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fionamclary's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book was funny and full of heart. I loved our main characters and especially related to Mallory given that a chronic illness has been increasingly disabling me for the past year and a half. I enjoyed the take on a magical culture/society that maps nicely onto the human diversity of the real world.
However, I found the lore to be frustratingly thin. It didn't make sense to me how many seemingly basic aspects of magic were unknown to Occulture before the events of the story(such as spells and people being able to travel via witchlight) , and the history of the Ternion remained vague and confusing throughout. It meant that by the end I still didn't understand what it would actually mean for someone to summon or join the Ternion , and what the motivation/thought process would be that would lead someone to this decision. I also felt that the details of how the ritual murders themselves worked were very poorly fleshed out. E.g. how does one make the death blade ? How does it work? This was super frustrating and majorly detracted from the quality of the story. However, I think this author has a lot of potential, and I'd be intrigued if a second book happens, as the ending of this book seemed to be allowing for. There's still some mysteries unsolved!
Also, I really want a movie version now just so that Nathan Foad can play Theodore. I think that would go so hard.
However, I found the lore to be frustratingly thin. It didn't make sense to me how many seemingly basic aspects of magic were unknown to Occulture before the events of the story
Also, I really want a movie version now just so that Nathan Foad can play Theodore. I think that would go so hard.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Animal death, Ableism, Toxic relationship, Blood, Body horror, Cursing, and Murder
Minor: Medical content, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, and Violence
purplepenning's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
A unique serial killer thriller in an urban fantasy setting that follows a trio of Gen-Z magical folk as they investigate — a fresh, spooky season read for murder mystery fans!
I picked it up for the tagline: "Be Gay. Solve crimes. Take naps." The writing didn't immediately click for me because I couldn't quite get a feel for the setting and characters, but I stuck with it for the absurdly endearing character of Theodore (an irrepressible ghost stuck in the ridiculous cat costume he died in on Halloween), the excellently portrayed chronic pain rep, and the Gen Z voice of it all. By the end, I found myself hoping that this is going to be the first in a series.
I picked it up for the tagline: "Be Gay. Solve crimes. Take naps." The writing didn't immediately click for me because I couldn't quite get a feel for the setting and characters, but I stuck with it for the absurdly endearing character of Theodore (an irrepressible ghost stuck in the ridiculous cat costume he died in on Halloween), the excellently portrayed chronic pain rep, and the Gen Z voice of it all. By the end, I found myself hoping that this is going to be the first in a series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Body horror, and Chronic illness
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Ableism, Animal death, Classism, Confinement, Cursing, Gore, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, and Medical content
Minor: Alcohol
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