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annettebooksofhopeanddreams's review against another edition
4.0
The moment I discovered this book in my Book Box I was entirely surprised. This book hadn't been on my radar, no one had been talking about it and at first glance it didn't really seem like a book for me either. But, it's a really important and very well done book and I'm really glad that thanks to the buddy read I ended up reading it.
Without info dumps or lengthy explanations Davis manages to create a world that's so vivid and raw and in a way mirrors our world perfectly too. The prologue is so incredibly strong and sets the mood and atmosphere for the entire story and then we switch perspective and the actual story starts, about five girls going after the only thing they actually want: Freedom.
The five girls are all very different, but although there are moments they disagree and mistrust each other, it's never about bringing each other down. They combine their forces and talents and that's what eventually gets them through the country. We see each of the five girls grow and develop, carrying their own history and story and learning how to deal with everything that has happened to them. And we most of all see how Aster, the girl trying to keep everyone alive, finds her own purpose and who she truly wants to be.
The combination of the vivid and raw world and the lovely characters I've grown to love with a wonderful writing style that makes this book a fast read leads to a wonderful book about prejudice, about a government already stifling people at birth, about injustice and about five wonderful girls taking matters into their own hands and discovering they are much stronger then they always thought they could be.
Without info dumps or lengthy explanations Davis manages to create a world that's so vivid and raw and in a way mirrors our world perfectly too. The prologue is so incredibly strong and sets the mood and atmosphere for the entire story and then we switch perspective and the actual story starts, about five girls going after the only thing they actually want: Freedom.
The five girls are all very different, but although there are moments they disagree and mistrust each other, it's never about bringing each other down. They combine their forces and talents and that's what eventually gets them through the country. We see each of the five girls grow and develop, carrying their own history and story and learning how to deal with everything that has happened to them. And we most of all see how Aster, the girl trying to keep everyone alive, finds her own purpose and who she truly wants to be.
The combination of the vivid and raw world and the lovely characters I've grown to love with a wonderful writing style that makes this book a fast read leads to a wonderful book about prejudice, about a government already stifling people at birth, about injustice and about five wonderful girls taking matters into their own hands and discovering they are much stronger then they always thought they could be.
julane79's review
5.0
Right from the beginning the story has you hooked! I enjoyed how each character has a story but it doesn't tell you how each one got into the welcome house. Aster is the bad ass protector and refuses to let anything happen to her sister Clementine. Violet, Tansy and Mallow are there for the ride but don't let that fool you they each play a vital role in helping escape their horrible life in Arketta, in which they met a guy Zee who is willing to help them get to where they need to go. Each girl at the end of the book knows exactly what they want and fought very hard to get it. The love and care they have for one another really shows in this story. Each twist and turn is so worth the read and highly recommended.
sophia_lorraine's review
4.0
a debut novel about trauma, resilience, and hope - wowza. Just a dash of The Handmaid’s Tale with the flair of a Western. Very good read.
theeuphoriczat's review
3.0
Thanks to #Pridebooktours for making this book available to me!
This duology is marketed as Six of Crows meet The Handmaid's Tale. Considering the fact that I have read the former and not the latter, I can tell you that it definitely gives you six of crow vibes with the friendships and the heist section of the story. But before I spoil this book any further, I will give a very brief review of the book by highlighting the world that it is set in.
Set in the Country of Arketta, the rich get richer and the poor gets poorer. The poor sell their children in hopes to either provide the children better lives or to have less mouths to feed in the family. There are also families who have their children taken from then by landowners because of a debt that they would never be able to pay because they can never in their life time work enough to pay themselves out of debt (Sounds a lot like Slavery to me - Read the book for more)
These children (girls in particular) are taken to welcome houses (these girls are then called The Good Luck Girls - an unfortunate name to be honest), where they are branded and feed till they turn sixteen years old, when they supposedly become 'proper women'. The requirement now, is that they have to sleep with men for the rest of their lives or if they are 'pleasing enough' a landowner might decide to buy them from the welcome house and make the girl his property.
This where we meet Clementine who has just turned 16 and is about to be raped by the man who has hired her for the night. She accidently kills him and this is the catalyst for the duology. She is found by her older sister Aster and some other girls in the welcome house, Violet, Tansy and Mallow. They forge an escape plan and they escape from the welcome house in search of 'The Lady Ghost'
Once the word of their escape spreads to the father of the man that was killed he send out a search party. This is how we get to know more about the brands on the girls (called Favours- which burns when they cover it up or hide it from plain sight), the magic of Arketta, the crossing of the boundaries, the people who live underground, the ghosts who torment and watch and the strength of hope and purpose.
I will continue the review of the duology in the next book so has to avoid spoiler
I gave this book 3.5 stars
This duology is marketed as Six of Crows meet The Handmaid's Tale. Considering the fact that I have read the former and not the latter, I can tell you that it definitely gives you six of crow vibes with the friendships and the heist section of the story. But before I spoil this book any further, I will give a very brief review of the book by highlighting the world that it is set in.
Set in the Country of Arketta, the rich get richer and the poor gets poorer. The poor sell their children in hopes to either provide the children better lives or to have less mouths to feed in the family. There are also families who have their children taken from then by landowners because of a debt that they would never be able to pay because they can never in their life time work enough to pay themselves out of debt (Sounds a lot like Slavery to me - Read the book for more)
These children (girls in particular) are taken to welcome houses (these girls are then called The Good Luck Girls - an unfortunate name to be honest), where they are branded and feed till they turn sixteen years old, when they supposedly become 'proper women'. The requirement now, is that they have to sleep with men for the rest of their lives or if they are 'pleasing enough' a landowner might decide to buy them from the welcome house and make the girl his property.
This where we meet Clementine who has just turned 16 and is about to be raped by the man who has hired her for the night. She accidently kills him and this is the catalyst for the duology. She is found by her older sister Aster and some other girls in the welcome house, Violet, Tansy and Mallow. They forge an escape plan and they escape from the welcome house in search of 'The Lady Ghost'
Once the word of their escape spreads to the father of the man that was killed he send out a search party. This is how we get to know more about the brands on the girls (called Favours- which burns when they cover it up or hide it from plain sight), the magic of Arketta, the crossing of the boundaries, the people who live underground, the ghosts who torment and watch and the strength of hope and purpose.
I will continue the review of the duology in the next book so has to avoid spoiler
I gave this book 3.5 stars
readerlatte's review
5.0
This story was one I will not soon forget!! I loved the fresh idea of the Favors and how the world was like the Wild West. I really thought this one reminded me of the 90's movie Bad Girls and I would love to see this one on the big screen. The only issue I had with this title was that on the cover you have this gorgeous POC on the cover of the title. However, in the story it is never mentioned what color skin or nationality (other than them being Dust something. IE. they had no shadows). Although this didn't take away from the story at large I just felt like it was missing in passing at least as a descriptive on what these characters looked like.
The story opened with us learning a little about this world that these girls have grown up in. I think the author did a great job with giving us this information without it feeling like an info dump. We also learn more as the story unfolds and I think it worked to weave a wonderful tale. The pacing worked out well and the writing was simple but beautiful. The mythology in this the story worked to create a wonderful world that felt like an old western, dystopian, fantasy novel and go figure it worked out as one of the best titles that I have read this year.
The characters in this one were all well formed and each had their own personality. With how this one ended I am excited to see where the next story takes us. Will we get to see everyone returning or will we get pulled in one direction over another. Although there are five characters in this one we really only get a few POVs and then the overall story. Were are never really just in one other than the start. But for the most part we get Aster's POV after the story gets going and it worked well. I never thought that it was overwhelming and well you guys know I love POVs when they are done well!
Overall, this story was beautifully written with a creepy scary world and amazing strong women as characters. The fight for freedom has never been tougher.
Go Into This One Knowing: Prostitution, Slaves, Branding, Human Trafficking, Drug Use
The story opened with us learning a little about this world that these girls have grown up in. I think the author did a great job with giving us this information without it feeling like an info dump. We also learn more as the story unfolds and I think it worked to weave a wonderful tale. The pacing worked out well and the writing was simple but beautiful. The mythology in this the story worked to create a wonderful world that felt like an old western, dystopian, fantasy novel and go figure it worked out as one of the best titles that I have read this year.
The characters in this one were all well formed and each had their own personality. With how this one ended I am excited to see where the next story takes us. Will we get to see everyone returning or will we get pulled in one direction over another. Although there are five characters in this one we really only get a few POVs and then the overall story. Were are never really just in one other than the start. But for the most part we get Aster's POV after the story gets going and it worked well. I never thought that it was overwhelming and well you guys know I love POVs when they are done well!
Overall, this story was beautifully written with a creepy scary world and amazing strong women as characters. The fight for freedom has never been tougher.
Go Into This One Knowing: Prostitution, Slaves, Branding, Human Trafficking, Drug Use
larix10dua's review
2.0
Ikke oversat mega godt... svært at sige om skrivestilen havde været mere min smag hvis den havde været på engelsk.
Sluttede også lidt underligt. Der er lagt op til toeren, måske læser jeg den, men så bliver det i hvert fald på engelsk.
Sluttede også lidt underligt. Der er lagt op til toeren, måske læser jeg den, men så bliver det i hvert fald på engelsk.
onegalonelife27's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
4.25
We enter the story in Clementine’s point of view on the night of her sixteenth birthday, where she’s getting ready to meet a man. However, once they meet, it doesn't take long for things to escalate and for Clementine to end up with blood on her hands. The rest of the story is told in Aster’s, her older sister’s point of view.
With Aster’s chapters following we learn of the world of Arketta, which an empire took over and any rebels became Dustbloods, people cursed to not cast shadows and their descendants born without shadows. There’s also fairbloods, people who do have shadows, the privileged class of the world. Many of the dustbloods give their daughters to the welcome houses, where the girls work as sex workers after they turn sixteen and are tattoos, flower looking tattoos that will hurt them should they rebel against orders or go covered for too long. We don’t get to see much of this life because Clementine and Aster along with friends Mallow and Tansy, and finally local prima donna Violet run away. Because Violet claims she knows where a woman known as the Ghost Lady, rumored to be able to remove the favors. So thus begins a life on the run for these young girls.
This is a good example of a found family, with each girl getting a chance to shine, and the group overall bonding over their travels in hopes of freedom. We certainly feel sympathetic towards Clementine’s predicament, her sister and two friends for helping her cover up the murder. Violet acts more snobby, due to being born from fairblood thus having a shadow, yet with her own point of view we do become more fond of her, like Aster does. Also I’ve got a soft spot for ladies doing crime, call me crazy. Support women’s rights and wrongs.
I also love the idea of a fantasy world being more centered around 19th century culture, especially one that has a Wild West. Especially in this world where ghosts are real and can be violent against the living, ghost town has a whole new meaning.
I really enjoyed the story, with great reveals and action, but also some great heart. I’m hoping I can read the sequel soon.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Trafficking, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Drug use, Addiction, and Gun violence
Minor: Suicide and Medical trauma
passionatereader78's review against another edition
adventurous
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Colonisation, Gun violence, Cultural appropriation, Addiction, Drug use, Death of parent, Classism, and Confinement
r2d2dyingnoise's review against another edition
4.0
Cool cowboy story with questionable worldbuilding