Reviews

Princess Floralinda and the Forty-Flight Tower by Tamsyn Muir

mordicant's review

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-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

4.25

mallorysteffey's review

adventurous funny medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

crimsoncor's review

5.0

Muir revels in really dark and fucked-up relationships. That isn't a criticism even if it makes me uncomfortable at times. The novella was so rich that it felt about three times longer than it actually was.

This paired really well with [b:The Echo Wife|52379735|The Echo Wife|Sarah Gailey|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1588791809l/52379735._SY75_.jpg|73056559] which I read right after.

bookdragon_sansan's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

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

5.0

unicorn's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny fast-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

q87's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted fast-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

4.5

skyturtles's review

4.0

 Cover art looks like juvie fiction, but I assure you that it is not. Very entertaining take on the "princess trapped at the top of the tower" trope, Rapunzel yada yada Saint George yada yada Sleeping Beauty. Don't open this one hoping for your typical Mario rescuing Princess Peach.
Once again proves that the novella is the superior art form *ahem* 

spilt_moonlight's review

adventurous challenging dark medium-paced

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

3.0

jocielu's review against another edition

fast-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

4.0

thebetterstory's review

adventurous dark funny tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Well, that was glorious and really rather horrible.

I'll agree with the other reviews that well the ending kind of fits, the more you actually think about it the worse it feels for everyone involved, and tonally the cheeriness of it happening is completely off.

That said, if you've ever been the type to enjoy the flavour of darkfic or a certain kind of horror, particularly one about someone slowly being changed by their trials until they come out of it not quite right at the end—or if you've ever thought the words "I love a good yandere"—you could very well end up liking this a lot. Or if you think it might be interesting to watch one girl and one fairy of indifferent gender grimly and pragmatically figure out the best way to slaughter a tower filled with monsters using only the contents of one small living chamber and the friends body parts they find along the way. Really, though, this one's not for children unless they have strong stomachs, humorously censored swear words aside.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Gore, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Minor: Sexism, Fatphobia, Mental illness, and Suicide