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mercey's review against another edition
2.0
This book was fine, I just feel like maybe I didn’t understand it. The writing is beautiful, of that there is no doubt, but perhaps the prose is a touch too convoluted to be understood. The imagery was wonderful but only once you worked for it. Sometimes a tree can have green leaves, rather than leaves the colour of blood, should blood reside on the opposite side of the colour wheel.
It’s rich with words, yet I found it too wordy in places, to the point I could not tell you what this book was about, nor did I feel for any of the characters. Not my kind of book, but possibly for others who really want to read something for the writing alone.
Madi
It’s rich with words, yet I found it too wordy in places, to the point I could not tell you what this book was about, nor did I feel for any of the characters. Not my kind of book, but possibly for others who really want to read something for the writing alone.
Madi
emthereader13's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to NetGalley and Little Blackbird LLC for the opportunity to read and review this title before publishing! All opinions are my own.
I overall really enjoyed this book! A Wish Too Dark and Kind is packed with action and is basically a murder mystery with heavy fantasy elements. There are immortals, some of which are reminiscent of classic fantasy creatures like vampires and werewolves. There is also a really complex and unique magic system that I really enjoyed learning about. I loved that Blackbird was able to build the world and explain the magic system while moving the plot forward instead of just info dumping.
I mostly enjoyed the structure of the book which was narritive interspersed with documents from an investigation into the events of the party. This structure allowed for facts and characters to be revealed slowly and kept me guessing at what would happen next. What didn’t work for me with this structure was the introduction of the mythology in this world. I found the mythology incredibly confusing at times and even more so when switching between the narrative and investigation documents. It was difficult for me to keep things straight and honestly understand why the mythology was introduced in the first place. I mostly wish I had more time in the world prior to the party. I think it would have helped immensely to world build and introduce the mythology at the beginning of the book.
That being said, I’m giving this 4 stars. If you like mysteries and dark fantasy you should definitely check out this book! It has immortals, action, gore, and just the right amount of creepy - perfect for this time of year.
I overall really enjoyed this book! A Wish Too Dark and Kind is packed with action and is basically a murder mystery with heavy fantasy elements. There are immortals, some of which are reminiscent of classic fantasy creatures like vampires and werewolves. There is also a really complex and unique magic system that I really enjoyed learning about. I loved that Blackbird was able to build the world and explain the magic system while moving the plot forward instead of just info dumping.
I mostly enjoyed the structure of the book which was narritive interspersed with documents from an investigation into the events of the party. This structure allowed for facts and characters to be revealed slowly and kept me guessing at what would happen next. What didn’t work for me with this structure was the introduction of the mythology in this world. I found the mythology incredibly confusing at times and even more so when switching between the narrative and investigation documents. It was difficult for me to keep things straight and honestly understand why the mythology was introduced in the first place. I mostly wish I had more time in the world prior to the party. I think it would have helped immensely to world build and introduce the mythology at the beginning of the book.
That being said, I’m giving this 4 stars. If you like mysteries and dark fantasy you should definitely check out this book! It has immortals, action, gore, and just the right amount of creepy - perfect for this time of year.
oneanjana's review against another edition
2.0
This book is actually interesting, both from the impressive cover and the premise which is quite promising. However, too bad that it's not well-executed and kinda messy. It was already confusing at the beginning with the short story of each character who was invited to the party with a less strong background as well. I can't feel connected to the characters because while reading I often think: “Um... who is that person again?” Maybe it's better if the plot is reversed, they meet first at the party, then start exploring the background of the characters one by one as the story progresses. About halfway through the book, I started to feel tired and give up on the seemingly endless and confusing plot and ended up skimming a lot to the end.
Another thing that really bugging me is the writing style. Some parts I think are better written with italic to distinguish the atmosphere. For example, when a letter is inserted, or when a character is listening to a recording, I think the contents of the recording should be written in italic so it won't be confusing.
Thank you for NetGalley and Publisher for the opportunity to read this eARC.
Another thing that really bugging me is the writing style. Some parts I think are better written with italic to distinguish the atmosphere. For example, when a letter is inserted, or when a character is listening to a recording, I think the contents of the recording should be written in italic so it won't be confusing.
Thank you for NetGalley and Publisher for the opportunity to read this eARC.
cseanread's review against another edition
3.0
DNF.
I don't think I'm the target audience for this one. Or maybe it's just too "cerebral" for me. Either way, I gave up half way through.
It's a good book, well-written, and with an intriguing world.... But it didn't work for me.
I don't think I'm the target audience for this one. Or maybe it's just too "cerebral" for me. Either way, I gave up half way through.
It's a good book, well-written, and with an intriguing world.... But it didn't work for me.
tabatha_shipley's review against another edition
2.0
What I Did Like:
-Interesting premise. A bunch of immortals are invited to an event without really knowing why sounds like a fascinating version of Clue.
-Cover is beautiful.
Who Should Read This One:
-Readers who follow complicated storylines and large casts may enjoy this one more than I did.
My Rating: 2 Stars
For me this one needed tightening to bring it all together.
For Full Review: https://tabathashipleybooks.com/2022/10/10/2022-book-review-a-wish-too-dark-and-kind/
-Interesting premise. A bunch of immortals are invited to an event without really knowing why sounds like a fascinating version of Clue.
-Cover is beautiful.
Who Should Read This One:
-Readers who follow complicated storylines and large casts may enjoy this one more than I did.
My Rating: 2 Stars
For me this one needed tightening to bring it all together.
For Full Review: https://tabathashipleybooks.com/2022/10/10/2022-book-review-a-wish-too-dark-and-kind/
theseliterarydelights's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
bookish_blanche's review against another edition
3.0
A somewhat confusing and bizarre novel
-Big thanks to Netgalley for the eARC-
Demeure is known to be able to fulfill wishes or conjure nightmares. When he invites eight immortals to a party, no one refuses. But why are they summoned - for a party, or a dark ceremony? The attendees start unraveling the details of his plan, and one of the guests seems to be working with the host... Everyone has a secret to hide. Will the guests manage to uncover Demeure's true intentions or will the party turn into an absolute nightmare?
I'm not going to lie, this book was confusing for me from start to finish. I wouldn't say I didn't like it exactly. The writing was quite good and addictive and I kept turning the pages. But the main issue was that I had trouble understanding what was happening or where the story was going. There were a lot of main characters, making it sometimes difficult to keep track of who was here and who wasn't. The plot felt quite long and slow, and it didn't really agree with me, but I think the book just wasn't for me. I however quite enjoyed the dark atmosphere and it was clear that the world is rich and quite detailed, and I'll admit that I was really interested in it. Some of the characters did manage to catch my eye too, and I sometimes laughed or gasped in the midst of action, which I liked. I'm honestly puzzled by what I read and I can't even tell you which genre the book was since there was magic, but also supernatural creatures, and some sort of mystery vibe as well. All I can tell you is that I read it, sort of enjoyed it, but didn't really understand what was going on, which is quite unusual for me, I'll admit.
I don't know if I'd recommend it or not, but I don't think I was the target audience for this book.
"Those words weren't a mere prophecy, but a promise or a curse."
-Big thanks to Netgalley for the eARC-
Demeure is known to be able to fulfill wishes or conjure nightmares. When he invites eight immortals to a party, no one refuses. But why are they summoned - for a party, or a dark ceremony? The attendees start unraveling the details of his plan, and one of the guests seems to be working with the host... Everyone has a secret to hide. Will the guests manage to uncover Demeure's true intentions or will the party turn into an absolute nightmare?
I'm not going to lie, this book was confusing for me from start to finish. I wouldn't say I didn't like it exactly. The writing was quite good and addictive and I kept turning the pages. But the main issue was that I had trouble understanding what was happening or where the story was going. There were a lot of main characters, making it sometimes difficult to keep track of who was here and who wasn't. The plot felt quite long and slow, and it didn't really agree with me, but I think the book just wasn't for me. I however quite enjoyed the dark atmosphere and it was clear that the world is rich and quite detailed, and I'll admit that I was really interested in it. Some of the characters did manage to catch my eye too, and I sometimes laughed or gasped in the midst of action, which I liked. I'm honestly puzzled by what I read and I can't even tell you which genre the book was since there was magic, but also supernatural creatures, and some sort of mystery vibe as well. All I can tell you is that I read it, sort of enjoyed it, but didn't really understand what was going on, which is quite unusual for me, I'll admit.
I don't know if I'd recommend it or not, but I don't think I was the target audience for this book.
"Those words weren't a mere prophecy, but a promise or a curse."
willfulcreatures's review against another edition
3.0
First, I’d like to thank Netgalley for my ARC of this! Second, my review, very well crafted, but I don’t think I was the perfect audience for this. I requested this through netgalley because it was under the horror genre, but it is clearly dark fantasy/dark academia everywhere else. Unfortunately, I personally am not the biggest fan of that genre. That said, this book sparks very interesting ideas on immortality that I’ve yet to see explored in fiction, and I give the author all the credit for this incredible work of world-building. The characters were very well written in their own lore, and I believe this would be perfect for fans of character driven dark fantasy.
bookishfreedom's review against another edition
2.0
Actual rating more like 2.5 stars.
This was a hard book to rate for me, because I kind of enjoyed this story in spite of its quality. In other words, I had a lot of fun reading it, but I probably wouldn't recommend it to a friend.
A Wish Too Dark And Kind was carried by its characters. There were a lot to juggle for the overall length of the story, but they were all so colorful that it almost didn't matter. This book is swimming with villains and morally gray individuals, and it was a blast seeing how they all weaved together despite being so unique, and to try and determine who to root for. Part of what made them so great was the character descriptions: they were vivid and unique really brought all of the oddballs to life.
In general, though, I had mixed feelings about the prose. The character and setting descriptions were most well done, sometimes even great but at some points it went a little too far. It was well balanced at times, but other times felt like the narrative was taking itself too seriously. This also resulted in a bit of mixed messaging from the worldbuilding. It was deep and interesting enough to keep me reading, but at times felt like it was dark just for the sake of being dark. Then at some points that I found funny, I wasn't sure that it was actually meant to be comedic.
What really keeps me from recommending this book however was the dialogue and pacing. For how detailed and elaborate this world and story was, it felt very rushed at times. Since the characters were so interesting, I would've liked more opportunities to get to know them, rather than just being so focused on moving the plot forward. The dialogue also tripped me up a bit: it was stilted at times (not horribly - this is just something that really impacts the quality of a story for me. I want characters to talk like regular people!) and a little inconsistent. (Characters who were supposed to be immortal/centuries years old speaking too casually. I wanna see more old timey-slang from characters that are supposed to be old-timey!)
My overall impression of this book is that I am very interested in reading future works by Blackbird. A lot of the bones are there - the ideas and the characters - and with some more writing experience I think there will be some good books from him in the future.
This was a hard book to rate for me, because I kind of enjoyed this story in spite of its quality. In other words, I had a lot of fun reading it, but I probably wouldn't recommend it to a friend.
A Wish Too Dark And Kind was carried by its characters. There were a lot to juggle for the overall length of the story, but they were all so colorful that it almost didn't matter. This book is swimming with villains and morally gray individuals, and it was a blast seeing how they all weaved together despite being so unique, and to try and determine who to root for. Part of what made them so great was the character descriptions: they were vivid and unique really brought all of the oddballs to life.
In general, though, I had mixed feelings about the prose. The character and setting descriptions were most well done, sometimes even great but at some points it went a little too far. It was well balanced at times, but other times felt like the narrative was taking itself too seriously. This also resulted in a bit of mixed messaging from the worldbuilding. It was deep and interesting enough to keep me reading, but at times felt like it was dark just for the sake of being dark. Then at some points that I found funny, I wasn't sure that it was actually meant to be comedic.
What really keeps me from recommending this book however was the dialogue and pacing. For how detailed and elaborate this world and story was, it felt very rushed at times. Since the characters were so interesting, I would've liked more opportunities to get to know them, rather than just being so focused on moving the plot forward. The dialogue also tripped me up a bit: it was stilted at times (not horribly - this is just something that really impacts the quality of a story for me. I want characters to talk like regular people!) and a little inconsistent. (Characters who were supposed to be immortal/centuries years old speaking too casually. I wanna see more old timey-slang from characters that are supposed to be old-timey!)
My overall impression of this book is that I am very interested in reading future works by Blackbird. A lot of the bones are there - the ideas and the characters - and with some more writing experience I think there will be some good books from him in the future.
shopeing's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to Netgalley and Little Blackbird LLC for the arc of this book!
What would you do if you received an invitation to a gathering with someone who could grant you your wish? No one refuses the invite, but perhaps they will regret that decision...you never fully know what will be involved when magic and otherworldly beings are in attendance.
When I saw the cover, I was immediately intrigued, then I read the description and became even more curious about this book.
I was a bit slower to get going on this book as I had plans that got in the way, but when I could finally sit down and read, I just kept coming up with more and more questions pertaining to the book.
The book had some fresh ideas going and multiple perspectives, but I did sometimes need to reread sections here and there. I felt like there was so much story and detail in the author's mind, but not enough pages to portray it all. I became invested in each character and would love to get more of a backstory to how they each got to where they were as I feel, even after finishing the book, that I still do not have a complete picture of each individual and how they tie together with the others.
With the multiple perspectives and timelines, you really see how there are many sides to each character. Like in life, no one is fully good nor fully evil. It also gave us more insight into the different branches of this fantastical realm. As it was formatted, it does bounce between past journal entries to present day story-telling, but it did seem to tie more aspects together bringing forward the history of one main character.
I feel like I've only just dipped a toe into this universe rather than diving completely in. Ready to see what M.L. Blackbird comes up with next.
What would you do if you received an invitation to a gathering with someone who could grant you your wish? No one refuses the invite, but perhaps they will regret that decision...you never fully know what will be involved when magic and otherworldly beings are in attendance.
When I saw the cover, I was immediately intrigued, then I read the description and became even more curious about this book.
I was a bit slower to get going on this book as I had plans that got in the way, but when I could finally sit down and read, I just kept coming up with more and more questions pertaining to the book.
The book had some fresh ideas going and multiple perspectives, but I did sometimes need to reread sections here and there. I felt like there was so much story and detail in the author's mind, but not enough pages to portray it all. I became invested in each character and would love to get more of a backstory to how they each got to where they were as I feel, even after finishing the book, that I still do not have a complete picture of each individual and how they tie together with the others.
With the multiple perspectives and timelines, you really see how there are many sides to each character. Like in life, no one is fully good nor fully evil. It also gave us more insight into the different branches of this fantastical realm. As it was formatted, it does bounce between past journal entries to present day story-telling, but it did seem to tie more aspects together bringing forward the history of one main character.
I feel like I've only just dipped a toe into this universe rather than diving completely in. Ready to see what M.L. Blackbird comes up with next.