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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-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:
Yes
I didn’t realise the term “Court of Miracles” refers to the slum districts of Paris but this now makes sense. After her sister is sold to the Guild of Flesh, Eponine aligns herself with the Miracle Court to get her back. There is an awful lot of scheming in this one and it certainly has the feel of Les Miserables with several heists and failed rebellions. Eponine wants revenge and won’t stop until she gets it. Not sure where the rest of the trilogy will go but I am intrigued to find out.
Solid story. Not my favorite read, repetitive at times, but it's got a decent plot and arc that's easy to follow. Not sure if I'd recommend it to others, but I'm glad I read it.
Thank you Knopf Teen and NetGalley for providing me with a free digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What if "Vive la révolution!" had gone nowhere, and the revolt of the common people against the French monarchy had failed? Nina lives in such a world, one where the crushed common folk have banded together in guilds to find some mutual protection from each other and the monarchy in the fallout. Each guild is organized according to its own rules, and rule breakers are capable of causing great disruption. When Nina's sister Ettie becomes a target of Tiger, leader of the Guild of Flesh, she soon finds she may have to tear the underworld's order apart to save her sister. Is saving her sister worth igniting another civil war?
The element I think worked most for this story is Nina's unflagging love for her sister Ettie. In the face of bad odds and bad outcomes, and even a few attractive suitors, all that matters is saving her sister, and I loved that. Some of the pacing and time jumps as the story progressed could have been smoother, but I still found the interactions between guilds and their rules intriguing and the alternate historical world engaging. Tiger makes for an excellent villain, which makes Nina's struggle all the more captivating. With inspiration drawn from Les Misérables and Six of Crows, this is a daring tale of sisterly love in the harsh, downtrodden heart of Paris.
⭐⭐⭐.75/5
What if "Vive la révolution!" had gone nowhere, and the revolt of the common people against the French monarchy had failed? Nina lives in such a world, one where the crushed common folk have banded together in guilds to find some mutual protection from each other and the monarchy in the fallout. Each guild is organized according to its own rules, and rule breakers are capable of causing great disruption. When Nina's sister Ettie becomes a target of Tiger, leader of the Guild of Flesh, she soon finds she may have to tear the underworld's order apart to save her sister. Is saving her sister worth igniting another civil war?
The element I think worked most for this story is Nina's unflagging love for her sister Ettie. In the face of bad odds and bad outcomes, and even a few attractive suitors, all that matters is saving her sister, and I loved that. Some of the pacing and time jumps as the story progressed could have been smoother, but I still found the interactions between guilds and their rules intriguing and the alternate historical world engaging. Tiger makes for an excellent villain, which makes Nina's struggle all the more captivating. With inspiration drawn from Les Misérables and Six of Crows, this is a daring tale of sisterly love in the harsh, downtrodden heart of Paris.
⭐⭐⭐.75/5
2.5/5
I'm a little confused because this book is sold like a retelling but it actually isn't? All the characters are the same characters from Les Mis, following roughly the same plot but with a few changes in worlbuilding and execution so like... this is a published AU fanfiction of Les Mis. Be warned.
I really liked the concept of the underworld Courts but I felt like so much time and effort was dedicated to following the plot from the book/musical that we didn't really see that explored as fully as it could have been.
Two things that bothered me (and that SCREAM "fanfiction" to me) were that Marius Pontmercy is gone from this book, supposedly because he is useless, but he's substituted by the Prince of France, who is also incredibly useless and didn't need to be a part of the plot. Also Javert was genderbent here solely to add romantic tension to the relationship with Valjean, which honestly just misses the mark entirely for Javert's character.
I'm a little confused because this book is sold like a retelling but it actually isn't? All the characters are the same characters from Les Mis, following roughly the same plot but with a few changes in worlbuilding and execution so like... this is a published AU fanfiction of Les Mis. Be warned.
I really liked the concept of the underworld Courts but I felt like so much time and effort was dedicated to following the plot from the book/musical that we didn't really see that explored as fully as it could have been.
Two things that bothered me (and that SCREAM "fanfiction" to me) were that Marius Pontmercy is gone from this book, supposedly because he is useless, but he's substituted by the Prince of France, who is also incredibly useless and didn't need to be a part of the plot. Also Javert was genderbent here solely to add romantic tension to the relationship with Valjean, which honestly just misses the mark entirely for Javert's character.
Received an ARC via NetGalley.
Well, that was pretty awesome. To be fair, I have not read Les Mis so I have no attachment to the original story, or any expectations. Just vague recollections of the Broadway show from like two decades ago.
The liberties taken with the story make for an interesting and intense tale. I love heist premises, especially those that hinge on the reluctant cooperation of reluctant allies.
I loved the shifting alliances, the conniving, and the complete absence of easy choices.
Very much looking forward the the next installment.
Well, that was pretty awesome. To be fair, I have not read Les Mis so I have no attachment to the original story, or any expectations. Just vague recollections of the Broadway show from like two decades ago.
The liberties taken with the story make for an interesting and intense tale. I love heist premises, especially those that hinge on the reluctant cooperation of reluctant allies.
I loved the shifting alliances, the conniving, and the complete absence of easy choices.
Very much looking forward the the next installment.
Entertaining and with a strong premise, but the timeline confused me several times and the story lacked emotional grounding.
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-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
This book had so much potential! The bones were incredible! I loved the world building of the court of miracles! Like that itself was everything I could have needed in this book! The retelling got to be a bit much and I really disliked Nina... well Nina's terrible decision making skills! Like that was brutal!! Also please don't do a love triangle! Mr. Hotty of the Shadows with Daggers is truly the superior choice! I mean the love confession alone and the intrigue about him is probably why I am going to check out the second book!
5 stars!
This was a retelling of Les Miserables, and although I have not yet read the book (it's on my TBR for this year), my knowledge of the story comes from the musical, which I have always loved, both the music and the story. So this book had a lot to live up to, and for me it was a hit. I heard comparisons between it and Six of Crows (which I also loved), and I have to admit that I could see the comparison--the worlds of each had a similar feel to me. In spite of the fact that this was a retelling, the story felt fresh to me and I really started connecting to the characters. I loved the relationship between Nina (Eponine) and Ettie (Cosette) as true sisters, even when Ettie became angry with Nina at one point. The love they had for each other was beautifully written. I loved how the author incorporated the student revolutionaries and the obsession Javert had for Valjean. While Javert was definitely the bloodhound obsessive of the musical, the reason behind the obsession that the author chose to use made me laugh.
I believe this is the author's first novel and this is definitely a winner. While there were a few minor editing errors, they did not detract from the book at all. I am happy to see this will be part of a series and I look forward to future novels in this world!
Thanks to #KesterGrant, #NetGalley, and #RandomHouseChildrens for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This was a retelling of Les Miserables, and although I have not yet read the book (it's on my TBR for this year), my knowledge of the story comes from the musical, which I have always loved, both the music and the story. So this book had a lot to live up to, and for me it was a hit. I heard comparisons between it and Six of Crows (which I also loved), and I have to admit that I could see the comparison--the worlds of each had a similar feel to me. In spite of the fact that this was a retelling, the story felt fresh to me and I really started connecting to the characters. I loved the relationship between Nina (Eponine) and Ettie (Cosette) as true sisters, even when Ettie became angry with Nina at one point. The love they had for each other was beautifully written. I loved how the author incorporated the student revolutionaries and the obsession Javert had for Valjean. While Javert was definitely the bloodhound obsessive of the musical, the reason behind the obsession that the author chose to use made me laugh.
I believe this is the author's first novel and this is definitely a winner. While there were a few minor editing errors, they did not detract from the book at all. I am happy to see this will be part of a series and I look forward to future novels in this world!
Thanks to #KesterGrant, #NetGalley, and #RandomHouseChildrens for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I had a little bit of trouble getting into this but once I did I really enjoyed it. The parallels to Les Miserable are enough to make the story familiar without it being predictable. The main character, Nina, is a badass who solves her own damn problems and has no qualms using the privileged few to save those she loves. The character of Ettie makes some serious growth, which I appreciate. Montparnasse, the assassin, is my favorite. I hope we get more of him in the next. The ending leaves just the right amount of loose ends to make me look forward to the next. I would definitely recommend.