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sunshinemoth's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
For a debut novel, this was not bad. It kept me engaged, consistently twisting my assumptions of what was really going on down to the final chapters. (Excitingly, SPOILERS:
However, I have some complaints. One of which being that Ganymedes left me disappointed as a protagonist. I have a strong penchant for "misfit asshole" characters, but as protagonists you also have to either have them grow or at least have their flaws pointed out in the story. Dee's insistence that he was the only one who understood Ravi and being convinced that his attitude toward him was a lie after having not seen him for five years especially irked me, and even worse
I promise I'm not normally a cynical reader, but I think it's fair to be put off by every other character spilling their guts to him or telling him that he was a good person when the story spent its first fifth establishing how much they were supposed to hate and distrust him.
Lastly, and this is really more of a personal issue than a writing one (maybe), but the reveal of
Anyways, I know that I've complained a lot in this review, but overall it was a compelling read! The dialogue was well written and the conflict well-paced, if not slow to start. I am a locked tomb fan, and this story has quite a few similarities to it (so many so that I started keeping tally of all the comparisons I could make in my head), so overall I found it entertaining enough to finish in just a few sittings. Unfortunately, the devil is in the details, and the details are where this story falters most, outside of its core murder mystery plot.
(P.S. I want a prequel novella about Leofric and Lysander.)
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Gore, Terminal illness, Excrement, Vomit, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Genocide, Infidelity, Sexual content, and War
tessalovespanda'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? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Bullying, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
thisbookisbananas's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Gore and Violence
Moderate: Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, and Murder
Minor: Vomit
hotlizard's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
I'm not a murder mystery person but this one did it for me. Likely because it had an ending that produced a resolution and even more likely because, **MAGIC**.
My heart is left here, with the sweet Dee who said, bravely, "I am not nothing".
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Murder
bookishmillennial's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Magical passengers on a magical ship, a murder mystery, the most precious main character (Ganymedes Piscero, they could never make me hate you baby!!!), AND it's an inclusive nonwhite/mixed, queer, disabled, chronically ill, mental health, and fat cast? Yeaaaaaaah, Frances White, uhhhh you dropped this *insert emoji of crown here*
I listened to the audiobook of this one and had a grand old time. The world-building was excellent, the mystery kept me on my toes (literally got more stressed as the story went on), and I loved getting to know this cast of characters. I don't want to spoil anything since this is a mystery, but please read this!
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Murder
Moderate: Blood, Grief, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Body shaming, Sexual content, and War
justinekorson's review against another edition
- 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
SPOILERS TO FOLLOW
I've wanted to read this ALL YEAR and it was just as good as I heard it would be!!! I, at first, was so in denial of all the murders (for obvious Ravi and Eudora reasons) that I was CONVINCED that that none of it was real?? Or like a ploy to get all the Dux's to be civil with one another? But as the story kept going I realized that, yes all of these people were actually dead. I think the deaths that upset me the most were Shinjiro and Jasper (only because he was a literal child. he was kind of an awful person). (I was also really sad when Leo died even though he was also a prick. I just felt bad for the situation that led him to do all that). I expected more of them to survive for some reason but when Cordelia's plan was revealed it all made sense in the end (sadly). I was really glad Tendai and Yewande managed to escape mostly unscathed though and I'm still mourning a little the death of Wyatt??? I was so in love with the Wyatt version of Ravi that when he revealed himself I was so shocked. There were a TON of clues though now that I'm thinking back on all of it. Overall it was such a mind bobbling story because every character I suspected died almost immediately after. I can't wait to read more books from this author!!
Graphic: Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Homophobia, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
the_queer_bibliophile'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
4.0
Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for the eARC of this book. I ended up reading a physical copy I received at the ALA conference. All thoughts are my own. I gotta say, this book had me on my toes from the very beginning. I loved Dee from the start, his humor being very relatable to my own. I also love Grasshopper and some of the other side characters.
I loved how much they emphasized the importance of mental health in this book. And just the general belief of believing in yourself. This book overall was a good laugh and a good mystery novel. I definitely recommend it to those who enjoy mystery/fantasy themes and LGBTQ+ representation.
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
blyberry345's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
genuinely a really fun read for the most part, and good queer and poc rep
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Murder
jennireadsmaybe's review against another edition
- 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
Ganymedes Piscero is my all time favorite fantasy MC. He's an awkward, funny, magic-less, outsider who can't seem to escape from his own thoughts. As someone who is depressed and has struggled with suicidal thoughts, I thought the mental health rep is phenomenal. I identified so much with Dee. I also loved the bits of romance that were sprinkled throughout. It was so fun!
Honestly, I think authors should take notes on how to make a diverse fantasy world from Voyage of the Damned. BIPOC, queer, disabled, chronically ill, mental health, and fat rep all find there way throughout the book. It was beautifully done.
Read this if you like well-built fantasy worlds, fantasy standalones, queernormative worlds, locked room mysteries, representations of all kinds, and sarcastic MCs.
Graphic: Death, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Murder
Moderate: Blood and Grief
Minor: Body shaming and Sexual content
paschal'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
4.75
I appreciate the Advanced Copy to Review from Harlequin and this is my honest opinion.
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Cursing, Emotional abuse, and Murder
Sexual diversity is a minor theme