Reviews with content warning for Mental illness - This Cursed Light

Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

This Cursed Light by Emily Thiede

2 reviews

kirstenf's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional hopeful 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

Content Warnings

bookcheshirecat's review

Go to review page

adventurous emotional reflective medium-paced

4.0

"Everywhere, there was light. And for as long as there was anyone alive to look for her, she would be there, too, in the shimmer on the ocean, an arc of color in the sky after rain, or the gleam of stars to light their way. No matter how lonely, no one was truly alone."

➽ This Cursed Light was a great sequel! This Vicious Grace could have been a great standalone, so a sequel wasn't 100% needed for me, but the author did a great job exploring new settings and deepening her lore in this book! I also liked that it provides an insight into life after the big battle. In This Cursed Light, Alessa has just come to terms with the cost of their victory on Divorando and the effects that Dante is still suffering. She's ready for a quiet, comfortable life after all the misery and bloodshed, but it seems like Crollo and Dea have one last challenge for them. I really felt Alessa's despair when she found out that she was still not done and her loved ones were in danger again. I appreciated that the story also delved into mental health and the trauma the Finestre and Fonti have after their big fight. We meet another Finestra called Ciro and Alessa can connect to some of his feelings, though their trauma isn't exactly the same. Dante's also dealing with the loss of his powers and his identity as a ghiotte. The author did a great job looking at the aftermath of the big battle and showing how the characters have changed. Alessa and her friends set out to the continent in order to find the rumored city of ghiotte that'll be attacked by Crollo during the next eclipse!

➽ I loved getting to know the ghiotte more! After the first book focused on the Cittadella, Finstra and the Fonti, we're finally digging deeper into the ghiotte. They've been outcasts all their life and have built their own community in Perduta that only welcomes others like them. Therefore, they aren't thrilled about the blessed coming along with Dante, as they trust no outsiders. I felt for Dante as he’s caught between two worlds and hasn’t told them that he no longer has his powers. It was a surprise that we ended up meeting his oldest friend Talia! I can understand why she was wary of Alessa and the others, as the blessed have not been kind to her people. It was so interesting exploring the ghiotte community, especially as Dante has to convince them to work together. This book touches upon the prosecution of the ghiotte but also the possibility of peace between them and the blessed!

➽ Alessa and Dante definitely got me emotional in his book! They deserved to be happy and at peace, but they still faced many complications, from the bad omens Crollo sent to their past trauma. I felt bad for Dante because he’s struggling with no longer being a ghiotte and not having a purpose anymore now that the war is over. His life was very different from Alessa’s, so he’s not good at all the traditional stuff she grew up with. My heart also broke for Alessa as she wants her hard-earned peace, but she has to fight again.

It’s so tough on her having to pretend that she isn’t dating Dante in Perduta, just like back in the first book.

It’s like she’s an outsider again after just having found friends and her people’s respect. Now the ghiotte are the ones who are suspicious of everything she stands for and it definitely brought back some bad memories

➽ I also loved Alessa’s and Kaleb’s friendship so much! Their bickering is always so entertaining and I loved that they had each other’s backs! Kaleb has really grown on me since the first book and I’m glad he hasn’t forgiven Adrick as easily as everyone else. Though I did enjoy their hate-to-love romance and wish they had their own companion novel!

➽ The story could be a bit slow at times and parts of the ending were anti-climatic. These were probably my only complaints about the story, as the middle of the book was pretty slow-paced compared to the beginning and ending. The very end of the book was ultimately satisfying for our characters, there were just a couple of small things I wasn't happy with.

I didn't enjoy that Crollo and Dea possessed Ciro and Diwata, as I liked that they were so far removed and mysterious as gods. The fact that they personally appeared to issue their final challenge in the end took away from their intrigue. I know the author wanted a twist on a big battle scene, but Crollo and Dea taking the time to pose a dilemma for Alessa and Dante didn't feel in character or something a god would do. It was way too personal for the big scale everything had been on since the beginning. I knew Alessa wouldn't really die in the end, so I wasn't too worried.

Content Warnings

More...