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alexijai98'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
3.75
Graphic: Colonisation, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Death, Gun violence, Alcoholism, Blood, Vomit, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Classism, Confinement, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Rape and Sexual violence
Minor: Homophobia
salted07's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Alcoholism, Murder, Misogyny, Dysphoria, Drug use, Trafficking, Torture, Colonisation, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Confinement, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Grief, Alcohol, Blood, Classism, Addiction, Racism, Physical abuse, Cursing, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Torture
bucklace27'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
4.75
Graphic: Xenophobia, Torture, Death, Violence, Gun violence, Sexism, and Homophobia
Moderate: Alcoholism and Rape
embee007's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
I feel like there was a bit of a lull towards the end? Or the action was weird? Or maybe that was just me. (first full book I read with Covid) But the ending mostly made up for it. I'm definitely interested in reading book 2, at some point this year.
"There’s freedom in stories, you know. We read them and we become something else. We imagine different lives, and while we turn the pages, we get to live them. To escape the lot we’ve been given.”
Graphic: Drug use, Child abuse, Bullying, Colonisation, Alcohol, Slavery, Alcoholism, Classism, Torture, Confinement, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Murder, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Rape, Trafficking, Violence, Vomit, and War
decembera's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Mind the content warnings. This was significantly more graphic than I expected from a YA book.
Graphic: Vomit, Blood, Child abuse, Trafficking, Physical abuse, Torture, Classism, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Child death, Colonisation, Death, Emotional abuse, Xenophobia, Gore, Kidnapping, Murder, Slavery, and Violence
Moderate: Alcoholism, Addiction, Drug abuse, Lesbophobia, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Excrement, Rape, Outing, Abandonment, Drug use, Dysphoria, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence
quiet_reader'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
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Colonisation, Addiction, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Toxic relationship, Drug use, Dysphoria, War, Violence, Torture, Abandonment, Death, Drug abuse, Grief, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Child death, and Sexual violence
alli_andrews's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Minor: Gore, Grief, War, Trafficking, Gun violence, Rape, Slavery, Abandonment, Alcohol, Body horror, and Fire/Fire injury
kananineko's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I still think a lot of people will love this book, though. If the description sounds interesting to you, go for it!
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, Gore, Violence, Murder, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Torture, Gun violence, Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Homophobia, Classism, Trafficking, Mass/school shootings, Slavery, and Abandonment
Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Outing, Sexual assault, Child death, and Rape
_forestofpages'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
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, Torture, Death, Murder, Blood, and Vomit
Moderate: Sexism and Sexual assault
discarded_dust_jacket's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
One of my biggest pet peeves when it comes to YA fantasy in particular, is when I can tell that an author is patronizing or talking down to their reader. I think sometimes the distinction between “accessible” and “clumsily over-simplified” can get muddy.
I notice it in particular when I read an author who’s known for their adult books, but who writes YA every now and then. The writing in the YA book will be so obviously adjusted to what, presumably, the author believes will be more “palatable” to a younger audience. I don’t think that’s always being fair to young readers. There’s obviously nuance here, but I think it can seem to communicate a lack of faith in their ability to understand complexity, dark themes, or challenging language.
This book was a pleasant surprise in that regard. I didn’t feel condescended to as I read, but it was still distinctly easy to read. The narrative flowed smoothly and kept my attention. The characters were easy to care about (I appreciated the expanded points of view as the story went on), and the plot didn’t shy away from dark or heavy material (like the impacts of colonialism, the ethics of survival at all costs, etc).
I also loved that the magic system in this book takes the shape of stories and storytelling; I thought that was really beautiful and unique.
There’s quite a few loose threads left dangling at the end of this book, which I hope get picked up in the forthcoming sequel!
Graphic: Grief, Addiction, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Death, Colonisation, Child death, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Murder and Gun violence
Minor: Homophobia, Torture, Vomit, Gore, Sexual assault, Slavery, and Death of parent