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peachypqstry's review against another edition
5.0
Ok, first of all, I'm writing this review like a month after reading the book, so I may not recall everything I wanted to say. I do remember that this book was a piece of art that should be on the walls of the Louvre.
It was a bit hard to get into the book at first, because it had a bit of dense worldbuilding. But when I got past that part, it was amazing!! The magic system was something out of this fricking world. The illusions Nathaniel worked on reminded me a lot of Caraval and I loved it.
The plot was not exactly how I had imagined it, but mainly because I got this book knowing almost nothing about it. Anyway, oh my gosh. I'll admit I expected the plot to be non-existent, but it flipped my mind. Again, a work of art.
Finally, the characters. Elisabeth is a total girl-boss and I adore her. Her passion for books and for the Libraries was something waaaay too relatable. Nathaniel is awesome as well. He gave a bit of Thomas Cresswell vibes, which I loved. Their romance was the sweetest thinggg, but it had tension as well. Buuuut, let's not forget about SILAS. Silas is *chef's kiss*. The "almost ending" made me soooo sad, because I'd fallen in love with him throughout the book. He was the most amazing friend ever.
When I finished this book, it literally felt as though I was finishing a series and not a stand-alone, because I had gotten a bit too attached to the characters and the world.
5/5.
It was a bit hard to get into the book at first, because it had a bit of dense worldbuilding. But when I got past that part, it was amazing!! The magic system was something out of this fricking world. The illusions Nathaniel worked on reminded me a lot of Caraval and I loved it.
The plot was not exactly how I had imagined it, but mainly because I got this book knowing almost nothing about it. Anyway, oh my gosh. I'll admit I expected the plot to be non-existent, but it flipped my mind. Again, a work of art.
Finally, the characters. Elisabeth is a total girl-boss and I adore her. Her passion for books and for the Libraries was something waaaay too relatable. Nathaniel is awesome as well. He gave a bit of Thomas Cresswell vibes, which I loved. Their romance was the sweetest thinggg, but it had tension as well. Buuuut, let's not forget about SILAS. Silas is *chef's kiss*. The "almost ending" made me soooo sad, because I'd fallen in love with him throughout the book. He was the most amazing friend ever.
When I finished this book, it literally felt as though I was finishing a series and not a stand-alone, because I had gotten a bit too attached to the characters and the world.
5/5.
phoenix2's review
2.0
Sorcery of Thorns is truly a magical book. From the descriptions to the characters to the whole universe, the book reeks of magic and gothic, fairytale atmosphere.
The story was pretty intense, though predictable, and it had a smooth pace. However, after the first half, it got tiring, as more and yet more twists kept being added to the main plot. Still, the characters were fun to read and the whole universe was unique and impressive.
The narration, moreover, was nicely done.
The story was pretty intense, though predictable, and it had a smooth pace. However, after the first half, it got tiring, as more and yet more twists kept being added to the main plot. Still, the characters were fun to read and the whole universe was unique and impressive.
The narration, moreover, was nicely done.
gauriraut's review against another edition
2.0
Started out strong but then right before the final conflict it dragged on for so long I thought I was going to dnf it. I didn't. But it's not like the end was incredible or anything, it was okayish.
My main problem was that I felt the stakes were too low. Elisabeth never had a personal reason to stop the evil dude. Sure the world is ending, but why did she care? (Apart for the obvious fact that it's ending lol.)
As for the Thorn guy, he was okay I guess. But he gave off major 'I'm not like other male leads who brood. I'm funny, cool, sociable, and handsome', vibes but oh well. And he also only started to help because he was scared the FL would get herself killed or something on her own. So zero personal investment.
The evil dude was comically evil. He seemed like the cliche where he's an evil guy who truly thinks he's doing right *eye roll* I'm tired of noble evil villains who're shocked when someone says they're evil. I want villains who know they might be considered bad for what they do, and what they do is bad, but by god they believe in it and will stop anyone that tries to stop them.
Silas was the only character that I thought had some rotundity to him. He was multi faceted and enjoyable to read in any situation. 10/10 would read a book from his pov about how absolutely annoying it is to look after Nathaniel and make food for him and fix his cravat when he ties it wrongly.
I skimmed the end 25% in a sleepy haze, just thankful the book was done. What an absolute shame.
The only good thing now is that since this is over, I can start a new one.
My main problem was that I felt the stakes were too low. Elisabeth never had a personal reason to stop the evil dude. Sure the world is ending, but why did she care? (Apart for the obvious fact that it's ending lol.)
As for the Thorn guy, he was okay I guess. But he gave off major 'I'm not like other male leads who brood. I'm funny, cool, sociable, and handsome', vibes but oh well. And he also only started to help because he was scared the FL would get herself killed or something on her own. So zero personal investment.
The evil dude was comically evil. He seemed like the cliche where he's an evil guy who truly thinks he's doing right *eye roll* I'm tired of noble evil villains who're shocked when someone says they're evil. I want villains who know they might be considered bad for what they do, and what they do is bad, but by god they believe in it and will stop anyone that tries to stop them.
Silas was the only character that I thought had some rotundity to him. He was multi faceted and enjoyable to read in any situation. 10/10 would read a book from his pov about how absolutely annoying it is to look after Nathaniel and make food for him and fix his cravat when he ties it wrongly.
I skimmed the end 25% in a sleepy haze, just thankful the book was done. What an absolute shame.
The only good thing now is that since this is over, I can start a new one.
heidi_wilson001's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
artsycupcake's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
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? No
4.0
This book is just another lovely example of why you SHOULD sell your soul to a demon for a good time. It may just turn out to be in your best interest. Also if books had personalities and were semi sentient I would die from my small library.
chelseamguy's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book from beginning to end, I'm going to miss this world with it's grimoires and sorcerers and libraries!! Fun read with some choice scenes and lines that I'm going to remember for a while.
whoareyouhannah's review against another edition
3.0
3.5* Maybe the Young Adult Genre just isn't really my cup of tea. Most of the characters were a bit too one-dimensional for my liking and a lot of things that happened in the story were just too convenient, which killed the immersion for me more than once. I enjoyed the libraries and the books and the magic, but I could have done without the romance. But I was looking for a light read and I got that, so overall I'm not complaining.
josie_moon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
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
2.5
I enjoyed 45% of the story until it dragged on and on to the point, it was a struggle to finish the book. I felt many moments were irrelevant to the story and could have been taken out. Also, The author kept making small time skips where Elisabeth was interacting with characters, I would rather read pages of that than read the main character clean the royal library every few chapters. Elisabeth was boring to me, and so was Nathaniel. The only character I like is Silas, he was the only one that kept me from dnfing this book.