1.11k reviews for:

Cursebound

Saara El-Arifi

3.94 AVERAGE

adventurous reflective tense medium-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: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

While I was not a major fan of the first book in Saara El-Arifi's Faebound trilogy, CURSEBOUND was a much better story. I enjoyed it a lot more and found that it added some necessary depth to the series that I feel was missing in that first book. That doesn't mean that it isn't without its own set of problems, however. 

I still believe CURSEBOUND suffers from a pacing issue. There is a lot that happens in a very short period of time, too much in my opinion. There is very little time to absorb all that happens. It's a bit like attempting to drink from a fire hose. You can only sit back and let it all play out, but it is coming at you so fast that you miss things. 

Plus, when the action is nonstop, there is no time for character development. The characters remain about as one-dimensional as they did in the first book. There is some growth there, but it is not as much as I would expect in book two.

The other issue I have with CURSEBOUND, as I did with FAEBOUND is all the insta-love. Almost every character experiences love at first sight, even if they fight it or deny it at first. I know it is a story about fae and therefore entirely fictional, but all the instant love connections are a bit too much even for a story about mythical beings. 

Thankfully, CURSEBOUND ends with a major reveal, the type that completely changes the story. It makes me excited for the third book, even if I still have issues with it. The story at its heart is good, even if I struggle with the execution of the telling. I am curious to see what happens with our newfound knowledge and where it all goes. However, these are just my thoughts. Ms. El-Arifi won awards for FAEBOUND, so obviously, others see something that I am missing. 
adventurous emotional medium-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
adventurous challenging emotional medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Loveable characters: Yes

This was a great book, but had very middle-book energy. It seems like there wasn't much going on and a lot of "I did a thing that I wouldn't normally do, but hey look the plot was advanced!" and "I'm going to lie about this thing because at some point It will be really handy plot device." 

I like the story, I like the world, I like the characters, but I'm ready for the last book. I'm ready for these character's stories too come to completion and hopefully no more oboxious plot devices. 
adventurous dark medium-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
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Argh, definitely middle book difficulties here: not a lot of story development, annoying and not fleshed out characters, and run on sentences every page (so distracting ... there's more punctuation in the world than commas).

More of a YA vibe than the first. Very little of the celebration of diversity that made Faebound so good. 30+ year old characters who act like teens. A queen and king who can't lead their way out of a paper bag.

A few interesting twists, some predictable ones, held my attention enough.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated
adventurous medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This was an interesting sequel to Faebound by Saara El-Arifi. As with a lot of 2nd books in trilogies, this one felt like a lot of set up for the coming finale. But I liked that it is a very character-driven follow up. In Cursebound we see our main characters grow themselves and their relationships in meaningful ways. We were introduced to an important new character as well, adding a third POV to the story. El-Arifi. has created a very diverse cast of characters in a very diverse-normalized world (in terms of gender expression, sexuality, disability). The plot was a bit slower in this book. Although there was some political intrigue, there was relatively little action and excitement.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Del Rey for providing a digital ARC of this book!

readingdragon28's review against another edition

DID NOT FINISH: 48%

The plot was monotonous, and predictable.