Reviews with content warning for Animal cruelty - The Familiar

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The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

8 reviews

spookylettuce's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5

Overall I enjoyed The Familiar with the characters, magic system, intrigue, and ending being highlights for me. I think the most similar reading experience I’ve had was with Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher which I also enjoyed a lot (they’re still both very different).
I found Luzia as a character and her character development compelling, circumstances allowing her to be more herself outwards and gain confidence in her abilities. Additionally the development of some other characters and the dynamics between characters leading up to and from the competition onwards.
I don’t always go for such a neat ending, but I did like how full-circle and tied-up the ending was here.
I’ve seen others critique the competition portion and how later on it felt as if it didn’t serve a purpose. But I disagree. I think it allowed for a lot of characterization and narrative tension. Tension of Luzia needing to pass for catholic, pass her abilities as divine, and the underlying intrigue/political tension amongst other things that would be spoilers. It also further defined Luzia’s abilities and how unique/impressive they were. Maybe I also just like that as a setting as a result of a lot of books I’ve read/liked having that element too though.
I also liked how several classic fairytale elements like diverging to be the third person omniscient, small subplot becoming more relevant and full circle (

the playwright

), etc.
I would have liked to see more information about the magic and its history in Luzia’s family in addition to the bits with her parents.

How did her aunt learn everything she taught Luzia? If she wasn’t as magically gifted was it just family oral history being passed down? Was any more of that family oral history shared then? Etc.

I cannot speak to the accuracy of the inquisition or elements of Jewish culture depicted, but it did provide a narrative tension and was interesting.
Additionally, I feel like even with the dire consequences of misusing magic displayed, that had no lasting consequences

other than a man losing his life but even that didn’t feel like it had much gravitas

. Also figuring out how to adapt how Luzia invoked magic nonverbally was just a bit too fast/neat/hand-wavy. Otherwise, I liked the way Luzia worked her magic and the patchwork of language that went into it.
If you liked Nettle and Bone or other slightly darker fairytale element-leaning stories that don’t necessarily have completely happy endings and have strong character dynamics you may enjoy The Familiar.

Content Warnings

desiderium_incarnate's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.0

This book was a tad confusing to me. Not in regards to what was happening, but how I feel and think about it. Talking about and discussing it helped.

It seems like Leigh Bardugo was experimenting with this one. That is of course not bad per se, but I think her (assumed) goals got in the way of her strengths. It seemed like she wrote about history to honor something and introduced a bit of magic in it because she likes it but with wanting to stick to the facts that much, she came in the way of what she does best, which is of course creating her own in depth magic systems, writing about found family and getting you to care for the people, no matter how morally grey they might be. This was sadly not the case here. Her magical system was shallow at best and with no clear rules and random power highs, lows and ways to exercise it arbitrary and illogical at worst. The first half of the book was sadly just boring and you were left waiting for the shoe to drop and something grand to happen, which sadly, did not happen as Leigh tried to stick to the history. The love story was unexpected, surprisingly explicit and weird, if you consider the age difference. I did not like the ending because it just isn't an end in my opinion. The biggest surprise and I guess character growth was Valentina, she really stole the whole book. I'm glad she found her back bone and her desire and her calling I guess. A personal disappointment for me was the lackluster heist time and I didn't like the layered intrigues and court politics as well.

The writing was still nice though. Some of her sentences I feel she wrote because she thought they would be deep and connect with people, but that just didn't work a lot because they felt wrong and forced. There was a lot of anger in this book and literally not one male character was any good, which was super sad. I am a bit disappointed but I also recognize that Leigh was probably experimenting and I feel like her heart wasn't in it, so I am still excited for her next books.

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bookishmillennial's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

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

disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial

“There is a fine line between a saint and a witch, and I wonder if you are prepared to walk it.”

Thank you Libro FM for the ALC. I think it'll be suuuuper clear I'm providing an honest review below lmao.

Is it kind of awful for me to call Leigh Bardugo a one-universe wonder? (DISCLAIMER FOR LB STANS: I'm just a peasant on bookstagram! I'm no one to you, so don't let *my* review ruin your love for a book or an author. Reviews are subjective, so who cares what I think?!)

Idk, I loved the books in the Grishaverse, and was sad that the Netflix series was cancelled, but I cannot get behind any of her novels since then. Her writing is beautiful! She is a master of her craft because I really did find this book gorgeously written. However, I was so bored, exhausted and unimpressed with the virginal-barely-legal FMC x brooding-immortal dynamic (omg, we are lacking in these dynamics in romantasies!!!! Damn!! Can anyone give me any recs? /sarcasm), and this just felt like an absolute chore to get through.

I of course appreciate the representation of the Jewish experience during the Spanish Inquisition, because I admittedly didn't know much about it. I think it's brave to share something based on your family's story too, so I commend LB for doing so. I appreciated the commentary on Luzia having to use her magic to get her employers into a higher social standing and for profit, yet could not explore the extent of it in order for others to not fear and target her even more. It's a delicate line to tow, and that parallel to Jewish folks' experience, along with any historically marginalized person, did not go unnoticed.

Back to the actual book though:

The magic system was underwhelming, vague and disappointing (I would bill this as a romantasy, with the romance front and center, and the fantasy elements taking the backseat) - too much telling and then so much of the magic lessons happen off page?!?! The fuck?!?! Show us!!!!
Every single male character beyond our love interest was deeply misogynistic and deserved to step on Legos barefoot; I mean.... out of all these dusty crusty losers, I guess I'd choose Santángel too......
Idk maybe Valentina deserves her own book, but nvm, don't write that book, Leigh because I've lost faith!

Overall, if you liked The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by VE Schwab, you'll probably like this. I fucking hated that book for centering whiteness while exploring in the vastness of world history, but idk again, reviews are subjective, kthxbye!

Quotations I liked:

“Language creates possibility. Sometimes by being used. Sometimes by being kept secret.”

“You think you know hardship, but men have a gift for finding new ways to make women suffer.”

also Leigh, you have a gift for finding new ways to make your female main characters suffer! I will never forget the trauma porn that was Ninth House!

“Maybe there really was a demon inside her. One that craved feather beds and fine food and applause.”

Lmao I gotta admit, I love the satire of recognizing how cishet men, media, etc. paint women/femmes in poor lights when they dare to ask for more and for wanting more

“There are different kinds of suffering, Valentina thought. The kind that takes you by surprise and the kind you live with so long, you stop noticing it.”

An example of why Valentina was the best character in this book

“His belief in her was wine on an empty stomach and it left her light-headed.”

Me personally? That's not a good feeling, babygirl.

“Better to live in fear than in grinding discontent. Better to dare this new path than continue her slow, grim march down the road that had been chosen for her. At least the scenery would be different.”

“She would build herself a life of plenty. She would force her world to bloom as she’d made the pomegranate tree grow, and Santángel would help her do it. Even if blood watered the soil.”

“Writing is the closest thing we have to real magic. Writing is creating something out of nothing, is opening doors to others lands. Writing gives you power to shape your own world when the real one hurts too much.”

“I still meet grief in sudden places, when I least expect it. A familiar song. A smell from the kitchen. Then there it is. An enemy that can’t be bested.”

excellent and poignant description of grief - I co-sign this!

“What do you really think of this place?"
"What does a beetle think of the boot that crushes it? It is a very excellent boot with a most impressive sole and made of the finest leather.”

Content Warnings

anna's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

4.75

Content Warnings

lyraparledor's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

jazhandz's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.75

From a pure craft standpoint, Leigh Bardugo’s writing is at a peak in this book. It’s sensory and rich and compelling. The character work is lovely. Where this book falls flat for me is the relationships - and not only the central relationship, but the entirety of the relationships, romantic and platonic and familial and antagonistic. None of them will stick with me in a meaningful way. Which is a shame! I think if this book had stronger relationships it would be an easy favorite. As it is, it was fine.

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