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boglord'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Gore, Grief, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, Murder, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Genocide, Mental illness, Misogyny, Xenophobia, Body horror, Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Classism, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Torture, War, Kidnapping, Vomit, Alcohol, Blood, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Religious bigotry, and Sexism
Minor: Death of parent, Rape, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Dysphoria, Ableism, Addiction, Deadnaming, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Pedophilia, Racism, Slavery, and Trafficking
ali___cat'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
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Cannibalism, and Gore
anahisa'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
4.25
love love love the lore we’re building here! Sea beasts, and pirates, and discord ahhhhh!!! What more could you want???
the characters are so neat and I adore the crew and I would gladly read their adventures till the end of time!!! overall, the story has its nuances, heart, and set up a delightful amount of secrets/hints to be addressed in later installments <3 genuinely a great time + read!
(now, pls deliver 4 sequels, exactly 🔫)
Graphic: Gore
twistykris'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
I loved so many of the characters, even a certain demon ex-husband 😈
Amina felt relatable to me, even if she's a mother in her 40s (and I am not a mother and in my early 30s). The way she spoke about the importance of her blood family and her crew was really sweet, and I really was rooting for her throughout the book.
This was my first Chakraborty novel, so I have not read The Daevabad trilogy, but I will definitely put them on my TBR now, especially knowing there are connections to the series.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Violence, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, and Confinement
Minor: Religious bigotry and Slavery
cozyscones'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
4.5
Graphic: Misogyny, Murder, Death, Sexual harassment, Gore, Violence, and Body horror
Moderate: Deadnaming, War, Religious bigotry, Slavery, and Torture
bookmaddie'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? No
4.0
This story is full of wily characters who never run out of clever quips, and surprise you with their kindness and care. Aka the perfect group to go treasure-seeking across the seas! I love a good pirate book, and it was so fun to get a glimpse of other pirate communities (besides our main group, of course). Chakraborty knows how to write charming, delightful rascals, so it was always a delight to turn the page and see what new creature might appear next.
Such a vibrant group of characters is deserving of an equally imaginative story, and Chakraborty delivers! While it did take me a bit to get into the story, once the plot picked up, I was hooked. Each chapter drew me forward, and by the end, I was rushing to turn pages and learn what would happen next. I loved the in-between chapters that gave context, through legends and character's histories—even if they technically took me away from the main plot, I was always equally intrigued by whatever tangent I was briefly led down. I also love that this story was set up as a scribe writing down a story as it was told. I think it was a great way to get to know Amina through how she speaks, and get a glimpse of the mystery scribe's personality as well.
This wasn't quite a five star read for me, but I'm hopeful for the subsequent books in the series to knock my socks off! I can't wait to adventure with the Amina and her crew again.
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for my advanced digital copy of this book.
Graphic: Gore, Body horror, and Violence
victoriousbookworm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Body horror, and Misogyny
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Grief, Sexual harassment, and Torture
Minor: Colonisation and War
franzis_buecher's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
There are heists, seafaring adventures, magical artefacts and creatures, battle scenes, and more, and depending on the situation, the mood shifts between funny, thrilling, emotional and even spooky (there were a few scenes on Socotra that had such a creepy atmosphere omg)
Also love how diverse the cast of supporting characters are when it comes to ethnicity, religion, sexuality and gender identity. (That one twist with one particular character made me circle back to the beginning and see everything in a completely new light, I thought it was very well done)
I also love
Not to mention the easter eggs from the Daevabad world! There aren't too many, but one specific character appears and there are some familiar magical creatures as well.
The only thing that I struggled with a bit were the more religious aspects, which for me since I'm not religious and not Muslim didn't hit as hard as they probably would for others. But I always love learning about other religions and worldviews, so it was very interesting as well.
I also learned a lot about the 11th century Indian Ocean and about places I'd never heard about before like Socotra! The small interludes with excerpts from ancient travel reports or tales really embellished the book further and helped a lot with the worldbuilding.
I'm excited to see where this story goes, to get to know some of the side characters such as Tinbu, Dalila, Majed and Jamal even better, and maybe to see some more of Marjana's heritage in future installments!
Moderate: Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, and Gore
unboxedjack'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
3.5
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, Gore, Violence, Murder, and Death
Minor: Grief, Sexism, Sexual assault, Misogyny, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Islamophobia, and Transphobia
e_liz's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Torture, Blood, Gore, Death, Violence, Murder, Kidnapping, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: War, Slavery, Transphobia, and Grief