Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

61 reviews

jazhandz's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.75

From a pure craft standpoint, Leigh Bardugo’s writing is at a peak in this book. It’s sensory and rich and compelling. The character work is lovely. Where this book falls flat for me is the relationships - and not only the central relationship, but the entirety of the relationships, romantic and platonic and familial and antagonistic. None of them will stick with me in a meaningful way. Which is a shame! I think if this book had stronger relationships it would be an easy favorite. As it is, it was fine.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Religious bigotry, Antisemitism, Confinement, Torture, and Body horror

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, and Infertility

Minor: Sexual content, Pregnancy, Vomit, Infidelity, Animal cruelty, and Death of parent

persephonefoxx's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious slow-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? Yes

5.0

But let it be my ambition and not my fear that seals my fate

I knew this was going to be 5 stars from the first paragraph and it did not waver once.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Violence, Death, Death of parent, Physical abuse, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Sexual assault, Infertility, and War

betweentheshelves's review against another edition

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? Yes

3.5

As in typical Leigh Bardugo fashion, the writing and the world building was exceptional. I don't think it quite tops Crooked Kingdom (Bardugo's best book, in my opinion), but it hooked me! The setting was intriguing, and adding to the intrigue was the fact that it's loosely based on her own family's history.

It was a little slow moving for me, and I think it might partly be because I listened to it on audio? The narrator wasn't bad, just wasn't my favorite. There is a good romance at the center of this, and if you like your fantasy a bit dark with a bit of romance, this will definitley be for you!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Antisemitism, and Torture

Moderate: Death of parent, Sexual content, and Blood

Minor: War

karmascycles's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense 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? Yes

5.0

So beautifully written and the story was incredible. I loved how mysterious and gothic everything was.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Torture

Minor: Death of parent

becalexa's review against another edition

4.0

very solid 4 stars! the beginning was a little slow but once it got going i was quite interested. not the most intricate plot ms bardugo has ever written but it certainly had Vibes which i personally think was the point of this story. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Infertility, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, and Gore

frmeden's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense 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? N/A

4.5

picture me reading the ending on the bus with my heart in my fucking throat

leigh bardugooo you have so much talent, it felt like spain was honestly a whole other character in this book and so much love and care was given to every character, no matter how minor, that i was deeply invested in how each of their stories wrapped up

doesn’t quite join the ranks of six of crows but they’re not really the same story so probably incomparable? but it wrapped up so bittersweet and final and lovely. i liked this a lot

santángel you will always be famous and sexy

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Religious bigotry, Torture, Xenophobia, Blood, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, and Body horror

Moderate: Death of parent and Sexual violence

writingcaia's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.5

Enchanting and eery, magical and dark, with a historical setting that brings to life the horrors and hypocrisy of the Inquisition, the conversion and expulsion of Jews, and the fall of the Spanish Armada, mixing historical facts with magical ones that feel as true as the written down.
Amidst it all there is a girl grieving for a family and a future lost to poverty and inquisition, slaving away, until a casual and common (for her) little chant to fix the bread pushes her to display her magical talents, so intertwined with her past and traditions, driving her to find her lost strength and renewing her ambition - to be powerful, to be unique, to be seen.
Pushed into a political game between King and would-be powers she meets the strange but alluring Familiar, her magic mentor, and her life will never be the same.
A love story and a dark tale with villains and heroes disguised as either, where trust is earned and love stolen from the ashes of a forgotten world.
It didn’t dazzle me but it was still unforgettable!
Can’t wait for more like this from Leigh.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Antisemitism, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Sexual content, Death of parent, and Blood

Minor: War

edamamebean's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I loved this book so much, I don’t even know what to do with myself. It was perfect from start to finish, genuinely the best I’ve read from Leigh Bardugo. I’ll be hard pressed to read a book that tops this one all year.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Infidelity, Torture, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Infertility, Murder, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Antisemitism, and Xenophobia

torturedreadersdept's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense slow-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Classism, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Blood, Body shaming, Cursing, Gaslighting, Violence, Confinement, Murder, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, Vomit, Antisemitism, Body horror, Hate crime, Torture, Dysphoria, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Infidelity, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Abandonment, and Bullying

ljp817's review against another edition

dark emotional tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Physical abuse, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Blood, Death, and Death of parent

Minor: War, Excrement, and Vomit