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courtyshorty's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
CONS: However the reveal was a tad disappointing and the reasoning does not make as much sense as I would like. Had she put aside her pride and listened to what death was telling her, the book would have been much better paced. Her relationship with death is a bit.... inappropriate considering he knew her as a baby. Do we give eternal beings a pass?
PROS: Lovable characters, Thrilling mystery, and I love a good monster romance. A good amount of angst while not having it be annoying.
Despite the plot holes, and the slightly aggravating heroine I found It entertaining.
Moderate: Toxic relationship
znrtr's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Death, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Body horror, and Medical content
Moderate: Murder
rainbowmoons's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, and Toxic relationship
miyothecat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Full of heavily implied pedophilia and grooming, as well as manipulation. The hypocricy of the book trying to sprinkle “feminist” messages here and there only to destroy all of that by having a horrible male love interest who basically grooms and manipulates the main character.
The murder mystery part of the book also made no sense. The conclusion of the murder mystery was so underwhelming. I can’t believe it was such a lame murder motive.
As far as I can tell from the preview at the end of the book, the second book is going to be even worse so I’m not going to even bother picking it up.
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Vomit, and Murder
Moderate: Pedophilia
Minor: Alcoholism
giulianalb99's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
⚠️THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS⚠️
The book is quite good and it's super well written, but it has parts that don't quite convince me. It's very slow, and it's only at the end that everything gets tense. I loved how the author writes, however its true that there were parts in which I was bored.
I was so sure I was going to give this book 4 stars, but it was very predictable and I didn’t like the fact that Percy was the one behind everything…
The romance was good, but I expected more. Of course, there’s a toxic relationship between the MC and Death (I don’t know why authors LOVE to write about toxic relationships), and the tension between each other is great, but since the very beginning I knew who Death was…
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death of parent, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
maregred's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Death of parent and Death
Moderate: Alcohol, Grief, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
Minor: Domestic abuse
headinthepages's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I was engaged in the story as soon as I started reading and found the style of writing, characters & dialogue particularly good.
I loved the plot and was very much along for the ride. I loved Death as a character and can’t wait to find out what happens in Foxglove!
Moderate: Sexism, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Vomit, Abandonment, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Infertility, Alcoholism, Medical content, Miscarriage, Blood, Grief, Gore, Child death, and Infidelity
lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
“Belladonna” follows a teenaged orphan named Signa. She has spent her life being passed from one guardian to the next, and each guardian has been far more interested in her money than in raising her. Now she finds herself with her last remaining family: the Hawthornes. One evening Signa is approached my a spirit, Lillian, who claims she was murdered. Signa, determined to uncover what truly happened to Lillian, decides to team up with Death to figure out who poisoned Lillian and why.
I enjoyed this story much more than I anticipated. The writing is haunting and gothic, with beautiful prose and a strong voice. My favorite aspect of the whole story was Death as a character. He is clever, charming, and wise. He also seems to be the only person looking out for Signa’s best interest.
I will definitely pick up more from the author in the future.
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Child death, Murder, and Toxic relationship
chronicacademia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Child death, Death of parent, Animal death, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Ableism, Vomit, and Violence
Minor: Body shaming
Grooming of a teenager (who is barely not a minor by an old man who knew her starting when she was a baby)foiblesandfiction's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
so let's just say i was really excited for this book - a ya gothic mystery with romance and a death daddy love interest.
but where i was expecting crimson peak, instead i got eddie murphy's the haunted mansion. which isn't the biggest disappointment because god knows that movie is entertaining as hell, but it's still a disappointment.
- too much telling, not enough showing
- too little character interaction, and what there was had little substance
- inconceivable plot twists that felt contrived.
as this is the first in a series, i would be interested to read the next book in hopes that my complaints would be resolved with character development and world building.
ETA
realized i did truly enjoy the observations and commentary about the expectations of women in society, particularly of their purity and demureness. though she was faced with solving a murderer, signa's main dilemma was actually choosing whether or not to meet societal expectations. could she have what she wanted - belonging and community - without being mired and hidden amongst female social norms? is that even true belonging?
now THIS is some good stuff, and i especially love this in a ya novel. thumbs up.
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Child abuse, Vomit, Sexual content, Self harm, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Abandonment and Confinement