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flaminggecko'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
5.0
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Infidelity, Grief, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, War, Violence, Pregnancy, Misogyny, Classism, Physical abuse, Murder, Miscarriage, Abortion, Death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Colonisation, Child death, Xenophobia, Dementia, Child abuse, and Animal death
Moderate: Cannibalism, Alcohol, Bullying, and Blood
Minor: Excrement
cwbillings's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Moderate: Animal death and Blood
Minor: Classism, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Infertility, Grief, Child death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Death, Miscarriage, Sexism, and Confinement
evbyrd's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Death, Animal death, Pregnancy, Domestic abuse, Gore, Grief, Body horror, and Child death
Moderate: Rape, Cannibalism, and Miscarriage
keithammann'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
4.75
Moderate: Miscarriage, Domestic abuse, Violence, Grief, Pregnancy, and Misogyny
Minor: War, Abortion, Animal death, and Death of parent
mgondwe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I was surprised to learn this was a dark fantasy as I continued to listen to the story. Before I listened to this story on audiobooks, I had only read the reviews from the audiobook page, and most of the top reviews depicted this book as a cosy fantasy with a lot of humour. And the only reason I got the book was because I wanted to read a funny book to lift my mood (and if it included fantasy elements even better), so I was surprised to learn that this book is nowhere near as light, and the funny moments were greatly exaggerated. It’s definitely not a cosy fantasy read.
Also the demon chicken is nowhere near as funny as some people made it out to be.
I found it jarring listening to the the narrator switch to different funny voices for certain characters at the beginning, but I got used to it eventually.
What stopped me from dnf’ing this book is that I could relate to the main character, Marra, (including her love for knitting/crafting and other life experiences), and T.Kingfisher’s writing style, while extremely dark, made it easy for me to follow along and understand each characters thought process & I ended up getting invested and wanting to know if she would end up saving her sister from the abusive Prince in time.
**spoiler below***
I think there should be a trigger/content warning in the blurb for abuse and violence. As mentioned before this is not a cosy read. And there were certain scenes i felt uncomfortable listening to (reading it wouldn’t have made it better) including the domestic violence between Marra’s sisters and the Prince, and when Fenris explained his story and he blamed himself for failing to protect a boy who was being abused and ended up being whipped to death by his father.
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Physical abuse
Moderate: Violence, Murder, Miscarriage, Infertility, Grief, Death, Child abuse, and Dysphoria
chelbelle122'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
Moderate: Death, Miscarriage, Child death, Domestic abuse, Blood, Toxic relationship, Torture, Emotional abuse, Animal death, Confinement, Gore, Grief, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Murder, Physical abuse, and Pregnancy
a_bow'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? No
3.5
Graphic: Murder, Misogyny, and Sexism
Moderate: Death, Toxic relationship, Miscarriage, Child death, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Infertility, Domestic abuse, and Pregnancy
Minor: Sexual assault, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Miscarriage, Infertility, Abortion, Sexual violence, and Grief
bethlee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Death, Miscarriage, Child death, Toxic relationship, Murder, Pregnancy, and Grief
Minor: Dementia and Death of parent
Everything in the "moderate" trigger warnings category are things that are major plot points of the book, but none are described graphically.skillyillian's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
That being said:
Honestly this is SO good. The language used is so descriptive and really fits the tone of the story. I loved having an FMC that wasn't barely legal, and her determination to do impossible things was incredible. The dust-wife was awesome but I think Agnes stole the show and I would have loved to have seen and learned more from her. Honestly, I think the story would've benefitted from more character backstory and development? But it's not like they were cardboard cutouts by any means, either.
The timeline, or at least the way it's presented in the story, was a little hard to follow for a minute? But once the past caught up to the story it made sense, so 🤷🏻♀️
I think my favorite part was the humor, honestly. It balanced things out and added levity in a way that I think prevented the whole story from being too heavy. It was witty and wry and the kind of jokes that fit perfectly for a group comprised of a dog made of bones, a cursed chick, a demon hen (no relation), and two traumatized young-ish people traveling with two powerful old women who are each other's opposites in every way.
Overall, this is a great story with some really interesting characters I think we could've learned about a bit more. I loved it so much though, and jumped right into another Kingfisher book (What Moves the Dead) which I'm also enjoying so far. I'm excited to keep reading more from this author :)
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Murder, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Animal death
Minor: Cannibalism
apoppyinthewind's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I can see how that imagery stuck with Kingfisher and inspired Nettle & Bone and I'm glad I got the chance to read this story. It's a fairytale of a sister trying to save her older sister from an evil prince but to do so she complete three seemingly impossible tasks: Build a dog of bones, sew a clock of nettles, and give the dust wife moonlight in a jar.
If you enjoy reading fairytales, I would highly recommend checking out Nettle & Bone. It's got a similar feel of fairytales but a bit more fleshed out and with unique world-building. I especially loved the concept of dust-wives, who are essentially graveyard witches who know much of the magical world and can talk to the dead.
Moderate: Miscarriage, Domestic abuse, Pregnancy, Grief, Death, Body horror, and Blood
Minor: Torture, Sexual assault, and Animal death