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kgeogheghan's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
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? No
5.0
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The writing is beautiful, the way the plot develops and unfolds is captivating, and the world building gives the perfect gothic and spooky atmosphere.
This is my first V. E. Schwab novel but certainly won't be my last.
This is my first V. E. Schwab novel but certainly won't be my last.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Death of parent, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Suicide, Blood, Child death, and Murder
Minor: Animal death
theespressoedition's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
fast-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? No
5.0
This was one of my most-anticipated releases of 2022 and unsurprisingly, it did not disappoint.
V.E. Schwab does it again, friends. I mean, she opens it with the most beautiful dedication:
"To those who go looking for doors, are brave enough to open the ones they find, and sometimes bold enough to make their own."
And like, I feel as though when you start off that strong, there's no way that the book is about to go downhill.
I'm not a horror fan. I need to preface this review with that because this book falls in the horror genre. I can't handle horror. In fact, I sometimes avoid even reading horror synopses or looking at their covers. That being said, this book did not frighten me, so, if you find yourself worrying about reading it, I say to at least give it a try. It's more... subtly spooky and hauntingly beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that you'll find quotes peppered throughout this review just because I loved them so much. Like this one:
I am so happy. I am so scared. The two, it turns out, can walk together, hand in hand.
The characters were so intricately written. I felt as though I knew them personally. I also felt as though I had walked the halls of Gallant (both of them...) because of how wonderful the descriptions were. They weren't annoyingly extensive or ostentatious. Instead, they made me feel like I was seeing life through the eyes of Olivia Prior and walking right alongside her through every comforting and frightening moment.
“Everything casts a shadow,” he begins. “Even the world we live in. And as with every shadow, there is a place where it must touch. A seam, where the shadow meets its source.”
This book isn't happy. It isn't filled with brightness and sunshine, but that's what makes it so grand. Keep your eyes open as you go into it, knowing that you'll be left with questions, you may even shed a tear or two, but you will also walk away with hope.
But the truth is, death is everywhere. Death comes for the roses and the apples, it comes for the mice and the birds. It comes for us all. Why should death stop us from living?
This is probably my favorite quote in the entire book. Slight fatalist mentality with a splash of looking on the bright side.
I truly can't imagine never getting a sequel to this book. I realize it's a stand-alone, I do. But, there's just something about it that makes me crave so much more. I don't know if we'll ever get it - and I will be okay if that's the case - but I just couldn't put it down once I started it and I already want to read it again. I'm getting emotional just thinking about it! If you pick up little else this year, please at least read Gallant. You will not regret it in the slightest! It's quick-paced (I could've read it in an afternoon had I the time to do so) and just plain stunning.
V.E. Schwab does it again, friends. I mean, she opens it with the most beautiful dedication:
"To those who go looking for doors, are brave enough to open the ones they find, and sometimes bold enough to make their own."
And like, I feel as though when you start off that strong, there's no way that the book is about to go downhill.
I'm not a horror fan. I need to preface this review with that because this book falls in the horror genre. I can't handle horror. In fact, I sometimes avoid even reading horror synopses or looking at their covers. That being said, this book did not frighten me, so, if you find yourself worrying about reading it, I say to at least give it a try. It's more... subtly spooky and hauntingly beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that you'll find quotes peppered throughout this review just because I loved them so much. Like this one:
I am so happy. I am so scared. The two, it turns out, can walk together, hand in hand.
The characters were so intricately written. I felt as though I knew them personally. I also felt as though I had walked the halls of Gallant (both of them...) because of how wonderful the descriptions were. They weren't annoyingly extensive or ostentatious. Instead, they made me feel like I was seeing life through the eyes of Olivia Prior and walking right alongside her through every comforting and frightening moment.
“Everything casts a shadow,” he begins. “Even the world we live in. And as with every shadow, there is a place where it must touch. A seam, where the shadow meets its source.”
This book isn't happy. It isn't filled with brightness and sunshine, but that's what makes it so grand. Keep your eyes open as you go into it, knowing that you'll be left with questions, you may even shed a tear or two, but you will also walk away with hope.
But the truth is, death is everywhere. Death comes for the roses and the apples, it comes for the mice and the birds. It comes for us all. Why should death stop us from living?
This is probably my favorite quote in the entire book. Slight fatalist mentality with a splash of looking on the bright side.
I truly can't imagine never getting a sequel to this book. I realize it's a stand-alone, I do. But, there's just something about it that makes me crave so much more. I don't know if we'll ever get it - and I will be okay if that's the case - but I just couldn't put it down once I started it and I already want to read it again. I'm getting emotional just thinking about it! If you pick up little else this year, please at least read Gallant. You will not regret it in the slightest! It's quick-paced (I could've read it in an afternoon had I the time to do so) and just plain stunning.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Gore
kerrygetsliterary's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Animal death, Murder, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide, Bullying, Blood, Death, Child death, and Confinement
Moderate: Death of parent
foreverinastory's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I constantly thought the narrator was actually Neil Gaiman and that is the highest order of compliment I can bestow to a male narrator.
Rep: white asexual(?) mute cis female MC, white side characters.
CWs: Death, death of parent, blood, grief, animal death, abandonment, bullying, ableism, child death, suicide, gore, self harm, suicidal thoughts, violence, kidnapping, murder. Moderate: injury/injury detail, mental illness, body horror. Minor: alcoholism.
Rep: white asexual(?) mute cis female MC, white side characters.
CWs: Death, death of parent, blood, grief, animal death, abandonment, bullying, ableism, child death, suicide, gore, self harm, suicidal thoughts, violence, kidnapping, murder. Moderate: injury/injury detail, mental illness, body horror. Minor: alcoholism.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Grief, Abandonment, Blood, Suicide, Death of parent, Bullying, Gore, Death, Self harm, Violence, Kidnapping, Animal death, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, and Murder
Moderate: Mental illness, Body horror, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcoholism
tarynlannister's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
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
4.5
I gobbled this book up. I can't remember the last time I found a book where all I wanted to do in my free moments, no matter how short, was get in a few pages, where in the tense parts my eyes were racing over the pages almost faster than I could understand the words. It's a lovely, reflective little book. It's dark, but more in a Gothic way than a depressing way. Death is a major theme, but the persistence of our spirits and our connection with those we love beyond death is too, and definitely mitigates that. I wish it had resolved a little differently in some ways, but otherwise I really loved it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Ableism, Violence, Blood, Suicide, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Terminal illness, Child death, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death
criticalbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
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? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Animal death, Death of parent, Death, Grief, Murder, Suicide, Abandonment, and Blood
lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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
4.5
This was one of my most anticipated releases for this year, and I was so excited to read it! V.E. Schwab has a magical and poetic way with words. Her prose is enchanting, and I find her work entirely intoxicating. "Gallant" did not disappoint. This novel follows a young orphan who never got to know her parents, except through her mother's journal. One day, she is contacted by her uncle inviting her to come to Gallant, the one place her mother's journal has warned her not to go. Desperately trying to find her place in this world, she goes and uncovers a family mystery dating back several generations.
I really enjoyed how spooky this book felt. The atmosphere was superb. I also really enjoyed seeing a mute character be the heroine of a story.
I really enjoyed how spooky this book felt. The atmosphere was superb. I also really enjoyed seeing a mute character be the heroine of a story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent and Murder
deirdrerosemorgan's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
This book has haunted me from the moment I opened it in the best way possible. Victoria's words wrapped me up in a blanket while Olivia Prior held my hand as she led me through the pages of her story.
Olivia Prior does not have a home, all she has is a journal from her mother filled with words she does passages she has spent her life trying to understand. One day a mysterious letter arrives inviting Olivia to come home to Gallant and meet the family she didn't know she had. But although Gallant is everything she has ever wanted, she wonders why her mothers last word to her were to stay away from Gallant.
This is an all ages fantasy that tells the story of a girl who has spent her life trying to break out of the boxes the people around her has shoved her into. I recommend this book for readers who enjoy to a slow burn with beautiful writing that is sure to capture your heart.
Content Warnings:
Ableism and ableist language, parental abandonment, child abuse and neglect, mutism, nightmares, alcholism (implied), blood depiction, death by knife, violence recounted, death of parents mentioned, murder (on-page), knife and sword violence, strangulation, bullying, animal death (cat & crow).
A big thank you to LEOPRNY for sending me an ARC. This review is my own views and thoughts on the book.
Olivia Prior does not have a home, all she has is a journal from her mother filled with words she does passages she has spent her life trying to understand. One day a mysterious letter arrives inviting Olivia to come home to Gallant and meet the family she didn't know she had. But although Gallant is everything she has ever wanted, she wonders why her mothers last word to her were to stay away from Gallant.
This is an all ages fantasy that tells the story of a girl who has spent her life trying to break out of the boxes the people around her has shoved her into. I recommend this book for readers who enjoy to a slow burn with beautiful writing that is sure to capture your heart.
Content Warnings:
Ableism and ableist language, parental abandonment, child abuse and neglect, mutism, nightmares, alcholism (implied), blood depiction, death by knife, violence recounted, death of parents mentioned, murder (on-page), knife and sword violence, strangulation, bullying, animal death (cat & crow).
A big thank you to LEOPRNY for sending me an ARC. This review is my own views and thoughts on the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Murder, and Death
Moderate: Violence, Animal death, and Blood
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