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bookishplantmom's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
4.0
This was much darker and more emotional than I expected or recall book 1 being. We pick up a short while after the events of book 1. Our characters are pursuing new goals and realize that the aftermath of their actions are far reaching and extremely impactful. The plot was engaging and the characters fleshed out in a satisfying way. I think this books greatest strength is its discussion of toxics relationships, depression and trauma. I thought the author did a fantastic job of tackling these issues without being overly prescriptive or heavy handed. I wish they had been more explicit in some places to make clearer to readers that these moments are ones of abuse though I appreciate that they trust that young readers will be able to identify this. Overall a strong conclusion to this duology!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, and Torture
briely's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Gaslighting, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Mental illness, and Slavery
queer_bookwyrm's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
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
5 ⭐ CW: (provided by the author) fantasy violence, self-harm, emotional and physical abuse, anxiety/panic attacks, grooming, suicidal ideation
A Psalm of Storms and Silence by Roseanne A. Brown is the second and final book of the Song of Wraiths and Ruin duology. This book blew my mind! The only thing I regret is not having read it sooner. I may have loved this book even more than the first one! Read the rest at your own risk, as there will be spoilers for book 1.
We pick up with Karina and Malik's perspectives after the very upsetting ending of the last book. Karina is on the run trying to figure out how take back her throne, get revenge on Farid, and have more control over her wind powers. Malik is with Farid and the lich still struggling with the war of anxiety in his mind along with the presence of the spirit Idir. I have never read a series where my opinions on the MCs have made a complete 180° since the last book. Last book I found Karina annoying, and I was constantly yelling at her to get it together and be responsible, but in this book I found her infinitely more relatable, courageous, and determined. I was rooting for her the whole time. Malik started out as the gentle boy with anxiety who tended to be self-destructive, and I just wanted to wrap him up and protect him. In this book, he becomes Farid's cowardly dog, and in his desire for control (over his mind and Idir), he becomes cruel, self-serving, and violent.
We get some great new side characters in this book that I wish we had gotten more of. This book was a study of the gray areas of life. No character was completely good or bad. Each made mistakes and hurt people, but it's hard to label someone a villain when you understand their motives and the circumstances that led up to them. The reasons don't absolve that person of their actions, but understanding goes a long way. It's also a story about forgiving yourself for your mistakes and moving forward to find something to live for. Just one thing.
Karina's story in particular, was about seeing what is wrong and being the one who does something about it. Things don't have to stay the way they have always been. Change, though slow and difficult, can happen if you're the one to make it happen. It's also a story of sacrifice, though it's never the sacrifice you expect.
This series is so severely underrated! I need everyone to go pick up a copy of A Song of Wraiths and Ruin. Roseanne A. Brown did a marvellous job with duology. She made me feel so many things. Her words, especially while describing Malik's anxiety hit home, along with his trauma response of fawning whenever he thought Farid was upset. I never realized I do the same thing until I read this book.
Will be immediately buying all of Brown's future books as they come out.
A Psalm of Storms and Silence by Roseanne A. Brown is the second and final book of the Song of Wraiths and Ruin duology. This book blew my mind! The only thing I regret is not having read it sooner. I may have loved this book even more than the first one! Read the rest at your own risk, as there will be spoilers for book 1.
We pick up with Karina and Malik's perspectives after the very upsetting ending of the last book. Karina is on the run trying to figure out how take back her throne, get revenge on Farid, and have more control over her wind powers. Malik is with Farid and the lich still struggling with the war of anxiety in his mind along with the presence of the spirit Idir. I have never read a series where my opinions on the MCs have made a complete 180° since the last book. Last book I found Karina annoying, and I was constantly yelling at her to get it together and be responsible, but in this book I found her infinitely more relatable, courageous, and determined. I was rooting for her the whole time. Malik started out as the gentle boy with anxiety who tended to be self-destructive, and I just wanted to wrap him up and protect him. In this book, he becomes Farid's cowardly dog, and in his desire for control (over his mind and Idir), he becomes cruel, self-serving, and violent.
We get some great new side characters in this book that I wish we had gotten more of. This book was a study of the gray areas of life. No character was completely good or bad. Each made mistakes and hurt people, but it's hard to label someone a villain when you understand their motives and the circumstances that led up to them. The reasons don't absolve that person of their actions, but understanding goes a long way. It's also a story about forgiving yourself for your mistakes and moving forward to find something to live for. Just one thing.
Karina's story in particular, was about seeing what is wrong and being the one who does something about it. Things don't have to stay the way they have always been. Change, though slow and difficult, can happen if you're the one to make it happen. It's also a story of sacrifice, though it's never the sacrifice you expect.
This series is so severely underrated! I need everyone to go pick up a copy of A Song of Wraiths and Ruin. Roseanne A. Brown did a marvellous job with duology. She made me feel so many things. Her words, especially while describing Malik's anxiety hit home, along with his trauma response of fawning whenever he thought Farid was upset. I never realized I do the same thing until I read this book.
Will be immediately buying all of Brown's future books as they come out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, and Self harm
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders and Suicidal thoughts
violetreader's review
adventurous
dark
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? Yes
4.5
Picked it up because the main character shares my name, kept reading because the story was awesome!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence
Minor: Self harm and Grief
For all the trauma the characters go through, there is an equal and proportional amount of healthy coping mechanisms to heal from trauma.koerli's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
tense
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Violence, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Abandonment
It is a great book, deals amazing with all the problems!notpercyjacksonyet's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
tense
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
Absolutely gorgeous. I loved the first book and this was better. It feels right, it feels complete, and yet I want so much more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Emotional abuse, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Racism, Violence, Slavery, Self harm, and Racial slurs
Minor: Sexual content, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Vomit
studieswithj101's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
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
4.0
Surprisingly, I enjoyed this book more than the first one in the series. Maybe it was because I connected with and was getting to know the characters better, but I really enjoyed this storyline. It felt like there was more action than the first book and you got a better understanding of the characters! I also wanted to point out how this book was more diverse (in terms of race, ethnicity, gender, and even neurodivergence) than most popular fantasy books and I appreciated that!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Death and Emotional abuse
meganivy04's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
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
4.0
I enjoyed the book because of the African mythology—that was fun to read and I want to learn more about it. It is written in a dual narrative with some very common tropes. The enemy to lovers trope was predictable. My rating is based off of learning about the mythology because the YA teenage angst did get old, even with understanding that there is a lot of “coming of age” in the narrative. I also didn’t appreciate some of the adult themes present. The author DOES give warning at the beginning of the book and she does veil a lot of the more sensitive topics: you don’t recognize them unless you have prior knowledge about them. That said, while I appreciate some of the issues given credibility (such as mental health) some is overdone and not needed for the storyline.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, and Self harm
Minor: Sexual content and Trafficking
ofbooksandechos's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Grief, Racial slurs, and Racism
Minor: Murder, Pregnancy, Torture, and Miscarriage
other CWs: grooming, fictional racism/racial slurs, fictional police brutalitysome_random_person_hi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
Chapter 31 <33333
Starting from arnd pg 300 this book got from good to great.
Starting from arnd pg 300 this book got from good to great.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Death, Suicide, Panic attacks/disorders, Domestic abuse, Self harm, and Torture
Minor: Sexual content, Alcohol, and Transphobia