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ska1224's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Confinement, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, War, Violence, Self harm, Death, and Hate crime
kyeruhh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
- The world building/lord
- Actual enemies to lovers
- The prose
- Very gory imo - my fault for not checking CWs first though
- A lot of info dumping (at least the info was interesting)
- To me, the pacing was odd
Graphic: Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Antisemitism, Hate crime, and Death of parent
lovefromhannah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
despite this being her debut, I actually read juniper and thorn prior to this. perhaps this was a mistake on my behalf as I enjoyed that more. whereas this fantasy is more folklore, oral tradition, holly black-esque conventions, juniper and thorn is more adjacent to the horror of girlhood, body autonomy and complex family relationships. on paper, I was destined to like juniper and thorn more - but I still really enjoyed the wolf and the woodsman and being witness to her growth as a writer.
"One day when I come for our council meetings," I begin carefully, "you will have a new bride. You must."
...
To my suprise, Gaspar only lifts a shoulder. "Perhaps. Perhaps not. If the king has no true-born son, the crown will fall to a brother, a cousin, an uncle. The line of succession is more like a long thread that that spirals across our family tree. I can always name another heir."
It is enough to for me to hold on to, hope as thin as the knife's edge hanging above us. I will grasp it even if it cuts me; I will keep it from falling." (pp. 408-9)
I will continue to devour ava reid's backlog as I wait (im)patiently for lady macbeth to release.
Graphic: Racial slurs, Antisemitism, Violence, Animal death, Religious bigotry, Torture, Hate crime, Trafficking, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Abandonment and Gore
Minor: Self harm
aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition
2.5
Not sure if this author just isn't for me as this is my second book from them.
Graphic: Death of parent, Violence, Death, Grief, Self harm, Sexism, Blood, Hate crime, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content
c_dmckinney's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Bullying, Colonisation, Death of parent, Confinement, Grief, Hate crime, Misogyny, Murder, Antisemitism, Child abuse, Classism, Death, Violence, Genocide, Gore, Religious bigotry, Torture, Blood, Racism, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Sexual content, Infertility, and Sexual assault
immovabletype's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
idk. there were things that happened in the latter part of the book that i liked and i think were necessary to forward the narrative and themes. however. it just could've been done better. i will also say, this is sold as adult fantasy. i would argue it feels a lot more ya. the heroine is almost a classic ya heroine, the tropes are very ya tropes. these aren't necessarily bad things, but that's not gonna work for everyone, so i wanted to make a note of it.
i did enjoy this for the most part, i'm glad i read it because now i know that ava reid is gonna knock it out of the park for me someday (this was a debut). i'm quite looking forward to reading more from her.
Graphic: Antisemitism, Blood, Bullying, Confinement, Gore, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Religious bigotry, Violence, Murder, Racism, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Genocide, Sexual content, and Death of parent
Minor: War
Genocide isalliecat1915's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, War, Violence, Hate crime, Colonisation, Death, Classism, Torture, Animal death, Religious bigotry, Grief, Gore, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Slavery, Sexual content, and Deportation
chrisljm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.25
Also for all the people who recommended this book because of the romance, you had to be making shit up because the romance sucked. Not to say the romance came out of nowhere, because I knew it was going to happen, but there was absolutely no build up at all. I didn't care for any of the characters, which is besides the point because they also had no chemistry at all. I truly don't understand what Gáspár liked about Évike because she was honestly dumb as fuck. She had no common sense and no sense of self preservation. She absolutely refused to think before any of her actions, even when Gáspár explicitly explains how she'd make the situation worse. She also spends majority of the book belittling Gáspár, and constantly attacking him on how she thinks he's ashamed they've laid and slept together, even though they have so many other things to worry about. He literally tries to get her to think before doing something rash and getting them both killed and she accuses him of fearing people will found out he's no longer pure. Like be fucking fr.
The book also touches on religious/ethical/moral themes but honestly with the messy plot and execution, flat characters, and confusing narration, I honestly don't know what the take away was supposed to be.
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Colonisation, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Self harm, Animal cruelty, Antisemitism, Blood, Religious bigotry, Racism, and Violence
Moderate: Confinement, Abandonment, Bullying, Genocide, War, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Fatphobia, and Vomit
katievallin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Hate crime, Xenophobia, War, Vomit, Blood, Child abuse, Genocide, Death, Racism, Religious bigotry, Torture, Grief, Kidnapping, Toxic friendship, Gore, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Murder, Violence, Animal death, Antisemitism, and Bullying
Moderate: Death of parent, Child death, Domestic abuse, and Sexual content
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Body shaming, and Alcohol
adonis_march's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Genocide, Religious bigotry, Violence, Death, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Blood, Murder, Gore, and Hate crime
Moderate: Classism, Torture, Emotional abuse, Colonisation, Bullying, Self harm, Body horror, War, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Animal death, Xenophobia, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, Animal cruelty, Confinement, and Kidnapping
This is a book very much about the horrific history and acts of Christian zealotry that caused both pagan and Jewish communities to be wiped out, and echoes the centuries of fear and grief that the Jewish community has had to endure since.