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comebymoonlight's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
This book is difficult to review because I feel very differently about the first hundred pages compared to what follows.
Part 1 of the book is painfully slow. Almost nothing happens in the main plot, and even the nothing that is happening feels disjointed and unimportant, constantly glossed over with time skips or interjected with short chapters of (for now) completely unrelated snapshots of things happening elsewhere. Rather than break up the tedium they just made the nothing drag on. This author desperately needs to learn better pacing.
Parts 2-5 I thoroughly enjoyed. All those unrelated snapshots finally pulled together, the pacing picked up, and I happily read the last 200 pages in a single sitting. I am a sucker for good world building, and this was excellent, though darker than I expected. That said, it wasn't the book I thought it was when I picked it up. I was expecting a sort of Theseus-descending-into-Hades adventure which it very much was not.
[Spoiler-light thoughts on the conclusion]There were a couple unanswered questions throughout the story that I kept feeling would be ruined by almost any answer we were given, and I was pleasantly surprised that they were left as questions. Similarly, I was pleasantly surprised the will-they-won't-they romantic subplot didn't magically end up with a happily-ever-after that would have strained my suspension of disbelief.
In the end, I really enjoyed the 240-page story that started at Part 2. Do I think reading the first 100 pages to get there is worth it? I don't know.
Part 1 of the book is painfully slow. Almost nothing happens in the main plot, and even the nothing that is happening feels disjointed and unimportant, constantly glossed over with time skips or interjected with short chapters of (for now) completely unrelated snapshots of things happening elsewhere. Rather than break up the tedium they just made the nothing drag on. This author desperately needs to learn better pacing.
Parts 2-5 I thoroughly enjoyed. All those unrelated snapshots finally pulled together, the pacing picked up, and I happily read the last 200 pages in a single sitting. I am a sucker for good world building, and this was excellent, though darker than I expected. That said, it wasn't the book I thought it was when I picked it up. I was expecting a sort of Theseus-descending-into-Hades adventure which it very much was not.
[Spoiler-light thoughts on the conclusion]
In the end, I really enjoyed the 240-page story that started at Part 2. Do I think reading the first 100 pages to get there is worth it? I don't know.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Abandonment
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cannibalism
yiayiakassi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
4.5
I was so swept away by this story that I don't even know where to begin. I sat in my car reeling from the characters' heartbreak, screamed into the void for them to make different choices, and muttered a constant stream of "no no no no don't" as they hurtled towards yet another awful situation. In other words, the storytelling had me in a chokehold of feelings and I loved every second. The story explores choices and their consequences in a setting that spans worlds with an intriguing system of magic and accompanying mythology. The only thing that kept this from being a 5-star story is the ending needed a little refinement; in some ways it was too slow and in others it was rushed. I really loved this and I look forward to more from this author.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse and Child death
gillothen's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
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
4.5
Gripping fantasy, very dark. The central figures struggle with abandonment as well as physical threats and you are not at all sure how it will work out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Abandonment
taybay23's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
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? It's complicated
4.0
This book is heavy on the vibes - I read it as an audiobook and really loved it, and I think I would have struggled a bit with reading it in print. The pacing picks up and slows again in places, and as an audiobook read while on walks or crafting, it had a nice cadence. It’s a lovely standalone fantasy with a hero’s journey and an interesting world to explore. There’s a redemption arc, found family, a curse (and a debt), gruesome gods, magic Tarot, and other dimensions. If you loved the Ten Thousand Doors of January or want a grown-up Golden Compass, this will be a good time. There’s not an explosive conclusion (and there’s a loose end that never fully ties!) but it comes to a natural end of conflict and I enjoyed going along the journey with the MCs.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, and Physical abuse
callistag1's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death and Gaslighting
Minor: Genocide
wnderwuman's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
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? N/A
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, and Grief
ahse1dances's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-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
3.0
Lacked any real character development. The romance had no basis either. And the pacing felt off and made things a bit confusing.
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse and Physical abuse
purplepenning's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
Undoubtedly beautiful prose and an interesting fantasy premise that blends a modern setting with an old world dark fairytale vibe (via portal doors). Overall, however, the story, pacing, and character development just didn't click for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Blood, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Alcohol
embee007's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
“Do you really believe the curse isn’t real? That the divine never touches you? That the wheeling cosmos is but an abstract of chemicals? Do you not hear the stars sing, little dreamer?”
The proooooose 😍
"She is glory. She is devastation. And she is hungry."
If you loved the imagery of The Starless Sea or wished The Starless Sea had a plot? This is the book for you.
"What joy it will bring us to see you undone."
This was a cover buy, & I have zero regrets, but ½ a point off because I once again fell into the quicksand trap of a gothic book & took nearly a week to read it 🫠
"From nothing, to nothing.”
The proooooose 😍
"She is glory. She is devastation. And she is hungry."
If you loved the imagery of The Starless Sea or wished The Starless Sea had a plot? This is the book for you.
"What joy it will bring us to see you undone."
This was a cover buy, & I have zero regrets, but ½ a point off because I once again fell into the quicksand trap of a gothic book & took nearly a week to read it 🫠
"From nothing, to nothing.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, and Abandonment
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
madlysoph's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
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? It's complicated
3.5
This book has a very strong atmosphere, it is very lush and beautiful. The prose is lovely, overall the writing is really good and never falters throughout the story. The style in which the book is told is also very well done, with the occasional chapter being told as though it’s a fairytale pulling you further into this world. The concept is fascinating and the worldbuilding is extremely interesting. The characters are all done well, they are interesting whole people who have many and oftentimes conflicting motivations. I loved the Everly brothers, they were so fun to read about and my heart ached for them. The romance is fine, the characters have good chemistry, it just needed a little bit more. At least for me, this book did nothing extraordinary, I’m sure it will be something extraordinary for others, but not me. I was left wanting more, more details on the worldbuilding, a longer epilogue, some more concrete endings. For me this book felt like it had missing pieces, nothing massive or glaring, but a few small ones. Overall this is a good fantasy book that is worth a read. I really like Georgia Summers writing style and will be reading more of her books in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Blood
Moderate: Child abuse, Gore, Violence, and Abandonment