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pinkupengu's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Misogyny, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Medical content, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Abandonment, Animal death, Blood, Xenophobia, Child death, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcohol, Murder, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Violence, Colonisation, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Racism, and Self harm
Minor: Sexual content, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, and Cultural appropriation
cailean_renard's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.25
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Xenophobia and Racism
Minor: Sexual content
barda's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
It had all of the elements of a great read - a unique setting (19th Century alternative history Paris), cool magic system, intricate heists, and a likeable cast of characters. It was very much like Six of Crows, which I adore, in spirit. But in the end it just couldn't come together in a cohesive way.
The author clearly put a lot of thought into the puzzles and heist elements, as well as the world-building; however, much of it was written in a confusing way, such that I couldn't really picture in my head what was happening in a scene. The characters were broadly likeable and very diverse (Hypnos in particular was hilarious), but much of the characterisation was done by telling the audience what they were supposed to be like (such as it being banged over your head repeatedly that Severin and Laila slept together once and had residual feelings) rather than letting the backstories and personalities of their individual characters be revealed gradually through the text.
One element in particular knocked back my rating quite a bit, and that was the ending. Without spoilers, what I thought was the ending was a pretty good cliffhanger, and had huge emotional ramifications for the characters which could be explored in the next book. But then...there's more pages. And any emotional impact of the ending is completely wiped away as the characters deal with them over the space of a single chapter. This all leads up to a second cliffhanger, which in itself was fine and could have easily stood on its own, but it felt like the author had two ideas for how their book should end and just took the worst of both worlds and put them together in the same book.
I can appreciate what the author tried to do with this book, with the richly detailed setting and magic system, and I really liked the inclusion of neurodiversity among the main characters and the critiques of colonialism in the context of the setting. However, it was let down by confusing writing, the lack of "show not tell", and the ending.
Graphic: Child abuse and Blood
Moderate: Grief, Classism, Colonisation, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
Minor: Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Torture
friendly_neighborhood_grandma's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Child death, Blood, Classism, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Violence, Antisemitism, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, and Sexual content
Moderate: Racism, Gaslighting, Gore, Sexual content, Torture, and Xenophobia
Minor: Self harm and Suicide
silodear's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Violence and Death
Moderate: Sexual content and Death of parent
erins_bookshelf_'s review against another edition
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
I need the next one like now
That thing with the birds was a bit creepy but I’m assuming Tristan had some kind of mind issue because of that stupid Phobus Helmet so I can’t blame him :(
The action and story of this were incredible I’m really glad I finally picked this up
I got it from my library so I need to buy it but I will be getting the next two from the library I need to know what happens next
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Ableism and Antisemitism
Minor: Animal cruelty, Sexual content, and Homophobia
quillify_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
0.5
In Ms. Chokshi's own hypocritical words: "When we revise the horror and sanitize the grotesque, we risk erasing the paths that led us here."
No offence, but that is what this community does every day by promoting and recommending this book.
Graphic: Self harm, Kidnapping, Grief, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Cursing, Misogyny, Colonisation, Classism, Racism, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, and Sexism
Minor: Sexual content
discworldwitch's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Cultural appropriation, Racism, and Child abuse
Moderate: Hate crime, Antisemitism, Ableism, Racism, Colonisation, Sexual content, Animal death, and Animal cruelty
maryjames's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcohol, Blood, Grief, Sexual content, Antisemitism, and Racism
Minor: Animal cruelty, Cultural appropriation, Genocide, and Injury/Injury detail
mmefish's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty and Death
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Grief, and Sexual content
Minor: Self harm