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queer_bookwyrm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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
4 ⭐ CW: violence, murder, torture, child abuse, descriptions of blood, desecration of corpses, oppression
"You are not a girl. You are vengeance in the night."
Incendiary by Zoraida Córdova is book one is the Hollow Crown duology. We get a great magic system, an unreliable narrator, a South American inspired world, and some unexpected twists!
We follow Renata Convida, a Robari (memory thief) with the Moria, a rebel group of magic users who are being exterminated and oppressed by the King of Puerto Leones. The king has utilized religion to spread fear of the Moria among the people.
Renata was once kidnapped by the Arm of Justice and forced to use her memory stealing powers against people like her when she was only a child. She now has to grapple with the guilt and memories of those she turned into Hollows (when she removes all memories and thoughts, but the body still lives). When she accidentally steals a memory from the boy she loves that makes his escape possible, he dies and Renata makes it her mission to finish what he started.
We get some great court intrigue, though I could have done with a bit more world building. I want to know more about both of the religions talked about. Leo is my favorite, and I love that this is a queer normative world. Since Renata is an unreliable narrator since she doesn't have access to her memories from the palace, she finds things aren't what they seem and people aren't either. She also grapples with the fact that bad people can do kind things. Córdova explores the complicated and conflicting emotions of having to face your abuser/oppressor again and the feeling anger and love or comfort at the same time.
The one theme I loved the most in this was the idea that you get to choose who you want to be instead of just being what everyone tells you you are. I loved the magic system in this! Along with Robári that can steal memories we also have Persuári, who can manipulate emotions, and Illusionári, who can create illusions, and Ventári, who can read minds. Certain metals can act as amplifiers to their respective powers: gold for Illusionári, silver for Ventári, copper for Pursuári, and platinum for Robári.
We get a major twists at the end, one of which I predicted, the other I did not. Definitely excited for Illusionary!
"You are not a girl. You are vengeance in the night."
Incendiary by Zoraida Córdova is book one is the Hollow Crown duology. We get a great magic system, an unreliable narrator, a South American inspired world, and some unexpected twists!
We follow Renata Convida, a Robari (memory thief) with the Moria, a rebel group of magic users who are being exterminated and oppressed by the King of Puerto Leones. The king has utilized religion to spread fear of the Moria among the people.
Renata was once kidnapped by the Arm of Justice and forced to use her memory stealing powers against people like her when she was only a child. She now has to grapple with the guilt and memories of those she turned into Hollows (when she removes all memories and thoughts, but the body still lives). When she accidentally steals a memory from the boy she loves that makes his escape possible, he dies and Renata makes it her mission to finish what he started.
We get some great court intrigue, though I could have done with a bit more world building. I want to know more about both of the religions talked about. Leo is my favorite, and I love that this is a queer normative world. Since Renata is an unreliable narrator since she doesn't have access to her memories from the palace, she finds things aren't what they seem and people aren't either. She also grapples with the fact that bad people can do kind things. Córdova explores the complicated and conflicting emotions of having to face your abuser/oppressor again and the feeling anger and love or comfort at the same time.
The one theme I loved the most in this was the idea that you get to choose who you want to be instead of just being what everyone tells you you are. I loved the magic system in this! Along with Robári that can steal memories we also have Persuári, who can manipulate emotions, and Illusionári, who can create illusions, and Ventári, who can read minds. Certain metals can act as amplifiers to their respective powers: gold for Illusionári, silver for Ventári, copper for Pursuári, and platinum for Robári.
We get a major twists at the end, one of which I predicted, the other I did not. Definitely excited for Illusionary!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, and Torture
Moderate: Child abuse and Blood
foreverinastory's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
fast-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
4.0
Rep: Latine female MC, mute female side character (tongue cut out), queer BIPOC male side character, BIPOC supporting cast--Latine.
CWs: Blood, child abuse, colonisation, death, death of parent, emotional abuse, fire/fire injury, grief, injury/injury detail, murder, kidnapping, violence, xenophobia. Moderate: sexual content, torture.
CWs: Blood, child abuse, colonisation, death, death of parent, emotional abuse, fire/fire injury, grief, injury/injury detail, murder, kidnapping, violence, xenophobia. Moderate: sexual content, torture.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Kidnapping, Violence, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Sexual content and Torture
mo345's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Renata is the most unreliable narrator ever.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Confinement, Death of parent, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Gaslighting, Grief, Hate crime, Kidnapping, Medical content, Murder, Torture, and Toxic relationship
daniellestarredpages's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Read my review here:
https://starredpages.com/2020/12/16/book-review-incendiary/
https://starredpages.com/2020/12/16/book-review-incendiary/
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Death
Minor: Vomit
bookcaptivated's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, and Torture
azrah786's review
4.0
UPDATE - 17/04/21
CW: violence, blood, torture, death, grief, emotional abuse
I'm convinced I was distracted or something on my first read because this time round I thought everything flowed really well in the story and I honestly don't know why I was confused? Though the last few chapters did upset the pacing of the rest of the book because everything was happening so rapidly.
Anyways I enjoyed this a lot more on the second read so I'm putting my rating up to 4 Stars
--
**I was provided with a copy of the book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
Taking place in a Spanish Inquisition-era inspired fantasy world, Incendiary follows a girl who possesses the rare (and feared) power of stealing memories with just the touch of her hand. As a child she was kidnapped and used as a weapon by the crown in their quest for power. However, she was rescued by a network of rebels and has spent years working with them to help others with magical abilities (Moira) to escape the kingdom. Though her power in particular means that next to no one has ever been able to fully trust her.
When there is a mishap on a particular rescue mission she is forced to dive back into the world of her past in order to save the future of her people, with only her own supressed memories and those she has stolen from other lives circling in her mind to accompany her.
Now I’m a little on the fence about how I feel about this one.
Córdova’s writing and storytelling is beautiful. The beginning immediately draws you into the thick of the rebel movement the story centres on and introduces you to a world with a fascinating magic system. Renata is a protagonist you both feel and root for, yet something just wasn’t clicking for me with the story as a whole.
Memories play a massive part in the narrative and I absolutely loved how this shaped Renata’s character for us as well as the world and people around her. The various twists and secrets embedded in the story, though occasionally predictable, really keep you reading. However, I found that at times I was confused due to missing information – particularly when it came to connecting and understanding the actions and motivations of the various other characters in the book. Some of the reveals happened a bit too abruptly and without much previous explanation… Hence I found that I was not enjoying the book as much as I expected to.
I do plan on picking up the sequel though!
Final Rating – 3.5/5 Stars
CW: violence, blood, torture, death, grief, emotional abuse
I'm convinced I was distracted or something on my first read because this time round I thought everything flowed really well in the story and I honestly don't know why I was confused? Though the last few chapters did upset the pacing of the rest of the book because everything was happening so rapidly.
Anyways I enjoyed this a lot more on the second read so I'm putting my rating up to 4 Stars
--
**I was provided with a copy of the book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
Taking place in a Spanish Inquisition-era inspired fantasy world, Incendiary follows a girl who possesses the rare (and feared) power of stealing memories with just the touch of her hand. As a child she was kidnapped and used as a weapon by the crown in their quest for power. However, she was rescued by a network of rebels and has spent years working with them to help others with magical abilities (Moira) to escape the kingdom. Though her power in particular means that next to no one has ever been able to fully trust her.
When there is a mishap on a particular rescue mission she is forced to dive back into the world of her past in order to save the future of her people, with only her own supressed memories and those she has stolen from other lives circling in her mind to accompany her.
Now I’m a little on the fence about how I feel about this one.
Córdova’s writing and storytelling is beautiful. The beginning immediately draws you into the thick of the rebel movement the story centres on and introduces you to a world with a fascinating magic system. Renata is a protagonist you both feel and root for, yet something just wasn’t clicking for me with the story as a whole.
Memories play a massive part in the narrative and I absolutely loved how this shaped Renata’s character for us as well as the world and people around her. The various twists and secrets embedded in the story, though occasionally predictable, really keep you reading. However, I found that at times I was confused due to missing information – particularly when it came to connecting and understanding the actions and motivations of the various other characters in the book. Some of the reveals happened a bit too abruptly and without much previous explanation… Hence I found that I was not enjoying the book as much as I expected to.
I do plan on picking up the sequel though!
Final Rating – 3.5/5 Stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Torture, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Emotional abuse
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