Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Once Upon a Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber

54 reviews

lomesia's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Violence, and Death of parent

bectothebooks's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious relaxing 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? Yes

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Grief, Murder, Blood, and Death

Moderate: Violence, Gaslighting, Death of parent, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Confinement

esme_may's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

The perfect flight companion :) it’s a quick read and I read it over a day with lots of downtime on a flight. Can’t wait for the next one!

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Blood, and Confinement

Moderate: Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Grief, and Infidelity

Minor: Classism, Sexual content, Child abuse, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Sexual assault

anton13's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I love this book just like I love all other books by Stephanie that I’ve read. Her way with words are just magical and I absolutely adore her way of keeping you on your toes all the way through the book. I’m so sad now that I’ve got to wait to read the second book. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Murder

Moderate: Death of parent and Death

Minor: Alcohol, Blood, and Violence

amre23's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Death, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, Torture, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Classism, Misogyny, and Sexism

Minor: Abandonment, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Self harm, and Torture

queer_bookwyrm's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

3.5 ⭐ CW: violence 

Once Upon a Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber is book one in the Once Upon a Broken Heart trilogy and is a spin-off of the Caraval series. This book I felt was more romance than the Caraval series. Where Caraval had some great world-building and intricate magic systems, this one felt barebones and so did the characters. 


We follow Evangeline, a girl with rose gold hair who is watching as the boy she loves plans to marry her stepsister. The beginning of the story reads like a twisted Cinderella retelling, until Evangeline seeks out the Fated Prince of Hearts to stop the wedding.  Of course, nothing goes as planned, and everyone knows you can't trust Jacks. 

After Evangeline saves the wedding party from being stone, Scarlett and Donatella send her and her stepsister north to attend a ball called Nocte Neverending to be their ambassador. Lots of magical hijinks, twists, and mysteries abound. A lot of themes on fate, trust, and the nature of love. For some reason, though I loved Caraval, the vibes just weren't there for me on this one. I thought Evangeline was annoying and a terrible MC. She didn't have nearly enough growth, and the other characters felt very one dimensional. I wanted more from the world building and magic systems, but I thought those were pretty glossed over. 

I didn't hate it, but I won't be picking up the rest of the books in this series. 

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Violence

tak_everlasting's review against another edition

lighthearted 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? Yes

2.0

This feels like someone read The Cruel Prince and said "I could write that!"

Spoiler alert, Garber could not.

Every interesting aspect of this book has been done better elsewhere, and the whole thing felt like a collection of interesting premises that are never explored. There was no depth to the characters or their relationships, there is absolutely no set up and pay off, and the emotionally abused girl is villified. 

Defending the clunky writing style by saying that it's "YA" is an insult to young adult books everywhere. The writing style doesn't convey emotions well and holds back the story from reaching it's full potential, stripping the tension from many places by infodumping in the middle of action scenes, and skipping over any bonding time these characters may have had with one another. It's bad writing, and you can call it that. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship

Moderate: Violence, Emotional abuse, and Confinement

meeklovestoread's review against another edition

adventurous challenging 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? No

4.0

The first half of this book (about like the 1st 200 pages) I didn't really have too many high hopes for. It wasn't bad, but for the first half I could feel how YA this book is if you get what I mean. I just felt like the storyline wasn't really that interesting and that I just grew out of fantasy (this is my first fantasy book after I got back into reading last year). I didn't really see why it was so beloved. I was finding trouble imagining the characters. The descriptions. The world. I thought maybe fantasy just isn't for me anymore, but I'm so glad I continued it cuz it just went up from there. I was so invested and entertained. I'm so glad Stephanie didn't take the traditional route in terms of the relationships between Evangeline and Jacks. I was pretty entertained after the second half of the book and I can feel my love for fantasy start to sprout again. I'll definitely be reading the 2nd book and the 3rd that comes out later. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood and Confinement

Moderate: Grief, Murder, and Death

Minor: Death of parent, Torture, Emotional abuse, and Violence

maisaaismail1's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood

Moderate: Gore, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent

Minor: Abandonment

anneliedip's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious 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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, and Murder