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fallandfox's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.0
The ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
In this sequel of Grimrose Academia, the fairy-tale deaths continue and the girls embark on their journey to break the curse once and for all before they end up dead. After the three girls discovered the truth about what is happening, they need to discover why it is happening. Together with this, each one of them has their secrets to deal with and the dark destiny that one of them now has in her hands.
When I finally could start this reading, I was excited after discovering it was a sequel.
The sensation of finalizing the book was so satisfactory and, at the same time, I wanted to reread it to enjoy the clues in the book.
I had now the opportunity to read the author's writing, and I can say she did an amazing job describing the scenery and a better one in the character and relationship development.
I was happy for the romantic couple's development, but at the same time, I was grateful for certain characters finishing the books without one.
In this sequel of Grimrose Academia, the fairy-tale deaths continue and the girls embark on their journey to break the curse once and for all before they end up dead. After the three girls discovered the truth about what is happening, they need to discover why it is happening. Together with this, each one of them has their secrets to deal with and the dark destiny that one of them now has in her hands.
When I finally could start this reading, I was excited after discovering it was a sequel.
The sensation of finalizing the book was so satisfactory and, at the same time, I wanted to reread it to enjoy the clues in the book.
I had now the opportunity to read the author's writing, and I can say she did an amazing job describing the scenery and a better one in the character and relationship development.
I was happy for the romantic couple's development, but at the same time, I was grateful for certain characters finishing the books without one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, and Physical abuse
lesseraliterary's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
this was good but the middle dragged so it felt a little long šµāš«
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Murder
caitlyn_kittle_kinnick's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Violence
Moderate: Physical abuse and Terminal illness
Minor: Medical content, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Cancer, and Death
bookedandbusy's review
dark
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
5.0
This was a great sequel and way to end the series! I loved it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Blood, Cancer, Murder, Child abuse, Physical abuse, and Chronic illness
nerdysread's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
5.0
AAAAAAAAAAAAAH
UPDATE!!!
Okay, okay, okay. Everybody stay calm. Everybody stay f**** calm!
I want to thank SOURCEBOOKS Fire and NetGalley so much. Because this book? My favorite of this month. It has everything.
So after a messy and bloody winter ball, and some holidays, the four girls are back together and have one goal: break the curse. But it may not be that easy, and maybe not what it seems.
I loved the first volume; this was my most anticipated book of the year. So when I was reached to read an e-arc I HAD to say yes. And you know what? I donāt regret it. Our characters have significant development, and the mystery and thriller sides are fantastic. I loved the focus on Yukiās power. Because our girl deserves to be badass and morally grey. I was scared for them all along. Also when I thought āI know whatās happeningā... Well no, I did not actually.
The fact that I loved all the girls equally just proves how great Laura Pohl is for writing characters. Sheās great at writing mysteries, action, touching, and sad scene. Thereās a bit of romance, but what is a fairy tale without a bit of romance? Also, one of them may surprise you.
But what I loved more? The relationships between all the characters. It evolves with good and bad. They are real relationships, and that makes the characters even more real.
So, yes, I loved this book, as I planned to. Thank you Laura Pohl for it.
Also, I annotated it so muchā¦
UPDATE!!!
Okay, okay, okay. Everybody stay calm. Everybody stay f**** calm!
I want to thank SOURCEBOOKS Fire and NetGalley so much. Because this book? My favorite of this month. It has everything.
So after a messy and bloody winter ball, and some holidays, the four girls are back together and have one goal: break the curse. But it may not be that easy, and maybe not what it seems.
I loved the first volume; this was my most anticipated book of the year. So when I was reached to read an e-arc I HAD to say yes. And you know what? I donāt regret it. Our characters have significant development, and the mystery and thriller sides are fantastic. I loved the focus on Yukiās power. Because our girl deserves to be badass and morally grey. I was scared for them all along. Also when I thought āI know whatās happeningā... Well no, I did not actually.
The fact that I loved all the girls equally just proves how great Laura Pohl is for writing characters. Sheās great at writing mysteries, action, touching, and sad scene. Thereās a bit of romance, but what is a fairy tale without a bit of romance? Also, one of them may surprise you.
But what I loved more? The relationships between all the characters. It evolves with good and bad. They are real relationships, and that makes the characters even more real.
So, yes, I loved this book, as I planned to. Thank you Laura Pohl for it.
Also, I annotated it so muchā¦
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Gore, Blood, Suicide, and Murder
Moderate: Cancer
Minor: Transphobia
booksthatburn's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
THE WICKED REMAIN concludes the Grimrose Girls duology as they try to break the curse once and for all, to stop the cycle of girls bent and broken to fit tales which deny them happy endings, and usually take their lives.
The worldbuilding focuses primarily on details of the curse, the castle, and the relationships between the characters. This would be a hard book to get into if youāre not at least passingly familiar with a few key stories (Cinderella, Snow White, Beauty and the Beast, and probably Sleeping Beauty), and there are a few more that would help (Swan Lake, Rapunzel). It doesnāt pause to explain their plots and only occasionally spells out their relevance. This is probably a good decision, given how steeped in them many people are through cultural osmosis even if theyāve never read them and never seen any of the film adaptations. I think this book halting to explain them would have been more irritating than helpful, but Iām noting it since anyone whoās managed to avoid every Disney Princessās story will have a rough time here. I know there were minor characters whose stories I didnāt recognize or donāt know, but at least for them my lack of recognition didnāt matter much.
Iām torn about the way that one of the secondary characters is handled. Sheās a trans girl whose story involves her (implicitly cis, definitely female) cousin being jealous of her and trying to take over her life (including trying to steal her girlfriend). Because of the way the stories overlap, and characters with their own narrative can fill different roles in other charactersā narratives, she also is implied to be the Beast to her girlfriendās Beauty. It has room to have such an interesting narrative about monstrosity, transphobia, and jealousyā¦ and then just leaves it there. The cousin is jealous becauseā¦ I donāt know, the curse makes her jealous to fit Swan Lakeās narrative. Thereās no real reason stated, she just is. Thereās a line about how the cis(?) cousin thinks she can be a better girl/girlfriend than her trans cousin, which stands out to me as unmistakable transphobia, but itās not named in the way that the other narratives usually have their issues and abuses stated explicitly by the end. Itās possible this gets more attention in the published version than in the ARC I read, but itās similarly understated in the first book so Iām not anticipating this particular change. For anyone concerned I'll note that while I can't think of a reason other than transphobia to motivate the cousin, there's no deadnaming or misgendering, just a very weird insistence that she'd be better at her trans cousin's life than she is.
This wraps up a bunch of stuff left hanging from the first book, while also having a full storyline of its own. I donāt recall anything it both introduced and resolved, but itās the last book in the duology so thatās not an issue. The ending wraps up things very well, with suitable conclusions for the main characters and the school as a whole. The ensemble of point-of-view characters is largely unchanged from the first book and their voices are consistent. This does a good job of relaying important information from the last book in a way that quickly refreshes returning readers and might even enable new readers to jump in knowing only the basic premise. It is the conclusion of a duology, however, so as usual I recommend starting with the first book before reading this one.
Yuki and Ella feel like the main two in the group of protagonists, but Nani and Rory get a larger presence than I remember them having in GRIMROSE GIRLS. The pacing is good, the number of main characters is large enough to feel like a full group and to provide a steady supply of answers and developments along the way. In particular, Naniās storyline with her father get some answers I wasnāt expecting but were very welcome, and Iām very happy for Rory. The central mystery of the curse gets a satisfying answer and a number of suitably dramatic moments, and I like how it all turns out.
The worldbuilding focuses primarily on details of the curse, the castle, and the relationships between the characters. This would be a hard book to get into if youāre not at least passingly familiar with a few key stories (Cinderella, Snow White, Beauty and the Beast, and probably Sleeping Beauty), and there are a few more that would help (Swan Lake, Rapunzel). It doesnāt pause to explain their plots and only occasionally spells out their relevance. This is probably a good decision, given how steeped in them many people are through cultural osmosis even if theyāve never read them and never seen any of the film adaptations. I think this book halting to explain them would have been more irritating than helpful, but Iām noting it since anyone whoās managed to avoid every Disney Princessās story will have a rough time here. I know there were minor characters whose stories I didnāt recognize or donāt know, but at least for them my lack of recognition didnāt matter much.
Iām torn about the way that one of the secondary characters is handled. Sheās a trans girl whose story involves her (implicitly cis, definitely female) cousin being jealous of her and trying to take over her life (including trying to steal her girlfriend). Because of the way the stories overlap, and characters with their own narrative can fill different roles in other charactersā narratives, she also is implied to be the Beast to her girlfriendās Beauty. It has room to have such an interesting narrative about monstrosity, transphobia, and jealousyā¦ and then just leaves it there. The cousin is jealous becauseā¦ I donāt know, the curse makes her jealous to fit Swan Lakeās narrative. Thereās no real reason stated, she just is. Thereās a line about how the cis(?) cousin thinks she can be a better girl/girlfriend than her trans cousin, which stands out to me as unmistakable transphobia, but itās not named in the way that the other narratives usually have their issues and abuses stated explicitly by the end. Itās possible this gets more attention in the published version than in the ARC I read, but itās similarly understated in the first book so Iām not anticipating this particular change. For anyone concerned I'll note that while I can't think of a reason other than transphobia to motivate the cousin, there's no deadnaming or misgendering, just a very weird insistence that she'd be better at her trans cousin's life than she is.
This wraps up a bunch of stuff left hanging from the first book, while also having a full storyline of its own. I donāt recall anything it both introduced and resolved, but itās the last book in the duology so thatās not an issue. The ending wraps up things very well, with suitable conclusions for the main characters and the school as a whole. The ensemble of point-of-view characters is largely unchanged from the first book and their voices are consistent. This does a good job of relaying important information from the last book in a way that quickly refreshes returning readers and might even enable new readers to jump in knowing only the basic premise. It is the conclusion of a duology, however, so as usual I recommend starting with the first book before reading this one.
Yuki and Ella feel like the main two in the group of protagonists, but Nani and Rory get a larger presence than I remember them having in GRIMROSE GIRLS. The pacing is good, the number of main characters is large enough to feel like a full group and to provide a steady supply of answers and developments along the way. In particular, Naniās storyline with her father get some answers I wasnāt expecting but were very welcome, and Iām very happy for Rory. The central mystery of the curse gets a satisfying answer and a number of suitably dramatic moments, and I like how it all turns out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Violence
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Cursing, Sexual content, Child abuse, Confinement, Cannibalism, Physical abuse, Death, Transphobia, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Child death
Minor: Fatphobia, Self harm, Ableism, and Murder
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