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sailormoonreads's review against another edition
4.0
I'm really looking forward to the next book of this series, I had a great time reading That Self-Same Metal, not only because I was intrigued by the premise of a Shakespearean ya featuring a black girl, but in general the concept of bending metal at your pleasure.
The historical ambience in my opinion was very well written I might not be an expert in the topic, but I enjoy reading historical fiction a lot so it was very interesting to me to see the blend with ya fantasy.
To be honest my main focus for a good half of the book was the romance, hello?! bisexual love triangle? and maybe polyamory??
We love to see queer representation, especially in fantasy books.
I was not completely convinced about the Fae-based plot at first as I had many disappointments in the past, but I really loved how they were depicted in this book as dangerous.
Very fast placed if you like it, and I generally don't mind, I might have liked to see a bit more side character development or even more focus on Joan who while I very much admired her as a strong character definitely in some parts felt a bit mild and unreliable.
But definitely a book that I recommend! Especially if you are a young reader or one that wants to start reading fantasy ya!!
The historical ambience in my opinion was very well written I might not be an expert in the topic, but I enjoy reading historical fiction a lot so it was very interesting to me to see the blend with ya fantasy.
To be honest my main focus for a good half of the book was the romance, hello?! bisexual love triangle? and maybe polyamory??
We love to see queer representation, especially in fantasy books.
I was not completely convinced about the Fae-based plot at first as I had many disappointments in the past, but I really loved how they were depicted in this book as dangerous.
Very fast placed if you like it, and I generally don't mind, I might have liked to see a bit more side character development or even more focus on Joan who while I very much admired her as a strong character definitely in some parts felt a bit mild and unreliable.
But definitely a book that I recommend! Especially if you are a young reader or one that wants to start reading fantasy ya!!
elo27's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
gfoe107's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
queeneallie's review against another edition
Time of death: 53%
Dear authors, you do not need to describe your female characters’ bodies - ESPECIALLY when you don’t describe the males. It’s icky objectification.
Too many long descriptions of dancing and tambourine slapping to hold my interest. Too long descriptions of sword fights. This book didn’t seem to know what it wanted to be. African orisha mythology? British fay mythology? LGBTQ love story? Retelling of Shakespeare? (She practically retold all of Midsummer Night’s Dream across two chapters. I didn’t need that in the middle of another book.) Historical fiction? It was just messy.
Moving on.
Dear authors, you do not need to describe your female characters’ bodies - ESPECIALLY when you don’t describe the males. It’s icky objectification.
Too many long descriptions of dancing and tambourine slapping to hold my interest. Too long descriptions of sword fights. This book didn’t seem to know what it wanted to be. African orisha mythology? British fay mythology? LGBTQ love story? Retelling of Shakespeare? (She practically retold all of Midsummer Night’s Dream across two chapters. I didn’t need that in the middle of another book.) Historical fiction? It was just messy.
Moving on.
1234_rowan_1234's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
sunlit1eimakid's review against another edition
3.0
The writing was... not the best. I didn't particularly like how there was only Fae and Orisha. What about the mythology of other cultures? Might read the next book in the series though.
chibi418's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
slow-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? It's complicated
The premise of this book is absolutely amazing! The execution not so much. I ended up hate reading thisbook. I do not want to discourage anyone from reading this, because truly a wonderful premise just not for a very critical reader like me, especially as I find myself moving more and more away from YA (which is a me issue and not an author issue!)
vortacist's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
shksprsis's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
3.5
amandalorianxo's review against another edition
3.5
As a debut, I enjoyed the the fantasy intertwined with Shakespeare's London of the time. I also appreciated the acknowledgement of the treatment of bipoc individuals during this time period as well (people forget that bipoc folks have existed before slavery) I wasn't fully convinced though when it came to the romance subplot. If I had more backstory or fleshing out of the female love interest, I think I would have been more on board but it felt a little too insta love / lust for me. I also wasn't fully following the Orisha storyline mixed with the fantasy. I might have to read it again to see if it will make sense physically (I did the audiobook route with this one.)