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jelkebooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I also quite liked the main characters. Lila did get on my nerves a couple of times, but overall I did really enjoy the characters. Especially the dynamic between Kell and Lila was great. They were a bit one dimensional overall but it wasn't the worst case I've ever read. It also didn't really detract from my enjoyment of the book.
The real reason this wasn't rated as highly as one might expect is because the story just felt extremely simple. I don't know. It didn't feel as high stakes or important as I felt like was needed in a world like this one. I just hope it might be because V.E. Schwab wanted to spend more time setting out the world and magic system so the story just might have needed to take a backseat. I'm just hyped to continue with this series, and see it grow.
Moderate: Grief and Sexual assault
cozy_tea_reader'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? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, Gore, Body horror, Murder, Grief, and Blood
Minor: War, Torture, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Rape, Self harm, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Gun violence
mobymaize'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? Yes
4.5
Planning on reading the sequels at some point!
Graphic: Slavery, Toxic friendship, Blood, Cursing, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gore, Police brutality, Rape, Classism, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Body horror, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Torture, Gun violence, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Self harm, Alcohol, Child abuse, Child death, Gaslighting, Genocide, Grief, Kidnapping, Medical content, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, and War
Main character uses magic by through self harm. Just a heads up.readingwithkaitlyn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Death, Blood, Self harm, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Stalking, Medical content, Misogyny, Grief, Classism, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and Sexual assault
Minor: Cannibalism, Alcohol, Excrement, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Genocide, and Sexual content
melist6's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Torture
Minor: Sexual violence
kwichris'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
4.75
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Physical abuse, Self harm, and Torture
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Body horror, Grief, Confinement, and Classism
_marycappiello3's review against another edition
- 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: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Violence, Death, Kidnapping, and Murder
Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Grief
moondragon8's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I'm gonna be honest: I picked this one up mostly because I dabble frequently in Fallen London, and the premise of more Weird Londons seemed very in line with my taste. Unfortunately, this was not nearly as Londony as I had hoped, despite the high rate of Londons per London, and I had forgotten I kinda hate high fantasy.
Okay, hate is a strong word. To the book's credit: the prose is strong, there's a few really beautiful lines, and the worldbuilding is very solid and interesting, and conveyed in a way that isn't overwhelming but doesn't leave you in the dark. However, to me it seemed that the focus given to the (very rich and engaging!) world meant that the characters were sort of left to the wayside.
That's not to say there weren't some fun characters. Lila, the top hat wearing wannabe-pirate, was very fun, and arguably had a little character arc. I also liked the rakish Prince Rhy, when we saw him, and there were a couple very classically Londony side characters. (The weird (Danish?) regents of White London were good villains but deeply unpleasant characters– they gave me Game of Thrones vibes, which is a part of the British literary canon I could do without. Also, vaguely weird that they're Fantasy Danish and their magical attack dog is named Holland?? Were there Implications there I wasn't getting?)
Kell, though, was kind of a blank slate, which was a bit disappointing. He did spend a good portion of the book
My final note is that I was initially a bit concerned to see that this was a trilogy, but in the end was quite satisfied with how all the plot threads wrapped up. This book was a fun step outside my comfort zone, but it didn't force me to keep reading if I wasn't feeling it, which I really appreciated. I was a little disappointed to
(...Actually, I just realized they do leave one mystery hanging— something about Kell's special knife having K. L. on it, and the mystery of his origins, is mentioned at the beginning and then kinda dropped throughout and never explained or even brought up, which is probably why I didn't recall it until literally just now. Ah well.)
Graphic: Torture, Body horror, Murder, Cursing, Gun violence, Gore, Death, Grief, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Alcohol, Blood, and Child death
Moderate: Sexual harassment
Minor: Sexual assault, Cannibalism, and Colonisation
moonchild_cos'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
4.5
Graphic: Blood, Death, Murder, Violence, Body horror, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gun violence, Gore, and Self harm
Minor: Cursing, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Torture, and Sexual harassment
atamano's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Blood, Classism, Death, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gun violence, Sexism, Violence, Confinement, Grief, and Xenophobia