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lucyford'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? No
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Sexual content, Police brutality, Classism, and Deportation
dripdrop's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Religious bigotry
Moderate: Sexual content, Violence, and Abandonment
Minor: Death of parent
morganish'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
4.5
What Worked For Me
The Characterization: I expected this story to be a little bit more straightforward in its depictions of good guys versus villains, but this one kept me guessing. Not every character gets what a reader might think they deserve, but its done in an interesting way that always kept me surprised. It felt a bit more truly adult for that. And in a way that's hard to describe, feels a little bit more like escapism for me personally, when I'm kept guessing and things aren't all predictable.
The Prose: The writing wasn't distractingly flowery, but there were moments of writing that felt beautiful and timeless. The writing style felt a little bit like it was leaning toward and influenced by fairy tales at times, and the last few paragraphs solidified that in a way that was really emotionally impactful for me.
What Wasn't My Thing
The Romance: I think that, because the story was a little removed emotionally, and because it's more historical, the romance didn't really work for me here. Especially because it followed a certain kind of trope which kind of seems like it's been done a lot (maybe that's just my age speaking). It almost felt like the writing decided it could skip big parts of the characters getting to know or fall for each other. The downside of that, for me as a slow-burn fan, is that it all felt really fast and I wasn't invested enough when I think the story expected me to be.
Who This Is For
My Personal Rating System
5 stars: I got so invested that it's definitely on my agenda to read other books by this author
4 stars: I would be excited to read another book by this author, but it's not a priority
3 stars: don't plan to read more by this author, but if assigned for a book club, I'd be cool with it
2 stars: don't plan to read more by this author, & if assigned for a book club, I'd be like, ugh, ok, fine
1 star: I will never pick up a book by this author again if I can help it (usually due to overt bigotry)
Graphic: Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Gore, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Grief, Death of parent, and Colonisation
alexisdillon725'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Graphic: Antisemitism
Moderate: Torture and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Death, Mental illness, and Death of parent
gaky_m's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Finding an enjoyable and satisfying standalone novel nowadays is a rarity for me (I tend to accidentally start new series/trilogies all the time thinking they are standalones haha) and this one was a breath of fresh air in that regard!
Graphic: Antisemitism and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Death of parent and Classism
stormeno'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
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
shamaramill's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.25
Graphic: Death, Infertility, Torture, Xenophobia, Vomit, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, and Death of parent
chronicacademia's review against another edition
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Hate crime, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
savvyrosereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Luzia is a scullion in the home of Valentina and Marius Ordoño when her “small miracles” get her drawn into a dangerous tournament to become the king’s champion.
Leigh Bardugo is one of my favorite authors, and this book absolutely reminded me why. I’ll start with the writing: it is STUNNINGLY good, with so many witty and beautiful quotes throughout. If I was annotating this, I could use up entire highlighter collections noting my favorite passages and moments.
Secondly, the characters. Leigh Bardugo writes a morally grey man (and just morally grey people in general) better than almost anyone in the game, and I am OBSESSED with how well she did that here. Santángel is easily one of my new favorite all-time characters, and I also loved Luzia, and (maybe controversially?) Valentina. Even the characters I disliked were so delicately rendered and fascinating to read about, which is the mark of a truly great book in my opinion.
Finally, the level of detail and historical research here is INCREDIBLE and makes for a wonderfully immersive read. Highly HIGHLY recommend!
CW: Death/grief; sexual violence; physical violence/injury; torture
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Infertility
erudia'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? It's complicated
4.5
Moderate: Torture and Antisemitism
Minor: Confinement, Infertility, and Death of parent