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emilytalitha's review
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
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
5.0
This book is STUNNING.
I’ve always loved Romeo and Juliet anyway, I read it for the first time when I was twelve and have reread and loved it so many times since then, so since this was heavily inspired by it, it was a no brainer that I was gonna love this if it was done well.
which, to say it’s done well would be an understatement.
Olivie Blake is an absolutely phenomenal writer. This was the first thing of hers that I’ve read but I’ve heard from others about her distinctive writing style and my gosh it was beautiful. The prose in this book was so poetic and lovely and painted such a vivid, beautiful picture.
The characters in this book were all SO broken and raw and it was hard not to be attached to them on some level. I’d spend half the book hating a character only to get a chapter from their POV, hear their side, realize why they do the things they do, only to turn around and have my heart break for them just like the rest. There wasn’t a single character throughout this entire book that my heart didn’t ache for at one time or another.
I also really enjoyed that the plot was not predictable. Being Romeo and Juliet inspired, I thought I had it figured out from the very beginning, but I was proven wrong time and time again. Yet it still followed the beats of the play, just not in the ways you were expecting, and it was so expertly and beautifully done. I loved that I was on the edge of my seat and didn’t know what was going to happen until it actually happened at the end.
The book IS complicated to follow at times, I will say that, but not in a bad way. The characters have their secrets that are not revealed, even to the reader, and every single character is playing their own game, using the others to their advantage in some way or other, so it can be tricky keeping track of what everyone’s game is, but it’s so worth it.
And again, this goes back to how deeply broken these characters are. They are all so flawed; they are all using each other, they’re all after revenge or power or money or something else, and they’re all willing to go to extreme lengths to get it. Yet the book still makes sure the goodness in each of them shines through. In every wrong choice they make you see their heart, broken and beaten and barely hanging on, and you understand that these people are not bad, they are broken, and it’s heart wrenching to read but so, so beautiful.
The writing and character work and story were all just so stunning and so masterfully handled. I will definitely be rereading it very soon to annotate and really dive into the text. This is a new favorite book.
I’ve always loved Romeo and Juliet anyway, I read it for the first time when I was twelve and have reread and loved it so many times since then, so since this was heavily inspired by it, it was a no brainer that I was gonna love this if it was done well.
which, to say it’s done well would be an understatement.
Olivie Blake is an absolutely phenomenal writer. This was the first thing of hers that I’ve read but I’ve heard from others about her distinctive writing style and my gosh it was beautiful. The prose in this book was so poetic and lovely and painted such a vivid, beautiful picture.
The characters in this book were all SO broken and raw and it was hard not to be attached to them on some level. I’d spend half the book hating a character only to get a chapter from their POV, hear their side, realize why they do the things they do, only to turn around and have my heart break for them just like the rest. There wasn’t a single character throughout this entire book that my heart didn’t ache for at one time or another.
I also really enjoyed that the plot was not predictable. Being Romeo and Juliet inspired, I thought I had it figured out from the very beginning, but I was proven wrong time and time again. Yet it still followed the beats of the play, just not in the ways you were expecting, and it was so expertly and beautifully done. I loved that I was on the edge of my seat and didn’t know what was going to happen until it actually happened at the end.
The book IS complicated to follow at times, I will say that, but not in a bad way. The characters have their secrets that are not revealed, even to the reader, and every single character is playing their own game, using the others to their advantage in some way or other, so it can be tricky keeping track of what everyone’s game is, but it’s so worth it.
And again, this goes back to how deeply broken these characters are. They are all so flawed; they are all using each other, they’re all after revenge or power or money or something else, and they’re all willing to go to extreme lengths to get it. Yet the book still makes sure the goodness in each of them shines through. In every wrong choice they make you see their heart, broken and beaten and barely hanging on, and you understand that these people are not bad, they are broken, and it’s heart wrenching to read but so, so beautiful.
The writing and character work and story were all just so stunning and so masterfully handled. I will definitely be rereading it very soon to annotate and really dive into the text. This is a new favorite book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Suicide
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