Scan barcode
blessedbamboo's review
- 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
4.75
Moderate: Death of parent, Kidnapping, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Violence
snerp_reads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Murder, Gun violence, and Violence
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, Religious bigotry, Misogyny, and Antisemitism
Minor: Homophobia and Deportation
eslsilver's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Moderate: Xenophobia, Death of parent, Murder, Antisemitism, Violence, and Death
moondragon8's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Antisemitism, Death, Alcohol, and Death of parent
Moderate: Confinement, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping
Minor: Deportation
shoohoob's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Graphic: Classism, Death, Death of parent, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Child abuse, and Cursing
meganpbell's review
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Antisemitism
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Ableism, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Grief, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Medical content, and Murder
Minor: Homophobia, Pregnancy, Confinement, and Deportation
tangleroot_eli's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Body horror, Misogyny, Blood, Antisemitism, Xenophobia, Death of parent, and Sexism
Moderate: Kidnapping, Violence, Gun violence, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Confinement, Medical trauma, and Medical content
Minor: Ableism and Pregnancy
tamara_joy's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
Minor: Deportation, Gun violence, Antisemitism, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Religious bigotry, Trafficking, Death, Pregnancy, and Death of parent
tigger89's review
- 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
As you might be able to guess from the sprinkling of vocabulary above, this book is also very Jewish. That was one of the reasons I picked it up, as I have some ancestry from Eastern Europe who immigrated through Ellis Island. With the aid of the extensive glossary in the back of the book, I had no problem following all of the terms and references sprinkled throughout the text. However, be warned: unlike homophobia, this story doesn't shy away from depicting period-appropriate antisemitism.
This book's greatest strength was absolutely the character interactions between Ash and Uriel. Not only do they grow individually — in Ash's case, coming into power despite his lack of magical ability, and in Uriel's case, determining what its newfound identity means to it — but the relationship between them is also developed. The frequently-cited comparison to Good Omens is apt, here. While this story lacks the apocalypse humor and madcap antics of Gaiman's and Pratchett's work, what they share is a focus on a pair of unlikely allies who mean the world to each other. Yes, even when they occasionally make each other very upset.
What I didn't like was that Rose felt more like a sidekick character, even though she got her own viewpoint chapters and everything. Until the very end, she was kind of just along for the ride, occasionally providing an insight or assist but leaving all the heavy lifting to Ash and Uriel. While I was ultimately happy with how her story turned out, I feel like she spent most of the book just waiting to be amazing. She could have done more.
Graphic: Antisemitism and Racism
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Death of parent, Blood, and Death
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
shaipanda's review
- 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
Thank you so much to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.
I genuinely absolutely loved this book just as much, if not more, than I expected to. As someone who grew up deeply entrenched in my Jewish culture and community, it was so amazing and such a special experience to be able to read a book with so many references I recognized. This book was so clearly deeply deeply rooted in Jewish (specifically Ashkenazi) culture and mythology which was really amazing to read.
Additionally, all of the characters are so loveable and I absolutely loved seeing the characters grow, whether they were teenage girls or immortal beings. This was especially true given the queer Jewish representation in this which is just so important and I have not come acros nearly enough of. I do wish we got to see more of Rivke as she essentially disappears from the story once they leave Ellis Island and I really liked her character and would’ve loved to see more of her.
One other thing I noticed is while I’m very glad there’s a glossary at least in the back, this book has so so many very specific references in it that it could benefit from having footnotes. This was because some of the references I’d actually never even heard of some of them before such as sheydim and ibburim, and I've spent a significant amount of time in Jewish spaces and constantly expanding my knowledge of Judaism. I feel like because of this, having footnotes would make it significantly more accessible for the general public since how it is now, I’m slightly worried people will put the book down because they don’t understand all of the terms and Jewish context and don’t want to keep Googling or flipping back and forth to the glossary.
Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Death, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Classism, and Death of parent
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, Antisemitism, Confinement, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping
Minor: Grief, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Deportation, and Stalking