Reviews with content warning for Murder - A Restless Truth

Reviews tagging 'Murder'

A Restless Truth by Freya Marske

73 reviews

sadiesaurus's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

I really enjoyed this book. There were several twists that I didn't see coming but also didn't feel out of place or unreasonable. The sexy parts were good and well distributed, with an appropriate amount of build up and sexual tension at the start.

Content Warnings

cassielaj's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I liked this even more than book one. It does a great job of continuing the overall story while introducing a totally new plot and mostly new cast. I am a sucker for any kind of locked-room/contained mystery, so the ship setting was a blast. Maud is a lovely, endearing protagonist, and Violet is a complete riot with a complex back story and emotional background. I was skeptical about Hawthorn’s increased role in the plot, but I ended up liking him a lot. Ready to start book 3!

Content Warnings

therainbowshelf's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Another enjoyable entry in this series. I was delighted to meet Ross and Violet and get to know Maud and Hawthorn more in this volume. I enjoyed the first book a bit more, because the pacing was better, but I felt the character connections just as strongly and laughed out loud just as often with this. Super excited for the next book!

Content Warnings

persephonefoxx's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

“She hadn't anticipated Maud Blyth. She didn't know how anyone ever could.”

I really fell victim to loving the first book so much that I went into this one with such high expectations. The sequel to a book I loved, plus a sapphic romance! It was all set up to be an instant win for me. But it just vibe the same way.

While I liked this book and had fun with the mystery and the characters, the romance between Violet and Maud really didn’t hit the same way as Robin and Edwin. I found myself far more invested in the relationships between side characters than the romantic leads. As a mystery and a fun historical fantasy, I enjoyed this. As a romance, it kinda just fell flat.

Content Warnings

bookcheshirecat's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious slow-paced

2.5

“Mrs. Sinclair says you look at the world and decide you can live with it or decide you can’t. And if you can’t, you decide what you’re prepared to do about it.”

➽ I liked A Marvellous Light, but A Restless Truth didn't really live up to it. It's a companion novel set in the same universe as the first book and follows Robin's sister Maud Blyth as she embarks on a cruise to New York. When the old woman she travels with is murdered, Maud finds herself in the middle of a murder mystery. She enlists the help of charming Violet Debenham, a scandal magnet and grumpy Lord Hawthorn to find out who killed a fellow passenger. I liked Maud a lot and was glad that she got her own book, as I wanted to see more of her. She's not a magician, but due to her brother's visions, she's trying to prevent the Last Contract from falling into the wrong hands. Maud feels like she ows it to Robin to contribute something useful and is determined to salvage this terrible situation. I liked her stubborn nature and strong will, especially as she's surrounded by people with magical powers.

➽ The setting and premise were fantastic, but the execution left a lot to be desired. We barely explored the ship and stuck to the same places like the cabins or the dining hall. The mystery was so slow and boring, I don't think there were any interesting twists and turns. Most of the time it felt like the characters were walking in circles. Maud and her team would try something, it wouldn't work and then they'd start all over again. It felt very repetitive, as a lot of this book consists of characters just talking to each other and trying to make plans. The villains were so cartoonish and most side characters were indistinguishable. I feel like there were no high stakes or sense of danger, which took all the suspense out of the book. Maud is aware she's stuck on a ship with a murderer, but I wasn't really scared for her until the very end.

It didn't help that they found out who is the killer ... and then had to pretend everything was fine and keep sitting at the same dining room table. I don't understand how that was helping, as the killers could have easily silenced them when they weren't in public.

The mystery aspect took up a good chunk of the book but was ultimately disappointing.

➽ I also wanted to like the romance more. I was initially excited as I loved the banter between Maud and Violet. The latter is a scandal magnet and doesn't care for her reputation, something that immediately draws in Maud. It was nice to read about Maud discovering her sexuality and coming to terms with what she wanted romantically. I just feel like we didn't get to know Violet beyond the basics. Her background story was told in an infodump in the middle of the book, but for the most part, I didn't understand Violet. She felt much less developed compared to Maud and more like a quirky trope than an actual person.

Content Warnings

grace_b_3's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

rideauriverreads's review

Go to review page

adventurous lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.5

Content Warnings

bootrat's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional funny mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

I had an excellent time with this book, it was great fun! But also touching and reflective as the characters grapple with their flaws and the challenges of letting somebody in and allowing yourself to have feelings for another person.

Content Warnings

yourbookishbff's review

Go to review page

adventurous funny mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Middle books so often feel meandering in a trilogy, and Marske's decision to make this a confined, liminal story, existing entirely on a ship crossing the Atlantic, really worked for me. I loved the attention to detail on the ocean liner, which made this setting feel so vivid and unique. I loved the concept - murder mystery on an ocean liner with a cobbled together crew of vigilantes - and enjoyed the moments of true eccentricity (The actual menagerie?! The jewelry thief and circulating erotica?!).

The romance is very realist cally built and ends in a way that feels authentic for these characters, who each need more time to determine their own futures and identity individually as well. I loved Violet's high-walled heart and Maude's steadiness and vulnerability. I think some readers will want a romance arc that feels more conplete and more familiar, as we had in book one, but I didn't mind this personally.

The expanded magic system!! I loved exploring illusions, as well as American approaches to magic, and I LOVED cradle speak. Learning more about the Forsythia Club adds even more to the world-building and our understanding of the magic system, and I loved how much of the origin story we get in this installment.

Marske's writing is, as always, stunning, and I loved the audio production and narration for this book. There were lines that stayed with me, even as I listened - a feeling of cold water poured between bones, a voice searching for a bruise to press, music that sounds as though someone had passed their hand across velvet, the wrong way and then the right way. I just love Marske's writing.

Content Warnings

caelfind's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Content Warnings

More...