Reviews with content warning for Murder - Das dunkle Herz des Waldes

It’s a little weird at points, but very beautiful in the end. It was almost too complexly written for my personal taste, but the main plot was captivating.

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lizzie24601's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

For the vast majority of it, this book was a slog to get through. Until

Agnieshka flees the capital

, the book is written very episodically. Agnieshka is hanging out at the tower, learning magic, until someone arrives! And they do something. Then she goes back to her studies until... someone arrives! The plot doesn't progress evenly forward - it moves in fits and starts like this, and it's hard to tell what the story is supposed to be about. (Especially when the description on the back of the book only describes half of the first chapter.)

I did not find any of the characters to be particularly well-developed, and there isn't much character growth. Sure, Agnieshka's skills and power grow, but her personal character doesn't change much from the beginning to the end.

I was most upset by Kasia in this vein: she is hyped up at the beginning as being such a charming, brave, and wonderful person, but despite being by Agnieshka's side for the majority of the book, she is largely silent. In so many scenes she just serves as a tool to silently protect Agnieshka from some danger. The book emphasizes their friendship over and over again, but they never even really have a conversation.

The characters all felt so flat that the pace felt even slower, because there was no one I wanted to root for. And don't get me started on the romance... (The

teenager + centuries old magical being

romances either work or they don't, and this one just didn't for me.)

All that being said, the pace and excitement picks up immensely in the final third of the book, and the ending really is so good. I finally got what the author was going for, and what the book was about. Sure, there are other scenes that stand out (when

Kasia and Agnieshka have to deal with their unspoken animosity toward each other

and any scene with Alosha - loved her). I just wish the first 2/3 of the book had been as enjoyable!

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