Reviews with content warning for Blood - O feitiço dos espinhos

Reviews tagging 'Blood'

O feitiço dos espinhos by Margaret Rogerson

81 reviews

booksthatburn's review against another edition

adventurous challenging mysterious reflective 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? Yes

4.0

I like how much of the early worldbuilding revolves around the grimoires and the propaganda Elisabeth was taught about sorcerers. The way Nathaniel leans into her negative assumptions without actually doing anything to hurt Elisabeth or anyone else means that she learns a lot about the kind of person he is by how he reacts to being misunderstood. It's a wonderful bit of worldbuilding-as-characterization and I love how it works out. He lets her think awful things without trying to defend himself, then when she realizes those assumptions don't match how he's actually behaving it gives her an opportunity to realize she was wrong about him. It's a dynamic that repeats itself throughout the book, gradually receding as they learn to trust each other and communicate more forthrightly. One of my other favorite things in the worldbuilding is how the narration assumes the reader has a starting point in that world, specifically of a person growing up in one of the Great Libraries. Once she leaves, Elisabeth learns some of the outside world's differences in a way that enhances the worldbuilding and teaches about her as a character. If she's startled that the world was one way then it implies that her experience of the Library was different in a specific manner. Immersive worldbuilding is a favorite of mine, and this perfectly fit the kind I like.

Silas is enjoyable as a character whose present form is unassuming but could absolutely fuck someone up if a different version of himself is let loose (Think Mogget from The Old Kingdom books by Garth Nix, but if he liked working).

I thought the first half was just fine (except for the worldbuilding, which was excellent) and then I loved the ending. I didn't enjoy the matrons speculating about Nathaniel's sexuality, and while the resolution of his identity came though his own telling, it felt a bit off.

Nathaniel doesn't want to be treated as a stud for his bloodline (completely understandable) so he turns away hordes of eligible women. Their mothers are upset and speculate that he might be gay (because obviously it must be he doesn't want a woman at all, not that he doesn't want any of their daughters). It made the reveal that he likes men and women feel a bit like Elisabeth is the exception that proves the rule. On the one hand, I'm excited for a bi character getting a m/f relationship because his queerness isn't dependent on his partner's identity. On the other hand, it made it feel like he's bi so that the narrative can tease his dynamic with Silas. There's no jealousy from Elisabeth on their intimacy, which I appreciated, but altogether it left me unable to enjoy Elisabeth and Nathaniel as much as I wanted.

The audiobook performance (particularly for Silas) perfectly fits each character and really enhanced the story. The plot noticeably had distinct stages (not in a bad way). It's a long enough book to have several points of tension and rest, with the danger escalating in a way that felt appropriate to the world and to what the characters had already faced. There were a couple of points in the latter half where things had been so dramatic that I thought maybe it was about to pull a cliffhanger, but the ending is very satisfying and comes at an appropriate point in the pacing.

I enjoyed this and am very excited for a sequel if one materializes. It's listed as a series so I'm hopeful.

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erins_bookshelf_'s review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious tense medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

This was very good and I really need the next one now
The storyline was interesting and I might need to read this again to appreciate the book properly, I think it moved kind of slow in the beginning but it picked up in the second half of the book so its okay :)
The whole concept was very interesting and I can’t wait for the sequel

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sydneyluxford's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted mysterious 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? No

3.75

This book was so good. Oh my God. I don’t know why I put it off for a year.

As I was reading it, I felt like I was watching a movie — I can’t explain. This book needs to be made into a movie.

Elisabeth and Nathaniel were such a cute couple, I actually cannot. WHEN HE CALLED HER A MENACE AT THE END 😭😭😭😭😭. Screaming and throwing up.

Also, I cannot believe Elisabeth is 6’3. When I found out, my jaw literally dropped. But it’s about time there’s a book where the girl is taller than the guy.

OMG. WHEN NATHANIEL SAID HE LIKES BOTH BOYS AND GIRLS I LITERALLY SCREAMED. IT WAS SO UNEXPECTED. His sexuality may not have been mentioned much, but I think a little representation can go a long way. You don’t see many bisexual characters in books. ALSO, Katrien is aromantic, I think???? There was a comment about her not being interested in romance at all.

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solouncapitulomas's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious 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? No

5.0

I do not have enough words to describe how good this book, if u still have doubts about reading it and you like fantasy, stories about books and funny characters this is the one, also the characters are so lovable I swear.

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theespressoedition's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark medium-paced

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

5.0

Sorcery of Thorns took me by surprise in the best way possible. I went into it knowing very little: there was a magical library and it's set during autumn. That's it! I think that might have made it stand out all the more.

The story is very quick to suck you in. It's not necessarily fast-paced so much as it's just not slow. There's always something happening to further the plot and I'm grateful that I read a physical copy rather than listening to it, only because I think I would've missed important elements if I had utilized an audiobook. The chapters are a bit longer than is my typical taste, but truthfully, I didn't realize how long they were because I often forgot that I was even reading! It's definitely an atmospheric escape book.

There's not a particularly large cast of characters. Only four are of utmost importance with a handful of secondary characters that provide excellent support to the main cast and help to further the story. While some may categorize this novel as "enemies-to-lovers," I wouldn't be so quick to slap that label on it. The protagonists may not mesh well at the beginning, but they aren't truly enemies. They're more like misunderstood colleagues. This will make much more sense if you read the book!

I'm sure I'm not the first to state that Silas is the stand-out character in this book. He's absolutely fascinating and I would absolutely love an entire book (or spin-off series) just about his story. I'm hoping that the sequel will include a lot more information about him and how the demon-and-sorcerer relationships came to be.

There are a lot of really beautiful quotes throughout this action-packed book. Two that stood out to me were:

You belonged in the library, as much as any book.

and also..

I think--I think I was a bit dead already, before you came along... You've reminded me to live. That's worth having something to lose.

Really, Sorcery of Thorns is a beautiful book with so much great adventure, fantastic characters, and a story that will keep you hooked from beginning to end. It is absolutely winding up on my favorites list for 2022!

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