Reviews tagging 'Stalking'

The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake

9 reviews

monstrouscosmos's review

I really enjoyed the world building, and the exploration of each character as individuals as well as their group dynamics. the perspective taking of the chapters was also interesting, and the narrators all added nuance to their performances in ways I appreciated (especially during internal monologues). unfortunately Part 6 definitely got too trigger heavy for me, and I found the expositions started to get both much longer and much less believable. not the book for me, unfortunately! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Panic attacks/disorders, Ableism, Infidelity, Bullying, Incest, Rape, Domestic abuse, Toxic friendship, Medical trauma, Medical content, Death, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Child abuse, Classism, Physical abuse, Sexism, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Murder, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Violence

I put all the triggers I remembered in "moderate", though some would definitely be better described as "minor" or "graphic".

hannahcstocks's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Suicide, Stalking, Blood, Mental illness, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Bullying, Classism, Colonisation, Death, Dysphoria, Infidelity, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence

crownoflaurel's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting

Moderate: Classism

Minor: Bullying, Stalking, and Drug abuse

therealsouls's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

3.75 stars

<img src="https://i.pinimg.com/736x/af/77/8a/af778aa445f7a4971c89c9c4f570a4bf.jpg">

The Atlas Six is set in the future generations and recounts the story of 6 entirely different magicians, called medeians, who were offered a position at the Alexandrian Society, a secret society composed of only the most skilled medeians. The Alexandrian Society includes powerful secrets and knowledge to be revealed, preserving ancient copies of documents of philosophers, scientists, etc. These 6 invited medeians come from all over the world with entirely different abilities, each one of the best at what they do, according to Atlas Blakely. (the man who invited them) 

These include:

• The rival physicist duo Nico and Libby
• The naturalist Reina
• The telepath Parisa
• The empath Callum
• Tristan. Who spots illusions.

This book is the epitome of "with great power comes great responsibility". It taught me that whatever the case, we must be ready to handle our power, for the heavier it is, the stronger a grip it demands.

Let me just say...

this book had so much potential.

So much conflict, so many opportunities, and so few of them used. The characters attached me to them, the plot ached me for more, the magic system intrigued my mind, the mysteries demanded my investigation.

But very few interesting events actually did happen. It felt like such a waste! You've got the perfect recipe already, Olivie Blake, so why improvise? Why drag us on with the pacing? Why make us spend... what... 14 euro for the next book, making us thirsty for more? I can rant all day about these things, promise.

Nevertheless, I enjoyed this book. I enjoyed the characters and the set-up, but I do feel that it could've been executed better overall. Props to you, Olivie Blake!

also nico is hot

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Content Warnings

Minor: Stalking, Sexual content, and Gaslighting

tinyjude's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.75

Reading the first pages I didn't have many expectations but I was nicely surprised by the complexity of the characters. Now I am kind of curious about how will the story continue, although the revelation made me feel like the antagonist turned into a simple caricature of a villain (hopefully their motivations and personality will be further explored so they feel more complex and interesting)

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Classism, Colonisation, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Stalking, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Grief, and Sexism

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Incest

asa_s_16's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Suicide

Moderate: Sexual content and Violence

Minor: Alcohol and Stalking

cluckieduck's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The hype lead me here, but all I can say is that I think this book was trying to hard to be something grand. A lot needs to be tightened up - it just kept going in circles, filled with redundancies rather than fleshing-out the characterization or world-building that was deeply needed. That being said, it was good enough that I'll continue with the series to see where it leads.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Suicide attempt, Violence, Bullying, Cursing, Murder, Blood, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, and Suicide

Moderate: Alcohol, Classism, and Stalking

Minor: Sexual content, Chronic illness, Infidelity, and Sexual harassment

sohma4uesugi's review against another edition

challenging mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

I had to force myself to finish this and I am exhausted. There is just so much without anything at the same time. The sentences are wordy and over the top in a way that is heavy and clunky. Instead of saying “she was shocked by his reply”, the text is that “she was aghast at the perversion of the transaction.” Just… why? Everything simple that should be easy and flows is so over the top that it falls flat beneath the weight of its self. 

There is no immersion into this world. My eyes kept jumping forward begging it to be over with faster. I would reread sentences several times and still be confused in the next paragraph.

Interesting characters were largely ignored and the uninteresting characters were heavily focused on. The artwork, though beautiful, strangely did not match the characters each section was named for, which didn’t make sense to me. 

It felt like whole chapters were missing and the ones that were there dragged on forever and a day. Anything interesting was just simply dropped the next page in infuriating regularity. The last two chapters of the book seemed like they were written for another work entirely, in that they were interesting and actually held my attention. 

To go from talking in tiring detail about the complexities of stopping time to calling someone a useless fuckboi just because they could in the next sentence was jarring and not in a way to bring humor or relief from the vast complexities the text tried and failed to reach. 

The concept was super cool and I wanted to love this book, but unfortunately, I did not. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Terminal illness, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Blood, Body shaming, Car accident, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Addiction, Child death, Confinement, Death, Misogyny, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt

educatorgams's review

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The world building here is amazing, I enjoy magical realism slotted quietly into a contemporary setting. The shifting point of view really helps to move the plot along while keeping you from sympathizing and identifying too strongly with any single character. Each of the six main characters has good and bad points and the story does a great job of exploring them as three dimensional individuals while maintaining the intrigue of a secret society and all the drama you would expect from the chance to join a secret organization guiding the world’s leaders. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping and Murder

Moderate: Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, and Gun violence

Minor: Sexual assault and Child abuse