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maddiemooney's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Minor: Child abuse, Vomit, Suicide, Religious bigotry, Blood, Murder, Pandemic/Epidemic, Animal death, Death of parent, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Violence, Abortion, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Miscarriage, Child death, Sexism, and War
fictionalportal'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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death, Pregnancy, and Death of parent
Moderate: War, Xenophobia, Acephobia/Arophobia, Violence, Suicide, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Religious bigotry, Misogyny, Grief, Animal death, and Child abuse
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
aseel_reads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Blood, Confinement, Gore, War, Grief, Death of parent, Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, and Violence
careinthelibrary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
This is more politically intricate than the previous tome from Samantha Shannon. I didn't personally prefer this much politics in my fantasy, but I know lots of people who enjoy political machinations and intrigue in their high fantasy so I'm sure it'll be popular for that reason. There's a lot more time spent discussing various kingdoms' relationships with one another and marriage features a lot more in this (at least to my memory of what <i>Priory</i> was like). But don't fret, there's also plenty of action and darkness.
The dragon content doesn't disappoint. It feels like it's scraped from the depths of a volcano with how intimidating and ancient they feel. We get lots of conflict with dragons in this which is satisfying because <i>Priory</i> never felt like quite enough. Samantha Shannon is generous with the drama in this book.
Women and women's love are at the core of this novel. Romantic love, parental love, sisterly love. This puts a spotlight on these kinds of relationships and over the course of the novel, they grow and change. They betray one another, they uplift one another, they love each other, they defend each other. It's great. There were some characters I felt more attached to and whose plotlines entertained me more while others were lesser favoured. Glorian was my favourite but I liked aspects of all them.
All in all, I don't think this will disappoint fans. Depending on your personal preferences, you may like this a little more or a little less than the previous, but most importantly, it's its own story with a fresh take on the world. It doesn't live in the shadow of the predecessor but right alongside that legend.
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Grief, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Death, Pregnancy, Violence, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, War, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Suicide, Adult/minor relationship, and Infidelity
Minor: Alcohol
Forced pregnancy, young pregnancy