Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

The Last Tale of the Flower Bride by Roshani Chokshi

62 reviews

xreadingwithdemi's review

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challenging dark emotional mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5


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klsreads's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Wow, does Roshani Chokshi know how to write a beautiful sentence. You can really feel the world she crafted, which is no small feat as she jumps between whimsical and brutal realities. I love a coming of age story. I love a dark fairy tale. I love a personified house. I love a weird marriage with secrets. 

As always, check the TW's. There's nothing overly graphic, but plenty of unsettling, nasty things.

1 star docked because while this was stunningly beautiful and filled with fairy tale lore from around the world, the plot was quite slow and sometimes got lost in all the metaphors and similes. Because of that, I think it dragged and it took me a while to get through (though I am silly, silly busy right now). I'm a bit torn saying this, though, because I adored the character development in the backstory and am unsure if this could've been done at a faster pace. I wasn't as interested in the present-day story in the book, though the twists and turns hit some emotional slam-dunks. 

I will absolutely be reading more from Chokshi. Her writing is gorgeous! Highly rec if you like dark fairy tale, slow-burn, coming of age stories. 

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everlymayreads's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • 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

5.0


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melreadsandrecs's review

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1.5


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kirstinlwx's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

… that - this singular truth that I am not alone - expands the universe in a way that faith never has. 

I tried to read this a while ago and couldn’t get started with it. This time, I was loathe to put it down.
Filled with purple prose, fairy- and folktale references, and a beautifully fleshed-out cast of characters, this book was the most lush escape I could have asked for.
I got an inkling about the blue-tones plot reveal about halfway through, and only became more certain once we got to the last scenes in the Otherworld, but even with being able to see the destination, that path was delightfully twisty.

I debated bringing this down below 5 stars, just to recognize some questions/potential plot holes, and my feeling of wanting more with certain characters in this book… but I think those feelings are by design, and just make me want to start from the beginning again immediately. 

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thoughtsontomes's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

A layered dark fairy tale of love and toxic friendship. Mysterious. Lyrical. Eerie. 

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trapdorr's review

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dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Writing was too flowery for my taste and the story was too winding and long winded at times. I found myself bored with the bridegroom perspective and wished it was just Azures storyline. 

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raindrops333's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0


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lotecider's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This book was poetic, haunting, it's writing as intricate and fine as lace made out of gold and diamonds. There is a gorgeous mix of tension, mystery and magic. Although classed as a fantasy, there is more mention of things typically associated with fantasy as opposed to actual elements. However, the writing does create the presence of magic where it needs to, in certain points where it'  needed, it does seem otherworldy. 

There is a plot twist, and whether you see it or not depends on you as a reader. I personally didn't see it coming, which is a first for me, so I found that a pleasant surprise. There's also a subtle hint st sexual assault against a minor so please be warned before reading! 

It is a relatively easy book to read, and very enjoyable. The only qualm i had was going in expecting it to be more fantastical than it was. Another review stated that it seemed more like children playing make believe than an actual fantasy story which I agree with, but it grew on Me and wasn't necessarily a bad feature- it just took a few chapters before I got accustomed to the worldbuilding 

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sir_dagonet's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0


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