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alxisrae'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? No
5.0
Graphic: Murder, Blood, Body horror, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Death and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual content and Vomit
hmatt's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
YA "romantasy" is wayyy down the list of genres I gravitate towards, but I did find this enjoyable. The world-building is solid, and the characters are interesting. For me, the complexity of the novel is just right: it's not high high fantasy with a million characters and dynamics, but there is enough there for it to be satisfyingly fleshed-out. I'm even contemplating reading the next book in the series...
That said, I'm still rating based on my taste. This is definitely for a younger audience, and it shows in how some of the relationships develop (including the primary romantic one, in which a switch just seems to flick between one chapter and the next). Some of the writing is clumsy or overly descriptive in a gauche way.
I had fun, though! And I hardly ever read physical books over 400 pages, so that's a big win.
Graphic: Child abuse, Violence, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Torture, Death, Death of parent, Blood, Body horror, Physical abuse, Self harm, War, Confinement, Cursing, Murder, and Police brutality
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Medical trauma, and Animal death
Minor: Abandonment
platypusd10'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
3.5
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Self harm, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
stllyltc'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
5.0
Graphic: Hate crime, Animal death, Death, Grief, Physical abuse, War, Blood, Toxic friendship, Confinement, Drug use, Murder, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Animal cruelty, Kidnapping, Body horror, Violence, and Torture
imaginationindex'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
- Enemies-to-Lovers paired with a marriage of convenience with a sprinkling of sharing-one-bed and “that’s my wife”… 🙌🏻
- I loved the two secs of witches, Dames Rouges and Dames Blanches. I’m curious to learn more about the Blood Magic as well as
how Reid was able to do magic when we should have been dying 😅 - Ansel, you sweet boy! Coco, what a badass! I like how we flipped the script on traditional gender roles
- This is a perfect example of new adult stories; our characters are adults who can make their own decisions and swear.
- While the fantasy world was a total vibe, there are some moments where the religion aspect of the anti-witch stance gets to be a bit much. That might just be me but the Archbishop needed to relax 95% of the book
- I noticed a lot of re-explaining and telling. I get that we had the dual POV and catch up might have been needed, but I thought it was clearly shown so we could have saved ourselves a few pages.
- Genuine question, when were we? The France inspired world was cool but we had swords and monarchy, but full theatres and working bathrooms
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Vomit, Religious bigotry, Cursing, and Death of parent
smuttymcbookface's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The characters themselves were well-written, both nuanced and flawed, and we were clearly able to see their struggles and trials as they developed into more understanding versions of themselves.
The only reason I've not given this 5* was that I found it to be a little too simplistic/YA at times, with some plots neatly lining up with one another, or ridiculously convenient plans (such as Coco being part of the infirmary and just happening to be able to take ownership of Lou).
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Violence, Xenophobia, and Misogyny
Moderate: Animal death and Sexual content
Minor: Death of parent
melissafelicia's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Sexism, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, and Death of parent
Minor: Child death
selestre'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
5.0
Moderate: Body horror, Blood, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, Death, Religious bigotry, and Sexual content
Minor: Kidnapping, Self harm, Animal death, Death of parent, Sexism, and Child death
ldermer'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
5.0
Graphic: Self harm, Genocide, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Vomit, Child abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Body horror
Minor: Domestic abuse and Sexual harassment
pattyblom's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Moderate: Death of parent, Sexism, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Murder, Abandonment, and Death
Minor: Vomit, Child death, Suicide, and Self harm