Reviews tagging 'Torture'

A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske

91 reviews

sweets's review

adventurous emotional funny mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Like the stoey and reprisentation of the flawed main caracters there are frequent sex sence so if this is not your thing be awere of it. If you liked the series of the gentlemans guide to vice and virtue by Mackenzi Lee you might like this one although that series is less explicit.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Torture, Murder, and Outing

mangofraiche's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Torture, Death of parent, and Murder

Minor: Racism

joensign's review

adventurous dark mysterious 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, and Death of parent

Minor: Chronic illness

emily_mh's review

emotional lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

This book is what a true romantasy looks like for me. So often books are called romantasies when really they’re romances with a fantasy backdrop, or fantasies with a romantic element. A Marvellous Light is a book where one genre is given just as much weight as the other: the story is guided as much by classic romance-genre beats as it is by a thick, mysterious fantasy plot. I found this deeply enjoyable, as while I love a good queer romance, having a separate but relevant fantasy plot kept me fully engaged.

The romance was gorgeous. Robin and Edwin’s physical chemistry was palpable from their first meeting, but this was not to the detriment of their emotional chemistry. The slow, tentative path both men took to true vulnerability was lovely to read. I came away from the book with a full understanding of why Robin and Edwin fell for one other and why they loved each other. This may sound silly to say about a romance book, but I often find that authors don’t properly convey this in their romance plots and books. The romance here also had one of my favourite tropes: where the MCs have to live together because of x reason. The kinds of interactions this leads to are so fun to see play out.

On the other hand we have the fantasy storyline. I was greatly entertained by this, although I do have a couple of criticisms. What I really liked was that there was so much mystery. Robin and Edwin stumble upon and become entangled in a nefarious plot which they know nothing about, and want nothing to do with, but must get to the bottom of to save Robin’s life. Consequently, there’s a lot of researching and investigating, which was thrilling for me. The magical world that Robin and Edwin inhabit had quite a unique magic system. I could easily picture the system of cradling in my head, it being similar to the string games I played as a kid. It was really fun imagining how the movements looked, and what movements might set what spell boundary. I will say that it sometimes felt like the magic system had been written for the story, and not the story for the magical system, if that makes sense; like the way magic worked was at times too convenient.

One other criticism I had was that the characters would discuss the magical world and all these interesting magical places, but for the most part this book was set not at them but at country manors, which while magical, didn’t pique my interest in the same way. I think more variety of place would have done this book some good. Having said that, I don’t think the monotonous setting of the second book (a ship on the Atlantic) will bother me, as I find overnight transportation fascinating.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Murder, and Outing

Minor: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Drug use, Homophobia, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Racism, Suicide, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Car accident, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: gambling, fainting, self-injury

booksthatburn's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective tense medium-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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Torture, Kidnapping, and Murder

Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Chronic illness, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, and Grief

Minor: Child death, Self harm, Suicide, Vomit, Death of parent, and Alcohol

anna_hepworth's review

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

What I thought I was getting was fantasy adventure (magic in England in the ~1910s) with a romance subplot. What I got was the type of romance plot that doesn't appeal, with a varnish of fantasy adventure sub-subplot, and quite a lot of sex scenes. Maybe if I'd had the right expectations, I'd have appreciated this story more.

As it was, there are lots of interesting details, and there were some fabulous paragraphs. But I finished it somewhat out of spite, and because I have book two out of the library, waiting for me to read it. I did want to know what happened, but I didn't really want to have to deal with the romantic couple and their emotional miscommunications. 

I can see that there are some interesting overarching plot threads, with three items to be found, and three books to find them in, so I have hopes that book two won't slump. 

Overall summary: world building fantastic, plot a bit rough, characterisation a little off and occasionally veering towards farce, writing shows promise, particularly as this is a debut novel. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood

Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Homophobia and Alcohol

reinynights's review

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia and Sexual content

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Torture, Violence, and Murder

Minor: Death of parent and Alcohol

beepbeep101's review

adventurous 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Torture

Moderate: Cursing, Misogyny, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Death of parent

caitlinemccann's review

adventurous emotional mysterious tense 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Sexual content, Torture, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body horror, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Outing, and Classism

Minor: Chronic illness, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, and Stalking

daaaaaaayyy's review

slow-paced

2.0

really frustrated by this book's inability to care about it's own plot even a little. if you want to write a smutty romance novel you can 100% still do that in a fantasy + historical setting! but there was so little effort to engage me in the plot of this book as a reader and i didn't care enough about the main pairing for that to be enough for me.

i wanted there to be a more interesting mystery with more interesting sleuthing and there just wasn't. instead it seemed more interested in making the sex scenes plot important?? and like, they were fine. but i just found myself really annoyed about halfway through the book that it didn't seem to be going anywhere. 

also i switched between a paper copy and the audiobook a few times and whole the narrator is talented he has no business reading a sex scene. i am usually fine with listening to audiobook sex scenes but oh my god that was the unsexiest voice i've ever heard reading two people actively having sex. HOWEVER at one point he tries to read a noise that robin makes mid-fuck and it is THE funniest sound i have ever heard it cracks me the fuck up every time. so one of these stars is probably for that alone. 

anyway maybe im a bit too harsh bc i don't really care for historical england settings let alone posh english society so i maybe didn't go in with the most open mind. also would've maybe helped if this book was abt women and included a butch/masc woman but i also feel that would improve every book i read. and in the end, i still think i would've been disappointed by the story. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Sexism, Torture, and Murder