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falafellaa's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Gods, Magic and a mysterious illness.
I was hopeful starting this book. And i‘m not disappointed but also not really satisfied.
The concept of gods and magic in this book is promising if kind of rudimentary. But i can work with that if the story is good.
Sadly, the story is only mediocre. Several of the plot points were soo predictable. I thought there was going to be plot twists because the foreshadowing was so obvious you couldn’t call it foreshadowing anymore but just telling what is going to happen.
Another point are the relationships. The main character has friends she constantly misses and a mom she loves and she builds up a romantic relationship with the captain. But none of these really get to the reader. I felt no emotional connection to her friends and just a little to her mom. We didn’t really see them together. So i didn’t and don’t really care what happens to them.
The captain is another story. Their relationship felt a little rushed to the end. One moment she hates him and the next she’s all vulnerable and open. I personally think the author should have stretched out certain aspects about their relationship over more than one book.
The book was entertaining enough that i didn’t dnf it and i did start reading the second book already but i really don’t know if i will finish it and looking at my track record with cases like this it’s unlikely.
I was hopeful starting this book. And i‘m not disappointed but also not really satisfied.
The concept of gods and magic in this book is promising if kind of rudimentary. But i can work with that if the story is good.
Sadly, the story is only mediocre. Several of the plot points were soo predictable. I thought there was going to be plot twists because the foreshadowing was so obvious you couldn’t call it foreshadowing anymore but just telling what is going to happen.
Another point are the relationships. The main character has friends she constantly misses and a mom she loves and she builds up a romantic relationship with the captain. But none of these really get to the reader. I felt no emotional connection to her friends and just a little to her mom. We didn’t really see them together. So i didn’t and don’t really care what happens to them.
The captain is another story. Their relationship felt a little rushed to the end. One moment she hates him and the next she’s all vulnerable and open. I personally think the author should have stretched out certain aspects about their relationship over more than one book.
The book was entertaining enough that i didn’t dnf it and i did start reading the second book already but i really don’t know if i will finish it and looking at my track record with cases like this it’s unlikely.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Confinement, Sexual content, Gaslighting, Grief, Kidnapping, Panic attacks/disorders, and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Chronic illness, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Animal death
cryosphinx's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
A good read, the prose itself isn't blow your socks off fantastic but it was still an enjoyable read. There's more action than I was anticipating but it was nice to have a bad ass FMC with the sassiest mouth and an MMC who totally plays into it. This is some grade-A banter going on that made me lol several times.
It's tropey, but I liked it. But because it's tropey, it's got some of that "ends on a twist" that I only give some kudos to because most was predictable but there were a few twists that were thrown in that I did NOT expect. The beginning is a little rough to understand how magic works since you're thrown straight in to the action. Then it gets a bit sluggish, only to ramp up at the end.
I also wish there had been more character building with Casia and her friends. You're just left to assume that they have been through hell and back without any build up of their past that led them here. Hopefully we get more of that in the upcoming books. One in particular that lacked was Asra. I was waiting for some big moments and flashbacks of Cas and Asra so we could see more of the mentor-mentee relationship but again, you're just left to assume they are woven together tightly without concrete explanations
If you're looking for an easy read with all the enemies to lovers tropes with a unique magic system and banter, here you go. I do look forward to the rest of the series since I've heard it just gets better as it goes on.
It's tropey, but I liked it. But because it's tropey, it's got some of that "ends on a twist" that I only give some kudos to because most was predictable but there were a few twists that were thrown in that I did NOT expect. The beginning is a little rough to understand how magic works since you're thrown straight in to the action. Then it gets a bit sluggish, only to ramp up at the end.
I also wish there had been more character building with Casia and her friends. You're just left to assume that they have been through hell and back without any build up of their past that led them here. Hopefully we get more of that in the upcoming books. One in particular that lacked was
If you're looking for an easy read with all the enemies to lovers tropes with a unique magic system and banter, here you go. I do look forward to the rest of the series since I've heard it just gets better as it goes on.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Murder
Moderate: War, Sexual content, and Injury/Injury detail
dovahkiin_shea's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, and Violence
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Blood, and Kidnapping
queencariad's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
slow-paced
3.0
A promising worldbuilding with interesting concepts, magic system and rather loveable characters — but the pacing was quite irregular and it frustrated me a lot.
It definitely feels like the book could have been shorter. Same thing, minus 10 % of content, could have been just as good. It got lengthy at times, which gave me the overall impression of a dragging story, and therefore failed to keep my interest in the long run.
Also, the time management was messy, with (for example) a scene starting ‘at noon’ only for the immediately following battle to be happening ‘at night’. Sometimes it got confusing.
I overall liked Cas as a MC but she did make a few questionable choices, and ones that didn’t match her beliefs at that. I enjoyed the fact that she didn’t have ‘not-like-other-girls’ vibes at first, but by the end of the book, they unfortunately started to show. It was the same thing every time: her legs start moving from their own accord despite her fear, she feels the urge to help, do something, “anything”— and every time, of course, her crazy plan works and/or she discovers some hidden talent she has. It was exciting at first, and just became awfully repetitive after the first 4 times it happened.
I loved the idea of found family, but I wished we had seen more of Casia’s friends.
Elander, the love interest, was immediately my jam— charming, sarcastic, with a ‘Death Speaker’ nickname… And his dynamic with Cas was nice.
In other words, many aspects of this book were enjoyable but I find myself quite frustrated by the execution and rhythm of it all. Something was missing. Something fell short. I wouldn’t be able to tell you what exactly.
Regarding the plot twists and revelations— I had rightly guessed every single one of them, so even if a bit predictable, I’m quite happy about that. Those last 15% are making me consider picking up the second book: I’ll probably try and see!
3 stars!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent and Blood
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