Scan barcode
yarisbooksandbevs'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
3.5
I love Cas. I love Kieran. I love Reaver. There are other characters I love but these are probably my favorites. They’re witty and sarcastic and also loveable. I feel like Poppy really grew throughout this book especially.
I do feel like Armentrout does fall into this cycle of repetition that kind of drags on but I really like the actual storyline so I look past the repetitive jokes that have lost their effect and the repetitive info for the general story that I’m really enjoying.
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Child death, Violence, War, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death and Classism
Minor: Sexism, Alcohol, and Pregnancy
immdanii'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? No
4.0
Graphic: Death, Torture, Sexual content, Death of parent, War, Kidnapping, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Confinement and Cursing
Minor: Alcohol and Panic attacks/disorders
roget's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
1.0
This series would be so much stronger if space that was given to all the tone-ignorant quipping and pages of unnecessarily aggressive, uncomfortable exchanges were instead given to expanding the lore.
The real plot is crammed into info-dumps in dialogue—just like, lecture after lecture of some being or another backtracking like “Well, ACTUALLY…” and then re-explaining lore and ancient relationships that’d already been explained and re-explained half a dozen times but apparently incorrectly. The consort? Interesting plot line. I wish we’d have gotten more of that development.
The Malik-Poppy backstory reveal was absolutely undercut by the series’s penchant for throwing gossip girl-style shocking “twists” at us every five minutes, not to mention the tonally inconsistent suggestive and situationally abhorrent illicit comments. The series isn’t respectful to Kieren, either. He’s basically treated like Poppy’s arm candy this book, and Poppy’s character is shockingly undynamic given the many, many changes she’s been through. She’s still acting like the angry, impulsive, and brash kid who’s playing at power without really understanding it.
The pacing is weird.
As for the content…
I’m interested to know more about the primals and their clearly warped family tree. I want Poppy to return to Ileesium. I want to see more of those dynamics unfold. I wish the book would spend more time and nuance developing that and Poppy herself.
Kind of just reading to find out what happens and how it wraps up at this point, which is disheartening. I’m sure some people find this series fun or entertaining, but the issues have sort of spoiled it for me, at least.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Toxic relationship, Death, Confinement, Gaslighting, Genocide, Gore, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Grief, War, and Torture
ka_ke'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? No
4.75
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Torture, Violence, Death, Gaslighting, War, Sexual content, Blood, Cursing, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
Moderate: Body horror, Classism, Gore, Alcohol, Ableism, Misogyny, and Panic attacks/disorders