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mpledford's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Murder, Sexual content, Vomit, Blood, Death, and Death of parent
beautyandthebookworms's review against another edition
4.5
around 4.25-4.5 stars⭐️
~
💜there’s so much to say! & that’s even keeping it spoiler free
💜okay I gotta say the second half reallllly did it for me & the last 50-100 pages I gasped out loud more than once
💜the beginning was pretty good but like I said the second half was *so good* I couldn’t put it down
💜I really enjoyed Signa as the FMC, she has been passed from relative to relative after her parents died when she was very young. Signa can see spirits & can see Death, who is a reaper of these spirits.
💜Signa is brought to Thorn Grove where the Hawthorne family lives:: Elijah and his son Percy and daughter Blythe (along with many workers). His wife/their mother tragically passed away BUT Signa learns that she needs to investigate what happened & why Blythe is suspiciously very sick too…
💜this book follows Signa trying to unravel the mystery & geez I found myself questioning every little thing trying to figure it out 😭 I love a good mystery & this didn’t disappoint. I was left like this 😲 when ~everything~ came to light at the end of the book
💜you also get to see Signa interact with the people at Thorn Grove, I enjoyed her getting to build relationships after feeling so lonely for so long.
💜Signa learns so much about herself, her family, about those around her, and can she do more than just see & speak to spirits after all?
💜her encounters with Death just get better & better each time—he’s so protective of her & cares so much for her. some of the quotes I’m like ugh 😩🫶🏼
💜there were some parts mostly noticeable in the first half of the book where I didn’t like the writing/sentence structure or something. It would at times feel disjointed, but like I said the second half I didn’t notice it & the writing just got better & better
~
💜for real, it is hard to not go on & on AND not to spoil anything so I’ll just leave it at that—I highly recommend this book. It was exciting, it has a romance, it keeps you on your toes & guessing, I’m excited to read the next ☺️
~
💜there’s so much to say! & that’s even keeping it spoiler free
💜okay I gotta say the second half reallllly did it for me & the last 50-100 pages I gasped out loud more than once
💜the beginning was pretty good but like I said the second half was *so good* I couldn’t put it down
💜I really enjoyed Signa as the FMC, she has been passed from relative to relative after her parents died when she was very young. Signa can see spirits & can see Death, who is a reaper of these spirits.
💜Signa is brought to Thorn Grove where the Hawthorne family lives:: Elijah and his son Percy and daughter Blythe (along with many workers). His wife/their mother tragically passed away BUT Signa learns that she needs to investigate what happened & why Blythe is suspiciously very sick too…
💜this book follows Signa trying to unravel the mystery & geez I found myself questioning every little thing trying to figure it out 😭 I love a good mystery & this didn’t disappoint. I was left like this 😲 when ~everything~ came to light at the end of the book
💜you also get to see Signa interact with the people at Thorn Grove, I enjoyed her getting to build relationships after feeling so lonely for so long.
💜Signa learns so much about herself, her family, about those around her, and can she do more than just see & speak to spirits after all?
💜her encounters with Death just get better & better each time—he’s so protective of her & cares so much for her. some of the quotes I’m like ugh 😩🫶🏼
💜there were some parts mostly noticeable in the first half of the book where I didn’t like the writing/sentence structure or something. It would at times feel disjointed, but like I said the second half I didn’t notice it & the writing just got better & better
~
💜for real, it is hard to not go on & on AND not to spoil anything so I’ll just leave it at that—I highly recommend this book. It was exciting, it has a romance, it keeps you on your toes & guessing, I’m excited to read the next ☺️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, and Death of parent
evarinya's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Death
Moderate: Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, and Chronic illness
Minor: Misogyny, Terminal illness, Murder, and Physical abuse
maries_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Murder and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Death of parent
jareadforfilth's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
4.5
This book was sooo good and I totally see where the hype comes from. I thought I’d figure out whodunnit but I was wayyy off, I knew it was too obvious! 😂 Signa is a character that definitely makes you wanna root for her, I got a lil frustrated with her in the beginning because of her animosity towards Death but as her character developed I was sooo in. There were some really juicy twists in here too and a lot of heart! I’m definitely excited to keep reading this series!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder and Death of parent
beckyyreadss's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
4.0
This is my book club’s choice for October as well as the Pumpkin Spice Café. I hadn’t heard anything about this book before it was the choice for October. I went into this book completely blind.
This book is based on nineteen-year-old Signa Farrow, she was orphaned as a baby and has been raised by a string of guardians, each more interested in her wealth than her wellbeing and each have been met with an untimely end. Her remaining relatives are the elusive Hawthornes, they are an eccentric family living at Thorn Grove, an estate that is both glittering and gloomy. The head of the house, Elliot is mourning his late wife by having wild parties, his son is struggling to get control of the family’s reputation and his daughter is suffering from a mysterious illness. But when their mother’s restless spirit appears claiming she was poisoned, Signa realises that the family she depends on could be in grave danger, and enlists the help of a stable boy to hunt down the killer. Signa’s best chance of uncovering the murderer, though, is an alliance with Death himself, a fascinating, dangerous shadow who has never been far from her side. Though he’s made her life a living hell, Death shows Signa that their growing connection may be more powerful and more irresistible than she ever dared imagine.
As stated, I went into this book completely blind not reading any reviews or anything like that. It was a very strong storyline, and I was hooked from the first line. I loved the characters in the book especially Signa and Death. They were both firing off sexual chemistry and tension from the get-go. I love the regency and gothic feeling with all the balls and talks about how a woman must act in society and then Signa like nope screw that I'm out. Death is supposed to be big and scary and then acts like a complete golden retriever when he is around Signa and will literally do his job if anyone is even slightly mean to her.
The mystery element had me from the beginning and I had my suspect early on and I guessed correctly. I won’t ruin who it was, but I think I’ve read way too many mysterious and crime books that I'm getting good at guessing it. That's my only reason for not being a five-star read. I would have loved to have been shocked and gasping when it was revealed.
The ending was cruel, and I wanted more and now I must wait for the second book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Murder and Vomit
Minor: Alcohol and Sexual content
sova_bean's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-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
Moderate: Alcoholism, Body horror, Blood, Death of parent, Grief, Death, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
vagrantheather's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
A fun read, but problematic at times, and not very deep or moving. Death was rather sexy. Hard to have a book about death and murder and yet not really feel that it's a dark book, but here we are.
There were a lot of plot devices I disliked. Death's fascination with (and interference on behalf of) our MC feels like grooming. A wealthy orphan girl being passed along to a home full of constant ribald parties - unlikely, given the time period, but plausible for a smutty regency book. However it doesn't go there - it ISN'T a smutty regency book where our innocent young heroine finds herself in a scandalous situation. So it feels unnecessarily edgy on part of the author.
The garden fiasco and overall vibe (mansion estate, ghosts, death, a sexy servant boy) summon The Secret Garden. And I love TSG! But the garden ends up being basically unnecessary. There's some waffley excuse that spirits can't communicate well when removed from their place of (death? Burial? Can't recall), but the whole "ahh I must find this secret garden then KILL MYSELF to gain entry" was so unnecessary. Surely the spirit could talk to you from, idk, the other side of the wall? And could you really not think of a single other way to enter a locked garden than by poisoning yourself to summon death's powers of intangibility? Maybe try looking under a rock for the key? Or ask the servant for a key? Or look for a key in the mansion? Maybe try scaling a nearby tree? Maybe stand on the horse's back to hop over? So many options that don't require summoning your professed enemy.
I was very disappointed by the author's tendency to distinguish characters by hair and skin color. The characters were mostly thin/flat.
The author puts in place a mechanism for Signa to play God by taking one life to spare another, but ultimately does very little with this theme. She was essentially A-OK with having murdered an old aunt to spare her young cousin. Sure, she didn't know what she was doing, but after finding out her power the guilt was a short lived thing, easily shrugged off. Flimsy.
It's an enjoyable read, but shallowly developed and ultimately forgettable.
There were a lot of plot devices I disliked. Death's fascination with (and interference on behalf of) our MC feels like grooming. A wealthy orphan girl being passed along to a home full of constant ribald parties - unlikely, given the time period, but plausible for a smutty regency book. However it doesn't go there - it ISN'T a smutty regency book where our innocent young heroine finds herself in a scandalous situation. So it feels unnecessarily edgy on part of the author.
The garden fiasco and overall vibe (mansion estate, ghosts, death, a sexy servant boy) summon The Secret Garden. And I love TSG! But the garden ends up being basically unnecessary. There's some waffley excuse that spirits can't communicate well when removed from their place of (death? Burial? Can't recall), but the whole "ahh I must find this secret garden then KILL MYSELF to gain entry" was so unnecessary. Surely the spirit could talk to you from, idk, the other side of the wall? And could you really not think of a single other way to enter a locked garden than by poisoning yourself to summon death's powers of intangibility? Maybe try looking under a rock for the key? Or ask the servant for a key? Or look for a key in the mansion? Maybe try scaling a nearby tree? Maybe stand on the horse's back to hop over? So many options that don't require summoning your professed enemy.
I was very disappointed by the author's tendency to distinguish characters by hair and skin color. The characters were mostly thin/flat.
The author puts in place a mechanism for Signa to play God by taking one life to spare another, but ultimately does very little with this theme. She was essentially A-OK with having murdered an old aunt to spare her young cousin. Sure, she didn't know what she was doing, but after finding out her power the guilt was a short lived thing, easily shrugged off. Flimsy.
It's an enjoyable read, but shallowly developed and ultimately forgettable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Murder, Chronic illness, Fire/Fire injury, and Terminal illness
Minor: Self harm, Death of parent, and Sexual content
themelleh's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
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? No
2.5
and yeah, just let percy get away with being a matricidal/sororicidal little shit. i would have told blythe who tried to kill her and who did kill her mother, told elijah who killed his wife and tried to kill his daughter. screw pretence.
Death being Sylas sucked and was such a cop out. I hate love triangles but it was <i>too</i> easy and Signa didn’t have to make a choice because it was made for her.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Grief, Death, Terminal illness, War, and Vomit
Minor: Blood
nataliebootlah's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
An orphaned Signa is passed from guardian to guardian until she moves into Thorn Grove to live with her distant, wealthy relatives. And for the first time, she doesn’t feel like they’re more interested in her impending inheritance than her.
In an attempt to save her cousin from the same mysterious illness that took her aunt, she must confront Death himself—the man that’s haunted her nearly since birth. Oh, did I not mention that Signa can see spirits?
This mysterious, gothic novel has an eerie ambiance, a touch of romance, and a flirtatious relationship with Death. While this was a fun read, it felt a little too young adult for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Minor: Sexual content, Murder, and Death of parent