Reviews tagging 'Blood'

The Stolen Heir by Holly Black

130 reviews

nexusthegreat's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-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? N/A

5.0

Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god. I actually loved this book so much that as soon as I finished it, I was already flipping to the first page of prisoners throne. The plot twist was something I saw coming for quite awhile, but not that character development and ending!! Like, what?? Absolutely, one of my favorite books.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Physical abuse and Kidnapping

saretta02's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

• 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? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Abandonment

daenerystargaryen's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Torture, Kidnapping, and Murder

Minor: Animal death, Infertility, Vomit, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Alcohol, and War

ludmireads's review against another edition

adventurous emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Blood

readwithria's review against another edition

adventurous emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The Stolen Heir takes the world of Elfhame that we know and love and expands it into the courts. We get to know more about Suren and Oak, and meet many new faces along the way. That being said, we don’t really get a new plot at all. 

I loved the political intrigue and social intricacies of the original Folk of the Air series, and I was hoping to find more of that in this duology. Unfortunately for me, that wasn’t the focus of this book. It was mostly travel, and while that’s great with a pre-established cast of characters to give them more time to interact with each other, I don’t think it worked super well with a new cast of characters.

I don’t feel like I know Tiernan all that well. I don’t feel like I understand Wren or Oak’s motivations much more than I did at the beginning of the book. I wish there had been more trust-building between the three of them, or at least more attempted. I also feel like the plot of this book wasn’t all that central to the story for the middle 50%. 

I’m excited to wrap up this series with Oak’s perspective. I hope the pacing and plotting issues I had in The Stolen Heir are resolved in The Prisoner’s Throne. 3 stars

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood

rchulin1's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad 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? No

3.25

This book focuses on Suren a character who was mentioned briefly in the Queen of Nothing and also Oak it has been many years since the previous events and Oak is all grown up

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Torture, Blood, Dementia, Kidnapping, Alcohol, and War

dramagirl2003's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-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

4.25

sadly i didn’t enjoy this as much as
The Folk of the Air, but it was still good. this book is from wren’s perspective, so that was a change to get used to. i was bored for the first 45%, but to be fair i didn’t really fully get into The Cruel Prince until the last 40% of it either, so i guess i can forgive the rough start. not a writing issue but a me issue was that oak was literally a child in The Folk of the Air, so to read him as a love interest this time was strange and ever so slightly cringey, the same way i feel with younger siblings and their partners

thoughts while reading

p120: well this is fairly reminiscent isn’t it

p235: i knew it! that’s so cute 🥺

p241: don’t take her hairpin 😡

p248: AHHHHH THAT’S WHAT JUDE SAID TOO

p292: damn that was actually pretty hot

p342: wait a damn minute

wren’s heart must be mellith’s!!!

p350: this is absolutely insane

quotes

I find them both disconcerting and fascinating in equal measure.

I am drawn to watching his face, as though through his dreams, I will learn his secrets.
Something is very wrong with me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Torture, Kidnapping, and Abandonment

Minor: Vomit

vexedrabbit's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

The vibes are immaculate. But this book is pretty disappointing. Oak is exactly like Carden, and I don't really see him as his own character. There's lots of talking but next to no showing. Wren also becomes the biggest piece of shit in the last few chapters, which honestly I felt was a complete 180 on her character. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Violence, Blood, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

llcardenas's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny tense medium-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

thevanessa's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Definitely not the same as the Cruel Prince, but it still had that fairytale essence that I love. But with that being said, I really did miss my conniving little Queen, Jude, though. I felt like it really lacked that element of gray, that Jude always gave; the one that always kept you on your toes and on the edge of your seat in suspense, questioning where it would lead and how it would end, so I didn’t read it as quickly as I did with the Folk of the Air trilogy. I do really love Oak and Wren though, enough so that I’m gonna ignore the fact that I figured out the whole plot in the first few chapters😅

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Blood, Cannibalism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Drug use and Alcohol