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aviery's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Child death, Genocide, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Racism
beingsimba's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
3.0
Children of Virtue and Vengeance is a frustrating read and I am of two minds of this book.
First and foremost, the themes are so important. The larger commentary on loss/grief, oppression, and appropriation are so well done and really landed emotional blows and fostered reflection.
From a pure entertainment perspective though, this book was a disappointment. While I could empathize with many of the characters, I didn't like any of them. The romance felt forced. And the plot was so circular that by the end of the novel most things were in the same state as the beginning. It took until the Epilogue for a spark of interest in reading the finale of this series.
If you really loved the first book, I would imagine you will be just as satisfied with this installment. But the YA-ness of this book really bummed me out. I was hoping to enjoy it more than I did.
First and foremost, the themes are so important. The larger commentary on loss/grief, oppression, and appropriation are so well done and really landed emotional blows and fostered reflection.
From a pure entertainment perspective though, this book was a disappointment. While I could empathize with many of the characters, I didn't like any of them. The romance felt forced. And the plot was so circular that by the end of the novel most things were in the same state as the beginning. It took until the Epilogue for a spark of interest in reading the finale of this series.
If you really loved the first book, I would imagine you will be just as satisfied with this installment. But the YA-ness of this book really bummed me out. I was hoping to enjoy it more than I did.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Violence, Xenophobia, Genocide, and Body horror
ohkmurr's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Heck yeah, screw the system! The way this series plays with the "product of one's environment" outlook will always appeal to me. I especially love that we get more Roën content in this one. He and Zélie have such a fun dynamic. It did take me longer to get through this book than the first. There's not much I can say about what I didn't love without spoiling it, so I'll just say there seems to be a tonal disconnect between this book and the first one.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Child death, Genocide, Grief, Hate crime, Murder, Racism, and Violence
Minor: Racial slurs
Racial slurs are specific to the universe.bodiesinbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
Moderate: Blood, Child death, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Grief, Kidnapping, Violence, and Vomit
oksi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Genocide
Moderate: Toxic relationship
ehmannky's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I agree with most people on here that it's not as a good as the first book in this installment, though I don't think I particularly think it's a terrible book. I thought the character arc for Amari didn't particularly make much sense, and the fact there was no real consequence for her actions beyond her own personal relationships was kind of meh. It's a good continuation, and I think I'll pick up the third book to see where it goes, because it ends on quite the cliffhanger and it makes me think this book was very much a bunch of plot points to get to whatever is coming next for this series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, and Violence
malloryfitz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Grief, and Genocide
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