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athenian_frog's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
“Harrow was sprawled on a sofa spread with tattered brocade, robes abandoned, scrawny black clad legs crossed at the ankles. In Gideon’s mind she looked like an evil stick”(56).
The experience was DEFINITELY made better by putting on the YouTube audiobook as I read (at around 1.75-2x speed). Moira Quirk gave everyone pretty distinct voices, and writing is casual enough to lend itself better to someone reading it/enunciating conversations.
If you have the means I recommend annotating and/or maintaining post-it’s with your predictions. I found it pretty fun, since the lore and the plot itself were ensconced in mystery ★彡
POSITIVES:
+ Main characters have distinct personalities and voices. Supports and side characters feel interesting in their own respects
+ character exchanges are pretty fun to read. Gideon and her necromancer did a good job of this overall, especially.
—-> it’s made extra impactful because you get a taste of their intense relationship dynamic in a strong way by ch 3.
+ Gideon herself comes off very strongly off the page. Doesn’t feel like she’s just being shuffled by the plot without a say which can be an issue sometimes
+ the entire cast, in some way contributed to the plot and they felt very much present through the story.
+ really cool applications of necromancy, necromantic magic, spirit manipulation etc.
+ thoughtful construction of a necromantic religion, varied forms of cavalry-necromancer relationship
+ you need more interesting women characters in your life? Here take several
+ lesbians being cool! I mean there’s no mystery to Gideon being wlw but don’t expect people to start pairing up in this book at least.
+ it seems like this necromantic society is queernormative, even the house the other necromantic houses deem “most religious” which is always nice to see
+ mysterious elements of the plot done pretty well. Highlights the world/relationships between necromancer houses. You have a lot of fun theorizing.
NEGATIVES:
- the lore is interesting but you have to do some mental floundering at the beginning. I felt like I was tossed into the metaphorical ocean for the first chapter or two.
- (minor) Yes, Gideon and her cavalier have really solid relationship development but it did feel a tad bit rushed towards the end. I think it’s still pretty good overall though.
-some repetitive writing towards the beginning. If you’re familiar with the sentence subject repetition you find often in fanfiction:
“One day, (statement A). One day, (statement B). One day, (statement C)”
“Act accordingly meant (A). Act accordingly meant (B). Act accordingly meant (C)”
Once, this kind of repetition happened like twice on the same page. Personally, this got pretty annoying. Thankfully it only happens around 4 times within the first 60pgs, and very, very sparingly throughout the rest of the book (around 7 times total for the whole book).
- some characters die, and while they have distinctive personalities and issues going on I felt like they died too quick to really get that punch in the gut. A bit of missed potential there.
—-> some of this is improved by book 2 but I think book 1 still could’ve done better here, for the standalone reading experience.
- some really corny humor that might work or might not. It usually landed for me but sometimes it didn’t.
-the epilogue felt a little weak, especially when the climax was actually pretty good
Overall a fun read. It made me continue the rest of the series which I am enjoying so far!
———————————————————
“When [Harrowhark] spoke again, she made her voice quite calm and normal: ‘Why?’
‘Probably because you asked.’
The heavy eyelids shuttered open, revealing baleful black irises. ‘That’s all it takes, Griddle? That’s all you demand? This is the complex mystery that lies in the pit of your psyche?’
Gideon slid her glasses back onto her face, obscuring feelings with tint. She found herself saying, ‘That’s all I ever demanded,’ and to maintain face suffixed it with, ‘asswipe.’(224)”
The experience was DEFINITELY made better by putting on the YouTube audiobook as I read (at around 1.75-2x speed). Moira Quirk gave everyone pretty distinct voices, and writing is casual enough to lend itself better to someone reading it/enunciating conversations.
If you have the means I recommend annotating and/or maintaining post-it’s with your predictions. I found it pretty fun, since the lore and the plot itself were ensconced in mystery ★彡
POSITIVES:
+ Main characters have distinct personalities and voices. Supports and side characters feel interesting in their own respects
+ character exchanges are pretty fun to read. Gideon and her necromancer did a good job of this overall, especially.
—-> it’s made extra impactful because you get a taste of their intense relationship dynamic in a strong way by ch 3.
+ Gideon herself comes off very strongly off the page. Doesn’t feel like she’s just being shuffled by the plot without a say which can be an issue sometimes
+ the entire cast, in some way contributed to the plot and they felt very much present through the story.
+ really cool applications of necromancy, necromantic magic, spirit manipulation etc.
+ thoughtful construction of a necromantic religion, varied forms of cavalry-necromancer relationship
+ you need more interesting women characters in your life? Here take several
+ lesbians being cool! I mean there’s no mystery to Gideon being wlw but don’t expect people to start pairing up in this book at least.
+ it seems like this necromantic society is queernormative, even the house the other necromantic houses deem “most religious” which is always nice to see
+ mysterious elements of the plot done pretty well. Highlights the world/relationships between necromancer houses. You have a lot of fun theorizing.
NEGATIVES:
- the lore is interesting but you have to do some mental floundering at the beginning. I felt like I was tossed into the metaphorical ocean for the first chapter or two.
- (minor) Yes, Gideon and her cavalier have really solid relationship development but it did feel a tad bit rushed towards the end. I think it’s still pretty good overall though.
-some repetitive writing towards the beginning. If you’re familiar with the sentence subject repetition you find often in fanfiction:
“One day, (statement A). One day, (statement B). One day, (statement C)”
“Act accordingly meant (A). Act accordingly meant (B). Act accordingly meant (C)”
Once, this kind of repetition happened like twice on the same page. Personally, this got pretty annoying. Thankfully it only happens around 4 times within the first 60pgs, and very, very sparingly throughout the rest of the book (around 7 times total for the whole book).
- some characters die, and while they have distinctive personalities and issues going on I felt like they died too quick to really get that punch in the gut. A bit of missed potential there.
—-> some of this is improved by book 2 but I think book 1 still could’ve done better here, for the standalone reading experience.
- some really corny humor that might work or might not. It usually landed for me but sometimes it didn’t.
-the epilogue felt a little weak, especially when the climax was actually pretty good
Overall a fun read. It made me continue the rest of the series which I am enjoying so far!
———————————————————
“When [Harrowhark] spoke again, she made her voice quite calm and normal: ‘Why?’
‘Probably because you asked.’
The heavy eyelids shuttered open, revealing baleful black irises. ‘That’s all it takes, Griddle? That’s all you demand? This is the complex mystery that lies in the pit of your psyche?’
Gideon slid her glasses back onto her face, obscuring feelings with tint. She found herself saying, ‘That’s all I ever demanded,’ and to maintain face suffixed it with, ‘asswipe.’(224)”
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Chronic illness, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Cursing, Grief, Terminal illness, Death, Violence, and Suicide
(Straightforward statement, little to Jo description) Several children die by poisoning en masse before the story takes place. Detailed descriptions of wounds, flesh and bone crafting (in part due to necromancy focus) (Descriptive) More than one child character is killed. (Semi-Described) A character kills themself by throwing themself upon an iron spike. It is pretty brief. Two parents and another character kill themselves by hanging, and pre-arrange for their child to do the same. The child does not. (Described) A reoccurring character suffers from a terminal illness that is associated with their necromantic house. They often cough up blood or appear very sickly.wogslandwriter's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
sad
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Confinement, Bullying, Chronic illness, Blood, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Murder, Self harm, Cancer, Cannibalism, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Sexual content
lizziaha's review against another edition
dark
funny
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Y’all I did NOT see that end coming. But I had a good time on the journey. The relationship dynamic between Gideon and Harrow is just gorgeous and hilarious, and I loved Gideon as a narrator. The vibes were immaculate, right down to the skeleton housekeepers and Gideon’s faked aesthetic, and I’m scared that the sequels won’t measure up to this one.
Reread: The details only make this book MORE devastating. The foreshadowing that went completely over my head on my first read now cut DEEP. Also, i had my suspicions upon my first read with all the “one flesh, one end” talk, but Muir does in fact quote the book of Ruth in this book and it was so detrimental to my mental health that I think I’m going to have to take legal action. Also having read all 3 released books, I can still say that GtN is my fave, but the sequels do measure up (though not in the way I expected them to).
Reread: The details only make this book MORE devastating. The foreshadowing that went completely over my head on my first read now cut DEEP. Also, i had my suspicions upon my first read with all the “one flesh, one end” talk, but Muir does in fact quote the book of Ruth in this book and it was so detrimental to my mental health that I think I’m going to have to take legal action. Also having read all 3 released books, I can still say that GtN is my fave, but the sequels do measure up (though not in the way I expected them to).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Blood, Death, Body horror, and Cursing
Moderate: Child death, Violence, Cancer, and Suicide
Minor: Grief
tobibi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
sad
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? It's complicated
4.0
This really reinvigorated my reading mood. It took a bit to build up, but the world building is presented very well (little to no infodumps) and the characters are introduced slowly, so you get a general feel for them throughout the book. The horror elements are good, though a bit less striking than I thought they would be, but that's likely due to our POV (Gideon). I enjoyed seeing the back and forth in Griddlehawk's relationship progression, and the ending was heartbreakingly good. I'm looking forward to reading the next book.
favorite lines
"... Where I'm going, I promise to piss fidelity all the livelong day. I have lots of fealty in me. I fealt the Emperor with every bone in my body. I fealt *hard*." (p. 43)
"With the proper motivation, Griddle could wield two swords in each hand and one in her mouth. While we were developing common sense, she studied the blade." (p. 53)
"Harrow said, "No."
"I want to go," said Gideon.
"This sounds impossibly vapid."
"I want to eat a dessert."" (p. 167)
Harrow's voice, almost a whisper: "A light, Nav."
"What?"
"You *did* bring a torch."
"This is a service I was unaware I was meant to provide," said Gideon. (p. 204)
... "Thoughts?"
Gideon said, "Did you know that if you put the first three letters of your last name with the first three letters of your first name, you get 'Sex Pal'?" (p. 274)
"Ask me how I am and I'll scream," she said.
"How are you," said Camilla, who was a pill.
"I see you calling my bluff and I resent it," said Gideon... (p. 305)
Once Gideon would have loved to hear Corona talk to her with that low, breathy intensity, maybe saying "Your biceps... they're eleven out of ten," but right now she did not want anyone to talk to her at all. (p. 327)
"... Look, Nav. You ratted out your childhood nemesis to get her in trouble. You didn't kill her parents, and she shouldn't hate you like you did, and *you* shouldn't hate you like you did."
He was peering at her through his spectacles. "Hey," she objected lamely, "I never said I hated myself."
"Evidence," he said, "outweighs testimony." (p. 336)
... "I'm an abomination. The whole universe ought to scream whenever my feet touch the ground. My parents committed a necromantic sin that we ought to have been torpedoed into hte centre of Dominicus for. If any of the other Houses knew of what we'd done they would destroy us from orbit without a second's thought. i am a *war crime*." (p. 353)
"... I made myself watch, when my parents -- I could not do the slightest thing my House expected of me. Not even then. You're not the only one who couldn't die." (p. 355)
... "You apologize to me now? You say that you're sorry when I have spent my life destroying you? You are my whipping girl! I hurt you because it was a relief! I exist because my parents killed everyone and relegated you to a life of abject misery, and they would have killed you too and not given a second's goddamned thought! I have spent your life trying to make you regret that you weren't dead, all because -- I regretted I wasn't! I ate you alive, and you have the temerity to tell me that *you're sorry*?" (p. 356)
"Hm," said Camilla neutrally, and Gideon knew immediately that she organized Palamedes's and her socks by color and genre. (p. 365)
... She didn't need a very long look to tell that Dyas was dead. For one thing, her skeleton and her body had apparently tried to divorce. (p. 372)
"She took Babs," she said, which seemed fair enough.
But then Corona started crying again, big tears leaking out of her eyes, her voice thick with misery and self-pity. "And who even cares about Babs? Babs! She could have taken *me*." (p. 394)
Harrow said, with some difficulty. "I cannot conceive of a universe without you in it."
"Yes, you can, it's just less great and less hot," said Gideon." (p. 437)
favorite lines
"I want to go," said Gideon.
"This sounds impossibly vapid."
"I want to eat a dessert."" (p. 167)
"What?"
"You *did* bring a torch."
"This is a service I was unaware I was meant to provide," said Gideon. (p. 204)
Gideon said, "Did you know that if you put the first three letters of your last name with the first three letters of your first name, you get 'Sex Pal'?" (p. 274)
"How are you," said Camilla, who was a pill.
"I see you calling my bluff and I resent it," said Gideon... (p. 305)
He was peering at her through his spectacles. "Hey," she objected lamely, "I never said I hated myself."
"Evidence," he said, "outweighs testimony." (p. 336)
But then Corona started crying again, big tears leaking out of her eyes, her voice thick with misery and self-pity. "And who even cares about Babs? Babs! She could have taken *me*." (p. 394)
"Yes, you can, it's just less great and less hot," said Gideon." (p. 437)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Gore, Grief, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Child abuse, Child death, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Murder, Classism, Death, Torture, Cursing, Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Blood, Body horror, Violence, Slavery, and Abandonment
fate_of_ansley's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Blood, Death of parent, and Child death
wonderingintothevoid's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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
3.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Cursing, Death, Death of parent, and Child death
jodean's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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? Yes
5.0
Kelsey has been trying to get me to read this for a while. Glad I finally listened.
I will say the audio book specifically is done very well. I switched to it from the paper version and was able to follow much better
I will say the audio book specifically is done very well. I switched to it from the paper version and was able to follow much better
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Death, Suicide, Child death, Cursing, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Cancer, Murder, Vomit, Bullying, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Slavery, War, and Self harm
therealratking's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Murder, Suicide attempt, Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Cursing, and Suicide
iane_reads's review
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Medical content, Murder, Slavery, Torture, Toxic friendship, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Death, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Violence, and Child death
Moderate: Classism, Death of parent, Mental illness, Suicide, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Hate crime, Miscarriage, Dementia, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Genocide, Pandemic/Epidemic, and War
yolanda_h's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Murder, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Cursing
Minor: Suicide