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miraclesapphire's review against another edition
5.0
HOLY F***ING CRACK A** S***! This book was AMAZING and THRILLING and had me on the edge of my seat the whole time! I'm mad that book 2 isn't out. It's a creepy and thrilling murder mystery with romance subplot set in a historical religious era. F***ing wicked; I can't get enough! Would definitely rate higher if I could!
jerseytwilight's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-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
3.75
johnsnowwasright's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-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? Yes
4.0
I'm a sucker for a good Italian inspired fantasy world.
This was a fun but broody YA fantasy novel that in the end doesn't seem to trust its audience's intelligence. The world and its religion were well developed and interesting. I do think that Lobb spoke to the teenage desire to better the world and end inequality. She brings to life a complicated and messy teen relationship that is able to be messy without being toxic. Roz and Damian are flawed individuals that make mistakes in a way that I feel is more realistic than some other YA novels. That was refreshing to read to be honest.
I appreciate that Lobb also kept us guessing to the end of who the murderer was and engineered a legitimately intelligent twist. However, once the culprit was unmasked so to speak, the book seems to swerve into thinking its audience is stupid territory. Our villain engages in a cliche monologue and spoon feeds information to the audience in a way that was insulting. Teens are intelligent, they don't need everything spelled out for them.
That being said, the epilogue was a banger.
This was a fun but broody YA fantasy novel that in the end doesn't seem to trust its audience's intelligence. The world and its religion were well developed and interesting. I do think that Lobb spoke to the teenage desire to better the world and end inequality. She brings to life a complicated and messy teen relationship that is able to be messy without being toxic. Roz and Damian are flawed individuals that make mistakes in a way that I feel is more realistic than some other YA novels. That was refreshing to read to be honest.
I appreciate that Lobb also kept us guessing to the end of who the murderer was and engineered a legitimately intelligent twist. However, once the culprit was unmasked so to speak, the book seems to swerve into thinking its audience is stupid territory. Our villain engages in a cliche monologue and spoon feeds information to the audience in a way that was insulting. Teens are intelligent, they don't need everything spelled out for them.
That being said, the epilogue was a banger.
naddles's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
lauraslittlebooknook's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
emmairv89's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
Damien is investigating a murder that he feels is his fault.
Roz is an old flame of Damien’s until he was called to war that left him mentally scarred and where her father deserted and was beheaded by Damien’s father.
After the deaths seem to be connected Damien and Roz decide to put their differences aside and work together to bring the killer to justice.
As old romantic feelings begin to resurface it is interrupted by Damien’s declaration of his involvement in her father’s death.
Damien is knocked out and put on a ship heading to war ordered by his father until Roz and two others rescue him. As they open up to each other then think they have worked out who the killer is but are they right?
I really enjoyed the storyline and it was very well written.
I had to really push myself to read this book and as I heard so many good reads I knew I had to continue but by the end I wasn’t as amazed as I thought I would be.
Roz is an old flame of Damien’s until he was called to war that left him mentally scarred and where her father deserted and was beheaded by Damien’s father.
After the deaths seem to be connected Damien and Roz decide to put their differences aside and work together to bring the killer to justice.
As old romantic feelings begin to resurface it is interrupted by Damien’s declaration of his involvement in her father’s death.
Damien is knocked out and put on a ship heading to war ordered by his father until Roz and two others rescue him. As they open up to each other then think they have worked out who the killer is but are they right?
I really enjoyed the storyline and it was very well written.
I had to really push myself to read this book and as I heard so many good reads I knew I had to continue but by the end I wasn’t as amazed as I thought I would be.
kaulhilo's review against another edition
2.0
huh. took 12 days to finish, although that’s probably less to do with the book and more my hectic schedules and breakdowns etc. i’ve been looking forward to this book for ages, which is why i was very happy to have finally gotten around to starting it, but it really did not live up to any of my expectations.
the plot is very.. classical ya, in the sense that maybe it would’ve been received better (by me, at least) if it had been released around 2015. seven years later, however, it comes off as very retired and obvious, with very blatant and underwhelming characters and plot sequences. like, to the point where within five chapters i could predict who the killer was, where this book and series was going, and exactly how the characters would get there. it’s not bad, really, or even taxing to read, but it does feel extremely recycled and frankly, a pointless exercise in reading.
the only saving grace is the male lead, damian. even formulaic, he’s written with slightly more nuance and derivation than just about anything else in the book, probably because the series predominantly revolves around him/his “powers” (sorry, spoiler?) but it came to be the only thing keeping me from dnfing the book entirely. sadly, this interest didn’t extend to the female lead, or the love story, because although they’re.. sort of, in your face in the book, a lot of it is lectured in a very tired way. it’s a lot of tell, no show: which makes for an extremely exhausting read, because you’re told so many things “great romance!!!” “badass fmc!!!” “she’s broken!!!” “she’s vengeful she’s insane!!!” “they loved like starlight!!!!” and yet NONE of it is shown on page. i went through a lot of vague, flowery, not really feeling, honestly pointless words, and.. that’s it. as if i’m just supposed to accept it for that, despite never seeing any of this so called star-crossed depth on paper. i don’t know, maybe it’s likable to some people. to me, however, it came off as reading a particularly boring course book in a subject you didn’t much care about in the first place. but i digress. again, the book is truly not at all that bad, i promise. it’s just that it’s not good, when i was expecting it to be.. well, perhaps not perfect, but at least /something/, and it wasn’t. so. i don’t know what else to say lmao, but thanks to hachette book group for the arc. 2/5
the plot is very.. classical ya, in the sense that maybe it would’ve been received better (by me, at least) if it had been released around 2015. seven years later, however, it comes off as very retired and obvious, with very blatant and underwhelming characters and plot sequences. like, to the point where within five chapters i could predict who the killer was, where this book and series was going, and exactly how the characters would get there. it’s not bad, really, or even taxing to read, but it does feel extremely recycled and frankly, a pointless exercise in reading.
the only saving grace is the male lead, damian. even formulaic, he’s written with slightly more nuance and derivation than just about anything else in the book, probably because the series predominantly revolves around him/his “powers” (sorry, spoiler?) but it came to be the only thing keeping me from dnfing the book entirely. sadly, this interest didn’t extend to the female lead, or the love story, because although they’re.. sort of, in your face in the book, a lot of it is lectured in a very tired way. it’s a lot of tell, no show: which makes for an extremely exhausting read, because you’re told so many things “great romance!!!” “badass fmc!!!” “she’s broken!!!” “she’s vengeful she’s insane!!!” “they loved like starlight!!!!” and yet NONE of it is shown on page. i went through a lot of vague, flowery, not really feeling, honestly pointless words, and.. that’s it. as if i’m just supposed to accept it for that, despite never seeing any of this so called star-crossed depth on paper. i don’t know, maybe it’s likable to some people. to me, however, it came off as reading a particularly boring course book in a subject you didn’t much care about in the first place. but i digress. again, the book is truly not at all that bad, i promise. it’s just that it’s not good, when i was expecting it to be.. well, perhaps not perfect, but at least /something/, and it wasn’t. so. i don’t know what else to say lmao, but thanks to hachette book group for the arc. 2/5
denzelaharris's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
shadesofkate26's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
4.25
hanka13's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0