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colleen987's review against another edition
4.0
With thanks to Pan MacMillan and Genevieve Cogman for an advanced copy of this book.
4 1/2 Stars
I'm going to start this by saying I made a really grave mistake, and hadn't noticed this was the 7th in a long standing series when i picked it up.
All though I was slightly lost to begin with, I quick fell in love with the premise and all the characters. Irene might be competing with Madeline Maxwell for my favourite heroine. She's quick thinking, witty, brave and just an overall lovable person.
The plot is engaging and well paced, I actually went out and bought the first 6 when I finished.
Would suit fans of Chronicles of St Mary's and Rivers of London
4 1/2 Stars
I'm going to start this by saying I made a really grave mistake, and hadn't noticed this was the 7th in a long standing series when i picked it up.
All though I was slightly lost to begin with, I quick fell in love with the premise and all the characters. Irene might be competing with Madeline Maxwell for my favourite heroine. She's quick thinking, witty, brave and just an overall lovable person.
The plot is engaging and well paced, I actually went out and bought the first 6 when I finished.
Would suit fans of Chronicles of St Mary's and Rivers of London
thebookwormsfeast's review
4.0
As always this was such fun to read! There's some revealtions that I spied earlier in the series finally coming to fruition, and of course some further conspiracies and intrigue laid out to come. That epilogue has me eagerly awaiting the next installment!
aquaphase's review against another edition
3.0
This book was provided to me by NetGalley in return for a fair review
So this one fell in my lap, and it sounded like a very interesting premise. I had no idea it was book 7 in a series, or I would not have requested it. I absolutely hate jumping into a series mid-stream, but I went ahead anyway.
By a seventh book, it is implied that there is going to be a lot of lore and backstory in a series, and this was different. I quite enjoyed the summary device at the beginning, but felt like there was going to be a lot I was going to miss. Oh well, now I have a new series to pick up.
Ms. Cogman does a remarkable job of character development, but, for me, the worldbuilding was a tad scattered. While Irene Winters is definitely the central character of this book, I felt that there were a variety of sub-stories that were not formed fully enough to my liking.
The Dark Archive was a quick read, but not the most satisfying of reads. I would have very much liked to see Vale’s story fleshed out a bit more in this book, and the antagonists did not seem to occupy a lot of the primary focus.
My thoughts may change after I read the other books in the series, but I can’t really recommend this particular tome as a standalone.
So this one fell in my lap, and it sounded like a very interesting premise. I had no idea it was book 7 in a series, or I would not have requested it. I absolutely hate jumping into a series mid-stream, but I went ahead anyway.
By a seventh book, it is implied that there is going to be a lot of lore and backstory in a series, and this was different. I quite enjoyed the summary device at the beginning, but felt like there was going to be a lot I was going to miss. Oh well, now I have a new series to pick up.
Ms. Cogman does a remarkable job of character development, but, for me, the worldbuilding was a tad scattered. While Irene Winters is definitely the central character of this book, I felt that there were a variety of sub-stories that were not formed fully enough to my liking.
The Dark Archive was a quick read, but not the most satisfying of reads. I would have very much liked to see Vale’s story fleshed out a bit more in this book, and the antagonists did not seem to occupy a lot of the primary focus.
My thoughts may change after I read the other books in the series, but I can’t really recommend this particular tome as a standalone.
rela's review against another edition
4.0
My enjoyment may be inversely proportional to the amount read via audiobook. I enjoyed the second half twice as much.
needleclicker's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
historybooksandtea's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
tense
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
joanmcoles's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
5.0
julkatten's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25