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skillyillian'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
4.5
The characters are fun, I absolutely adore a good motley crew/found family story and this one hit the nail on the head. Victor, Mitch, and Sydney are one of the best found families I've seen in a long time. Victor is Mr. Brooding, all self control and an unsettling power that's quiet until it's not, and it's hot AF. Mitch is a terrifying, tattooed gladiator, full of intelligence and a soft spot for the little girl he and his cellmate have adopted together, which brings us to Sydney. A tween scared of her own power when the story starts, she grows up in several ways as time progresses, until she's a very different person by the end. You cheer for all three the whole time as you watch them become a team and work together against Eli.
Speaking of which, Victor and Eli are the #1 most gay pair of nemeses I've ever seen in my life. Constantly thinking of each other, what they look like, what they're doing, daydreaming about seeing each other again for literally ten years, the little moments of intimacy during the flashbacks to their college life together. So gay. So in love. Extremely home of the sexual.
The flashbacks thing is such a cool way to write a story, and an awesome tool for keeping the reader in suspense. Something exciting happens and you're like "holy shit, what happens next?!" And boom, it's ten years ago again and you have to wait to see what's next in the scene you just read and desperately want to get back to. What a rad fuckin idea, man. Loved it. Seeing characters make certain choices and then getting backstory to their motivations and why the choice they made is significant was so dope.
The way the powers in this story are created and the effects they have on their users is so incredibly well thought out and unique. I couldn't help but marvel at how interesting it was and I spent the whole time waiting to see what the next EO's powers would be and it was never a let-down when someone else was introduced.
V.E. Schwab is brilliant. I loved this and I will definitely be reading the next one soon.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Blood, Death, Suicide attempt, Violence, Gun violence, Animal death, Medical trauma, Murder, Child death, Medical content, and Self harm
Minor: Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Addiction, and Fire/Fire injury
brianneh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Murder, Blood, and Fire/Fire injury
theintrovertsbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Self harm, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, Death, Gun violence, Suicide, Blood, and Animal death
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Confinement, Stalking, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Torture
Minor: Cursing, Sexual content, Alcohol, Gore, and Grief
donatio'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
5.0
I loved the writing style and how she skipped back and forth between the past and the present. The characters were well-crafted and I found a connection to every one of them, especially Victor's group of strays.
It was not really action-packed but I still loved how the story evolved.
Before reading one should check the trigger warnings, because it gets dark at points and "There are no good men in this game" is quite true. The mix of flashbacks and present might be annoying for some people too.
Graphic: Violence, Toxic friendship, Suicide, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, Child abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Death, Deadnaming, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, and Suicide attempt
amethystandherbooks'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
Graphic: Gun violence, Alcohol, Death, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Drug use and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Animal death
astrid_mel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Medical content, Medical trauma, Blood, Violence, Hate crime, Self harm, Animal cruelty, Religious bigotry, Death, Animal death, Gun violence, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Toxic friendship, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, and Child abuse
Minor: Car accident, Alcoholism, and Addiction
mraddd's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Gore, Gun violence, Violence, Toxic friendship, Murder, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Torture
Moderate: Mental illness, Suicide attempt, Animal death, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Drug use
alexandrabelze's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Suicide, Violence, Cursing, Drug use, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Torture, Animal death, Blood, Gun violence, Death, Gore, Alcohol, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Child death, Medical content, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Stalking, and Abandonment
Minor: Addiction and Alcoholism
fernyfh'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: Animal death, Blood, Child death, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Violence, Death, Gun violence, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Suicide attempt
rosenau's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Death, Car accident, Body horror, Torture, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Gore, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Addiction, Animal death, Violence, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Alcoholism, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Confinement, Drug use, and Religious bigotry