Reviews

Historical fiction (olde England of the period you’d expect) with a smidge of “magic”. The unique way “binding” affects the world is interesting and certainly keeps the plot moving, and the romance is both unexpected and predictable, but interesting enough that both held my attention to the end, though the pace is slow. What really bothered me was the lack of strong female characters, or any “interesting” or even “good” female characters at all. All the women are stuck in their traditional roles and treated terribly by the patriarchy - very terribly, disturbingly terribly. I suppose this is a reflection of the historical time period, and not the point of the story at all considering who the two main characters are. But still. An interesting story, but disturbing in parts.

robinhood2000's review against another edition

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4.0

I loved this story, it is a LGBTQIA+ love story but I love that it didn't say that on the book. Let the homophobes be disgusted, I love when you just say love story and it might be gay. It's not gay love, it's just love man. Overall the binding aspect was hella cool and the book was a really enjoyable read. Recommend!

mollyhyland's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

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

jrmarr's review against another edition

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4.0

This book was a surprise. I honestly did not expect to be so drawn in by the story, by the characters, or by the world. Despite the magical realism of the central part of the story, this is a tale of how memories impact on your life, and the importance of dealing with trauma, rather than suppressing it. I'm not sure if I would be so drawn in on a subsequent reading, but I did appreciate the twists and turns of it on the first reading.

crookedmidnight's review against another edition

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3.5

Interesting concept and story but the end was dragged out too long and not that satisfying

bethyj218's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

calebmatthews's review against another edition

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5.0

Plot driven fantasy always has a special place in my heart. I listened to the audiobook and the narration was really great. The book is divided into three parts. Part one I give a 4 out of 5 for a interesting premise, but a slow start. Part two caught me off guard and is easily a 5. I loved this part of the book. Part three was interesting and engaging. I give it a 4.5 out of 5.

WARNING: There were times when this book went full dark no stars really fast. Watch out!

I liked the world that was built and the writing style of the author. I was longing for more when I set down the book which is the easiest way I have found to spot a 5 star read. This one will also be fun to re-read based on what happens in the book.

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