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bookishaddictions's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
4.0
I snagged this beauty via @libby.app after finding this in the poetry category. Iโm not huge on poetry, but I really enjoyed following along as Iliana explored Prague. Romero explores the identity struggles faced by Jewish Latinx people, especially as individuals like Iliana are still trying to heal from the multi-generational trauma. I loved the way Romero emphasized the beauty of music and of Ilianaโs love for Hebrew traditions, as these were critical parts of who she is. The love shared between Iliana and other characters also added to the magic of the story, though Iโll acknowledge the ghosts helped with that one too. I would definitely recommend this story to others, and Iโm hoping to snag a copy for my class library! ๐ป
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death and Genocide
Minor: War
joanna77_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
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? Yes
4.25
โ๐๐๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ก๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐ฌ๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ข๐ง๐ฌ. ๐๐๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ฐ๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ซ๐, ๐ข๐ง ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฆ๐ ๐จ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐ฅ๐ข๐๐. ๐๐๐ฒ๐๐ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ก๐ข๐๐๐๐ง ๐๐ฐ๐๐ฒ ๐ข๐ง๐ฌ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ซ๐๐ฌ ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ค๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐๐ก, ๐ ๐ฏ๐ข๐ฉ๐๐ซ, ๐ ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐.โ
This book was absolutely heart-wrenching. From beginning to end I was just filled with this sense of melancholy. This book is all about the Jewish experience in Europe. It talks about abandoned cemeteries and the Holocaust. It describes the communist regime and the desecration of monuments. This whole books serves as a testimony of what Jewish people have been treated like for centuries.
It was really hard to read at several points, because like I said, itโs just so sad. I really liked how it was written in verse, I thought that made it super impactful and I liked all of the interludes from the main bad guy and the presence of music throughout the story.
I thought the villain was absolutely terrifying. He was just so wicked, reading his point of view was terrifying. He served as a great metaphor. The inclusion of Slavic mythology was also fantastic!
Overall, I really loved this, but I did have some issues with the age gap and ghost romance stories kind of freak me out a little bit, but other than that, this story was top notch.
Iโve loved every book by this author and encourage everyone to pick them up.
โ๐๐ก๐ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฏ๐ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฐ๐๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฏ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ง.โ
This book was absolutely heart-wrenching. From beginning to end I was just filled with this sense of melancholy. This book is all about the Jewish experience in Europe. It talks about abandoned cemeteries and the Holocaust. It describes the communist regime and the desecration of monuments. This whole books serves as a testimony of what Jewish people have been treated like for centuries.
It was really hard to read at several points, because like I said, itโs just so sad. I really liked how it was written in verse, I thought that made it super impactful and I liked all of the interludes from the main bad guy and the presence of music throughout the story.
I thought the villain was absolutely terrifying. He was just so wicked, reading his point of view was terrifying. He served as a great metaphor. The inclusion of Slavic mythology was also fantastic!
Overall, I really loved this, but I did have some issues with the age gap and ghost romance stories kind of freak me out a little bit, but other than that, this story was top notch.
Iโve loved every book by this author and encourage everyone to pick them up.
โ๐๐ก๐ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฏ๐ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ง๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฐ๐๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ข๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฏ๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ง.โ
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, and Antisemitism
amberinpieces's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
fast-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? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Death, and Grief
Minor: Child death, Genocide, Violence, and Antisemitism
rebyreadsandwrites's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Antisemitism
Moderate: Child abuse and Child death
Minor: Confinement, Death, Genocide, Violence, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, and War
caidyn's review
emotional
hopeful
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? Yes
4.0
I didn't expect this book to be in verse, but I so enjoyed it. The meditation on history and memory -- and how central it is to Judaism -- really was great and drew me in. I'll be keeping an eye out for this author!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, and Antisemitism
acornell's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, and Antisemitism
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
dark
emotional
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
4.0
This fantasy novel in verse weaves magical realism, hitting on the dark history of Prague and the Nazi invasion. Becasue of that, it deals with a lot of Jewish trauma, and Ilana helps to the ghosts to work through that and fight against the monsters that kept them trapped.
At first, the story was a bit difficult to get into as it moves slowly right at the beginning. But, once Ilana meets Benjamin she's opened to the world of ghosts. The way Romero weaves this mythology into the world worked really well and made the story interesting to read.
Apparently, 2022 is the year of Jewish YA fantasy, and so far, I ahve been here for it. Let's keep them coming!
At first, the story was a bit difficult to get into as it moves slowly right at the beginning. But, once Ilana meets Benjamin she's opened to the world of ghosts. The way Romero weaves this mythology into the world worked really well and made the story interesting to read.
Apparently, 2022 is the year of Jewish YA fantasy, and so far, I ahve been here for it. Let's keep them coming!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, and Antisemitism
Minor: War
danileah07's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Antisemitism
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