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amyc95's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
louisallama's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
It's a little bit hard for me to review because 1. the blurb doesn't tell you what the story is about and 2. it's not the type of book I usually gravitate towards, due in part to the somewhat misleading blurb (the blurb purposefully did 't including main plot points for story reasons). I was expecting exciting magical memory stuff, but instead this was an extremely character driven novel that was far more focused on the experiences of the main characters and the evil ways that memory binding could be used. Despite this, the story was lovely, and I definitely cried through the end of Part Two when Emmett and Lucien get found out. The prose was very nice, although it got a little flowery for me at times. None of these things are really criticisms of the book itself (except maybe the blurb I guess) and I can definitely see other people loving this book more than me, but I still definitely enjoyed it overall.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing, Suicide, Murder, Animal death, Homophobia, and Rape
Moderate: Classism, Cursing, Vomit, Physical abuse, Incest, Alcoholism, and Death
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
ttimemachines's review
adventurous
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
you know, honestly? i for one was not mad about the romance bait and switch.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Homophobia, Violence, and Child abuse
Moderate: Sexual assault
welgan's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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? Yes
4.25
This is a very dark story, please pay attention to the trigger warnings beforehand. That said, even if I prefer cosy books at this time of my life, I very much enjoyed the Binding because a bit of angst is always cathartic, and because the author has one great concept (the binding) and explores it very well, from several points of view and possibilities. It felt thoroughly explored and I liked that a lot.
The beginning is a bit slow but the second and third parts of the book really bring the story to a great level of aching for the characters.
The ending lacked a bit of resolution of some old tensions between the two main characters in my opinion but was fine, and the whole book was an enjoyable experience !
Also the summary of story spoils way too much in my opinion X)
The beginning is a bit slow but the second and third parts of the book really bring the story to a great level of aching for the characters.
The ending lacked a bit of resolution of some old tensions between the two main characters in my opinion but was fine, and the whole book was an enjoyable experience !
Also the summary of story spoils way too much in my opinion X)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Vomit, Sexual violence, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, and Rape
Moderate: Murder
verbosevespertine's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Suicide, Animal death, Alcoholism, and Blood
Minor: Rape and Sexual assault
briannafenty's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
Moderate: Homophobia and Sexual assault
aroth638's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
This book had so many ideas that could have become really interesting and engaging world building elements but instead ended up being mostly abandoned. I think this book is mismarketed and should be labeled a romance. I did enjoy the romance but was overall disappointed by the lack of depth of everything else in the story. Probably half of my drive to finish this book came from frustration on things being unresolved, and in the end, they mostly stayed that way. 2.75 stars for good foundations, and a captivating love story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse, Rape, and Suicide
darcyparcy's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-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? Yes
3.5
i had trouble rating this book. the structure and pacing affected my reading experience enough that i had to dock my rating significantly. going from emmett's perspective then to all his memories that were in his book and finally to lucian's perspective was a bit jarring and made the plot feel disconnected for me. however, i did enjoy the characters and the relationship between emmett and lucian. i enjoyed that it wasn't love at first sight for them, and that they had to see past their own pride to let themselves fall in love. i just wish the plot was more cohesive and the world the characters lived in could be developed a little more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Animal death
nunchikoi's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Picked this book out of the shelf on a whim and was pleasantly surprised at the romance! Did not take the turn I was expecting, but again just so pleasantly surprised so I didn't mind. You can tell that this is the author's first foray into adult fiction, and there are some regrettable parts in the plot, but I think it's an overall earnest queer story.
I will say that the premise of memory-bound books could've been fleshed out more, towards the end, it felt more like a gimmick but that might be more of a personal preference as again, I didn't really know what to expect.
I will say that the premise of memory-bound books could've been fleshed out more, towards the end, it felt more like a gimmick but that might be more of a personal preference as again, I didn't really know what to expect.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Sexual assault
Moderate: Violence, Suicide, Homophobia, Rape, and Grief
It is extremely bittersweet, but not without hope.acasiamae's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Animal death
Moderate: Rape, Vomit, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault
Minor: Death, Homophobia, Murder, Addiction, and Alcoholism