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alanis_thespookyreader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Bullying, Child death, Death, Drug use, Grief, Animal death, Addiction, Alcoholism, Homophobia, Cursing, Misogyny, Murder, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Violence, War, Blood, and Body horror
jlynnelseauthor's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The book goes down a bit for its treatment of women. Many women are clearly there to entice the male reader. The main female vampire is often touching herself and trying to sexually manipulate the men chasing her...in public no less--very annoying. Women are often brutalized more explicitly than male characters. And if you're a woman, stay away from de Leon.
Besides a couple people, everyone else curses like a sailor. Every. Single. Person. There is an excessive use of the word c*nt, but most often its variations on f*ck. The book is also much more sexually explicit than I'm used to reading. There's even underage sex, including a drawn photo in the book, which is not a welcome addition. Finally, it's extremely violent and bloody.
With everything being said, there are epic battles, hidden religious secrets, a vow of vengeance, and a struggle of faith. De Leon is an intriguing character. Kristoff does have some beautiful passages about choice and life and fate. I don't know if I'd be able to read a book 2 as I can't imagine keeping all of this in my head!
Graphic: Alcoholism, Gore, Religious bigotry, Violence, Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Torture, and Animal death
Moderate: Homophobia and Rape
patrissia10's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Cursing, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Religious bigotry, Violence, Alcohol, Death, Grief, Blood, and Gore
clairew97'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
4.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Child death, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Gore, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Ableism, Animal death, Addiction, Body horror, Confinement, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Genocide, Grief, Murder, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Abandonment, Bullying, Cannibalism, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Torture, Alcoholism, Sexism, Toxic friendship, Violence, and War
cc0906'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? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Child death, War, Bullying, Slavery, Torture, Cursing, Confinement, Gore, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Grief, Death, and Alcoholism
thewereraven's review against another edition
Graphic: Drug use, Religious bigotry, Misogyny, Murder, Blood, Cursing, War, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Sexism
Moderate: Racism, Sexual assault, Body horror, Bullying, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Transphobia, Child abuse, Classism, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Sexual content
Minor: Rape, Adult/minor relationship, and Pedophilia
anntharai's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The issues I have with it REALLY irk me.
The world building is immaculate if a bit on the nose, really vivid writing and visceral descriptions, a great mechanic. Love the use of tattoos and the lore building. Overall I liked the story itself.
The issues, though?
I found myself rolling my eyes at a lot of the vulgarity because it was genuinely ludicrous at times. Swearing doesn’t bother me in the slightest but the lengths to which these characters went just to get a “banged your relative” joke in was over the top.
Everything has a simile. Everything. The doors locked like a secret. The floors cold like the night. The night air cold like knives. Wind like knives. Words like knives. Running frightened like a startled horse in a barn on fire and the devil whipping it all the way. The lips red like red things.
The repetitive phrases (fuck my face, like his lady’s lips the last time he kissed her, better a bastard than a fool) stopped feeling symbolic and started feeling like a crutch about half way through and using the same *twist* mechanic used twice (gender neutral names being the crux of two stories told so closely together) made it feel less polished than it could have been.
Thanks to various reviews etc I was also expecting a “big thing” to shock me at the end but I kind of felt it was obvious…?
Anti-climactic, in a word, but I do want to know what happens so it’s not like I hated it.
Graphic: Abandonment, Violence, War, Torture, Suicide, Slavery, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Outing, Murder, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Hate crime, Gore, Excrement, Addiction, Drug use, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, Animal death, and Blood
karapillar's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Drug use, Gore, Violence, Stalking, Body horror, Child death, Drug abuse, Grief, Addiction, Animal death, Blood, Cursing, Gun violence, Murder, Religious bigotry, and Torture
Moderate: Excrement, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, War, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Vomit, and Stalking
Minor: Pregnancy and Rape
leonormsousa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Violence, Death, Child death, Blood, Gore, Animal death, Addiction, Drug use, Alcohol, Grief, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Homophobia, Death of parent, War, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, and Sexism
cutewitch's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Plus, I don’t get why other reviewers are raving about the worldbuilding? Did they READ Nevernight?? This is pretty basic powered-up-vampires, plus pretty basic pseudo-medieval-renaissancey-Europe, plus Catholicism with a VERY THIN new coat of paint. This is not revolutionary, people.
Sex cw:
Graphic: Murder and Gore
Moderate: Abandonment, Homophobia, Religious bigotry, Alcoholism, and Drug use