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brookey8888's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-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
2.75
I am so sad that I didn’t love this. This has everything that I love but for some reason I just didn’t really connect with the story and it was very hard to get into. I did pick up towards the end and it got more interesting. I really only liked one character and he was hardly in it, assistant he needed more page time. The romance was boring they have literally no chemistry before. Like she has more chemistry with the “bad” person. I don’t know I might read the sequel just to see what happens but I was just bored a lot of the time and it was hard to like get into. That being said I do think you should pick it up if it does sound interesting to you. I also really appreciate the diversity.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, Grief, and Misogyny
elthechameleon's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, and Stalking
girlonbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
🔮🔮🔮🔮 (four stars, as rated in gloomy-doomy crystal balls)
Kallia, a talented and powerful showgirl, has lived her entire life in an illusion. Her patron, Jack, known by many as only "The Magician," has trapped her in a specter where, night after night, she enchants audiences from the stage with her beauty and skill. Outsmarting him one evening, Kallia escapes to the city of Glorian, and immediately auditions for a place in the competition of magicians. All she has ever wanted is to be recognized in her own rite for her magic and when she is paired with a young and renowned judge named Demarco - a man with a mysterious past of his own - that Kallia's magic ascends to brand new levels. Both enthralled and terrified by skills she does not fully understand, Kallia realizes that the world of magic and dreams could cost her more than she'd ever imagined. Though that may be the least of her worries when Jack suddenly re-appears...
"Not all magic is good magic."
Janella Angeles, you evil genius. My, oh my, oh my. I was not expecting this book. First, talk about some serious Phantom of the Opera vibes but with a bit of Moulin Rouge and The Night Circus built in. Basically, queue up the organ music, I am here for all of it. Also, when was the last time you read a book of that sort with multiple WOC at the helm? Hell to the yesssss for that kind of legitimate representation.
I realized about halfway through this book that the end was going to be unsatisfying. This is likely the reason for a less than 4 star (🔮) average GR rating as well. This book keeps on laying groundwork for “The Last Act” (aka book two) right up until the climax. Usually that really bugs me but for some reason it worked here. I also feel that depending on how well the next book wraps things up, I could be persuaded to bump my rating to a five...
✨ Rep in this book: WOC protagonist, queer supporting characters
✨ Content warnings for this book: psychological manipulation and control, sexism, missing persons
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Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Death, and Violence
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