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ahbee_p_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
While there were a lot of exciting elements to the story and I really enjoyed diving more into the history and legacies of the characters and the world... I felt that it was a bit messy and all over the place. In some places, I felt the story dragged.
The constantly changing POV and storylines was, at times, difficult for me to follow... the book has A LOT of plot!
Overall, I enjoyed the book. But it didn't live up to my expectations. I still appreciate the world building and creativity that has gone into this book and think it was a fine conclusion to this part of the story...
Graphic: Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Death, Death of parent, Torture, and Murder
annabithebook's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.75
I am so disappointed in how many things I disliked in the series. Letâs make a spoiler-free list in no particular order:
1. Open plot points from HOSAB were just effectively dismissed and no actual meaningful resolution occurred.
2. Where the fuck was Fury and why was she not a bigger part of this?
3. 75 perspective changes inside of a single chapter with no indicator (especially bad in the audiobook format) this made an already 30 hour book take literal HOURS of extra time rewinding and listening again to try and figure out who did what and when it changed.
4. Dumbass characters making reckless stupid decisions.
Sub point here: it really felt like in the early stages of TOG where people are young and reckless and immature but instead of them having the time and lived experiences over 8 books to grow and mature into the better version of themselves (which was đđť) the entire âarcâ occurs crammed into one book and feels thin/baseless/disingenuous.
5. I never thought Iâd say an 800+ page book should have spread things out more but it should have been two separate books (ĂĄ la Eos & ToD). There were just too many ambitious plot lines/characters/stories competing for page time and so instead of trimming some to fully flesh out the ones you keep or splitting into two books, theyâre all sort of chaotic and rushed which makes the story feel disjointed and inauthentic.
6. Kind of related to 5, but SJM is famous for her character growth and well balanced storylines with beautiful relationships, but she just didnât give herself the space to do that with this novel or really CC as a whole.
7. The crossover infodump.
8. SJMs famous âwhy didnât you just tell her that in the first place.â
9. SO MUCH HEAD ST@BB1NG
10. Hunt/Bryce seem like a couple who should really just break upâŚ. đŹ
11. Bryce in general (weakest SJM FMC in terms of how well theyâre written as leads).
12. Other main cast characters who arenât even in this book.
13. Characters who only appear when SJM needs them for a plot function so they feel like tools and not people.
14. Questionable science âoh yeah, letâs just hold the _____ ____ open!â đ
15. The rumbly in Baxianâs tummy that only hands can satisfy.
Now. A much shorter but MAY CONTAIN VAGUE SPOILERS list of what I loved:
1. Ruhn/Lidia - they got snubbed like Lorcan/Elide from more page time
2. Jessiba
3. The sprites
4. The message of unity
5. Patricide
6. âŚâŚitâs not a good sign that I ran out at 5 things?
Honestly, my thumbs are tired but if you want a more comprehensive and, frankly, hilarious review that is literally all the thoughts in my head too, here is another amazing GR reviewerâs thoughts: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4553540457
TLDR; didnât DNF because I was stubborn but it tried to be too many things at once and so instead it was successful at nearly nothing. Very disappointed đ˘ 1.75âď¸
Graphic: Slavery, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Drug abuse, Child abuse, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Torture, Sexual violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, Addiction, Abandonment, Drug use, Death of parent, Death, Cursing, Murder, War, Violence, and Medical trauma
nebul_em's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Graphic: Torture and Violence
Moderate: Sexual content and Slavery
Minor: Cursing
Iâm finding it difficult to rate this book, as like most of SJMâs work, I find it incredibly tropey and predictable but I really enjoy reading.toweroftheunread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I felt like Ithanâs plot had so many flaws in it. I understand it is to give him a decent amount of character development, but I felt like it could be done without the excessive self-deprecation and serious damage to other characters that ended up not amounting to much.
I also felt like there were really good plot resolutions, but we jumped there. There was so much build up for the ONE plot in CC1, and I liked that. This had like a million plot lines that just resolved too quickly for me. It felt rushed and tidied up too quickly for me. There were a lot of emotional parts to the story, but honestly, I wasnât drawn in like 1 & 2. I definitely cried in the first two, and I swear Iâm not a monster, but I didnât feel attached enough to shed one here.
I feel like this book could have been really good if we teased it out and added details to the separate POVs and plot lines. The books could have even been shorter, but more detailed in the plot holes.
It kind of felt like the marvel movies where the first ones were SO good and the quick resolutions left this book feeling almost cheesy.
Graphic: Gun violence, Torture, Death, War, Child death, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, and Blood
emmerylynn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Sexual content, Torture, Violence, and Body horror
Moderate: Misogyny, Cursing, Gore, Kidnapping, and War
sneha_sarcar's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Genocide, Bullying, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Addiction, Classism, Confinement, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, War, Child abuse, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual content, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Cursing, Violence, Domestic abuse, Torture, and Slavery
aliciareadsit's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Sexual content, and War
Moderate: Torture, Slavery, Excrement, and Cursing
yarisbooksandbevs'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
4.5
Graphic: Blood, Sexual content, Death, Death of parent, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, War, Murder, Torture, Cursing, Gun violence, Slavery, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Grief
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Kidnapping, and Police brutality
Minor: Alcohol, Child death, and Suicidal thoughts
winterwoodbooks'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, Vomit, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Fatphobia, Violence, Cannibalism, Genocide, Medical trauma, Sexual content, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Blood, Classism, Murder, Police brutality, Self harm, Sexual assault, Child death, Dysphoria, Medical content, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Sexism, Body horror, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Misogyny, Abandonment, Alcohol, Cursing, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Torture, Kidnapping, Suicidal thoughts, and War
taryn_g'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? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, War, Torture, Violence, Blood, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Colonisation, Classism, Slavery, Child death, Cursing, Sexual content, Death of parent, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Kidnapping, Pregnancy, and Child abuse