Reviews with content warning for Gore - Une Fenêtre sur les ténèbres

The ambience was immaculate. It had all the perfect tropes of the traditional gothic brought into modern writing. The characters were beautifully vivid. I only had two complaints: for someone so clever, Elspeth was deliberately obtuse about some things (though I guess fear does that); <also, for how often Hauth poked at Ravyn in public about his supposed secret, you’d think Hauth would have suspected when people who shouldn’t have known didn’t bat an eye.>

Content Warnings

lucygboggs's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

I love how much the main character bucks Fantasy Heroine tropes. There’s no Not Like Other Girls bs — she likes dresses and flowers and has no interest in fighting or riding horses, and the narrative doesn’t punish her for it, while also treating tomboy female characters with the same acceptance. Some parts were a little expected and some dialogue was a bit much, but it avoided the things that annoy me about similar fantasy books, so I was willing to forgive the missteps.

And I’m glad I did — the end was ROUGH, but so good. Usually this kind of ending upsets me and I only realize it was good after some time, but this time I accepted it right away.

But uh if you just finished Gideon the Ninth (like I did), maybe read a palette cleanser book between them. The endings are…… weirdly similar.

Content Warnings

slevine18's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark inspiring mysterious 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

4.75

What a fun read! This story felt so fresh and the magic system was so cool. I really enjoyed this colorful ensemble of characters, whose wit, valor and steadfast loyalty to one another easily won my heart. The story was set up with such interesting details and parameters that allowed for some very enchanting plot points. It took me a little bit to get into it but once the main cast of characters had been established I found myself floating easily along the story. And the last third I was locked. In. Omg I cannot wait to read the sequel!!!

Content Warnings

highleyginger's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

A gothic Fairytale to say the least. There is some romance but that is not the focus. The focus is magic, gathering of cards to break the illness haunting in the fog, a curse by the spirit of the woods.

Sometimes, the darkness, the nightmares, the monsters are not what you think, though they can be frightening.

Content Warnings

ladygetslit's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

5.0

One Dark Window is incredibly atmospheric, with a magic system that’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen before, and a romance that, while not the focus of the book, was deeply emotional to read.

Content Warnings

More...