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kmmcghan's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Child abuse, Child death, and Physical abuse
lue_moon's review against another edition
4.5
Quote I'll be thinking about for a while:
Maybe it is about finding someone whose heart is like a mirror, whose love can make you stand the sight of yourself.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, Toxic friendship, Child death, and Animal death
Moderate: Physical abuse, Child abuse, and Sexual harassment
volanscore's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Graphic: Bullying
Moderate: Abandonment and Animal death
Minor: Sexual harassment, Pedophilia, Child death, and Child abuse
liv_easton's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
Onto the good things!
For a book about magic, illusions, and belief, Chokshi has perfect writing. Her characters are successful storytellers because she works so deftly, and she really does make an enchanting world throughout the novel. I also wouldn't just call this purple prose, because I think she maneuvers the reader through the story so well—to choose the ending she did and have me satisfied with our main characters is no easy feat, but it really did have the fairy tale *and all ends as it was meant to* feeling about it. I think she could've gone for a more horror-focused character arc if she wanted, but if there's one thing to take away from this it's that Chokshi loves fairy tales, and I think she told the tale she wanted to beautifully. In conclusion: I recommend if you're in the mood for a dreamy, mildly horrific, over-written story.
Graphic: Toxic friendship and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Sexual assault, Abandonment, Death, and Pedophilia
Minor: Child abuse, Self harm, and Child death
aliyachaudhry's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Alcohol, Blood, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Pedophilia, Child abuse, Bullying, Incest, Domestic abuse, and Death of parent
sunnydale's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
i enjoyed the fairy tale references, the haunted house, the theme of self-deception through personal narrative, and the girls' desperation to believe in magic. i still found the bridegroom's chapters uninteresting except as a framing device for azure's narrative, and i didn't enjoy the feeling of dread built around jupiter's predatory behavior. i ultimately found this to be a really satisfying story, but i'd be hesitant to recommend to readers i don't know well.
Graphic: Sexual content, Terminal illness, Abandonment, Pedophilia, Sexual harassment, Bullying, Toxic friendship, Incest, and Animal death
Moderate: Medical content, Child death, Chronic illness, and Child abuse
Minor: Blood, Alcohol, Body shaming, and Eating disorder
Pedophilia/incest/sexual harassment details:mariavdl's review against another edition
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Gaslighting, and Bullying
Moderate: Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, and Child death
Minor: Animal death, Death of parent, and Blood
sarahschuster's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Child death, and Child abuse
cheye13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
A big part of my disappointment is the fault of the synopsis. I had expected a bluebeard-like tale featuring the Bridegroom as a main character, but as is, he could've been removed from the story entirely. In actuality, this is the story of Indigo and Azure growing up together, and the all-encompassing nature of their friendship and the world they create together. It's an interesting story, but simply too long. Every element of the tale is overdrawn to the point that any initial tension dissolves.
Graphic: Blood, Death, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Gore, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Alcohol, Child death, Dementia, Gaslighting, Grief, Sexual content, and Suicide
Minor: Death of parent, Dementia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, and Pedophilia
a myriad of standard old-style fairytale content warnings, not graphically described, but consistently mentioned: rape, incest, murder, etc. A persistent predatory stepfather and an off-page sexual assault involving blackout drinking.selenatothemax's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Child death, Pedophilia, and Child abuse