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I've had good previous experiences with GraphicAudio productions, but this one is badly done. Dialogue is cut together poorly with some parts of dialogue overlapping or questions answered over the top of being asked. Some of the sound effects are utterly inappropriate – silently pulling a door closed is not a "Crrreeeak-kaThunk!" moment, and a roaring, magical, water-powered car should not sound like a child's bubble blowing machine.
The setting of the world is fairly intuitive, and is shown rather than told, which I really liked. Although the key plot points are predictable, there are some extra short stories on the end that I found quite fun. I liked the focus on Russian folklore.
This would have been a lot better if there was less fixation on describing clothes, (and less combat), and more tension around emotional vulnerability. I'm not enthused to read more of this series, but might pick the next one up if I get really bored.
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Incest, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail
It's a solid start to the series. I had forgotten how gruesome some of the content can be but it effective paint the picture of apocalypse adjacent times.
The mystery was exciting though knowing the culprit made it a bit frustrating when they were trying to figure out who the baddie was.
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Incest, Infertility, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
to say it plainly: kate daniels in a bad b*tch! i love her narration, her perspective and especially her one-liners. she's intelligent but still has her blind spots, and her mouth gets her into a lot of trouble. the side characters are just as vivid as our bada$$ heroine. curran is an a$$hole, yet i can't wait to see how he becomes a worthy partner for kate. i love slow burns; i'm already invested in this one. my only other point of criticism is that like many other female-led fantasy novels, kate appears to be lacking in female friendships other than her few correspondences with anna.
the world of kate daniels series in over 10 books long, so i don't doubt there will be ample opportunity for said relationships to develop. this is me, preparing for the long and entertaining ride ahead!
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, Cannibalism, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Infertility, Medical content, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol
Minor: Incest, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Stalking, War
Graphic: Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood
Moderate: Death, Gore, Death of parent, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Incest, Pedophilia