Reviews with content warning for Torture - Days of Blood & Starlight

⚠️ TW: war, slavery, genocide, murder, death, misogyny, torture, execution and sexual assault ⚠️ Wow, this book blew my mind just as much as the first one did! 🤯 This book continues to follow Karou who finally has the answers she has always sought. She knows who she is and what she is but with this new knowledge comes another truth she would give anything to undo. She loved the enemy but he betrayed her and a world suffered for it. Now she must decide how far she'll go to avenge her people. Filled with heartbreak and beauty, secrets and impossible choices, Karou finds herself and Akiva on opposing sides of an age-old war that stirs back to life. While she helps build a monstrous army with her allies in a land of dust and starlight, Akiva wages a battle for redemption and hope. But can any hope be salvaged from the ashes of their broken dream? This series just keeps on giving and I absolutely love it! Again, Laini Taylor flawlessly plunges you into this book with incredible world building, complex characters and the most intense storyline. Most trilogies, for me at least, seem to dip in one of their books but so far this series has me gripped in a magical fantasy vice where I want to binge the third and final book right away but I also don't want it to end yet. There is so much I could rave about this book because I love every last little thing but it's so hard without spoilers. Overall, if you are into epic mythical fantasies then you need to read this series!

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epsyphus's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.0

This book was set more in the fantasy world than the real world and I felt like that transition was a little lacking, I was a little confused. But still a great book, I have hope that I'll like the last book as much as I liked the first one.

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merenguita's review against another edition

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adventurous dark slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Okay, so I enjoyed the book, but not as much as the first one. I think this one is pretty much a set up for the big finale. The first half of the book was pretty dull for me, nothing really happened and there wasn't a clear objective, the characters are intresting and that's why I kept reading. But in the second half it started to build up, and the last third of the book was so good. I honestly did not predict some of the mayor plot twists so it kept me on my toes.
In terms of the narrating I think it is pretty intresting that Karou feels different, which makes sense after the flod of memories at the end of book 1. And you can feel how her personality shifts a bit. Buuut i did not like that there were so many different POV's, monst of the time i felt it was used to show something taht would've been more intresting if it kept its mistery. Especially the parts were Zuzana or Mik were the main focus, idk, I found them a bit boring. Not as characters necessarily, but as narrators.
About the love triangle:

I believe she will end up with Akiva and I really wish she would, I enjoyed Ziri soooo much, he's just so sweet! But yeah... she'll probably end up with the "soul mate" that's morally gray

Pretty exited to read book 3 tbh

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elmet's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

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grilledcheesd's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious sad slow-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

aaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHEUEHWJIERU G3IWBWHUEUE (i really love this series and also i hope karou pursues therapy poor baby)

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marta_correia's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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aseel_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark medium-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

2023: 4 stars. I liked this a lot better than the first, for my second read. I just enjoyed seeing the war/politics/double crossing/intrigue, so much more interesting.

2017: 4 stars

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lililoves's review

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Awesome second instalment of the daughter of smoke and bone trilogy. I could have read more chapters of the adventures of Mik and Zuzu (basically just them running around the world as Zuzana comes up with increasingly more challenging tasks for Mik to complete). I loved the world building and learning more about Eretz and the cliff hanger ending had me yelling as I reached for the 3rd book. For a book that was quite slow paced in the middle, I still felt that Taylor kept me on my toes. You cannot possible guess the twists and turns that this book is going to make. Just when you think you've got it, the carpet gets pulled out from under your feet.

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