Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Faebound by Saara El-Arifi

49 reviews

megansoetaert's review

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adventurous emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I wasn’t even halfway through before i knew i needed book #2!!!! it’s very clear that this is the first book in a series, but i ate it up. The world is rich and layered and i want to know everything!! 

can’t belkeve the hetero couple is the one i’m rooting for most tho lollll 
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barda's review

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adventurous tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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bookish_hollyx's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

3.5

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madscientistcat's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-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? It's complicated

4.0

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kailawalton's review

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.0

Loved the magic system in this book. The animal companionship aspect of this book. The unique story and good world building. I will say Lettle got on my nerves a little bit. Acted very immature at times for her age in the book. Otherwise, really liked it! 
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bibliomich's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • 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

4.0

Faebound hooked me from the first chapter, and this ended up being quite a quick read for me, especially as someone who typically takes a long time to finish fantasy novels.

What I appreciated:
- Diverse character representation
- The setting of Mosima; I could truly picture the landscape, and the underground world that El-Arifi imagined was so vibrant and beautifully described.
- The relationships between the characters, especially the complicated sister relationship between Yeeran & Lettle
- The different systems of magic

What would have made this book even better:
- The end of the novel felt a little rushed to me. I appreciate that this was structured to be the first in a series, and I was completely okay with the loose ends and questions that we were left with at the end of the book. But I still felt like so many hugely significant events happened in a very short period of time, and we don't really get to see the characters process these events.
- I would have loved to have seen the obeah play a more prominent role in the book. I don't want to say much more, as I don't want to provide any spoilers, but I will just say that this was one particular area where I was really hoping for *more*.

I'm very much looking forward to the next installment in the series. Thank you to NetGalley for my digital ARC.
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vbzshenanigans's review

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adventurous emotional tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

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mikslitshelf's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Thank you, NetGalley for the ARC. These are my opinions given freely.

I was expecting a lot and once read, was a bit disappointed. I will say what I’ve liked first…
  • Saara has brought us a new world and she was able to give us its information without info dumping on us, thank you for that. It is more unique while including elves and fae. 
  • The diversity
That’s about it.

What I didn’t care for. 
  • Everything was so predictable. Lettle couldn’t tell who her prophecies were about, but I could a mile away. Is she just oblivious? Hopeful? 
  • All of the “wow” and “climatic” scenes felt everything but, it felt rushed and moved on. Where is the drama?!
  • It started out feeling like a military fantasy in the beginning, then trickled to just a regular fantasy, and then a romance fantasy after 200 pages? 
  • Maybe this is intentional but Lettle feels young and immature, when I think she’s supposed to an adult. I do not feel like she had much character development 
    • Her relationship with Rayan felt a bit pushed and rushed. 
    • Why isn’t Lettle telling anyone about her prophecies? Especially if she thinks she’s going to harm her beloved Rayan? None of that made sense. 
  • Yeeran & both of her relationships didn’t make sense either. I felt almost blindsided and confused about her and Furi’s sudden relationship and closeness. Maybe it was just the fighting tension and Furi knowing everyone and Yeeran is new? I felt we could have had more relationship building between them. 
    • I’m also confused how Yeeran is going to ask Furi to come OUTSIDE of Mosima, when Yeeran knows she literally cannot!?
  • Just 310 pages and it took a week to read. It was difficult to want to pick up and continue. Will I read this again? No. Would I read the sequel? I’d give it a try to see if it gets any better. 
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becann's review

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adventurous emotional reflective 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

4.75

Overall an amazing read! Incredibly well written and truly draws you into the world. Lots of twists and turns keep you engaged throughout the book.

There were a few moments that left me a bit confused by the authors choices, but those moments were overshadowed by how interesting and thought provoking the rest of the book is.
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asahome's review

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adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

5.0

TL;DR: A woman discovers a new path forward when she can no longer serve in her nation’s army. Her sister and friend join her in exile to bring her back when they are captured by a group thought to be fairy tales. 

I love how they handled the relationships. The way they respected the established relationship at the beginning and the new relationships were respectful and realistic. The relationships weren't one size fits all either. While the main characters didn't necessarily indulge in multiple partners, there was no judgement on those who did. The society built was accepting of all relationships including the ones around gender. "Like many elves, Motogo's gender was as flexible as the weather..."

There were a couple things I guessed before they happened, but it’s better that way in my opinion so it doesn’t feel like it’s coming out of nowhere. There were one or two things that surprised me as well. 

The way the book handled war was also powerful. It put the politicians at the center and I respect that. People forget why wars are fought and this was a stark reminder. It didn’t shy away from classism either. All in all, I thought it was a fantastic book. 
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