Reviews with content warning for Kidnapping - Kings Cage

Glass Sword was dark and painful and when I wrote a review from that book I said I think the next one is going to be worse ... and I was right. The first part was especially painful. Then the ending was so much worse. I just really hope the next book is less painful.

Content Warnings

the_prophecy_13's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-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? It's complicated

3.25

The bad:

The bath scene. What. was that.
The pacing in the first 60% of the book is very drawn-out.
It feels like Victoria was just giving Mare more trauma for the heck of it. I don't particularly like Mare, but I don't want her to be miserable constantly! Girlie got to be happy for, like, three chapters in the entire book
Speaking of Mare's trauma, it's not well done. I do like that she has some PTSD symptoms, but I wish the book delved deeper into them. I feel like some of the things she went through should have affected her a whole lot more than "she flinches when this person is nearby bc they hurt her :((("
Mare is inconsistent. She seems to flip-flop between personalities (fiery, stubborn, and proud; competent and friendly; paranoid and uncertain; vacant and hopeless), and I know some of that could be due to trauma, but I feel like she's just an inconsistent character overall.
Also, Mare says "the shadow of the flame" again. Victoria. I am begging you to stop. Flames do not have shadows. I repeat, FLAMES DO NOT HAVE SHADOWS. PLEASE Google it. (I don't know why this bothers me so much, lol.)
Relating to the above, some of the writing was just... cringe. I don't care enough to go back through the book to find examples, but it sometimes felt like Victoria was trying too hard to be all edgy and poetic and deep. Girl, it's an average YA. Don't take yourself so seriously.
I didn't like Cameron's POV chapters. She's just annoying. It's bad enough seeing her through Mare's eyes.

The good:

The ending (the last 100 pages or so) was quite good, as usual in this series, and kept me engaged.
The final battle was very tense and felt realistic for the parties involved.
Evangeline, surprisingly, got very compelling all of a sudden.
She's still not a good person, but I empathize more with her now that she's not just a bully. I'm hoping for more POV chapters.
Mare's dynamics with other characters were so much better than in previous books. Her and Cal have much better chemistry and interactions
(though it's a shame they're only around each other for the last 40% or so of the book)
. Mare and Farley are great as sorta sister-figures. Mare and Cameron get some sorely-needed bonding time (in, like, the last 10% of the book. Cameron was irritating for the first 90%). Mare and Kilorn are very sweet (well, y'know, as sweet as two bickering besties can be)
The politics, factions, etc were fairly well done, although I'd have to analyze in more detail to be sure lol

Content Warnings

mbrogs2024's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

ladybug12793's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.75

Cameron’s POVs were pointless. She was a hypocrite. At least there was some Cam/Mare redemption by the end. Wish the alternate POVs were either one of the princes or Farley. I also wish the chapters were shorter. I enjoyed this book nonetheless. Could’ve been 100 pages shorter. Felt like it dragged on in the beginning and like nothing much happened besides like two battles and the ending that we all saw coming. Heartbroken but looking forward to the next book.

Also certain readers complaining about Mare being traumatized by literally being tortured by silent stone everyday have absolutely no empathy. She was still imprisoned and tortured in multiple ways psychologically and physically but I guess since she had a nice bed then she shouldn’t complain?! Like chill people. Absolutely insane.

0 🌶️

Content Warnings

aammeess's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional 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

3.75

Content Warnings

micaelamariem's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

This was such a let down from how much I enjoyed the rest of the series. The majority of the book is Mare being trapped in a room and just wallowing about it, which was incredibly boring.
I didn’t think her torture was as dramatic as it should’ve been.
The twist towards the middle and end was interesting but it needed more. As it stands, this book did not need to be 500 pages.
Also wtf was that weird bathroom scene

Content Warnings

winglesswarrior's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

unremi's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

This is definitely my favorite book of the series! It caused me to verbally emote while reading and was quite an enjoyable read. Especially with the learning of new character’s perspectives and traumas. This book is in different characters perspectives changing by chapter!

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