Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin

126 reviews

melissafelicia's review

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really enjoyed this story. I liked the vibe of the world, a sort of Renaissance French witches vs religious witch hunters story. I disliked the male mc at first but as his character developed, he started growing on me. The main plot was a bit predictable, but there were still some plot twists I didn't see coming. I'm curious about the rest of the series! 

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solenaromanii's review against another edition

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tense slow-paced

1.5


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booksbooks1's review against another edition

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adventurous 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? No

5.0


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zia_c's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced
  • 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? It's complicated

3.5

I think I'm in love with the fmc. Must be her "i-don't-give-a-fuck" attitude toward everything. As for the mmc, he's sweet but aside from that i don't see no personality.

The plot is good but it's kinda confusing for me. There's no time reference and not much detail about the world. I don't even know the mmc's age.. lol.

Either way, I enjoyed reading it. The ending wasn't satisfactory nor was the 3rd part of the book but anyway. I'm rating this book on fmc alone. 

It's been a very long time since I've found a fmc with a spine and a impressive mouth( not like that). 

I don't know if I'll continue the series. I've got what I wanted and I can kinda see where the story's going so imma put in down for now. Reason is the YA writing style. The writing is beautiful and engaging, no doubt, but I still kinda not completely connect with it.

The story is good and I think those who enjoy YA will really like it. 

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cassiebartelme's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional 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? It's complicated

3.75

A fun read filled with magic and dynamic characters. I appreciated that the world building didn’t take up 3/4 of the book as some magic/fantasy books can do. I also really liked the dynamic cast of characters. I was rooting the the gang and can’t wait to find out what happens next…yes, it does end on a cliffhanger.

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izzie_r's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious 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

4.5

Long chapters :(, anyway Reid’s character growth>>>>>>> also I love ansel and coco <3 , Beaux is pointless. Lou is my all time fav book girl. Ended on a cliffhanger 😒 have to buy 2nd book. Also
Reid being a witch pissed me off like that completely defeats the point of witch and witch hunter romance also let the women have their own thing he’s already related to a king plus I loved that he didn’t swear and ima miss his stubbornness bc I don’t want him and Lou to get too similar I mean fgs they have the same long lost parent thing and it’s just weird how his father FIGURE  the archbishop is her LITERAL BIOLOGICAL father , speaking of glad that sexist prick died
anyway I loved this book it was a slow burn too but got a bit bored when the romance was done and it was just plot

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zoepagereader's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious tense slow-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? Yes

5.0

This book was the best witch book I’ve read this year. The two main characters were perfect opposites of each other, and the alternating point of views made sure the reader never gets board with who’s telling the story. I thought the use of French felt weird and out of place. Are they an English speaking country where everyone just says occasional phrases and swears in French? Why not on say it in full sentences? 5⭐️

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dlsmk's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5


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zias's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

4.5


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cosmicpasta's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.75

I was contemplating giving this a 1.75 or a 2 but because goodreads only allows whole numbers it's getting a 2 there and 1.75 here.

This sure was a book I finished. I waited a few days after actually finishing to write this so I dont have the same level of anger and try to be as fair as possible. Lots of others have said what I dont like in their reviews so I'm going to keep this brief.

This is book largely feels like a debut novel that was rushed in the editing or suggestions were largely ignored. The pacing was inconsistent as was the tone, with poorly placed humor in between scenes that should've been more serious. Especially the use if the annoying bar song characters kept using in the worst times. Theme wise, it is incredibly white feminist who recently was told she needed to be more intersectional but doesn't know how. So any feminist ideas that don't conform to white cishet women is played poorly
such as the use of "they are only female if they can have babies" or the catalyst of the story being "women fake sexual assult".
 

Character wise, the main characters were really lacking for me. Lou is constantly called smart and clever but majority of the book I found myself yelling because she was constantly making the stupid choice. Reid was slightly better but he still fell flat when it came to connecting clear dots. Not to mention their relationship did not click for me because while I love enemies to lovers, there is a difference between "different sides fall in love" and
one love interest is part of a group that has a history of killing minorities and children, both you read in detail.
I just cant see them falling in love with that background context. 
All in all, it was a messy, disjointed time that ended up being more aggravating in the end than enjoyable for me.

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