Reviews

The Leviathan by Rosie Andrews

vezrity's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

valerie_wir05's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.75

crownjules73's review against another edition

2.0

usually love historical fiction but sadly just couldn’t get into this book. I quite liked the first section which mainly focussed on ‘witch’ investigations and had some good characters. However, as it moved on to more fantastical themes I became disengaged. The style of switching between time periods meant that halfway through the book I already had the answers to the part of the story that interested me, and I was irritated by new plots that seemed unrelated and unrealistic. I ploughed on but after several days of what I felt was ridiculousness, I gave up and skim-read to the end. Perhaps I prefer gritty reality and made a poor choice to read this; I’m sure fans of the supernatural/spiritual might be able to enjoy the flight of fantasy a little more.
Thanks to the publisher for the advance copy, but it just wasn’t my cup of tea.

aerolich's review against another edition

mysterious slow-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? It's complicated

2.75

sanrodsara's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

lotecider's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-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? It's complicated

4.5

This book was a slow read, but not boring at all. The writing consistently created tension and mystery, and despite the pacing, as a reader I was hooked. The plot itself was brilliant, though having context of Christian theology would definitely enhance the experience. 

The characters feel genuine and real, and the world building truly teleports you through time into the setting, even as someone who has little knowledge of the English civil war/Stuart era. 

In terms of the story itself, very well written and I definitely would recommend to anyone who enjoys historical fiction with a touch of fantasy. I wouldn't say this book is dark, particularly compared to other books, however, perhaps due to the time period it is set in, there are certainly motifs that are of a darker nature than other books. 

The thing that stops me rating it 5 stars is that I feel there was such a big build up but the release/end to the build up was underwhelming. I also felt that the ending was rather confusing too.

zeolite's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective tense 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? It's complicated

4.75

kristintroy's review against another edition

All the Gothic rizz of Poldark on Halloween. Further proof younger sisters are gross

em_emily_o's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes

3.75

thelostvoid's review against another edition

I could like, push through and hope that I end up enjoying this, but I just did that with Court of Wanderers and it backfired and this was meant to be my year of DNFing shit I wasn't enjoying (or just getting it off the TBR in general) so we are not going to continue this. I just, don't care? And from other reviews this picks up halfway through, and I don't want to wait that long on the chance I enjoy the back half.