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lizziaha's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Animal death, Abandonment, Murder, Animal cruelty, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent
Moderate: Kidnapping, Blood, Gore, Trafficking, Drug use, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Grief, Homophobia, and Rape
Minor: Sexism, Misogyny, Torture, and Classism
dragongirl271'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
Moderate: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Death, and Animal cruelty
Minor: Death of parent, Sexual assault, and Domestic abuse
bri_morgan'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
4.25
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Addiction, Grief, Animal death, and Confinement
keikyu's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Physical abuse, and Animal cruelty
elskabee'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? It's complicated
5.0
This is a relatively plotless book, but that's a good thing because the time spent on character development was more than enough to hold my attention. Hava is proof that a good, well-written character is not necessarily a likeable character (though I loved her), as she struggles to interact with others in conventional ways and often expects the worst intentions even without evidence. But of course she isn't mean and rude for no reason, the events in her life preceding this book make hating her even in her brattiest moments impossible. People see the good in her that she struggles to see in herself, and her journey to connect genuinely with those around her is heartbreaking and heartwarming simultaneously.
Also WOW the entirety of part two was so tense and incredibly done! I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll just say that I love survival stories and Cashore always does them so well!
This series is an all time favourite, literally nothing will ever top it, and this is possibly my favourite book in the series so far!
Graphic: Animal death and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Death of parent and Grief
erimore'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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Murder and Grief
Moderate: Vomit, Animal cruelty, War, Sexual assault, and Rape
princessofpages's review against another edition
4.5
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Grief, Animal cruelty, Torture, and Sexual violence
sonshinelibrarian's review against another edition
5.0
Trigger warnings abound for this book, but Cashore handles everything with a sense of hope that keeps it from getting too dark. This book destroyed me in the best possible way and, like with Bitterblue, I'll be thinking about it for years to come.
Graphic: Death of parent, Animal cruelty, and Grief
Moderate: Rape, Murder, Abandonment, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Child abuse and Pedophilia
merenguita's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I honestly struggled to decide what rating to give this book, the beggining was really slow, but I think it was necesarry to build up everything that happens later, it also fits with the way Hava sees and interacts with the world. I think the way it's narrated really differs from the other books of the saga, which is really refreshing, I find that in a lot of books that go through different narrators, they all kind of sound the same, where as this one felt absolutley different. That was a reason why I didn't like it at first but then I got used to it and even got to love the way Hava feels and reads as a character. I highlighted when another character says to her "You're really articulate about how confused you are" because that's a pretty good summary of how I felt.
By the end this book felt just as good as the others in the series, and I really hope Kristin Cashore keeps expanding on this world because I'm not sure if I want to let it go yet.
There's some really dense and hard to read topics throughout the story, so I would recomend to read the CW beforehand and to take your time if you have to.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Grief, Blood, Vomit, Violence, Physical abuse, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual violence and Torture
TW for hypothermia and general trauma response/trauma aftermath kind of thingbetweentheshelves'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
3.5
Hava, the main character in this one, isn't the most likeable at the beginning, but her journey is one of reckoning with the abuse and neglect she faced as a child. Throughout, she's able to work through that, to allow herself to trust once again. It's a character arc that really works, and the addition of the foxes does wonders. The foxes were honestly my favorite part of this book!
However, I would love if Cashore focused on a different aspect of this world if she wants to keep writing Graceling books. Show me a different set of characters, with maybe a mention of those we already know. It would help build the world even more, and the world is one of the best parts of this series.
All in all, I enjoyed this, but not as much as the early Cashore books.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Grief
Moderate: Death of parent, Child abuse, and Sexual assault
Minor: Homophobia, Child death, and Rape