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mky's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- 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? It's complicated
3.0
I do love the dark fairytale and the mystery of this book. I also enjoyed the fairytales that were interspersed throughout the book and how they tied into the story. This book is a great and fast paced young adult read. However, I felt the book was a little predictable and tended to be written for a young adult audience. Overall, I rated it a 3 because the story concept was fascinating and interesting, but I was clearly not the target audience for this writing style.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Cannibalism, and Kidnapping
jblovegood's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
It's an interesting concept, though some of the story beats didn't fully make sense to me and the character development didn't feel very compelling. I still enjoyed it, but think it could have been done better.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Blood, Child abuse, and Body horror
sssssoup's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This is one of my favorite books of all time. I read it for the first time a few years ago, and I’m so glad I decided the read it again for spooky season this year.
I’m a huge fan of the dark fairy tale aspect of the story. It’s very well developed and interesting, and I love how the author incorporated a story within a story; it’s not something you see very often.
The characters are what really sell it for me. Alice is a very well rounded and complex protagonist; she may not be the most likable character, but her story is engaging and I love how well developed her backstory is. Her memories from her childhood really help to develop her personality for the audience and a lot of depth to her. Finch is one of my favorite characters from recent YA because he’s entertaining and deep at the same time. Like Alice, his trauma and backstory are very well written and really help show his depth.
The writing style is fantastic as well and it’s beautiful to read. It feels very poetic and deep yet realistic at the same time.
I’m a huge fan of the dark fairy tale aspect of the story. It’s very well developed and interesting, and I love how the author incorporated a story within a story; it’s not something you see very often.
The characters are what really sell it for me. Alice is a very well rounded and complex protagonist; she may not be the most likable character, but her story is engaging and I love how well developed her backstory is. Her memories from her childhood really help to develop her personality for the audience and a lot of depth to her. Finch is one of my favorite characters from recent YA because he’s entertaining and deep at the same time. Like Alice, his trauma and backstory are very well written and really help show his depth.
The writing style is fantastic as well and it’s beautiful to read. It feels very poetic and deep yet realistic at the same time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Cursing, and Mental illness
Moderate: Addiction, Alcohol, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, and Violence
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Car accident, Child death, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Suicide, and Stalking
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