, I'm afraid.
♠️ THE PLOT
And as a proof of this, just now that not only did I end up drawing the family tree of the whole family (without realising there was one in the book), but also started writing down the main events of the whole "scandal" because at a certain point I could not keep up at all.
Lies and secrets will become your best friends right from the start, so get ready for that.
The double POV was excellent to give space to both "sides" of the family, and also to provide with some non-Red-biased opinions on the whole situation. Because the story is obviously extremely Red-biased.
One thing that made me lower my rating a bit was the pacing. Once the initial curiosity wore off, I felt like sometimes there were very long stretches between one discovery/important event and the following. I understand that it was partially necessary and that I'm generally not used to slower writing paces, but it still slightly ruined my reading experience. Yet I admit it added details and credibility.
On the other hand, being told the real truth only during the very last chapter was what made me increase my rating, because realising that I had been fooled all the way through the book was a massive but good shock.
♥️ THE CHARACTERS
Do I have to admit that Red is a freaking genious for getting an inheritance that wasn't meant for her by building herself a whole new identity (or rather stealing someone else's who never had the chance to grow old)?
Yes, I'd be dumb if I didn't.
Do I like her?
Mmmmh....
Not really.
I've admired her in several situations and even felt sorry or worried, but since her actions and thoughts tend to be almost obsessive I can't say I feel any attachment towards her. Again, it's impressive how she built an empire from basically nothing at her age, but her personality is not the type I feel the most connected with when it comes to characters.
Most of the other characters are utterly despicable, and those that are not don't get a lot of space in the story.
In any case, it's a book that will indeed test your patience and your memory as well, but that is definitely well-constructed and worth reading!
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death, Death, Incest, Suicide
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
adventurous
mysterious
tense
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:
No
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I listened to this and had a very hard time keeping the characters straight. Also, the story was not to my taste. The writing was just ok.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
this book was way way way too long and there were too many characters of importance to keep track of (the family tree was super helpful but another list of the non-related characters would have been nice). the premise was intriguing, i enjoyed the layout of the parts and chapters, and i was pleasantly surprised by the ending. i almost dnf’d it a couple times, and i’m happy that i didn’t. that being said, i would not recommend the book unless someone really liked the genre
A solid 4.
It felt like a Dickensian novel, coming of age, a quest for a family, family secrets, twists, turns, etc.
What I enjoyed the most was that Red was not your average normal, nice, meek heroin. She was nice but not above plotting to get what she wanted. She said that if you wanted a saint, you would have to read a different book ! Another character I appreciated was Lazarus, a wonderfully grey character.
It was not really a fantasy, more like a light magical realism story : the square of sevens (card fortune) was treated as reality, so was astrology.
It reminded me of The Quincunx, but I loved The square of Sevens one a lot better
It felt like a Dickensian novel, coming of age, a quest for a family, family secrets, twists, turns, etc.
What I enjoyed the most was that Red was not your average normal, nice, meek heroin. She was nice but not above plotting to get what she wanted. She said that if you wanted a saint, you would have to read a different book ! Another character I appreciated was Lazarus, a wonderfully grey character.
It was not really a fantasy, more like a light magical realism story : the square of sevens (card fortune) was treated as reality, so was astrology.
It reminded me of The Quincunx, but I loved The square of Sevens one a lot better
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes