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shu_long's review against another edition
4.0
I had never read Jonathan Moeller before, but it won't be his last book I read. The pace was fast, kept you interested even through events that could easily have become repetitive and he kept you wondering "how they're going to save this disaster" till near the end. I did find the ending a little quick to wrap up and wondered about how the main character was going to process certain events in her own mind, but seeing as there are more books in the series, he has plenty of time to handle those issues and probably will. The world was believable and has a depth to it that will make returning to it an easy decision.
tonyriver's review against another edition
3.0
I read this and the next two very quickly. This envies applies to the three. The writing is generally races along, with reasonable plot development. Certainly not boring. There is a but though...
I found the endless reiteration of what has gone on before, both from previous books in the series but more annoyingly endless recounting of trials and tribulations from the preceding series. I generally scanned these bits and got the gist before continuing wit the real story. Without these interruptions I would rate this higher.
The protagonist is a great female lead, with sufficient skills and generally getting out of the cliffhanging, sure to die scene, by using her brain combined with skill. Also some great support characters along the way. The three books I read were self continued stories and could be read separately if you want as each, as stated above, re tells the story to date!
I found the endless reiteration of what has gone on before, both from previous books in the series but more annoyingly endless recounting of trials and tribulations from the preceding series. I generally scanned these bits and got the gist before continuing wit the real story. Without these interruptions I would rate this higher.
The protagonist is a great female lead, with sufficient skills and generally getting out of the cliffhanging, sure to die scene, by using her brain combined with skill. Also some great support characters along the way. The three books I read were self continued stories and could be read separately if you want as each, as stated above, re tells the story to date!
mrose21's review against another edition
4.0
Wow.
I did not expect to read what I read in this book. It reminds me of the throne of glass series not because we have an evil king (close enough) but because the girl is an assassin. I find her character much easier to like than in that series. This book she is actually hard. She does question herself but not once does she cry or even pity her surroundings for very long.
She does mention her tragic beginnings quite a bit but I think its fitting in moments where she is doing things she shouldn't like seducing men or killing men with very little thought. She also doesn't focus on her love life much. She does have sex in the later part of the book but not enough for me to mark this as a romance. This is actually a lead girl I can get on board with, she doesn't need a love interest, shes a strong enough character to solider on without one.
I found myself just so fixated by this book I couldn't stop reading it once I got going. This could be my favourite book in a long time.
Thank god for a strong female lead! She doesn't need no man!!!
I did not expect to read what I read in this book. It reminds me of the throne of glass series not because we have an evil king (close enough) but because the girl is an assassin. I find her character much easier to like than in that series. This book she is actually hard. She does question herself but not once does she cry or even pity her surroundings for very long.
She does mention her tragic beginnings quite a bit but I think its fitting in moments where she is doing things she shouldn't like seducing men or killing men with very little thought. She also doesn't focus on her love life much. She does have sex in the later part of the book but not enough for me to mark this as a romance. This is actually a lead girl I can get on board with, she doesn't need a love interest, shes a strong enough character to solider on without one.
I found myself just so fixated by this book I couldn't stop reading it once I got going. This could be my favourite book in a long time.
Thank god for a strong female lead! She doesn't need no man!!!
reasonpassion's review against another edition
4.0
Entertaining with a fabulous heroine and a bad guy you just really love to hate. Add in an interesting world that's just complicated enough to be interesting without getting inflated by its own importance and the recipe is quite good to sit down and keep reading.
theusherette's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death of parent, Grief, Death, Murder, Suicide, Violence, War, and Torture
Moderate: Body horror, Panic attacks/disorders, Infertility, and Slavery
Minor: Misogyny and Rape
felinity's review against another edition
2.0
So far it's barely squeaking a two, and that only because I'm curious. The dialog tends to be stilted, the characters are two-dimensional, and is "cold" really the only adjective that can be used for Riogan? A few too many copyediting errors also crept in, just enough to annoy me.
miniatureghosts's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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? It's complicated
3.5
colourful_kenyan's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-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? No
3.5
After the death of her parents, Caina (cool name btw) joins the ghosts who have saved her life. She trains with them and we follow her through her life. The obstacles she faces, the pain she endures after a horrible occurrence from when she was a child and how she grows and matures.
The ending was fitting and I liked how we also got the POV of the villain too much that his growth was explained deeply. While it did not leave much to mystery, I enjoyed it enough. I also loved the narrators voice. It takes me a while to get through an audiobook but I liked how she used different tones and one could easily tell the difference in characters.
What I did not like was how things kept on being repeated. I understand she went through trauma. I don't need it to be explained 100 times and I hate how it is always brought up when we least expect it.
I am also glad that the character I hated died. He was one of the good guys but man was I happy to see him go.
The ending was fitting and I liked how we also got the POV of the villain too much that his growth was explained deeply. While it did not leave much to mystery, I enjoyed it enough. I also loved the narrators voice. It takes me a while to get through an audiobook but I liked how she used different tones and one could easily tell the difference in characters.
What I did not like was how things kept on being repeated. I understand she went through trauma. I don't need it to be explained 100 times and I hate how it is always brought up when we least expect it.
I am also glad that the character I hated died. He was one of the good guys but man was I happy to see him go.
tunamunki's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
traditionson's review against another edition
4.0
A good book with a gripping story line. I was able to see the ending coming but not in the way that i expected. It kept me hooked on the twists and turns of the story that encompassed humanity as well as the effects of what she was becoming. Well worth a read and bring on the next one.