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wrensreadingroom's review against another edition
5.0
Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Gaslighting, Grief, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Suicide attempt, and Violence
froukjemelenhorst'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
3.0
Minor: Death, Rape, and Domestic abuse
salie'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? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Gore, Gaslighting, Death, Child death, Classism, Emotional abuse, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Grief, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Classism, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Gore, Torture, Violence, and Death of parent
readwithbells's review against another edition
5.0
A story about not wanting to grow up. A text rich with fairytales. A fairytale in its own right. Pages crafted with magic and blood.
I felt like the world of the book was more real than the one outside and I only took breaks to underline the absolutely stunning prose. I savoured this book for 2 months because I knew how I would feel once it was over and while there was closure and I am so pleased at the ending, I will miss the House of Dreams.
A note for myself: why is this book the exact antithesis to Book of the Most Precious Substance by Sara Gran? My academic heart wants to rip them apart and compare them in 3000 words.
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Death, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Pedophilia and Domestic abuse
booksbutmakeitgay's review against another edition
4.5
Moderate: Classism, Self harm, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
lovelymisanthrope'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
"The Last Tale of the Flower Bride" follows a man who believes in fairy tales and his beautifully mysterious wife, Indigo. They believed they would have their happily ever after, as long as Indigo's Groom promised to never pry into her dark and elusive past. When they are forced to return to her childhood home, the lure of learning more about Indigo is too much, and he starts to investigate what Indigo is hiding, and what happened to her childhood best friend, Azure.
This book is beautifully written to be both hauntingly gothic and atmospheric. My favorite chapters were from Azure's perspective from when she and Indigo were young. Their magic and fairy games were so elaborate and the world they created was vivid and entertaining to read about.
Indigo is a highly unlikable character, in my opinion. She is a bully and manipulates those around her so that she can have the things she wants most. There are some scenes with Indigo, Azure, and a girl who just wants to be friends with them, and Indigo takes her eagerness to please the duo too far. Indigo is the epitome of a toxic friend, and it took Azure too long in my opinion to start to poke holes in Indigo's motives. I know they were young, but Azure and everyone else deserved better. Having an unlikely main character is always risky in my opinion, and in this case it slightly hindered my enjoyment of the story.
I think it is interesting to learn the stories of Indigo's and Azure's childhoods as her groom is uncovering the secrets of the house in the present, however, reading from his perspective was not my favorite. I felt like he was a flat character and did not add much to the story. Additionally, his motivation for snooping (trying to see his brother again) did not feel urgent or authentic enough to me.
Overall, this book was slightly higher than middle of the road for me. I am intrigued, and I am interested to pick up more from Roshani Chokshi in the future.
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Bullying
Moderate: Death and Child death
Minor: Domestic abuse and Pedophilia
daniquevdijk_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Grief and Gore
bookcheshirecat's review against another edition
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
“In the end, a fairy tale is nothing more than a sense of hope. Hope lures and tricks. It tempts with shining thrones, exquisite nectars, and loving arms. It whispers to us that we are extraordinary. Exempt. Thus lured, we follow its path. Sometimes we are led to riches. Other times, we are led astray. But this hope never hides its shape, and for its honesty we reach for it and pull its sweet and stinking furs up to our chins, for to live without it means living without magic.”
➽ The Last Tale of the Flower Bride was an intense, enchanting book! I know there are a lot of mixed opinions on it, but I personally found it very compelling. The story is all about the mysterious, wealthy Indigo Maxwell-Casteñada, who is forced to come back to her childhood home with her late husband. The husband is never named, but he gets a POV where he recounts his marriage to Indigo and her strange behavior. The second POV is set in the past as we follow Azure, Indigo's childhood best friend. Definitely check the content warnings for this book, as it has some very dark moments! I personally preferred Azure's POV as it was more interesting. We see her very unhealthy, codependent and volatile friendship with Indigo, which is meant to make us feel uncomfortable. Indigo's a complicated, twisted girl who can give you the world, but also tear it down if she feels like it. I loved how many morally grey characters were in the book and how the line between magic and reality began to blur! The ending had some amazing plot twists!
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Violence, and Body horror
Minor: Domestic abuse
scarlett_f's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Toxic friendship, Bullying, Confinement, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Mental illness
Minor: Blood, Alcohol, Death, Death of parent, Child death, Animal death, Grief, Gun violence, Child abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, and Stalking
With a flower bride comes flowery language.jbird_reads'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Toxic friendship, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Sexual content