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4.1 AVERAGE
4.1 AVERAGE
Ich habe das buch dnf’ed bei page 80. Ich konnte mich nicht mit der Story und den Charakteren identifizieren, vorallem waren die Protagonistin mit ihrem Monster nervig.
Major characters: ★★★★☆
Supportive cast: ★★★☆☆
Setting/Worldbuilding: ★★★★
Plot: ★★☆☆☆
Enjoyment: ★★★★☆
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The characters carry this book. Artemisia is very disagreeable, but written so well that it's charming and not annoying. She's neurodivergent in a way that is extremely relatable, lol, and her mannerisms make sense without feeling like the author was trying too hard while writing her.
I love her relationship with the revenant, and how they care for each other very deeply I'm desperate for more relationships like this in fiction. I really want to see more of them, because I want to learn more about the revenant and the furthering of , and how that would effect them both. I really love how they interact and grow together. It's just ugh, really nice.
I also absolutely fell in love with the worldbuilding. It's a grim, broody fantasy-ghost Catholicism without being tacky about it; where sacrifice is romanticized so that powerful spirits can be contained and controlled in relics. I love that shit.
The plot is the books weakest element. After the first inciting incident, it feels like the characters motivations are just kind of floating for awhile. Then things kind of just happen to her instead of her engaging the plot. The other problem is it's established very early on that Artesmia is effectively invincible. Even in the later half of the book it doesn't really feel like she's in a lot of danger because she's conquered huge threats so early on.
The other thing is that everyone who encounters her is too gentle, even when acting against her. Which is cool, because it's neat to have a reluctant threat. But there's no other source of tension, so it feels like it falls flat. Even the villian at the end listens to her too readily to be scary it feels like.
I really did enjoy this book's characters and the setting. The plot was okay at the very start, but fell off a lot in the middle and toward the end after the big threat is introduced. To be honest though I enjoyed the characters so much that I wasn't bothered that much by it ( except near the end). It's a fun book with fantastic character dynamic that's worth picking up especially if you enjoy interesting character relationships.
Supportive cast: ★★★☆☆
Setting/Worldbuilding: ★★★★
Plot: ★★☆☆☆
Enjoyment: ★★★★☆
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The characters carry this book. Artemisia is very disagreeable, but written so well that it's charming and not annoying. She's neurodivergent in a way that is extremely relatable, lol, and her mannerisms make sense without feeling like the author was trying too hard while writing her.
I love her relationship with the revenant, and how they care for each other very deeply
Spoiler
without it ever turning into a romance.Spoiler
Artemisia's impending religious crisisI also absolutely fell in love with the worldbuilding. It's a grim, broody fantasy-ghost Catholicism without being tacky about it; where sacrifice is romanticized so that powerful spirits can be contained and controlled in relics. I love that shit.
The plot is the books weakest element. After the first inciting incident, it feels like the characters motivations are just kind of floating for awhile. Then things kind of just happen to her instead of her engaging the plot. The other problem is it's established very early on that Artesmia is effectively invincible. Even in the later half of the book it doesn't really feel like she's in a lot of danger because she's conquered huge threats so early on.
Spoiler
The book also kind of markets her as being Extremely Important and later worshipped, but it doesn't feel like she's struggled enough to earn it. Her not wanting the worship doesn't feel like enough to counter the fact she hasn't worked for it, especially when she can just burst into flames--untrained--and kill everything.The other thing is that everyone who encounters her is too gentle, even when acting against her. Which is cool, because it's neat to have a reluctant threat. But there's no other source of tension, so it feels like it falls flat.
I really did enjoy this book's characters and the setting. The plot was okay at the very start, but fell off a lot in the middle and toward the end after the big threat is introduced. To be honest though I enjoyed the characters so much that I wasn't bothered that much by it ( except near the end). It's a fun book with fantastic character dynamic that's worth picking up especially if you enjoy interesting character relationships.
Whoa.
I was fully expecting to give this 4 stars. I was enjoying it while reading, but I continuously found myself without motivation to pick up to book to read for a while, and repeatedly found other things to do instead. It wasn't that it didn't hold my interest, but it just wasn't drawing me in, you know?
But then I got to the last quarter of the book and BOOM suddenly all the action missing from the first part was happening, there was a ton of plot and character development, and I was hugely eager to find out what happened next. I'm satisfied with the ending but I'm really sad that the rest of the series was canceled.
Some things I loved about this book:
Artemisia - I feel like she was such a unique character, given the fact that she had so much social anxiety, which we don't often see in a protagonist, and I really liked her as a character.
The friendship dynamic between Artemisia and Marguerite - I love how, despite all odds, these two formed a strong friendship, and I really loved how Marguerite understood Artemisia's anxiety and tried to help her in every way possible. She's such a sweet character and I wish she got a little more page time.
The revenant - It reminds me of Clef from Foundryside, except ten times grumpier. I LIVED the character development here, and even though Iiked it at the start of the book, I LOVED it at the end when there was more of a partnership (even a friendship) between it and Artemisia. I couldn't fight the grin off my face when it possessed Artemisia to protect her and fight Sarathiel and it was like "This is MY human!" I wanted to cry tbh it was so sweet.
The magic system - It was just so unique, and it's not exactly a magic system per se... I don't really know what to call it. But I've never read anything like it.
I'm so glad that Vespertine took a turn at the end that led me to like it so much. Honestly, this is a prime example on why I refuse to ever dnf a book
I was fully expecting to give this 4 stars. I was enjoying it while reading, but I continuously found myself without motivation to pick up to book to read for a while, and repeatedly found other things to do instead. It wasn't that it didn't hold my interest, but it just wasn't drawing me in, you know?
But then I got to the last quarter of the book and BOOM suddenly all the action missing from the first part was happening, there was a ton of plot and character development, and I was hugely eager to find out what happened next. I'm satisfied with the ending but I'm really sad that the rest of the series was canceled.
Some things I loved about this book:
Artemisia - I feel like she was such a unique character, given the fact that she had so much social anxiety, which we don't often see in a protagonist, and I really liked her as a character.
The friendship dynamic between Artemisia and Marguerite - I love how, despite all odds, these two formed a strong friendship, and I really loved how Marguerite understood Artemisia's anxiety and tried to help her in every way possible. She's such a sweet character and I wish she got a little more page time.
The revenant - It reminds me of Clef from Foundryside, except ten times grumpier. I LIVED the character development here, and even though Iiked it at the start of the book, I LOVED it at the end when there was more of a partnership (even a friendship) between it and Artemisia. I couldn't fight the grin off my face when it possessed Artemisia to protect her and fight Sarathiel and it was like "This is MY human!" I wanted to cry tbh it was so sweet.
The magic system - It was just so unique, and it's not exactly a magic system per se... I don't really know what to call it. But I've never read anything like it.
I'm so glad that Vespertine took a turn at the end that led me to like it so much. Honestly, this is a prime example on why I refuse to ever dnf a book
i rlly liked how different this book was. i have never read a book abt a “possessed” person with super strength but i actually enjoyed it. i liked how the 1st half was dark/action/mystery but then the 2nd just seemed to get kinda boring & there didnt seem to be much happening which is why im rating this 3 stars instead of 4
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very cool concept, I'm very intrigued by the lore and honestly wish this would become a series. The hint at a lore dump in the epilogue was not enough. As a standalone the pacing just felt a little bit off for me. I struggled to find my groove reading. Also, sorry, but I didn't find Artemesia compelling enough as our main character and narrator. I wish we got an insight into Leander or Marguerite's POV for at least a couple chapters.
I really am a sucker for possession and shared consciousness stories. This was so good, and even though some parts seemed to lack a little clarity, it was super enjoyable to read. It’s unfortunate this won’t be getting a sequel, but I’m glad to have been able to read this.
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
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:
Yes
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was not a high starred read for me. The storyline was very slow and I had a hard time staying interested.