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adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I saw a review that described the pacing of this book as slow in the beginning, medium pace in the middle, and fast fast in the end. I think the reason the beginning felt so slow is because of the character building and slowly revealing who they are. The writing is BEAUTIFUL in this story. A lot of the words still dwell in my mind. Faizal describes a small moment with so much story and beauty.
Arthie is an awesome character. She is strong and a perfect leader. She is like an onion meaning throughout the book we get a little more of her background/story until the very end where we finally know what she has been hiding. The little love triangle was a nice side plot, which I really liked in this story.
Jin has my whole heart. He had everything until it was taken away from him, which is when he found Arthie 💕 The tea shop they created sounds so wonderful and magical. I liked that his perspective was included.
Overall, I’m dying to read the next and see what happens. The way the book ended leaves the reader with a lot of questions. I hope to see more perspectives in the next book. I was dying to read from Mateo’s POV because who wouldn’t want to hear the thoughts of a lonely vampire?!? Such a beautiful debut.
Arthie is an awesome character. She is strong and a perfect leader. She is like an onion meaning throughout the book we get a little more of her background/story until the very end where we finally know what she has been hiding. The little love triangle was a nice side plot, which I really liked in this story.
Jin has my whole heart. He had everything until it was taken away from him, which is when he found Arthie 💕 The tea shop they created sounds so wonderful and magical. I liked that his perspective was included.
Overall, I’m dying to read the next and see what happens. The way the book ended leaves the reader with a lot of questions. I hope to see more perspectives in the next book. I was dying to read from Mateo’s POV because who wouldn’t want to hear the thoughts of a lonely vampire?!? Such a beautiful debut.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Racism, Grief, War, Classism
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Stalking
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This entire book had me saying "wait, did I miss something?" I kept feeling as though the characters had conversations that I, the reader, was not privy to, or there were background details that the characters knew about but were never explained in the actual text of the book. There's a difference between leaving some secrets until the end for plot, and just being too vague. I came close to DNFing this book. Ultimately I decided to finish it and honestly I needn't have bothered. I'm still scratching my head going "HUH?" Not because the ending was a vague cliffhanger (it was) but because I wasn't given enough background to actually connect with any of the characters or care what happens next. Disappointing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Murder, Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Love Hafzah’s writing and world, an easy five star read
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Violence, War
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent