Reviews tagging 'Torture'

House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas

314 reviews

ashleynp24's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad 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? It's complicated

4.75

Loved the book, I wish the ACOTAR characters had a bit more time in the books but I’m glad that Nesta was the main character in the crossover. I felt that everything kind of got summed up really nicely. Lidia probably turned out to be my favorite character, and the hint she’s related to Brannon, and therefore Aelin was wild. I do want to know what happened with Sathia and where Ariadne was considering she appears at the end and that’s the last of that chapter.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Cannibalism, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Violence, War, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Slavery, Blood, Body horror, Classism, Vomit, Death, Gore, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, and Torture

the_cat_on_a_bookcase's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• 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? Yes

3.0

Let me preface this one with the fact that I LOVE SJM & all her books (all of which I've read in the past 12 months). I would say the ACOTAR series is probably my favorite series she's written to date & was my first series. I love the characters, the twists & turns, the themes of love, and much more about Crescent City. This book read way slower than most of the SJM books that I read and why it took me longer than any other SJM book to read. I was satisfied by the book and part of me wishes that this was the last in this series, but I highly doubt that! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Torture

hematthews's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Sexual content, Violence, War, Body horror, Gore, Confinement, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, and Torture

Moderate: Hate crime

meg_rossano's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional slow-paced

• 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? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug abuse, War, Violence, and Torture

deskeepsreading's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious

• Diverse cast of characters? No

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Grief, War, Violence, Gore, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, and Torture

gretchenplz's review against another edition

adventurous medium-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? No

1.0

I want to give this book one star for Nesta and one star for Azriel, but I don't know if I have it in me.

This was an absolute crock of shit.

What in the alien Avengers bullshit was that?! I can't stop imagining the Aesteri as those aliens from Indiana Jones 4. 

What was more ridiculous: the magic language bean, the cure being discovered in ~60 minutes, or Hunt's flaccid dick being too big for underwear?

Everything about this book comes across as juvenile — "Alphahole," "Light it up," "Level up," and "Through love, all things are possible" literally made me cringe every time.

SJM was clearly not ready to delve into adult high fantasy, and her lack of care and effort throughout the writing process shows. Did she even want to continue this series? It seems like she wrote the first book and then realized, "Oh, shit. I actually have to continue." Did no editor see this, either for plot/character continuity or for typos? Could no one offer her a ghostwriter?

2400 pages in the series, and I don't give a single shit about any of the characters. There's nothing keeping me attached to this series. How do you make your own FMC THAT unlikeable? Like... advocating for genocide one second then flipping the next chapter? THE FUCK?! No empathy for her mate and his trauma after he's been tortured for days on end? Plus, she's, what? A big glowstick that everyone wants to fuck? SO. LAME.  

Please do not let anyone like Bryce "rescue" and take over the rule of my world. Sure, the intergalactic alien parasites are defeated, but not the entire infrastructure of the planet is destroyed with absolutely no plan forward. Also, all hierarchies are now destroyed! There definitely won't be anarchy, chaos, or civil war now!

So many characters and details were introduced that meant absolutely nothing in the end. The absolutely lamest use of a crossover of all time. 

A laughable effort. What a waste of time.

I'm beginning to think SJM herself is a fraud. TOG was a plagiarized mess. CC was a sham. ACOTAR, for it's many flaws, at least made me care about the characters, the plot, and the world. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture

shellind75's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Torture, Colonisation, Sexual assault, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Sexism, Confinement, Murder, Domestic abuse, Excrement, Slavery, Gore, Grief, Gaslighting, War, Gun violence, and Sexual content

erinlynneee's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional 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? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Death, and Violence

Minor: Child death and Kidnapping

cheyannejeanette's review

adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, and War

Moderate: Child death, Sexual content, and Blood

Minor: Drug use and Kidnapping

jla's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad tense fast-paced

• 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? It's complicated

5.0

This was excellent.   It hit the ground running and didn't stop.   Ruhn and Lidia were my favorite.   I hated Ethan's storyline.   He was such an idiot. 

It's like SJM made an apology, Nesta, that was a totally different likable character. This Nesta can stay with Cassian while  I pretend the other one doesn't exist.   

I really want more for Azriel.  Where is his book!?  What about Elaine!?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, War, and Misogyny