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sav_22'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
4.5
Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Xenophobia, Ableism, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, Blood, Drug use, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Racism, Slavery, Bullying, Drug abuse, Death, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, Toxic friendship, Violence, and War
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Medical trauma, Police brutality, Colonisation, Torture, Medical content, and Outing
venti's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Graphic: Abandonment, Violence, and Child abuse
Moderate: Death of parent, Lesbophobia, Death, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Misogyny, War, Torture, and Sexism
ninamanon'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
3.75
The writing was a bit too obvious and over explaining to my taste, sometimes. Some things would’ve worked better if they were left for the reader to figure out and conclude.
The main twist could be spotted from a mile away. Maybe that was intentional! But it didn’t really work for me.
I also didn’t feel a lot of chemistry between the main couple. It felt a little forced. There was barely any buildup.
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Xenophobia, Blood, Bullying, and Racism
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Addiction, Classism, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Torture, War, Alcohol, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, and Slavery
lunar_song'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
5.0
Graphic: Xenophobia
Moderate: Violence, Murder, Death, Racism, Child abuse, Abandonment, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Self harm, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Lesbophobia and Sexism
thehappylittleelf'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
4.75
This. This is how.
I was hooked all the way through. Kudos for the author, this is a really creative story. I have already bought the sequel.
Graphic: Drug abuse, Blood, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Child abuse, and Drug use
Moderate: Murder, Physical abuse, Sexism, Lesbophobia, and Misogyny
cbg11003'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
If you like fantasy, the sleeping beauty story, and/or sapphic stories and don't mind having your heart played with, definitely give this book a go.
Graphic: Bullying and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Child abuse, Death of parent, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Confinement, War, and Death
Minor: Animal death and Body shaming
ednam0dewannabe's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Violence, Torture, Sexism, Racial slurs, and Racism
Minor: War, Toxic relationship, Torture, Slavery, and Drug use
booksthatburn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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
3.5
The romance is fine, I guess, not my favorite but not terrible. It's not the core of the story and I don't think it's trying to be. As a retelling, this doesn't require any knowledge of the source material. While it's more than referential, it remixes and reframes the pieces until it's a new story which can stand on its own. I actually think it reads much better if you're not trying to see where it compares to the older story. I like how it dives into the Fae side of the story without moving the setting away from the kingdom, their lives are affected by the big deeds and magical pacts of hundreds of years prior but they just have to get through today, and the next day.
I was troubled by the way it uses references to the Pleasure Graces without actually clarifying what their role is. It felt like it was heavily implied that they're sex slaves (where slavery feels like too strong of a term for the other Graces even though they're just as trapped, but feels extremely appropriate if the Pleasure Graces have involuntary sex work as part of their Crown-mandated position). If all that's happening is their gift is used in potions that help other people have better sex then I wish the novel had taken the time to clarify that point. Instead, it uses a scene with someone pretending to be a Pleasure Grace, intimating that she's there to provide the kind of service to a new bride that has historically been associated with concubines and sex workers, and doesn't provide clarification. If the Pleasure Graces are sex slaves then that should have been the rallying cry, not the much weaker claims about wishing for the system to be "better" somehow. Basically there's just enough detail to be very uncomfortable and not enough for me to be sure that I'm incorrect about my guess. Ultimately it's a small part of the story and I'll keep an eye on how that aspect is handled (if at all) in the sequel.
Overall this is a solid retelling and a good novel which depicts the slow slide of a trapped young woman into the monster everyone already thought she was.
Graphic: Torture, Blood, and Sexual content
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Homophobia, Sexism, Misogyny, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Self harm, Murder, and Death
Minor: Child abuse and Death of parent
ashleycmms's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Death, Blood, Murder, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Child death, and Xenophobia
Different magical beings. Several kinds of beings have been wiped out of existence and have experienced immense hate.aliyyah'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
2.5
Malice is a sapphic retelling of Sleeping Beauty that follows Alyce, a Dark Grace who is abhorred and feared for the mysterious dark magic that runs in her veins.
I adored the concept of this book. Any sapphic retelling is something that is right up my alley but I couldn't help finding the execution poor. The plot was lacking, in my opinion. Every 'twist' was predictable. It also took a while for things to really pick up and I was basically bored for a large part of the story.
I hate to say it but Alyce sort of annoyed me a little in the beginning. I think she's supposed to be twenty but she reads like sixteen. I was able to sympathise with her though, because of the treatment she received from practically everyone for her entire life. So if she was a little naive, I gave it a pass. I liked Aurora, but she felt very two dimensional. In fact, every character fell flat in my opinion. Rose and Marigold were nothing but evil stepsisters. The king felt like a fucking Disney villain for god's sake.
I suppose one of the only saving graces of this book was the relationship between Alyce and Aurora. I thought they were really cute together and I wish we had gotten to see some more of their development before the big kiss.
I enjoyed the writing. It was easy to get through and I was able to finish this book quickly. I thought the world was very cool as well.
Regrettably, Malice on a whole just fell flat. I think I expected something a little darker and then what I got was just another YA novel, which is not the book's fault.
I don't think this book was bad by any means, I just think that it wasn't for me. It felt like the type of story I've outgrown. If this seems like something you would vibe with, I still highly recommend that you check it out! Maybe you'll end up loving it.
Graphic: Child abuse, Blood, and Sexism