Reviews tagging 'Self harm'

A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross

14 reviews

minnow's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.5

This novel has many of the tropes I love: enemies-to-lovers, slow burn, lots of longing, gorgeous descriptions of food and clothing; additionally, the setting is lush and beautiful, with a rich lore. The plot is interesting and hints at mystery, and there are several love-based subplots. I should have loved this book. But I didn't.

It's entertaining and is, in parts, beautifully written. However, it's at best a snack, and not a very filling one. It takes some of the tropes I love and over-uses them until it made my eyes roll every time they popped up in the text--how many times can Jack rake back his hair with one hand? There are so many aching chests that this story needed a cardiologist more than it needed a bard. Every emotion is set at ten, every moment is The Most Dramatic Moment, which reduces every truly heightened emotion and moment to zero. If everything is in stereo, nothing is in stereo.

Yet the world-building is lovely and well-done. I wish it had been focused on more and there had been less romantic navel-gazing and reminiscing performed by secondary characters. The development of the main characters feels abrupt; it's handled better with the supporting characters Torin and Sidra. There is one mildly spicy scene that is well done but feels poorly placed in the narrative.

A beautiful premise that feels shallow. I won't read further into the series as it didn't enchant me.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Chronic illness, Grief, Kidnapping, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Infertility, Miscarriage, Self harm, Blood, Murder, Torture, Death of parent, Infidelity, Child death, and Sexual content

cassie7e's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

A beautifully woven Scottish fantasy that is handled with gravitas and care. The relationships are loving and strained by real heavy secrets, not shallow insecurities and miscommunications. The love isn't cheesy nor solely about lust, nor does it feel separate from the storyline. The magic is integral and practical as well, instead of a weapon or a way to get out of difficult situations. I'm on the edge of my seat waiting to read the sequel!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Self harm, Grief, Death, Violence, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, and Abandonment

Minor: Miscarriage, Fire/Fire injury, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Death of parent, Blood, and Alcohol

rsb12's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Death, and Violence

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Terminal illness, Grief, Blood, Chronic illness, Death of parent, and Miscarriage

Minor: Medical content, Self harm, Fire/Fire injury, Infertility, Abandonment, Pregnancy, and Sexual content

linneak's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, Kidnapping, and Blood

Moderate: Murder, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Medical content, Death of parent, Rape, Sexual content, Miscarriage, War, Drug use, Self harm, and Grief

blueberry_waffle29's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense 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? Yes

4.0

This is written for adults, but you can tell the author is used to writing for a more youthful audience. It’s fairly airtight, but some things seem to be brushed over, like Jack’s quick turn from the mainland life he lead (the passages about his struggle between Cadence and the mainland aren’t so convincing). The supposed hatred between him and Adaira is laughably weak. But the tangible growth Torin experiences with Sidra, continuing into the sequel, is incredibly done. His thread is by far my favorite. This book is incredibly encompassing, excellent and lush world-building. It’s rare for me to give 5 stars so 4 is no detriment to the author! Highly recommend if you like palace intrigue, magic, and exploration of masculinity like Torin’s.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual content, Child death, Self harm, and Violence

heatherjchin's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Stalking, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Sexual content, Violence, and War

Minor: Blood, Self harm, Death of parent, Murder, and Torture

karin_gorham's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious 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

An imaginative folklore style fantasy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping

Moderate: Violence and Miscarriage

Minor: Self harm

chrisljm's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, and Blood

Moderate: Death, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Bullying, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Medical content, Miscarriage, War, Murder, Self harm, Terminal illness, Torture, and Violence

Minor: Child abuse

jessiereads98's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious 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? Yes

4.25

A River Enchanted follows bard Jack Tamerlaine’s return to the divided Isle of Cadence, where he has been summoned by Adaira Tamerlaine, heiress of the East, to help her solve the mystery of girls going missing. Rebecca Ross weaves together fantasy, romance, and mystery in this atmospheric novel with lyrical prose.

The setting of the Isle of Cadence and the magic in this book clearly take their inspiration from Scotland. I really enjoyed the world building here. The magic system is well crafted, and I appreciated the way Ross handled the cost of wielding magic. I also really enjoyed the concept of the folk here. It was well done, and the folk felt both mystical and like just another part of nature, as they should. Ross definitely got it right in creating folk who were benevolent, those who were tricksters, and those who were ambivalent. The descriptions of the setting in this book also feel magical. The surroundings are described with reverence, without it feeling overwrought.

Ross also created compelling relationships between her characters.

Jack and Adaira’s progression from childhood nemeses to lovers is incredibly sweet. Neither character’s development is sacrificed for the sake of their relationship. We get to see them grow together in such a tender and heartwarming way.

I also really enjoyed the relationship between Sidra and Torin. Following a more mature relationship as it changes and grows isn’t something you see often in fantasy romance, and Ross executed it very well. They face real problems, and have real mature conversations about them. Things aren’t perfect, but they’re working on them. This is handled without it ever feeling clunky or like the author is trying to spoon feed a point to the readers without taking previous characterization into account. The characters, and their relationships, felt very real and grounded here.

The mystery of the missing girls is sensical, without being too easy solve. As a reader, I was able to add things up and notice the important details as things progressed, so when we reached the solution it didn’t seem to come out of nowhere. The final twist to the mystery managed to be both predictable in one way, and surprising in another. I was satisfied by the conclusion, and didn’t feel that I had been tricked for the sake of the shock value of a twist. It set up nicely to leave me looking forward to the second book in the duology, without being devastated by the cliffhanger.

A River Enchanted reads like folklore with its lyrical prose and lush setting inhabited by the folk. I can’t wait to return to the Isle of Cadence and its inhabitants in the conclusion to the duology.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Death and Death of parent

Minor: Grief, Self harm, and Injury/Injury detail

kaetheluise_nckl's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad 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

marriage of convenience and enemies to friends to lovers tropes ahhhh

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Sexual content, Blood, Miscarriage, Violence, Death of parent, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, and Self harm

Moderate: Confinement

Minor: War