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pauline_ljm_iii's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-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
Just— stunning. This is one of those books that makes us writers ache to write something so good. Sophisticated, compelling, strong on all fronts. Corrick’s arc was just beautiful.
My favourite part about this was the emotions, and how believably they are written. Tessa, the fmc, is an emotional person, and I usually struggle to connect with these character types because they can easily turn melodramatic, but I think Tessa’s were done brilliantly. Worth studying to learn how to do.
The romance was very well-done. Tessa starts off as almost an item with her crush, which prevents instalove quite effectively, and their relational dynamic encounters some interesting obstacles and develops through that conflict in a fascinating way. The end result is very believable. It also wasn’t a super physical/pda/touchy-touchy relationship, which I appreciate. (See the content list at the end of the review for more details.)
The politics and twists were also done super well (I called part of the main one, muahaha). It takes a bit of effort at the beginning to get everyone straight, though, and I found the charts at the beginning helpful. I usually don’t like when I have to supplement my reading so to speak, but with DtN I was already hooked and more than willing to put the time in.
On that note — the narrative voice of the writing talks slower than I’m used to reading. I found I had to slow down my own reading by a little to catch the feel and flow of everything, but again I didn’t mind this because I felt it was intentional and added to the story.
The pacing was brilliant. Threads opened and closed seamlessly, and I wouldn’t say it’s breakneck pacing necessarily, but there was always something compelling me not to put it down. Teach meeeee
As for negatives, I have some nitpicks about prose, and I was a little uncomfortable during a to-be-mentioned “detailed embrace,” but other than that no complaints are coming to mind. I fell hard and fast in love with this book. I would like to see more of Tessa growing as a character in the sequel.
It was immediately and extremely similar to the basic premise and character roles in Midnight Thief by Livia Blackburne, and remained so for a good hundred pages. Some might be put off by this, but I loved Midnight Thief and was fully on board. It developed into its own thing soon enough, though, and (shh don’t tell) I may have even liked it better than MT.
My favourite part about this was the emotions, and how believably they are written. Tessa, the fmc, is an emotional person, and I usually struggle to connect with these character types because they can easily turn melodramatic, but I think Tessa’s were done brilliantly. Worth studying to learn how to do.
The romance was very well-done. Tessa starts off as almost an item with her crush, which prevents instalove quite effectively, and their relational dynamic encounters some interesting obstacles and develops through that conflict in a fascinating way. The end result is very believable. It also wasn’t a super physical/pda/touchy-touchy relationship, which I appreciate. (See the content list at the end of the review for more details.)
The politics and twists were also done super well (I called part of the main one, muahaha). It takes a bit of effort at the beginning to get everyone straight, though, and I found the charts at the beginning helpful. I usually don’t like when I have to supplement my reading so to speak, but with DtN I was already hooked and more than willing to put the time in.
On that note — the narrative voice of the writing talks slower than I’m used to reading. I found I had to slow down my own reading by a little to catch the feel and flow of everything, but again I didn’t mind this because I felt it was intentional and added to the story.
The pacing was brilliant. Threads opened and closed seamlessly, and I wouldn’t say it’s breakneck pacing necessarily, but there was always something compelling me not to put it down. Teach meeeee
As for negatives, I have some nitpicks about prose, and I was a little uncomfortable during a to-be-mentioned “detailed embrace,” but other than that no complaints are coming to mind. I fell hard and fast in love with this book. I would like to see more of Tessa growing as a character in the sequel.
It was immediately and extremely similar to the basic premise and character roles in Midnight Thief by Livia Blackburne, and remained so for a good hundred pages. Some might be put off by this, but I loved Midnight Thief and was fully on board. It developed into its own thing soon enough, though, and (shh don’t tell) I may have even liked it better than MT.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent and Death
Minor: Cursing, Vomit, Sexual content, and Rape
Minimalish content (certainly not as far as Brigid could have gone, which I appreciate): -> 1 each of a-, d-, and b-word. A couple h-s maybe but they’re not coming to mind. -> A few kisses. There is one very *detailed* embrace, but it doesn’t progress. The love interest goes shirtless a couple times (for wound treatment reasons, which at least there’s a reason), and Tessa finds it hard not to ogle. -> Tessa at one point leads her coworker and her employer to believe she’s pregnant, but it’s brief and false and is not a plot point by any means. -> In a scuffle, Tessa’s dress is torn to expose some of her front. Her opposer sits on top of her while this happens. Witnesses spin a scandal, but it’s also brief and false. Plenty of bloody fighting, and moderately-graphic descriptions of death. I’m not one to be too affected by this, but it’s worth mentioning.mrsschreave's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-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
5.0
omfg so good wasn’t bored the whole way through
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Chronic illness
Moderate: Classism, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Torture, and Violence
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Alcohol, and Cursing
jessieslibrary's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- 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? No
5.0
5/5 LOVED THIS BOOK
I haven’t given a book A 5/5 star in MONTHS but this book was everything I needed. Tessa is a great character and so is Prince Corrick. I loved following the plot and it was a huge page turner. There were so many plot twists in this book making me love it. The tropes and scenes were so amazing it was everything I imagined for a y/a dystopian book! overall i would definitely recommend especially if your in a reading slump because this book made me want to read more. Beautiful writing!!
I haven’t given a book A 5/5 star in MONTHS but this book was everything I needed. Tessa is a great character and so is Prince Corrick. I loved following the plot and it was a huge page turner. There were so many plot twists in this book making me love it. The tropes and scenes were so amazing it was everything I imagined for a y/a dystopian book! overall i would definitely recommend especially if your in a reading slump because this book made me want to read more. Beautiful writing!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing
Young adult dystopian pilot twist character and plot driven book! Great writing and overall 5 star read!
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