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jmbentele's review against another edition
2.0
DNF about 50%. Was very scattered to me and didn’t enjoy the story and characters.
miranda_is_currently_reading's review against another edition
2.0
My main issue with this book was the writing, which gave the overall plot an annoyingly simple, almost childlike quality that made it difficult to take the novel seriously.
The characters were also immensely unlikable and seemed almost too self involved and predictable to be compelling.
2 stars.
The characters were also immensely unlikable and seemed almost too self involved and predictable to be compelling.
2 stars.
cheshirebelle's review against another edition
2.0
Ik heb dit boek gelezen voor The Awesome Bookclub. Het eerste deel van het boek was ronduit saai. Er gebeurde vrij weinig en het leek erop alsof alle karakters teveel uitgewerkt moesten worden, terwijl je nog steeds geen idee hebt wie bepaalde karakters zijn. De tweede helft van het boek werd spannender en toen kon ik wel mijn aandacht erbij houden. Als ze nou de eerste helft eraf had gehaald, dan was het een super leuk boek geweest. De schrijfstijl is apart te noemen, maar het leest niet vervelend. Al met al zou ik dit boek niet zo snel aanraden, al denk ik dat ik deel 2 ook wel wil lezen, puur om te weten hoe het afloopt.
bookishnicole's review against another edition
3.0
Very solid! So much intrigue! I was able to call some elements that were revealed later, but that didn't take away from the enjoyment at all.
becandbooks's review against another edition
2.0
I wanted to love this book.
I really really liked the concept, while a little done-before/cliche, and I'll admit I was completely suckered in by the cover. I freaking adore this cover.
But I honestly just found the book underwhelming.
The blurb for this book tells you that the MCs, Carys and Andreus, must participate in the Trial of Succession in order to gain the title to the throne. And yet it wasn't until 4 hours into the audiobook that story actually got to the Trials.
Now if everything up until this point had been world-building and character developing I may have been okay with this. And yet it wasn't.
Despite all the time it took to get to the main plot line, at this point I knew two things.
A) there was a war but who it really was with (there seemed to be more than a few names mentioned) and what the actual status of the war was (are they in mortal peril? are they winning?) wasn't really known.
And B) the MC's were twins that stuck their necks out for each other, however this fell apart pretty quickly despite how much it was emphasized. Also, there was some vague dark, eerie stuff happening but not really elaborated on. And there was a youngun' slave boy who kept popping up.
Not much else.
The actual grisly bits of the story all seemed pretty flat and dull. Again, I was underwhelmed.
And the ending seemed a bit out of nowhere. I felt as though there was next to nothing as far as foreshadowing. Or perhaps I was bored by this point and had missed something important.
A lot of people seem to have enjoyed this book, but it just didn't give me anything that I haven't read in a much better and more engaging style elsewhere.
I really really liked the concept, while a little done-before/cliche, and I'll admit I was completely suckered in by the cover. I freaking adore this cover.
But I honestly just found the book underwhelming.
The blurb for this book tells you that the MCs, Carys and Andreus, must participate in the Trial of Succession in order to gain the title to the throne. And yet it wasn't until 4 hours into the audiobook that story actually got to the Trials.
Now if everything up until this point had been world-building and character developing I may have been okay with this. And yet it wasn't.
Despite all the time it took to get to the main plot line, at this point I knew two things.
A) there was a war but who it really was with (there seemed to be more than a few names mentioned) and what the actual status of the war was (are they in mortal peril? are they winning?) wasn't really known.
And B) the MC's were twins that stuck their necks out for each other, however this fell apart pretty quickly despite how much it was emphasized. Also, there was some vague dark, eerie stuff happening but not really elaborated on. And there was a youngun' slave boy who kept popping up.
Not much else.
The actual grisly bits of the story all seemed pretty flat and dull. Again, I was underwhelmed.
And the ending seemed a bit out of nowhere. I felt as though there was next to nothing as far as foreshadowing. Or perhaps I was bored by this point and had missed something important.
A lot of people seem to have enjoyed this book, but it just didn't give me anything that I haven't read in a much better and more engaging style elsewhere.
petrichor_pages's review against another edition
3.0
Andreus and Carys are twins. When their father and older brother are killed, they must then fight each other for the right to inherit the throne because ANCIENT LAWS. Since they don't hate each other, they hatch a plan to work together to put Andreus on the throne.
Andreus has a chronic illness that incapacitates him. If anyone were to discover this, he would be killed because being ill is a sign of darkness? Also his sister and mother would be executed for concealing it. Also a seer predicted that there would be some darkness to come to the kingdom so clearly it must take the form of an reasonably-well managed chronic illness. Andreus is also an engineer, helping keep the lights on in the city to keep the monsters at bay.
Carys likes to use daggers, but is addicted to potions. Withdrawing from them gives her tremors and makes her unable to function. When she has too much, she grows very ill (When convenient for the plot). She tries to cover for her brothers' illness by distracting people and taking punishments for doing so.
I spent the first half of the book just thinking about what a giant tool Andreus is. He sleeps around and puts his own happiness above his sisters. He literally allows her to be whipped multiple times because he doesn't want anyone to know about his illness. After she is whipped, he spends the night with his brothers' fiancee, instead of checking in to make sure his sister was OK.
As the tournament progresses, his resentment builds and it leads him to the events of the last third of the book. Instead of trusting the ONE person he should, his sister, he listens to people with their own agendas, and has his perception clouded. I think I may hate him. A lot.
Andreus has a chronic illness that incapacitates him. If anyone were to discover this, he would be killed because being ill is a sign of darkness? Also his sister and mother would be executed for concealing it. Also a seer predicted that there would be some darkness to come to the kingdom so clearly it must take the form of an reasonably-well managed chronic illness. Andreus is also an engineer, helping keep the lights on in the city to keep the monsters at bay.
Carys likes to use daggers, but is addicted to potions. Withdrawing from them gives her tremors and makes her unable to function. When she has too much, she grows very ill (When convenient for the plot). She tries to cover for her brothers' illness by distracting people and taking punishments for doing so.
I spent the first half of the book just thinking about what a giant tool Andreus is. He sleeps around and puts his own happiness above his sisters. He literally allows her to be whipped multiple times because he doesn't want anyone to know about his illness. After she is whipped, he spends the night with his brothers' fiancee, instead of checking in to make sure his sister was OK.
As the tournament progresses, his resentment builds and it leads him to the events of the last third of the book. Instead of trusting the ONE person he should, his sister, he listens to people with their own agendas, and has his perception clouded. I think I may hate him. A lot.
kharpstead's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
lestaslettering's review against another edition
4.0
Andreus is dumb and so full of himself. I rooted for Carys from the very start.