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sarahholliday's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.25
As a historian, I appreciated the nuance Bardugo brought to discussions of miracles and witchcraft. It was all very historically accurate, and captured the constant state of peril that those on the margins lived in under the Inquisition.
The frequent and extensive metaphors became a bit tedious, and the third act felt a bit rushed compared to the pace of the beginning, but overall I think The Familiar is an extremely well-crafted story that drew me in and made me fall in love with its cast of beautifully flawed characters.
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Classism
Moderate: Confinement and Dementia
clrouse's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
Moderate: Confinement, Misogyny, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, and Classism
Minor: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Infertility, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Dementia, Death of parent, and Classism
blacksphinx's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Torture, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Infertility, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Vomit, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Gore, Islamophobia, Dementia, and War
lyraparledor's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Slavery and Antisemitism
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual content, Torture, Vomit, Islamophobia, Dementia, Grief, and Death of parent
pewterwolf's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
3.25
Luzia seizes the chance to better her self, but as her notoriety grows, the danger of her Jewish blood grows as, if she gets found out, the Inquisition’s wrath will be unspeakable. She has to stay several steps ahead. But the rules are always changing in the Spanish court and not everyone gets out alive.
I think I have to finally admit to myself that historical fiction and me aren’t going to get along and I need to stop pushing this genre onto my TBR lists.
I struggle with them. This audiobook took me a month to get through. I started it the week of release, but I really struggled to connect with this. Plus, my brain was all over the place So I couldn’t really focus on this. But, when I did sit down and listen, I found myself bored and not connecting with the characters and the story.
The story felt very slow and quite heavy (at times) for me. I like stories to have some pace when it starts, but it felt as if it took an age for the plot to charge forward. If you are a fan of slower burn of a plot where you get to know the characters, this is for you. But I find I like to know characters when they are doing something or when the plot is moving.
While I wasn’t a fan of the story and the characters (they’re flawed characters, but not exactly likeable. I understood why they behaved the way they did, but I found it them frustrated and every time I found an element of them that I liked, something happened and I would be back at square one with this character), I am a fan of Leigh Bardugo’s writing and it fits so nicely with the audiobook’s narrator, Lauren Fortgang. I know she has read several other books by Bardugo, but this partnership works.
But this wasn’t for me. If you are a fan of historical fiction with an edge of magic, you should check it out. But be warned, it is a slow burn of a plot and can be heavy in places.
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and War
Moderate: Cursing and Infertility
Minor: Dementia and Death of parent