You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Scan barcode
my_corner_of_the_library's review against another edition
DNF @ 25%
I'd like to give my reasons for DNFing, but this is not an official review, which is why there is no star rating...
1. Slut Shaming: There is so much slut shaming in this book, that it started to become uncomfortable to read. I feel like SJM was trying to make a point of writing a girly main character by having a character who enjoyed showing off her body and was regularly concerned with her hair, makeup, and nails. This wasn't my problem, in a way it was refreshing, however...every guy in this book goes out of their way to let the reader know how disgusted they are by everything she wears and the way she is concerned with her hair. While it didn't feel necessary at any point, eventually it became down right irritating.
2. Lazy Writing: I am not a stickler for swearing in books, in fact, there's quite a bit of swearing in ACOSF and I didn't mind it at all. In CC, though, the f-bomb was dropped multiple times on EACH PAGE in a way that simply felt incredibly lazy. It was hardly even in dialogue. It was used in a way to emphasize whatever we were talking about, but instead of effectively emphasizing something, it was so overused that it just started to feel lazy. As if SJM simply didn't want to write apt descriptions of things and instead opted to use fuck as a way to get her point across.
3. Mafia Romance/Murder Mystery: I guess this one may be my fault, though I'll explain a little more. I went into this book knowing that it was quite different from her other books, and that it followed a murder mystery (which generally isn't my thing), but given that it was SJM and I generally enjoy her stuff I was excited anyway. However, this really didn't hit right. It genuinely felt as though SJM really wanted to write a mafia romance with the plot of a murder mystery but was scared to leave her fantasy world, so combined the two. If done properly, this wouldn't be a bad thing, but I really didn't enjoy it in this instance. Which leads me to my next point...
4. No Magic in a Magical World: At 25% of the way this intensely magical world failed to play any role in the plot of this book. If you replaced the houses and different races of creatures with different mafia gangs and the demon with a hitman this book would not be affected in the least. This is what really killed things for me. I was excited to explore this new world and all the different magic types that came with it, and instead we were regularly TOLD about how powerful everyone was, but we never SAW it. Not once in those 200 pages.
I'd like to give my reasons for DNFing, but this is not an official review, which is why there is no star rating...
1. Slut Shaming: There is so much slut shaming in this book, that it started to become uncomfortable to read. I feel like SJM was trying to make a point of writing a girly main character by having a character who enjoyed showing off her body and was regularly concerned with her hair, makeup, and nails. This wasn't my problem, in a way it was refreshing, however...every guy in this book goes out of their way to let the reader know how disgusted they are by everything she wears and the way she is concerned with her hair. While it didn't feel necessary at any point, eventually it became down right irritating.
2. Lazy Writing: I am not a stickler for swearing in books, in fact, there's quite a bit of swearing in ACOSF and I didn't mind it at all. In CC, though, the f-bomb was dropped multiple times on EACH PAGE in a way that simply felt incredibly lazy. It was hardly even in dialogue. It was used in a way to emphasize whatever we were talking about, but instead of effectively emphasizing something, it was so overused that it just started to feel lazy. As if SJM simply didn't want to write apt descriptions of things and instead opted to use fuck as a way to get her point across.
3. Mafia Romance/Murder Mystery: I guess this one may be my fault, though I'll explain a little more. I went into this book knowing that it was quite different from her other books, and that it followed a murder mystery (which generally isn't my thing), but given that it was SJM and I generally enjoy her stuff I was excited anyway. However, this really didn't hit right. It genuinely felt as though SJM really wanted to write a mafia romance with the plot of a murder mystery but was scared to leave her fantasy world, so combined the two. If done properly, this wouldn't be a bad thing, but I really didn't enjoy it in this instance. Which leads me to my next point...
4. No Magic in a Magical World: At 25% of the way this intensely magical world failed to play any role in the plot of this book. If you replaced the houses and different races of creatures with different mafia gangs and the demon with a hitman this book would not be affected in the least. This is what really killed things for me. I was excited to explore this new world and all the different magic types that came with it, and instead we were regularly TOLD about how powerful everyone was, but we never SAW it. Not once in those 200 pages.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Death, and Murder
gattolinos_nerdy_nook's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
As someone who loved TOG but ACOTAR left me feeling a little underwhelmed, I was hesitant to read this book. I also had a friend who rated it 2 stars so it didn't give me high hopes. Holy Hel was I wrong and the emotional rollercoaster this book sent me on when reading it!! I loved every second of this book and had to restrain myself from screaming about it. This book in equal parts made me smile and broke my heart.
I loved the overall plot and the mystery it held. It kept me going with all of the twists and turns. I gasped, I regretted what happened, I loved what happen and by the end, I sat there with the book staring at the wall whispering "What the fuck. What the fuck." As I had to comprehend how everything ended and went down. I also thought "Thank the gods that book two is out now and I don't have to wait a couple of years.". I also liked that all the plot points from the start of the book were resolved and because they were resolved, there are now new plot points for the next book due to consequences. In a book that is 803 pages long, I would have been really annoyed that one of the plots points was not resolved for 'reasons'.
I really enjoyed the characters in this book. There was a fun range of them and I also enjoyed jumping to different characters. Ruhn was one that I really enjoyed reading and watching interact with everyone. I found a lot of the characters in this book felt really well rounded and had their own lives, issues, and priorities. Granted not all were as all fleshed as others, it also comes down to how much they are written in the book and at what times. I am very excited to see who returns in the next book, and no doubt the new characters that Bryce and Hunt will work with and against.
I loved the overall plot and the mystery it held. It kept me going with all of the twists and turns. I gasped, I regretted what happened, I loved what happen and by the end, I sat there with the book staring at the wall whispering "What the fuck. What the fuck." As I had to comprehend how everything ended and went down. I also thought "Thank the gods that book two is out now and I don't have to wait a couple of years.". I also liked that all the plot points from the start of the book were resolved and because they were resolved, there are now new plot points for the next book due to consequences. In a book that is 803 pages long, I would have been really annoyed that one of the plots points was not resolved for 'reasons'.
I really enjoyed the characters in this book. There was a fun range of them and I also enjoyed jumping to different characters. Ruhn was one that I really enjoyed reading and watching interact with everyone. I found a lot of the characters in this book felt really well rounded and had their own lives, issues, and priorities. Granted not all were as all fleshed as others, it also comes down to how much they are written in the book and at what times. I am very excited to see who returns in the next book, and no doubt the new characters that Bryce and Hunt will work with and against.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug use, Sexism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Xenophobia, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and War
Minor: Body shaming, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Medical content, and Pregnancy
naomi_isreading's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, and War
psydneigh's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This was a re-read for me.
I really enjoy this book. I was still crying and feeling all the emotions even though I’ve already read it and knew all the twists and turns. Cant wait for the second one!
My biggest issue with the book is stupid, but a lot of sentences that should have ended in a question mark, ended with a period. I don’t really understand what that was trying to convey and it just pissed me off.
I really enjoy this book. I was still crying and feeling all the emotions even though I’ve already read it and knew all the twists and turns. Cant wait for the second one!
My biggest issue with the book is stupid, but a lot of sentences that should have ended in a question mark, ended with a period. I don’t really understand what that was trying to convey and it just pissed me off.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body shaming, Death, Drug use, Slavery, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Classism
msradiosilence's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.25
I would’ve given this book a 0 or if it was possible. For FUCK’S sake.
Okay, first of all, I love swearing. It’s the most fun a girl can have. But dropping a fuck word, twice, on every page is excessive. And unnecessary.
Speaking of unnecessary, I don’t think there was a SINGULAR person who wasn’t described as beautiful (female) or powerful (male). And the amount of times Hunt or Bryce were described as such?? What the fuck. Also, stop with the racial ambiguousness. Hunt and Bryce are white, not *golden*, not *tan* these bitches are white. I think the only two “brown” people were Juniper (maybe? After 800 pages you forget what happens) and another person I’m forgetting bc it was a brief encounter and I was beyond fed up at that point. It’s not hard to diversity your characters, especially in a fantasy world you made yourself. Stop being ambiguous and say it with your whole chest.
Also, the amount of “toe curling” and nonsense that was happening was unacceptable. Not that Maas knows ANYTHING about anatomy, especially writing lines like “vital arteries.” ??? You mean ALL arteries?? Because I can assure you they’re ALL vital. I’m also calling bullshit on Bryce double fisting a sword and a rifle (which, you get no details. It’s just “Hunt’s rifle.” What kind of rifle? One you need to cock *and* can use one handed? I think the fuck not). And correct me if I’m wrong, but Bryce as a half-Fae is reminded time and again she’s not as strong as the other Vanir so how is she cutting down demons (who Hunt states he fought and BARELY survived ONE) one handed? Huh?
Coming from a forensics background too, the investigation was a hot fucking mess. Nitpicky, but DNA analysts (what I’m studying to be) don’t actually go into the field. The only people at a crime scene are the police, CSI, and nosy nellys. It’s the basics, anything you can google. And this had to be the most boring murder I’ve ever read about, with conclusions that literally anyone could’ve come to in half the time it took Hunt and Bryce, who are the dumbest people on the planet.
Bryce is the reason people who know the victims/people of interest are not allowed anywhere near the case.
For a book set in ONE city, this world has absolutely no meat. If you copy and pasted any passage from ToG about any of their cities, same for ACOTAR, they wouldn’t read any different. I had friends in my undergrad who could world build so much better, and in less than 800 pages!! How can you write 800 fucking pages and not actually say a fucking thing???
Go to therapy. I know Maas said it was great and then immediately shit on it, but Bryce is in no way a role-model. If you are having thoughts about self-harm, unaliving yourself, you need to seek out help. It’s such a dangerous message to put out, especially as a well-known author, that you can just “deal” and you “deserve the pain” and “taking it away is forgetting the ones you’ve lost”. If it’s so serious your friends are talking you off a roof you need help. Please call a professional.
I finished this book out of pure spite. There was ONE character I actually cared about (Aidas) and that’s bc I have a hangup about death and darkness gods, etc. Will I read the next one? Not immediately, and I won’t be buying it.
Okay, first of all, I love swearing. It’s the most fun a girl can have. But dropping a fuck word, twice, on every page is excessive. And unnecessary.
Speaking of unnecessary, I don’t think there was a SINGULAR person who wasn’t described as beautiful (female) or powerful (male). And the amount of times Hunt or Bryce were described as such?? What the fuck. Also, stop with the racial ambiguousness. Hunt and Bryce are white, not *golden*, not *tan* these bitches are white. I think the only two “brown” people were Juniper (maybe? After 800 pages you forget what happens) and another person I’m forgetting bc it was a brief encounter and I was beyond fed up at that point. It’s not hard to diversity your characters, especially in a fantasy world you made yourself. Stop being ambiguous and say it with your whole chest.
Also, the amount of “toe curling” and nonsense that was happening was unacceptable. Not that Maas knows ANYTHING about anatomy, especially writing lines like “vital arteries.” ??? You mean ALL arteries?? Because I can assure you they’re ALL vital. I’m also calling bullshit on Bryce double fisting a sword and a rifle (which, you get no details. It’s just “Hunt’s rifle.” What kind of rifle? One you need to cock *and* can use one handed? I think the fuck not). And correct me if I’m wrong, but Bryce as a half-Fae is reminded time and again she’s not as strong as the other Vanir so how is she cutting down demons (who Hunt states he fought and BARELY survived ONE) one handed? Huh?
Coming from a forensics background too, the investigation was a hot fucking mess. Nitpicky, but DNA analysts (what I’m studying to be) don’t actually go into the field. The only people at a crime scene are the police, CSI, and nosy nellys. It’s the basics, anything you can google. And this had to be the most boring murder I’ve ever read about, with conclusions that literally anyone could’ve come to in half the time it took Hunt and Bryce, who are the dumbest people on the planet.
Bryce is the reason people who know the victims/people of interest are not allowed anywhere near the case.
For a book set in ONE city, this world has absolutely no meat. If you copy and pasted any passage from ToG about any of their cities, same for ACOTAR, they wouldn’t read any different. I had friends in my undergrad who could world build so much better, and in less than 800 pages!! How can you write 800 fucking pages and not actually say a fucking thing???
Go to therapy. I know Maas said it was great and then immediately shit on it, but Bryce is in no way a role-model. If you are having thoughts about self-harm, unaliving yourself, you need to seek out help. It’s such a dangerous message to put out, especially as a well-known author, that you can just “deal” and you “deserve the pain” and “taking it away is forgetting the ones you’ve lost”. If it’s so serious
I finished this book out of pure spite. There was ONE character I actually cared about (Aidas) and that’s bc I have a hangup about death and darkness gods, etc. Will I read the next one? Not immediately, and I won’t be buying it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Incest, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
courtneylr's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug use, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Body shaming, Sexism, and Slavery
Minor: Self harm
lore_a_rain's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This book has lots of wonderful aspects to it. It's a fantastical murder mystery wrapped in a post modern magical world. The main character is standoff-ish, but social, walking the fine line of someone from two different worlds.
The main issues I had was mainly with the writing style more then anything. The amount of cuss words was markedly more then other books I have read, which is great...I guess I just felt like the writing wasn't as colorful as the characters/world/plot.
The main issues I had was mainly with the writing style more then anything. The amount of cuss words was markedly more then other books I have read, which is great...I guess I just felt like the writing wasn't as colorful as the characters/world/plot.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Gore, Racism, Self harm, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
sjbatesy's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
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? N/A
5.0
LOVED THIS BOOK! I have never read SJ Maas before but I loved this book. I finished it in less than a week and had so much fun reading it. I rarely give a 5/5 but this book deserves it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt and Murder
Minor: Body shaming, Drug use, and Alcohol
stephanies_leabharlann's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Colonisation
mollyanne624's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, and Grief
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Body shaming, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, and Vomit