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kerrygetsliterary'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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Violence
elizlizabeth's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Some diversity is pointed at, but none of the main characters is explicitly described as of being from a different race and most of the characters called "beautiful" tend to be described with Eurocentric features. Zero LGBT+ rep is present (which is shocking, given the amount of rep in the tv show).
Overall I'd say that if you haven't watched the show yet, don't let the book deter you from it. It's a completely different beast than this, and much more diverse, enjoyable, and fun. I also hear Leigh Bardugo had a lot of room to add these little details in the show so I'll count it as a more developed version of the canon.
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Blood and Slavery
Minor: Racial slurs
elenamarmiroli's review against another edition
- 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
3.25
L'inizio è stato lento e non troppo interessante, così come parte del periodo che
Inoltre, la rivelazione riguardo
Altra cosa, avrei voluto veder sviluppato il cambiamento del
Nonostante ciò, la storia in generale mi è piaciuta abbastanza e sono curiosa di scoprire come continuerà.
Graphic: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Violence, Toxic relationship, and Slavery
Moderate: Confinement and Suicide
Minor: Death and Death of parent
writtenbydnicole's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Blood
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, and Gun violence
Minor: Grief and Slavery
erynmcvay's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Moderate: Sexual assault, Violence, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Slavery, Torture, Medical trauma, Kidnapping, Emotional abuse, Death, Bullying, Body horror, and Blood
silverlily's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Blood and Slavery
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Death, Gore, Torture, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Slavery, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Death of parent, Rape, and Sexual content
gothicmoon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I like the idea of this world. They're bender-type people, rather similar to the world of Aveyard's Red Queen, though this book came first. I also found it supremely satisfying both times
More negatively, I found the beginning boring, the middle slow, and the overall motion of things really bland. This read like Red Queen, as I mentioned before, and also many other fantasy novels. This entire book really feels like a drawn-out prelude to the series.
I also found it difficult to connect to characters on a deep scale. Alina, the main character, falls under the curse of main characters who have to be bland enough to let a story unfold through their eyes. Mal is hardly known and I'm not a fan (Only know you love her when you let her go, really?). Characters like Genya and Alina's bending master are just what they need to be to lighten or darken a scene, respectively. The first-person narration from Alina's perspective doesn't help. After reading books like Carry On and The Raven Cycle, it just feels cliché, boring, and uninspiring – I don't know any characters who aren't Alina well, and I don't know Alina herself well, because she has to be the vessel of a story accessible for all.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Slavery
juliette_95's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Death, Slavery, and Violence
Minor: Torture
ehmannky's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
On the whole, I felt that my biggest gripe was that I felt that the characterization for the secondary characters could have been deeper. I felt this especially about Mal. I felt that I didn't care about him until nearly 2/3 of the way through when we actually got to see him spend time with Alina. Up until that point it felt like we were told that she liked Mal because she did. It's not until that 2/3 mark that you really feel their connection in my opinion. More insights into Alina's head, less exposition. But I don't know, in a book that's more plot-driven and action-y, I don't think that this is necessarily a detraction from the overall story, just something that I wasn't a fan of.
Moderate: Death, Confinement, Slavery, and Violence