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melliedm'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? Yes
4.75
An excellent anti-imperialist YA fantasy. Easily the best YA I’ve read in a long time. I had started to think maybe I no longer enjoyed YA, but it turns out I was just waiting for a book like this.
Tarisai was born for one purpose, and one purpose alone: to kill the emperor’s son, and end the imperial line. To do so, she will first have to love him and enter his trusted circle. But are our children just malleable tools for our machinations, or people capable of seeing different futures?
This book manages to avoid some of the most overdone tropes in the genre whilst using others with absolute grace. The characters are varied and well-written, each with their own ideals and desires. The plot feels intentional and the results hard-won, and not a given simply because “it’s gotta have a beginning middle and end”
My only problem with this book, and the reason for the docking of .25 stars, is the weird as heck relationship between two side characters. I won’t spoil much, but one of the characters is established to be around 20 at the beginning of the book, when the main character is around 12. The other side character is described to be about the same age as the main character. So when the main character is 16, we have a 24 year old side character developing a romance with a 16 year old side character? What? Did I misread something? Did I misunderstand the timeline? It made me extremely uncomfortable. But it’s such a small part of the book and something I could ignore with relative ease, so I don’t think this one strange aspect detracts from the rest of the book’s beauty.
Graphic: Misogyny, Colonisation, Abandonment, Xenophobia, and Sexism
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, War, Police brutality, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, and Confinement
Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Suicidal thoughts
thecatconstellation's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
My only critique is that the council members are supposedly so meaningful to Tar, but only a few of them are fleshed out beyond the most basic level.
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Death, Child abuse, Violence, Sexism, and Misogyny
Moderate: War, Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Emotional abuse, Classism, Blood, Child death, Xenophobia, Confinement, Rape, Murder, Death of parent, and Colonisation
Minor: Slavery, Alcohol, and Sexual content
ginameix'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? No
5.0
Graphic: Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment
Moderate: Blood, Murder, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, and Domestic abuse
talonsontypewriters'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
2.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Gaslighting, Sexism, Abandonment, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Colonisation, Confinement, Grief, Death, Death of parent, Bullying, Murder, Xenophobia, and Classism
Minor: Slavery, Vomit, Incest, Rape, Sexual content, Acephobia/Arophobia, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Pedophilia, and Suicide
Relationship between characters with unspecified ages but presumably one around 15-17 and the other at least in his 20s. Crush/romantic undertones (no actual relationship) between characters later revealed to be related.linblythe_pub22's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Abandonment, Misogyny, Sexual content, Violence, Murder, and Sexism
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Vomit, Xenophobia, Blood, and War
forgottuesday'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
5.0
Graphic: Sexism, Abandonment, Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Violence, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Mental illness
Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic relationship, Abandonment, War, Suicidal thoughts, and Murder
ashlikes'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
Graphic: Xenophobia, Violence, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Grief, Blood, Toxic relationship, Death, Misogyny, and Sexism
Moderate: Confinement, Colonisation, Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, Abandonment, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse
Minor: Stalking, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Pregnancy, Slavery, Medical content, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Rape, and Vomit
friendly_neighborhood_grandma's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Murder, Emotional abuse, Death, Abandonment, Classism, Confinement, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Vomit, Grief, Misogyny, and Violence
Moderate: Violence
eni_iilorak'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
4.5
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Misogyny, Murder, Sexism, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Toxic friendship, and Violence
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Confinement, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Domestic abuse, Bullying, Classism, and Medical content
Minor: Acephobia/Arophobia, Alcohol, Rape, and Slavery
readandfindout's review against another edition
5.0
Themes: 5 stars
Characters: 5 stars
Plot: 5 stars
Worldbuilding: 4.5 stars
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Colonisation, Death, Confinement, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Murder, Genocide, Death of parent, Violence, Blood, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Rape, Suicide, and Vomit