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chronicacademia's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Alcohol, Death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Grief, Medical content, Misogyny, Violence, Alcoholism, Blood, Gore, and War
itsnotalakeitsanocean's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
3.5
I have incredibly mixed feelings on this book, and my feelings kept changing the more I read on. That said, I think May did a good job of showing the raw feelings of grief and desire for revenge that fuelled Aileena and how soul-crushingly lonely and desperate she was.
To go into further detail on my conflicting feelings and some points of contention:
To go into further detail on my conflicting feelings and some points of contention:
- Although I liked how Aileena felt trapped by societal convention and pressured into marriage, there were points where she came across as having a bit of a "not like other girls" attitude. They were pretty minor, however, and I can overlook them because, overall, I did relate to how it felt like Aileena was in a whole other world separate from most of the population.
- The steampunk elements were pretty cool, I just wish there was more of an explanation of how they came to be and how they function (e.g. where do the materials come from; what is the history behind the ornithopter etc.)
- I'm not a big fan of love triangles to begin with, but I felt the love triangle was a bit half baked and didn't really go anywhere. It kind of felt like it was added for the sake of having a love triangle in the book.
I hate how it ended on a cliffhanger! And right as the "war" was about to begin!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Death of parent
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Classism
plumpaperbacks's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-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
4.0
My best friend marathoned this trilogy last summer and has been desperate for me to read it ever since. Now that I finally have, I can definitely understand why she loves The Falconer. I really enjoyed it, too.
May’s steampunk Scotland is a world unlike any I’ve read before, both because I’ve yet to read a book set in Scotland and because of the fascinating gadgets. Not only are there many present in the world, but the protagonist Aileana is an inventor; we frequently see her tinkering and, even though it’s not something I could ever do, I found it quite interesting.
I also found May’s take on the fae very interesting. There are the traditional human-like creatures that can’t lie, as well as hounds and dragons and one brilliant, snarky pixie. I enjoyed seeing how she took traditional myths and made them her own, adding tidbits of intriguing information throughout the story.
The characters, though—they steal the show. Aileana is an upper class girl different from her peers and often scorned because of it. She prefers inventing to partying and, ever since her mother died a year prior, hunting fae to socializing. I liked her, and I especially liked that, even though she personally has no interest in ball gowns and marriage and the like, she didn’t look down on those who did.
The love interest, Kiaran, is a faery that trains Aileana and helps her hunt other fae. He’s quite mysterious and aloof, and it took some time for him to grow on me. But he did, and by the end of the book I wanted to hide him and keep him safe from both worlds. He’s a very complex character, and I look forward to falling more in love with him as I continue the series. (For a lesbian, I have a surprisingly long list of fictional guys I love, and he’s the newest addition.)
All of the side characters were well-written too. My favorite is, without a doubt, Derrick. He’s a sassy little pixie obsessed with honey and clothes and I would like him to be my friend. It’s also really sweet how much he cares about Aileana. Their friendship is my new favorite thing.
And Aileana and Kiaran’s relationship? Gold. I haven’t read many allies to lovers stories, but these two have me wanting more. I will say that the romance is scarcely present in this book, though, with the exception of Aileana crushing on Kiaran. No matter what she says, that’s what she was doing, and no one can convince me otherwise. Their dynamic was a lot of fun, and as the story progressed it got more emotional than I was expecting. I ship them so much and I hope things work out for them.
The story starts off on a quick note and hardly slows down. I sped through this in less than a day because I was constantly wanting to know what happened next. As the end approached I was more and more nervous, and rightfully so. While the book doesn’t end on a massive cliffhanger, it does end in a way that has me very eager to read but very concerned for the second installment. I’m going to go start that now. I definitely recommend this book; it’s a hidden gem in the YA fantasy genre.
May’s steampunk Scotland is a world unlike any I’ve read before, both because I’ve yet to read a book set in Scotland and because of the fascinating gadgets. Not only are there many present in the world, but the protagonist Aileana is an inventor; we frequently see her tinkering and, even though it’s not something I could ever do, I found it quite interesting.
I also found May’s take on the fae very interesting. There are the traditional human-like creatures that can’t lie, as well as hounds and dragons and one brilliant, snarky pixie. I enjoyed seeing how she took traditional myths and made them her own, adding tidbits of intriguing information throughout the story.
The characters, though—they steal the show. Aileana is an upper class girl different from her peers and often scorned because of it. She prefers inventing to partying and, ever since her mother died a year prior, hunting fae to socializing. I liked her, and I especially liked that, even though she personally has no interest in ball gowns and marriage and the like, she didn’t look down on those who did.
The love interest, Kiaran, is a faery that trains Aileana and helps her hunt other fae. He’s quite mysterious and aloof, and it took some time for him to grow on me. But he did, and by the end of the book I wanted to hide him and keep him safe from both worlds. He’s a very complex character, and I look forward to falling more in love with him as I continue the series. (For a lesbian, I have a surprisingly long list of fictional guys I love, and he’s the newest addition.)
All of the side characters were well-written too. My favorite is, without a doubt, Derrick. He’s a sassy little pixie obsessed with honey and clothes and I would like him to be my friend. It’s also really sweet how much he cares about Aileana. Their friendship is my new favorite thing.
And Aileana and Kiaran’s relationship? Gold. I haven’t read many allies to lovers stories, but these two have me wanting more. I will say that the romance is scarcely present in this book, though, with the exception of Aileana crushing on Kiaran. No matter what she says, that’s what she was doing, and no one can convince me otherwise. Their dynamic was a lot of fun, and as the story progressed it got more emotional than I was expecting. I ship them so much and I hope things work out for them.
The story starts off on a quick note and hardly slows down. I sped through this in less than a day because I was constantly wanting to know what happened next. As the end approached I was more and more nervous, and rightfully so. While the book doesn’t end on a massive cliffhanger, it does end in a way that has me very eager to read but very concerned for the second installment. I’m going to go start that now. I definitely recommend this book; it’s a hidden gem in the YA fantasy genre.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Violence, Gore, and Blood
Moderate: Misogyny
the protagonist has PTSD
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