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912jae's review
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Gore, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Death of parent
Minor: Gaslighting, Grief, Slavery, and Medical content
skylarkblue1's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- 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
4.75
Thank you Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
Why are book synopsis' going the way of movie trailers where they seem to aim to reveal way too much about the thing it's trying to introduce/describe? I loved seven deaths of Evelyn hardcastle so I requested this book without reading the full description, just knowing it was a dystopian sci fi, and honestly that was a really good choice. I read the full description when I got near the end and was so shocked to just see how much got revealed in the description alone.
I honestly absolutely loved this book. Complex characters, fast paced story and intricate plot threads that slowly weave together. So many questions but answers are given at a good pace and I believe most if not all the questions did get an answer by the end - I can't think of anything major right now at least!
I loved the characters so much. They're all so complex and unique with so many goals and motives and ideas, it was just so delightful to read about these characters! I normally struggle quite a lot with remembering who was who, who was what name, etc but I actually never had that problem once throughout this whole book despite there being actually quite a lot of characters because of how unique to each other they were.
The plot was just so incredibly thick with mystery and questions, but it manages to handle all of that incredibly well. The world gets established in good time while still leaving a ton of mystery to drip through the rest of the book. The questions felt believable, so did the whole premise honestly - despite how apocalyptic sci-fi it is. The prologue sucked me in instantly and really set up the story perfectly.
I think the only negative about this is the same negative I had with 7 deaths - the ending. It's miles better than how 7 deaths handled it's ending imo but it's still very... I'm not even sure how to explain it. It feels a bit rushed, incredibly lore dumpy and it's just constant explanation monologues with a solution that feels a teeny bit underwhelming in my opinion. It is an answer that fits and makes sense, and the additional information that plays out during the ending is quite nice so it's better than 7 deaths in that regard. It's just.. not sure about it honestly. But also like 7 deaths, it really didn't change my overall opinion of the book that much because the rest of the book is just that good.
Suprisingly, there's also queer representation in this. A very nice sapphic relationship and in all honesty I think it was done very nicely. It's not something that's pointed out, it's just a normalised relationship and treated within the book as any other relationship. It is really nice when books have that. It's not a book that's heavy in romance though, if you dislike romance you'll be fine with it. There's people missing loved ones, relationships that get torn apart - so there's certainly conversations about relationships - but not really much romance at all.
I would strongly recommend this book if you enjoy mysteries. Absolutely perfect for a book club as well!
This probably means I should read Stuart's first book now as I've enjoyed everything else from him haha!!
Why are book synopsis' going the way of movie trailers where they seem to aim to reveal way too much about the thing it's trying to introduce/describe? I loved seven deaths of Evelyn hardcastle so I requested this book without reading the full description, just knowing it was a dystopian sci fi, and honestly that was a really good choice. I read the full description when I got near the end and was so shocked to just see how much got revealed in the description alone.
I honestly absolutely loved this book. Complex characters, fast paced story and intricate plot threads that slowly weave together. So many questions but answers are given at a good pace and I believe most if not all the questions did get an answer by the end - I can't think of anything major right now at least!
I loved the characters so much. They're all so complex and unique with so many goals and motives and ideas, it was just so delightful to read about these characters! I normally struggle quite a lot with remembering who was who, who was what name, etc but I actually never had that problem once throughout this whole book despite there being actually quite a lot of characters because of how unique to each other they were.
The plot was just so incredibly thick with mystery and questions, but it manages to handle all of that incredibly well. The world gets established in good time while still leaving a ton of mystery to drip through the rest of the book. The questions felt believable, so did the whole premise honestly - despite how apocalyptic sci-fi it is. The prologue sucked me in instantly and really set up the story perfectly.
I think the only negative about this is the same negative I had with 7 deaths - the ending. It's miles better than how 7 deaths handled it's ending imo but it's still very... I'm not even sure how to explain it. It feels a bit rushed, incredibly lore dumpy and it's just constant explanation monologues with a solution that feels a teeny bit underwhelming in my opinion. It is an answer that fits and makes sense, and the additional information that plays out during the ending is quite nice so it's better than 7 deaths in that regard. It's just.. not sure about it honestly. But also like 7 deaths, it really didn't change my overall opinion of the book that much because the rest of the book is just that good.
Suprisingly, there's also queer representation in this. A very nice sapphic relationship and in all honesty I think it was done very nicely. It's not something that's pointed out, it's just a normalised relationship and treated within the book as any other relationship. It is really nice when books have that. It's not a book that's heavy in romance though, if you dislike romance you'll be fine with it. There's people missing loved ones, relationships that get torn apart - so there's certainly conversations about relationships - but not really much romance at all.
I would strongly recommend this book if you enjoy mysteries. Absolutely perfect for a book club as well!
This probably means I should read Stuart's first book now as I've enjoyed everything else from him haha!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Racism, Death, and Blood
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Terminal illness
Minor: Suicide, Medical content, and Gore
Loss of a Loved One,
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