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cambion's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Pedophilia and Murder
Minor: Mental illness
csmall73's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Its a strange story. Quentin is swept into a magical world of breakbills and magical college essentially. His entire time at breakbills is encompassed in the first part of the book. There’s no threats or quests. Seems more like a diary of his time there.
Reading about some of the sexual encounters of his peers was odd and detached. I found Quentin’s and Alice’s fox encounter weird and borderline SA. I say borderline because it appears so but also he was unprepared for his animal brain at the time. Then the ensuing relationship seems detached like a friends with benefits but not?
All seem lost in fucking, philosophical discussion, wine and lack of real motivation. Like bunch of rich kids that never had a job or purpose in life. Existential crisis. Amidst this existential crisis Quentin cheats on Alice.
Fillory, keeps popping up in passing as well as other worlds but no real connection with the story other than a childhood fascination with the world. 300/402 pages with nothing insight. Then all of a sudden a forgotten side character happens upon a way to Fillory. Out of the blue. I don’t understand why penny would come to them specifically after having issues in school with one another and distancing himself from them specifically.
Alice is an underestimated queen. Quentin is a petty asshole about the breakup and the consequences that come his way.
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment
jennlongb's review
Imagine a college-aged Harry Potter that doesn’t actually do much magic — or much of anything. There doesn’t seem to be a definable plot, goal, or conflict. Things just happen, and then the story goes on. The main character over or under sexualizes his female peers, and seems to be offended when they don’t fall for him. He even is offended that his gay (or bi) friend didn’t try to sleep with him, even though he himself is not gay, or bi. But really, nothing of note happened in the first 34%. A couple people died, but was it exciting? Were the deaths impactful? No. I probably could have forgiven some of the sexuality and language if the plot was compelling, but I was just too bored to spend more time on it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Violence
noom's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
God what a book, I ate it up. It's an odd book for sure, but really engaging. The plot is bonkers but never falls apart. The magic system is interesting and the world building is unique.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism and Violence
deathmetalheron's review
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Alcoholism, Infidelity, Violence, and Alcohol
Minor: Drug use
kallissabailey's review
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The first book in series felt a bit clunky as the story unfolded but by end of book it evened out to be a really well told story in second and third books.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Violence, Toxic friendship, and War
rape, graphic descriptions of violence and goredistractible's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol
Moderate: Death, Infidelity, and Violence
Minor: Fatphobia, Mental illness, and Sexual content
raginsagein's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I wanted to like this book! I really did! I love the show, and I wanted to love the book even more (because the book is always better than the tv show/movie—except in this case). It felt like being on a sugar rush with Lewis Carroll talking in one ear and JK Rowling talking the other. There was violence simply for the sake of violence. It took forever for them to get to the point. I just…didn’t enjoy it as much as a I was hoping to.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
tbd24's review
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I rather like this series, this is the second time i’ve read it and there are just really great turns of phrase in the prose. I love world building and this book embraces that times three, the magic system is cool and complicated and the characters are never just good people. Quentin is shitty and obnoxious but like what 17 yr old “gifted kid” isn’t? There’s a few questionable moments, the author loves to make women suffer viscerally a little too much in my opinion, but at least he still remembers to make them people. Overall, it’s a good read and an interesting series
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Alcohol
Minor: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child death, Cursing, Drug use, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Violence, Excrement, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, and Injury/Injury detail
springybreak's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Mental illness, Torture, Violence, and Cannibalism