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chan_bean's review against another edition
5.0
This was THE BEST book I read in 2021. It has everything I love. Magic, complicated family ties, mystery, culture, and so much love. It was truly a page turner that I couldn't put down.
This is also one of the first books I've read where the magic isn't a system or bound by a set of rules, and it showed me how much I prefer this kind of magic to hard systems. Sometimes the magic isn't the center of the story, and we actually DON'T need a full explanation of how everything works. I'm glad that focus was instead devoted to the different characters, their stories, their emotions, and the trauma that they all carry with them.
Absolutely recommend!
This is also one of the first books I've read where the magic isn't a system or bound by a set of rules, and it showed me how much I prefer this kind of magic to hard systems. Sometimes the magic isn't the center of the story, and we actually DON'T need a full explanation of how everything works. I'm glad that focus was instead devoted to the different characters, their stories, their emotions, and the trauma that they all carry with them.
Absolutely recommend!
bookfortbuilder's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
5.0
magalic's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
bookadventurer's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
3.75
roguedaffodil's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
perusinghannah's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑
Before picking up The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina, I hadn't read magical realism in ages, and this book was a perfect reintroduction to the genre.
For some reason I thought this would be a softer story, but I was really happy to realize that this is a fairly gritty story both in plot and tone. I liked that most of our main characters had a bit of an edge, and that the author wasn't afraid to lean into the dark when it came to the magical elements of this novel - both really set an excellent mood that I vibed with incredibly well.
Unfortunately, there was one thing that didn't work for me, and that was the pacing. I feel like we lingered in some moments longer than we needed to, then skipped over years in others, and sometimes that left me wondering where in time we were and with who. I feel the time jumps also left me a little disconnected from characters in ways that I didn't need to be, and while I realize this is a family saga (a great one, too), I would've liked a little more in depth knowledge of our main characters.
However, even with the pacing the way it was, most of this novel was still absolutely excellent in all other aspects. Definitely an author I'll be keeping my eye on!
Before picking up The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina, I hadn't read magical realism in ages, and this book was a perfect reintroduction to the genre.
For some reason I thought this would be a softer story, but I was really happy to realize that this is a fairly gritty story both in plot and tone. I liked that most of our main characters had a bit of an edge, and that the author wasn't afraid to lean into the dark when it came to the magical elements of this novel - both really set an excellent mood that I vibed with incredibly well.
Unfortunately, there was one thing that didn't work for me, and that was the pacing. I feel like we lingered in some moments longer than we needed to, then skipped over years in others, and sometimes that left me wondering where in time we were and with who. I feel the time jumps also left me a little disconnected from characters in ways that I didn't need to be, and while I realize this is a family saga (a great one, too), I would've liked a little more in depth knowledge of our main characters.
However, even with the pacing the way it was, most of this novel was still absolutely excellent in all other aspects. Definitely an author I'll be keeping my eye on!
logoddess's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0