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cc0906's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: Gore, Bullying, Violence, Slavery, Death of parent, Death, Rape, Murder, Toxic friendship, War, Sexual violence, Torture, Physical abuse, Grief, Confinement, Abandonment, Sexism, Misogyny, Kidnapping, Child death, Emotional abuse, and Blood
christyreads83's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Blood, Bullying, Chronic illness, Classism, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Physical abuse
veeronald'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? No
Graphic: Classism, Colonisation, Violence, Rape, Child abuse, Grief, Sexual assault, Slavery, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Xenophobia, Police brutality, and Confinement
Moderate: Classism, Torture, Blood, Sexual content, Suicide, Trafficking, Genocide, Child abuse, Murder, Vomit, Bullying, Colonisation, and Death
Minor: War, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
caseythereader's review against another edition
- 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
- I didn't expect it to be quite as dark as it is, but once I adjusted to that, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough.
- Given that this book is from 2015, there are some YA tropes that are a bit tired now (she didn't know she was beautiful, a love triangle, etc.) but I was invested in the world nonetheless. Can't wait to read the rest of the series.
Graphic: Murder, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Grief, Torture, Bullying, Death, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Gore, Classism, Confinement, Kidnapping, Medical content, Slavery, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Rape
gracetxgao's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and War
Moderate: Blood, Bullying, and Gore
Minor: Abandonment
ajourneythroughpages's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Abandonment, Slavery, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Murder, Rape, and Bullying
Minor: Suicide
kkm88's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Physical abuse, Murder, Abandonment, Blood, Bullying, Classism, Trafficking, Torture, Slavery, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Suicide, Medical trauma, Kidnapping, War, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Grief, and Genocide
Minor: Racism, Vomit, Rape, Pregnancy, Abortion, and Child death
ktkeps'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
4.25
Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Child death, Death, Slavery, Sexual assault, and Abandonment
Moderate: Sexism, Torture, and Bullying
thereadingferret'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
4.25
Graphic: Bullying and Gore
Moderate: Death of parent and Blood
Minor: Stalking, Sexual harassment, Vomit, Rape, and Slavery
ranjanireviewsreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I thought I could start this review with what I liked - honestly, it's not a lot. I liked the romantic tension, which doesn't count for much in the face of the novel as a whole.
So here are the things I didn't like:
--> The characters are extremely half-baked. I understand that many YA novels are about some kind of character growth, but this one just didn't hit the nail on the head. This is the first book in a series, yes. But I should have seen something. Some growth, some decline. Instead, these characters fall flat.
--> The plot. It's simple. Too simple. In the face of developing characters, I would expect the plot, other characters (mainly the antagonist), or the world politics to take over. Alas, that did not happen here.
--> The sadism. I just read the description of this novel on Goodreads and it's supposed to be based on Rome?
But where are the positive Roman attributes of this empire? This novel focused on the deaths, the slavery, the wars, the bitter reality of being conquered. But Rome also had a well-formed legal system. They were open to gaining and using knowledge from their conquered.
This novel was a mess; the military-based leadership would not get along with the religious sect. How did they maintain peace in the first place?
Maybe the last point and my thousands of questions about the world get answered in the next book. Who knows. I will be reading A Torch Against The Night but mainly for the romance and to hopefully get answers.
Graphic: Trafficking, Classism, Physical abuse, Slavery, Blood, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Violence, and War