Reviews with content warning for Rape - Dreamer's Pool

An interesting story with appealing characters, but the world building didn’t quite work for me; there were small details that felt off and kept throwing me out of immersion in the story. Still, I was motivated to keep reading and I’ll be trying to track down the sequel!

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mysana's review

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2.0

This just didn’t really work for me. I was expecting a story about healing but it felt like it was much more about the trauma one needs to heal from. Each plot felt like it needed more space once the acute problem was solved. I liked the characters.

Update (23 Feb 2024): I really, really didn’t like the ending. The longer I get from it the more I fixate on that. I continue to feel this is a book that didn’t work for me, not from lack of skill but as a poor taste match. There are things that could have changed and I would have liked it more, but that would be a different book.

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maises's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot

3.5

“[…] even when you'd seen a person scorned and beaten and degraded, you could still show them courtesy.”

I thought I’d solved the mystery halfway and then got blown away by one little itsy bitsy tidbit I missed. Love a Marillier twist.

The characters were interesting and I was refreshed to meet them. Blackburn and Grim’s partnership really touched me. Blackburn was a heroine for women and girls and I really adored her for it. My favorite kind of crabby and jaded woman with a heart of gold (so she would deny). I felt so safe whenever Grim’s chapters would come on; he’s just so reliable that I was endeared. I had a good time, if the story was a little actionless at times.

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teri_b's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

5.0

A tough but rewarding read

Juliet Marillier takes us onto a journey as we follow Blackthorn & Grim as they emerge out of the dungeons, traumatised and barely alive, and yet, their lives are not over yet.
The journey Blackthorn is set upon by the fae who offers her a way out of the prison is harrowing and harsh, as she grapples with the grief over her past and the trauma of her imprisonment and the vengeance she now seeks.
Very well written with mythology and legend woven into the mystery that too is written into this story. It was a very absorbing read.

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druidgreeneyes's review

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dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-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

4.0

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mariebrunelm's review

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dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective slow-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

4.75

Blackthorn has been in jail for almost a year, for no other crime than helping fellow women fight their abuser. Her hearing is very near, but her odds aren’t exactly favourable. So when she receives a visit from Conmael, who is clearly not human but rather a fae, she strikes a bargain with him. In exchange for her freedom, she must spend seven years away from the place of her torment and help anyone asking. Although, to her, that sounds like another type of prison, she doesn’t really have another choice but to agree, and that very night she escapes and makes her way north where she establishes herself as a wise woman. With her comes Grim, a fellow prisoner with too much of a conscience and an unending store of loyalty for Blackthorn. Trouble is never far, though, especially when the cottage they settle in is so close to Dreamer’s Pool. This place of magic is on the lands of Prince Oran, who meets his betrothed after they exchanged loving letters. However, the lady arriving at his estate seems like another person entirely and Oran finds himself torn between heart and duty.

This novel, set in mediaeval Ireland, combines elegant prose and a thorough character study. There is no fast-paced action, or grim descriptions of violent fights. However, the story blends the light and the dark, because it deals heavily with violence towards women and how most of the characters are determined to put an end to that, so although there are harrowing passages, it is an uplifting story.

I’m so happy I met Blackthorn and Grim. They are nuanced characters, with their qualities and their flaws. Blackthorn is thoroughly pissed off with people and men in particular, but she’s also ready to see the good around her, and Grim is such a kind-hearted bear of a man that I had no choice but to love him immensely. The subtle queer vibe was also lovely, as the two form a platonic relationship that made my heart sing.

I was looking for a book that would take its time and let me spend a long while with loveable characters and Julliet Marillier provided. I’d heard her recommended again and again by Jean Menzies (@jeansthoughts) and now I absolutely know why. I didn’t start with the first book, Daughter of the Forest, which sounded more fairy-tale-like, but it doesn’t really matter because the books can be read out of order. Characters do make appearances in other novels but it won’t spoil their narratives.

Rep : Blackthorn & Grim very much sounded ace or at least demisexual but of course no word was used due to the historical setting.

CW: confinement, mention of rape, memories and discussion of sexual violence.

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pokeybear1's review

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adventurous 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? Yes

2.5

I liked the idea of the story, but it was boring. There were multiple storylines, but not well woven together. I skipped many passages of repetitive inner dialogue of the characters.

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kerttuli's review against another edition

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adventurous 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? Yes

4.25

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