Scan barcode
ireliajellycomb's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping and Blood
Moderate: Violence and Death
vickybuka's review
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The world building is fractured and hard to follow. Characters are constantly being given surprise backgrounds that should have been mentioned earlier in the story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Confinement, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Animal death, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Kidnapping, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent
Minor: Addiction and Drug use
lillizzy's review
adventurous
dark
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping and Blood
Minor: Death, Confinement, and Injury/Injury detail
clevermird's review
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I was really excited for this book - I've loved McKinley's other work and vampires are a fascination of mine. The cover quote by a well-respected author declaring it "pretty much perfect" built even more hype. But sadly, this book didn't really live up to my hopes.
Rae "Sunshine" Seddon thinks of herself as quite ordinary - just a baker trying to help keep the coffeehouse run by her chaotic but mostly-loving family afloat. But when she decides that she needs some space and takes an impromptu trip to an isolated lake, she finds herself captured by a group of vampires and destined to be the next meal of one of them. Only he seems to have no interest in eating her. Together, they plot to escape the other bloodsuckers and that's when things really start to get weird for Sunshine.
There was a few things this book did right. As former back-of-house staff myself, I liked the way the coffeehouse's staff and customers were described. The dynamics and interactions rang true to me. Additionally, the way the world and Sunshine's character slowly spun out over the book was very satisfying and kept me engaged much more than the plot of the book itself did.The book begins with what I assumed to be "our world, but with vampires" and the ordinary girl our protagonist claims to be, but gradually shows us that things aren't quite what they appear. And as always, McKinley's protagonist has a very relatable, down-to-earth voice that's easy to read.
However, this book desperately needed editing down. Close to a quarter of the 400 pages could probably have been cut without sacrificing much plot and the story often bogs down in long info dumps and repetitive musings from Sunshine. The plot meanders, several interesting characters (such as Sunshine's boyfriend) are underutilized, and the ending ultimately wasn't very satisfying.
Overall, a promising story held back by taking way too long to get to the point. Read it if the premise suits you or if you're a fan of McKinley's other work, but don't expect a masterpiece.
Rae "Sunshine" Seddon thinks of herself as quite ordinary - just a baker trying to help keep the coffeehouse run by her chaotic but mostly-loving family afloat. But when she decides that she needs some space and takes an impromptu trip to an isolated lake, she finds herself captured by a group of vampires and destined to be the next meal of one of them. Only he seems to have no interest in eating her. Together, they plot to escape the other bloodsuckers and that's when things really start to get weird for Sunshine.
There was a few things this book did right. As former back-of-house staff myself, I liked the way the coffeehouse's staff and customers were described. The dynamics and interactions rang true to me. Additionally, the way the world and Sunshine's character slowly spun out over the book was very satisfying and kept me engaged much more than the plot of the book itself did.The book begins with what I assumed to be "our world, but with vampires" and the ordinary girl our protagonist claims to be, but gradually shows us that things aren't quite what they appear. And as always, McKinley's protagonist has a very relatable, down-to-earth voice that's easy to read.
However, this book desperately needed editing down. Close to a quarter of the 400 pages could probably have been cut without sacrificing much plot and the story often bogs down in long info dumps and repetitive musings from Sunshine. The plot meanders, several interesting characters (such as Sunshine's boyfriend) are underutilized, and the ending ultimately wasn't very satisfying.
Overall, a promising story held back by taking way too long to get to the point. Read it if the premise suits you or if you're a fan of McKinley's other work, but don't expect a masterpiece.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Kidnapping, Gore, Body horror, Confinement, and Death
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, and Gore
mswarning's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- 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
This is maybe the third time I've read this book. I don't think choosing it for a readathon near the end of the month when you're trying to read like 5 books in 5 days was the best decision on my part. I definitely needed a higher ratio of action/vampire interaction to worldbuilding, so the fault was mine.
The frustration I'm seeing from people reviewing this book stems from the fact that something traumatic happens near the beginning of the book. Sunshine acts like many people do, they avoid talking about it or making a big deal about it. And the avoidance informs the slow-pacing. The worldbuilding nicely sits in the spots between the bigger, weightier parts of the story. Each scene with Constantine leaves you wanting more. And you're kind of anxiously waiting for more to happen as pressure keeps building up.
If I had rated this book when I finished it, I think I'd have rated this readthrough a 3.5 or 3.75. Time has been kind, and I've been able to separate time management frustration from my opinion of the book. I think a sequel could be amazing, but I also think it would not live up to my expectations.I want Sunshine and Constantine to have a continued relationship. Not necessarily romantic, but maybe that could work somehow. More about her magic-handling abilities and more about vampires, master vampires, and how Constantine is different from other vampires. More about vampires being more dangerous and ruining civilization. And more Sunshine coming to terms with her abilities and turning into someone who can emotionally handle killing vampires. Or maybe about what happens with her combined bloodlines from both sides of her family since there's many different possibilities to explore there.
Read the content warnings.
The frustration I'm seeing from people reviewing this book stems from the fact that something traumatic happens near the beginning of the book. Sunshine acts like many people do, they avoid talking about it or making a big deal about it. And the avoidance informs the slow-pacing. The worldbuilding nicely sits in the spots between the bigger, weightier parts of the story. Each scene with Constantine leaves you wanting more. And you're kind of anxiously waiting for more to happen as pressure keeps building up.
If I had rated this book when I finished it, I think I'd have rated this readthrough a 3.5 or 3.75. Time has been kind, and I've been able to separate time management frustration from my opinion of the book. I think a sequel could be amazing, but I also think it would not live up to my expectations.
Read the content warnings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Confinement, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Violence and Animal death
Minor: Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Sexual content
More...