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gothicreads's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
A Wish Too Dark and Kind by M.L. Blackbird left me with many feelings: excitement, despair, love and hate.
The blurb sounded very promising and I tell you, I was ready to dive in. But this wasn't easily done. The characters are interesting enough, the magic system and the story idea great - but the non-linear structure and the perspective hopping from one to another left me confused for a good third of the book.
Characters are introduced rapidly with their own stories after the very apocalyptic opening. At first they felt flat to me and it was only much later that everything made sense. The author's writing style kept me going, otherwise I would have DNfd this book very soon.
It got better after that and I liked this little dark story very much in the end. This book is not the right one for you if you dislike death, blood magic and violence.
3 1/2 stars overall.
The blurb sounded very promising and I tell you, I was ready to dive in. But this wasn't easily done. The characters are interesting enough, the magic system and the story idea great - but the non-linear structure and the perspective hopping from one to another left me confused for a good third of the book.
Characters are introduced rapidly with their own stories after the very apocalyptic opening. At first they felt flat to me and it was only much later that everything made sense. The author's writing style kept me going, otherwise I would have DNfd this book very soon.
It got better after that and I liked this little dark story very much in the end. This book is not the right one for you if you dislike death, blood magic and violence.
3 1/2 stars overall.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Death
lindseythelibrarian's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
2.5
I have a lot of mixed feelings.
I was really excited to read this book ans there were a lot of things I really liked about it. The premise was so unique and there were aspects of the magic system that I liked. The writing was dynamic and I would totally read stories but this author in the future.
However, like others have said, this story was very confusing. The perspectives and plot were sometimes difficult to follow and I’m still not 100 percent sure I knew everything that happened. The writing, while nice, was sometimes confusing. Certain elements of the plot seemed like they needed fleshed out more. The whole “wolf” thing was a bit odd and again I felt like the immortal thing needed more explanation.
With all that being said, I still enjoyed it, but there were so many elements I had trouble with. I’d recommend this book for someone interested in a standalone novel that is gruesome, mysterious, and unique.
I was really excited to read this book ans there were a lot of things I really liked about it. The premise was so unique and there were aspects of the magic system that I liked. The writing was dynamic and I would totally read stories but this author in the future.
However, like others have said, this story was very confusing. The perspectives and plot were sometimes difficult to follow and I’m still not 100 percent sure I knew everything that happened. The writing, while nice, was sometimes confusing. Certain elements of the plot seemed like they needed fleshed out more. The whole “wolf” thing was a bit odd and again I felt like the immortal thing needed more explanation.
With all that being said, I still enjoyed it, but there were so many elements I had trouble with. I’d recommend this book for someone interested in a standalone novel that is gruesome, mysterious, and unique.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Blood
Moderate: Death, Incest, and Murder
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