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hannaheiserman's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- 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? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Blood, Gore, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Pregnancy, Death, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Transphobia, and War
Minor: Deadnaming and Ableism
mythmakers's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
goddamn. i had a bit of a hard time getting through the first third of this book (even more so when i'm not usually the biggest fan of first person pov), but it was entirely worth it. each of the povs are compelling in their own ways, even when you don't agree with the characters' choices, and the way every thread of plot came together in the end was deeply, deeply satisfying. it's been a while since i had an ending wreck my shit This hard. 10/10 would do it again
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Gore
villiljos's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
A difficult read for sure, but worth it in so many ways! Amazingly written and the audiobook is beautifully performed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Deadnaming, Gore, Grief, Hate crime, Religious bigotry, and Transphobia
Moderate: Dysphoria and Emotional abuse
ckreads28's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
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? It's complicated
4.5
Another blind pick, all I needed to know before picking this up was it was mythology/retelling based. It was definitely different having never read anything based off of a song, so it gives me hope for my creativity coming back inspired by anything. I loved the relationships and I definitely going to listen to the song to give me more of a better feel for the story. The only thing that didn't get it a 5 star is I was hoping for a happy ending . I loved the LGBTQ+ inclusion and stating the facts that being trans/nonbinary has been a thing for longer than today's negative society may want to admit. I definitely would recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Transphobia, and War
breq's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
My main complaint is that I was in it for the murder ballad and that doesn't actually hit until about 75-80% of the way in. It felt like there was a lot of setup and the book didn't need to start that early. But some of this may be because I'm already familiar with that setting and didn't feel like I needed much exposition. I really liked how the trans character was handled, with what felt like an accurate mix of acceptance and prejudice, without getting too "being trans is constant trauma" or too "magically accepting". It's a balance a lot of writers miss, and I really prefer narratives that strike that middle area. My immediate thought, at least, is that it was done well. My opinion may change as I think about it. I know some people prefer that trans characters are always gendered correctly in the narrative and never deadnamed, but I feel like there are times when that's necessary and as long as it's handled respectfully, it works. I think it was handled well here.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Deadnaming, Death, Dysphoria, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Religious bigotry, Transphobia, Violence, and War
Moderate: Ableism, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Sexual content
mo345's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Transphobia, Violence, Vomit, and War
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Alcohol, Animal death, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual content, and Cursing
freagh's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore
Moderate: Blood, Deadnaming, and Fire/Fire injury
elementarymydear's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
5.0
What a fantastic read this was! Very rarely does a book make it onto the favourites list so quickly but this one managed it.
Find this and other reviews on my blog!
Sistersong, based on a British folk ballad ‘The Two Sisters’, is set in the years following Roman retreat from Britain, as the Saxons are invading across the South West. The story follows three siblings, Riva, Keyne, and Sinne, whose father is one of the last Roman kings defending his stronghold from the Saxons.
Riva and Sinne are the two sisters from the ballad; Riva, the eldest, is desperate to heal wounds from a years-old injury, while Sinne, the youngest, wants love and adventure. When Riva finds romance it sparks a jealousy in Sinne which has disastrous consequences. While this is the story of the original ballad, it is just a small part of the incredible tale Lucy Holland has woven.
The true main character is Keyne, the middle child, who is desperate to be seen as the man he knows he is, rather than the woman his family see him as. His arc is so beautifully written, incredibly powerful, and is the driving force of the story. His mentor and guide is the shape-shifting Myrdhin, who teaches Keyne the old ways of magic as well as giving him the confidence and means to present as male. I loved the depiction of Myrdhin here, not only were they a fantastic character but they added so much to the atmosphere of the book. One of the biggest conflicts in the book is that between Christianity from Rome and the traditional Pagan beliefs, and through characters like Myrdhin and Keyne we were able to explore not just the cultural changes but the moral ones, in particular Christian attitudes towards women and gender.
Speaking of atmosphere! This was a book you could get completely lost in. I would start reading, lost myself in the story, and look up an hour later wondering where the time had gone. It’s the sort of book that makes you want to go to Cornwall and become a mage on a cliff edge somewhere. It’s stunningly written and transports you right into the middle of the action.
The one minor criticism – or rather, comment – I have, is I would encourage you to read the ballad first, or at least look up the story. I came across it on the author’s twitter page and I’m glad I did, as some of the plot points that are lifted from the source material are not what you would expect and, at times, quite gruesome.
I am so glad I read this book. It was unlike anything I’ve read in a long time, but reading it felt like coming home. There were moments I couldn’t put it down, there were moments I had to put it down just to pause and take a few deep breaths. Now to resist the temptation to read it all over again...
Find this and other reviews on my blog!
Sistersong, based on a British folk ballad ‘The Two Sisters’, is set in the years following Roman retreat from Britain, as the Saxons are invading across the South West. The story follows three siblings, Riva, Keyne, and Sinne, whose father is one of the last Roman kings defending his stronghold from the Saxons.
Riva and Sinne are the two sisters from the ballad; Riva, the eldest, is desperate to heal wounds from a years-old injury, while Sinne, the youngest, wants love and adventure. When Riva finds romance it sparks a jealousy in Sinne which has disastrous consequences. While this is the story of the original ballad, it is just a small part of the incredible tale Lucy Holland has woven.
The true main character is Keyne, the middle child, who is desperate to be seen as the man he knows he is, rather than the woman his family see him as. His arc is so beautifully written, incredibly powerful, and is the driving force of the story. His mentor and guide is the shape-shifting Myrdhin, who teaches Keyne the old ways of magic as well as giving him the confidence and means to present as male. I loved the depiction of Myrdhin here, not only were they a fantastic character but they added so much to the atmosphere of the book. One of the biggest conflicts in the book is that between Christianity from Rome and the traditional Pagan beliefs, and through characters like Myrdhin and Keyne we were able to explore not just the cultural changes but the moral ones, in particular Christian attitudes towards women and gender.
Speaking of atmosphere! This was a book you could get completely lost in. I would start reading, lost myself in the story, and look up an hour later wondering where the time had gone. It’s the sort of book that makes you want to go to Cornwall and become a mage on a cliff edge somewhere. It’s stunningly written and transports you right into the middle of the action.
The one minor criticism – or rather, comment – I have, is I would encourage you to read the ballad first, or at least look up the story. I came across it on the author’s twitter page and I’m glad I did, as some of the plot points that are lifted from the source material are not what you would expect and, at times, quite gruesome.
I am so glad I read this book. It was unlike anything I’ve read in a long time, but reading it felt like coming home. There were moments I couldn’t put it down, there were moments I had to put it down just to pause and take a few deep breaths. Now to resist the temptation to read it all over again...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Transphobia
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