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1.89 AVERAGE
1.89 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Okay I want to start with the fact that this book, story, and world does have potential and despite giving herself a rather strict, and too soon deadline for rewriting of December (in my opinion), I wish this author the best on that- and I will probably read it. As well as with the other media she wants to place within this world. However with her grand focus on the artwork, maybe we should’ve gone with a graphic novel?
In very short, this really is just as bad as everyone has been saying. The lack of editing is a big issue, but the story falls flat for all the marketing hype too.
My largest issue with this is book is that the way it is written and edited (lack of) does NOT make this feel like YA, but instead like a middle grade book. The constant repeating of the same information between characters or in descriptions for the reader are much more suited for a middle grade child to grasp, than the older YA audience the author wants this to be for. I understand that the main character is supposed to be neurodivergent, but there is repeating parts within the narrative that speaks to the reader and NOT her. Hence where most people’s frustation is coming from. Making the note that she's neurodivergent not play a role with that repetition quirk, but a lack of editing and lack of trust in the reader be really shows; there is no trust for the reader to understand anything in this book to be honest at least not with story beats. The magic system is just info-dumped on you while even the characters were confused by it, which uh… girl you live there, not me.I still don’t understand what Geminis can do and that’s MY zodiac sign, so like… ideal OC character to create if I was in the fandom, but all I can remember is that white isn’t one of their primary colors, so uh… cool I guess. I feel like a toddler on a backpack leash for this story, but my parents gave the end of the leash to my brother, who is like five or six for this metaphor. Sorry, I thought that was funny.
This does also suffer even in dialogue within the characters to each other such as within a few pages in is mentioned that a river flows past the mountains twice; our characters were just told this, why does it need repeating? Or why does it need repeating with the full explanation? It just doesn't. On this note full place names in general are repeated a lot, such as with the Conviction Woods in the first few pages and then throughout the book, girl can’t just call it home or the woods? We have an emotional attachment and no nickname??? Not even mentally if we ignore the whole Scorpio code, which our MC does all the time, and still doesn't once really call it home.
The other case I'll bring up is when three characters that were ALL next to each other feel the need to go "gasp Chase is a Libra healer" back to back. Also two of them were already aware of it?? This isn’t just the only time, such as after being told the real history by Sora they repeat back multiple things to her that she had literally just said. Does everyone have the memory of a goldfish?
More on grammar here, I understand there is a vast magic system within this book, but the way the author tries to work into the words for it makes certain sentences suffer quite a bit because they don't exactly make sense on a first read or even really at all. Especially with sudden change from using dreamseeked to dreamsought with little context as if those are actually supposed to mean two different things. I also still don't really understand what magic each of the 12 zodiacs are supposed to have because it seemed like a new one popped up quite randomly, such as the Scorpio man who had ghost dogs with him or something like that.
Honestly I can't say at the end of the day that all that is just an editing issue, but quite a bit of is structure too that I find flaws in the author's general writing. I understand you started working on it when you were 12, but... the style needed to grow too.
Moving on from grammar and editing, the characters fell rather flat for me too, I understand they're topes and standard YA fantasy, but there could've been more to them. They really don't feel complete and their dynamic also falls flat because despite them being stuck together on this mentioned, and two are sisters they don't feel like even know each other after spending all this time with each other. They’re rather basic and I get that they’re adhering to zodiac sign tropes, but we could still try more.
In very short, this really is just as bad as everyone has been saying. The lack of editing is a big issue, but the story falls flat for all the marketing hype too.
My largest issue with this is book is that the way it is written and edited (lack of) does NOT make this feel like YA, but instead like a middle grade book. The constant repeating of the same information between characters or in descriptions for the reader are much more suited for a middle grade child to grasp, than the older YA audience the author wants this to be for. I understand that the main character is supposed to be neurodivergent, but there is repeating parts within the narrative that speaks to the reader and NOT her. Hence where most people’s frustation is coming from. Making the note that she's neurodivergent not play a role with that repetition quirk, but a lack of editing and lack of trust in the reader be really shows; there is no trust for the reader to understand anything in this book to be honest at least not with story beats. The magic system is just info-dumped on you while even the characters were confused by it, which uh… girl you live there, not me.
This does also suffer even in dialogue within the characters to each other such as within a few pages in is mentioned that a river flows past the mountains twice; our characters were just told this, why does it need repeating? Or why does it need repeating with the full explanation? It just doesn't. On this note full place names in general are repeated a lot, such as with the Conviction Woods in the first few pages and then throughout the book, girl can’t just call it home or the woods? We have an emotional attachment and no nickname??? Not even mentally if we ignore the whole Scorpio code, which our MC does all the time, and still doesn't once really call it home.
The other case I'll bring up is when three characters that were ALL next to each other feel the need to go "gasp Chase is a Libra healer" back to back. Also two of them were already aware of it?? This isn’t just the only time, such as after being told the real history by Sora they repeat back multiple things to her that she had literally just said.
More on grammar here, I understand there is a vast magic system within this book, but the way the author tries to work into the words for it makes certain sentences suffer quite a bit because they don't exactly make sense on a first read or even really at all. Especially with sudden change from using dreamseeked to dreamsought with little context as if those are actually supposed to mean two different things. I also still don't really understand what magic each of the 12 zodiacs are supposed to have because it seemed like a new one popped up quite randomly, such as the Scorpio man who had ghost dogs with him or something like that.
Honestly I can't say at the end of the day that all that is just an editing issue, but quite a bit of is structure too that I find flaws in the author's general writing. I understand you started working on it when you were 12, but... the style needed to grow too.
Moving on from grammar and editing, the characters fell rather flat for me too, I understand they're topes and standard YA fantasy, but there could've been more to them. They really don't feel complete and their dynamic also falls flat because despite them being stuck together on this mentioned, and two are sisters they don't feel like even know each other after spending all this time with each other. They’re rather basic and I get that they’re adhering to zodiac sign tropes, but we could still try more.
Focusing on Reika for a moment the one huge thing I keep missing with her is that we open the book with her knowing that the entire government is built on a lie and that she’s becoming a historian to use that as a cover for discovering the actual truth; as well as inspire reform, but she goes on to be just a shocked as her kinda-sorta friends of learning that well… everything is built on a lie? I understand her being shocked about who her father really is, being brainwashed, her childhood friend/girlfriend-to enemy- to situtionship???- to maybe her girlfriend again being tortured as well because well… she didn’t know at all. But she acts just as surprised to learn that taught history is a lie just like her friends are, when she started the book knowing this. I don’t understand why she regresses like that. Obviously she wouldn’t know everything, but she can at least use context about things she knows are false to look at others.
One small note I also don't understand when Reika states "oh that's why my mother hates me" at one point because every last interaction she had with her mother did not have the vibes like she hated her at all.
I’ll stop there because it really has just been a massive let down after all the marketing that I didn’t even consume all that much, but the maybe two tik toks I watched fully did have me interested in reading, but I needed to get through my set TBR, so I ignored, but well derailed it anyway! It truly, truly is just as bad as people are saying and I do regret wasting my time with it this year because I didn’t even preorder, but I just feel let down by some marketing and reading the blurb.
Also I do repeat myself at points in this review because well it is an issue and I know most people are not going read everything I say.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
There was a lot about this novel that did not work, both technically and in the actual concept.
There are a notable number of errors in the text and formatting, the prose is extremely repetitive, especially in the first quarter of the book, and certain turns of phrase are used incorrectly. The dialogue is stilted and awkward, making it a slog to read.
The world feels very built out in some ways - clearly a lot of thought went into some parts of it, but at the same time, there are glaring holes in the world that just aren't filled in. I don't feel like there's a bigger world at play beyond what our characters are participating in. The magic system has been so built out that it's actually very unwieldy and needlessly complex, and not in a way that's interesting or engaging.
The characters were all flat, with either no flaws or all the flaws. Seriously, what was up with the way Avia was often written and described? It felt like even the author didn't want her around, not just Reika.
The dreamscape flashbacks didn't do a good job of making me care about Narah at all - she was just there with absolutely no context for their relationship or the rebellion they started ever given. It made it hard to feel invested.
Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book unless you're just really, really into zodiac-based magic systems. Even then, I suspect there are better out there.
Also."Kira" is not the letters of "Reika" rearranged. That part made no sense and I actually found it pretty annoying given "Keira" is a perfectly serviceable name.
There are a notable number of errors in the text and formatting, the prose is extremely repetitive, especially in the first quarter of the book, and certain turns of phrase are used incorrectly. The dialogue is stilted and awkward, making it a slog to read.
The world feels very built out in some ways - clearly a lot of thought went into some parts of it, but at the same time, there are glaring holes in the world that just aren't filled in. I don't feel like there's a bigger world at play beyond what our characters are participating in. The magic system has been so built out that it's actually very unwieldy and needlessly complex, and not in a way that's interesting or engaging.
The characters were all flat, with either no flaws or all the flaws. Seriously, what was up with the way Avia was often written and described? It felt like even the author didn't want her around, not just Reika.
The dreamscape flashbacks didn't do a good job of making me care about Narah at all - she was just there with absolutely no context for their relationship or the rebellion they started ever given. It made it hard to feel invested.
Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book unless you're just really, really into zodiac-based magic systems. Even then, I suspect there are better out there.
Also.
All that hustle and the book still shit. Wow just wow.
i love this hardback and all the artwork sm! even though i wish some of the sketches i saw on tiktok were depicted. i definitely noticed a few typos and times where it felt like a sentence was just edited out and i was just lost, which was unfortunate but we all miss things. i really liked the main characters except for avia, but i think she’ll get her character development. i think the storyline needed something more bc i felt like we were traveling and running from narah for 95% of the book. i do also kinda wish we saw more of narah and rieka from past memories, but i get that we’ll see more of them in book two. i also thought riekas ‘i love you’ felt very instantaneous tbh. all and all, i hope we get some good character building in book two bc i see sm potential here 🩶
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Haphazard sentences strung together passionately to bring together a passionate attempt at a book. You can feel the drive the author has, however, there is a lack of grounding and essential storytelling elements such as a solid setting and a resonant, comprehensible voice. The characters and world feel incredibly weak, but what was most glaring was the poor grammar, typos, never-ending sentences, half-baked conceptions of magic and in-world social constructs.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
I really liked the concept of this book but I don’t think that it was executed well. It almost reads like a fanfic. I think this story could have benefitted a lot from some more editing.
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
definitely can use some work but has potential! i have more critiques on my tiktok @yikesitsellie_ !!
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No