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nollistaa's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
leia_faith's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
rouge_garance's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
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
zaineylaney's review against another edition
4.0
✨ The Title/Cover Draw:
I had heard about this book from other fantasy reviewers and really felt like it would be fun. Also it was part of my @bookofthemonth challenge for this month!
I had heard about this book from other fantasy reviewers and really felt like it would be fun. Also it was part of my @bookofthemonth challenge for this month!
moominmaeve's review against another edition
3.0
Not that convinced by the romance, need a little more in a romantic lead than one note heroism I guess.
issianne's review against another edition
5.0
I'm *obsessed*.
Reread 6/2021: this book is so well done. I’m not one to normally enjoy info dumping, but Novik does it just enough to a limit that’s natural. Any teenager who is trying to describe to you what their life is like would pause in the middle of something happening to go on an almost rant-like description of the ins and outs of what they have to do to keep themselves alive and how they have to exert energy to do magic. El seems like she’s going to be this anti-hero, not-like-all-the-other-girls female protagonist, and while she is very much that way for parts of the book, her character development and the journey she goes on shows that there’s so much more to her than just that. I just love the weirdness there is to this world and the school, and how accepted it is by all the characters.
Reread 6/2021: this book is so well done. I’m not one to normally enjoy info dumping, but Novik does it just enough to a limit that’s natural. Any teenager who is trying to describe to you what their life is like would pause in the middle of something happening to go on an almost rant-like description of the ins and outs of what they have to do to keep themselves alive and how they have to exert energy to do magic. El seems like she’s going to be this anti-hero, not-like-all-the-other-girls female protagonist, and while she is very much that way for parts of the book, her character development and the journey she goes on shows that there’s so much more to her than just that. I just love the weirdness there is to this world and the school, and how accepted it is by all the characters.
drm13's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
fleurs_annotations's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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? No
4.0
cowrie123's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
emdashing's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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
4.75
While medium-paced, it also felt pretty lean and tightly plotted. I really love the character voice and the world building. The characters also felt really complex, nuanced, and really fleshed out to me, which made me so invested. I also thought the book did a pretty brilliant job of showing how privilege can deeply impact different people's experiences in the same environment in ways they may have taken for granted, and I think could serve as a great conversation starter around those topics. I started the second book immediately even though I have others due back before it.