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3.26 AVERAGE
3.26 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Shade Nox is an extremely powerful Bloodwizard, dubbed the Black Witch by most. The Wastes, where her family reside, is slowly becoming overrun with The Unseen. Her solution for this is to raise her own Veil to protect them all. But will she manage it with all the obstacles blocking her path?
First of all, can we just all appreciate how cool this book cover is? It's what drew me towards this read in the first place. The description also managed to draw me in. Unfortunately, outside of that, this book left me feeling disappointed. I was really, really hoping for god things, and I really tried to like this, but I just couldn't. Perhaps I was expecting too much and that was on me.
None of the characters felt likable to me. Shade, on paper, should have been everything I love in a protagonist, but instead she just came off as arrogant and obnoxious (which is okay in some cases but there wasn't really much evidence to back up her claims). Most of the side characters weren't developed very well either, they just felt rather bland. I had some hope for Raiden but unfortunately he let me down too in the second half.
There were also a few romances in this book that just felt so unnecessary to me. Don't get me wrong, I love me some love amidst adventure, but not like this. None of the love interests were developed enough, I didn't understand why they liked one another. It just felt like it was taking up space in the book.
BUT, I did like some aspects of this book. I found the world really interesting, and the whole 'Bloodwizard' thing was incredibly cool. Shade and Raiden's backgrounds were also intriguing, I quite liked learning about their lives before meeting one another.
I volunteered to review an ARC of this book for NetGalley
First of all, can we just all appreciate how cool this book cover is? It's what drew me towards this read in the first place. The description also managed to draw me in. Unfortunately, outside of that, this book left me feeling disappointed. I was really, really hoping for god things, and I really tried to like this, but I just couldn't. Perhaps I was expecting too much and that was on me.
None of the characters felt likable to me. Shade, on paper, should have been everything I love in a protagonist, but instead she just came off as arrogant and obnoxious (which is okay in some cases but there wasn't really much evidence to back up her claims). Most of the side characters weren't developed very well either, they just felt rather bland. I had some hope for Raiden but unfortunately he let me down too in the second half.
There were also a few romances in this book that just felt so unnecessary to me. Don't get me wrong, I love me some love amidst adventure, but not like this. None of the love interests were developed enough, I didn't understand why they liked one another. It just felt like it was taking up space in the book.
BUT, I did like some aspects of this book. I found the world really interesting, and the whole 'Bloodwizard' thing was incredibly cool. Shade and Raiden's backgrounds were also intriguing, I quite liked learning about their lives before meeting one another.
I volunteered to review an ARC of this book for NetGalley
adventurous
fast-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
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The magic and world is interesting but I felt nothing for the characters. I didn't care if they succeeded or failed.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It felt like a lot of ideas were thrown in but never explained. Was hard to follow at some points
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
Amazing. I loved every bit. The characters are flawed and relatable and interesting. The entire story is so well written I swear I was in the room.
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked the plotline and magic system in the book quite a bit, but felt that most of the characters were too “perfect”. The main character is extremely strong in magic, and it was indirectly hinted that she may have a unique source of magic, but that was never fleshed out. The imperial ambassador is an exceptional swordsman (abnormally so) and is largely immune to the local magic, but it was never described why he had this ability. All the other cast members were extremely loyal and were willing to sacrifice their loves for the main character, although they hardly spent much time together.
There are quite a few romance subtexts in the book that did not feel very fleshed out or necessary for the book as a whole. Three separate characters fell in love with the main character throughout the book, and it seemed like it was mainly because she was pretty (?) and good at magic.This led to an awkward ending with them all coming to terms with their love of the main character and why they felt that way.
Overall, the story, magic, and worldbuilding were quite good and well thought out, but there were some loose ends at the end of the book and many of the interpersonal and romantic relationships fell a little flat for me.
There are quite a few romance subtexts in the book that did not feel very fleshed out or necessary for the book as a whole. Three separate characters fell in love with the main character throughout the book, and it seemed like it was mainly because she was pretty (?) and good at magic.
Overall, the story, magic, and worldbuilding were quite good and well thought out, but there were some loose ends at the end of the book and many of the interpersonal and romantic relationships fell a little flat for me.
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes