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calmcozycorner's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Grief, Blood, Violence, Murder, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Vomit and Physical abuse
persephonefoxx'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
4.75
I am a different person.
It’s the truly insane and audible ‘what the actual fuck’ moment I experienced reading the final chapter for me.
Truly, holy shit and what the fuck.
Graphic: Death, Murder, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Classism, Grief, Suicide, Death of parent, Colonisation, and Vomit
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, and Bullying
saltycoffee's review
- 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
4.75
Graphic: Slavery, Bullying, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Classism, and Grief
andrew_corduroy's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Gore, Murder, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Grief, and Physical abuse
Minor: Vomit, Torture, and War
karenreadsbooks's review
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
This book was a single first person POV throughout, which I found refreshing so as not to have to keep up with so many POVs. That meant we really got to know Vis on a deep level, which I enjoyed. I had lots of highlighting and annotations throughout, and I can definitely see a reread at some point (probably before the next book comes out).
The book had my attention from the opening scene and kept it the entire time. We have Vis who is in hiding after his family was killed; he ends up in an elite school and has to work his way to the top and discover some of the secrets being hidden. In this world, the magic system is a pyramid-like structure with those on the lower levels ceding Will to those above, so the higher up in the pyramid you are, the more powerful, while those at the bottom are drained of energy all the time.
The motto of the Hierarchy is "Stronger Together" which seems to promise inclusion, protection, and belonging. But, as Vis points out, "you never have to look far to see its hypocrisy laid bare." At another point: "A fair system only works if there's an unbiased means of assessing merit. When there is no pride or selfishness involved....which means that fair systems cannot exist where people are involved." So much of what was wrong with the Hierarchy also feels like a commentary on our own society and the problems within it.
I cried a couple of times toward the end. And I'm so intrigued by what happened right at the end. I wrote a big WHAT?! on the final page. Excited to see where this goes.
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Classism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Death, Misogyny, and Violence
potion96'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
4.75
Graphic: Violence, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death of parent, Blood, Child death, Classism, Colonisation, and Death
Moderate: Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Confinement, and Grief
arian_dragonelf's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Colonisation, and Genocide
Moderate: Murder and Grief
daniparvu's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Violence, Physical abuse, and Gore
Moderate: Bullying and Grief
Minor: Suicide
zoeelora's review
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Murder, Death, Blood, Forced institutionalization, and Slavery
Moderate: Child abuse, Classism, Slavery, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, War, Medical content, Physical abuse, Suicide, Grief, and Vomit
aileron'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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Death, Murder, Gore, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Colonisation, Classism, Bullying, and Death of parent
Minor: War, Suicide, Grief, and Medical content