Reviews

When I learned that Elizabeth Knox had written a new fantasy novel, I barely even looked at its summary on Goodreads before I plunked down my digital dollars for a Kindle copy and scampered away with my e-purchase. Her books Dreamhunter and Dreamquake (and then Mortal Fire, set in the same world) made such an impression on me, transporting me to a truly unique fantastical setting with a story that packed an emotional wallop, that I was more than ready to follow her into whatever creation she had dreamed up most recently. And rather than feel cowed by its goodly length of 640 pages, I was blissfully grateful that she had crafted a world that would allow me plenty of time to immerse myself in it even while I couldn’t help but tear through it.
Anything can and does happen in the story, and it’s far from being predictable. Knox yanks readers into the story and pulls us along much as Shift grabs Taryn and takes her on marvelous journeys through the Sidh. I just let myself fall into this brilliant, wondrous and nearly indescribable brew Knox cooked up and savored each morsel. It’s a bit quirky and may not be for everyone, but it is magical and thoroughly memorable.
Read my full review, including a rating for content, at RatedReads.com: https://ratedreads.com/absolute-book-fiction-book-review/

s_piercenyback's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious slow-paced

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

3.0

christinebeswick's review

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3.0

This is a complex and sometimes untidy assortment of genres and mythology. It’s a combination of thriller, fantasy, romance, and a fair bit more including crime, punishment and final redemption. As a result, it’s confusing at times, but it's also fascinating, imaginative and well researched. The listless, dreary Purgatory was brilliantly described and very depressing.

At more than 600 pages, this was quite a commitment, but overall, it was worth it - 3.5 stars.

pao_reynard's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring 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

louloureadsbooks's review against another edition

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Dnf at p.74. 1 star for what I've read.

I found this weird (not the good kind of weird, like Susanna Clarke's Piranesi, or Alan Garner's Treacle Walker) and disappointing.

This book definitely casts a feeling when reading it but it's not for me.
It seems slow and all over the place. Perhaps it gathers and culminates into something that makes sense and is exciting but I don't care to put the immense effort in to find out. I can't even summon the interest to read the last few pages.

On a slight tangent, I wish publishers wouldn't plaster gushing comments by other authors and newspapers all over books. In my experience it's often false advertising. It doesn't ever make me want to read the book. The synopsis is what makes me want to read a book. Invariably the gushing quotes are at odds with my reading experience, so much so that I wonder of we've even read the same book. Guardian reckons this book 'ranks alongside His Dark Materials'. Hmm well, that's their opinion and they're entitled to it. My opinion is, the first 74 pages bear no resemblance to HDM, if they did this would be a totally different review and wouldn't have been a dnf.

partypie's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

bernie13's review against another edition

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1.0

DNF at 250 ish pages. This book is so hard to get through I couldn’t tell you what is going on at any point in the book.

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