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karapillar's review against another edition
Graphic: Chronic illness, Gore, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
sarah984's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
However, the characters we spend our time focused on are probably the least interesting of the bunch. They spend a lot of time complaining and making impulsive decisions (and then complaining that people don't trust them not to make impulsive decisions) and you only kind of hear about other characters doing cool things in the background. The ending wraps up extremely fast so a lot of the victories don't really feel earned. I get the idea of noting every character’s skintone instead of making special note of who wasn't white, but it really drove home how white the core cast still was so I don't know if it helped.
Also this is a nitpick but if you're retelling Phantom of the Opera and you drop ZERO chandeliers? You're doing it wrong.
Graphic: Torture
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual content, Excrement, Police brutality, Abortion, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
starccato's review
- 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
3.25
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Stalking
Minor: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Confinement, Sexual content, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Death of parent, Lesbophobia, and Alcohol
iorelyn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, and Grief
callmrsmuise's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I find that the story is incredibly sad all the way through. I was getting kind of upset about it for a bit. With zero reprieve from the abuse inflicted on the protagonists I was waiting impatiently for it to end… or for something NOT sad to happen. Additionally, I was a little confused about the character’s motivations for doing certain things. In a way, this made their feelings seem contrived.
Audiobook review: Reading was somewhat monotone with only slight differences in the voices. Again, a nitpick. Audio was well produced.
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Physical abuse
valpuri's review
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
The concept of magic that is sung and a romance between two women that are on opposite sides of a rebellion are what convinced me to pick up this book, but it just didn't really deliver on either of those. There is very little world-building or character development, and the latter half of the book feels very rushed. :( The first half of the book is pretty good and promising... I just wish that there was something more to the end.
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, and Medical content
Minor: Chronic illness, Vomit, and Grief
mushr00mcore's review
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, and Blood
Moderate: Homophobia
caseythereader's review
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
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What I liked:
📚 Queer PHANTOM OF THE OPERA retelling? Yes, please!
📚 I loved the magic system here. I loved the idea of singing to marshal your magic, and that you could tell a lot about the mage by their voice.
📚 Such wonderful imagery, from the beauty of the Queen's stronghold to the horrors of the region where those expelled from the court are sent.
📚 The tension between the protagonists felt real - it wasn't insta-love, but also the barriers they faced weren't just pointless roadblocks. 📚
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What I didn't like:
📚 It's a pretty basic YA dystopia setup. This isn't necessarily a knock on the book, just something to know going in.
📚 I do wish some pieces of the world's history and nuances of the magic system were more detailed - I could tell there was more in the author's brain that didn't make it into the book. 📚
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Content warnings: alcoholism, blood, death, homophobia (mild), physical abuse, torture, violence, and vomit.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, and Vomit