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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Couldn’t get into it. Too many characters and action was not very interesting.
I mostly enjoyed reading this. It reminded me a lot of Lev Grossman's [b:The Magicians|6101718|The Magicians (The Magicians, #1)|Lev Grossman|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1313772941l/6101718._SY75_.jpg|6278977], where this book talks about what all the other people in the magical world got up to while Quentin and friends gallivant off to Fillory. The premise of this book is pretty strong, but so much of it is just left up to vagueness. Most of the action and magic is often described in the past tense or second hand, which is a valid stylistic choice, but it also creates a disconnect between the reader and what's happening in the book. It also simultaneously felt like there were too many characters and the readers attention got stretched among all of them, and not enough characters to create more interesting interactions.
I’m picky about fantasy, but this was absolutely perfect. Character-driven, intellectual, and just a bit pretentious — it has some of the same elements as The Secret History, including morally gray and (arguably) unlikeable characters. Also I love the academic rivals trope and that the romance is on the side and not cringey. Excited that I finally found a fantasy trilogy that I can get into.
This book is so irritating. You end up liking non of the characters, and the author doesn't know how to carry the story forward whatsoever. The last 20 or so pages of the book have content that you actually care about, and even then, you'll find yourself so exhausted that it won't matter. Don't read it.
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
fast-paced
Well thought out and carefully developed even with 6 + narrators. I enjoyed the fluid depiction of sexuality and the elaborate imaginings of magic application. I also really enjoyed the way that each character balances on an edge of doing bad / evil things but also having a complex reason that makes it hard to condemn anyone fully.
I enjoyed reading this book, in a surface level way. Some of it was interesting and the story line itself is wonderful, had the author gone about it differently. The characters themselves aren’t very compelling and none of them are really friends which bothers me? The “plot twist” was just… idk. Seemed like the author wanted it to be something crazy but i didn’t like it.
I also don’t like the mermaid storyline, and im wondering why it was such a big part of Nico’s story.
I wish we could’ve seen character developments and relationships more thought out.
A lot of “dramatic” scenes left me more confused than anything. I would read something and then have to go back and reread again to fully grasp it. Since this is a “fantasy” book, with the more complex topics, it makes more sense to write it simply so the readers can actually understand what any of it means.
I also don’t like the mermaid storyline, and im wondering why it was such a big part of Nico’s story.
I wish we could’ve seen character developments and relationships more thought out.
A lot of “dramatic” scenes left me more confused than anything. I would read something and then have to go back and reread again to fully grasp it. Since this is a “fantasy” book, with the more complex topics, it makes more sense to write it simply so the readers can actually understand what any of it means.
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really wanted to like this book... but something about it is just a miss for me. It was very putdownable. Per usual, I love the way Olivie Blake writes characters and their consciousnesses, and I kind of like the way she focuses on intangible conflicts and central themes. But I also find it quite frustrating.
For this book I think I just wanted to be a little more invested. I cared deeply about all of the characters and their relationship with each other, but I also felt like I was just getting a recap of the nanny-cam footage for a year at Hogwartz.
I will say she really said "stay with me" when I started to detach and then she threw in a three-some, but that just delayed my indifference to the story. I think this would be such a compelling miniseries, but we just need a little more to happen.
It's like she just personified a bunch of thought experiments, but the why/unifying factor is missing for me.
And then the twist (if you can call it that) at the end was interesting, but then I didn't care. It felt like "wouldn't it be wild if x was actually y..." but then didn't think through the why of it all and now I'm like why does it matter and why do I care?
Idk. I will read the second, but I'm in no hurry to finish it. I just kind of want more satisfaction.
I did find myself zoning out during the audio more than with other series, but think I'd be bored if I read it with my eyes.
Honestly there's just too much going on.
For this book I think I just wanted to be a little more invested. I cared deeply about all of the characters and their relationship with each other, but I also felt like I was just getting a recap of the nanny-cam footage for a year at Hogwartz.
I will say she really said "stay with me" when I started to detach and then she threw in a three-some, but that just delayed my indifference to the story. I think this would be such a compelling miniseries, but we just need a little more to happen.
It's like she just personified a bunch of thought experiments, but the why/unifying factor is missing for me.
And then the twist (if you can call it that) at the end was interesting, but then I didn't care. It felt like "wouldn't it be wild if x was actually y..." but then didn't think through the why of it all and now I'm like why does it matter and why do I care?
Idk. I will read the second, but I'm in no hurry to finish it. I just kind of want more satisfaction.
I did find myself zoning out during the audio more than with other series, but think I'd be bored if I read it with my eyes.
Honestly there's just too much going on.
slow-paced