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abby_shupe's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
I loved it!! Even more than Criers War, this book is just amazing. Diversity woven in beautifully, absolutely nothing felt forced. The romance goes so hard in this book - it had me squealing.
The budding tension between Ayla and Crier was just amazing. Their entire dynamic, the dual POVs, and the glorious world building continued to amaze me on how well they were pulled off.
I definitely think Iron Heart is the better of the duology, just because there are so many moments in Criers War where I didn’t get enough i information (yet), to piece everything together. In Iron Heart, almost everything blended together well and left me satisfied.
I love that a lot of the main characters in the story are good or bad, they’re both. Getting the opportunity to read so many character arcs, especially Aylas, and following along as they find their footing was pure gold.
I will say, those shades are FUCKING CREEPY!! I can’t remember the last time I’ve read something as horrifying as what Varela was describing the rotting, black veined, zombie-like corpse people. Absolutely harrowing and had me on the edge of my seat every time a person had come across one.
One of my favorite elements in the novel was Crier’s continued remembrance of queer stories. She kept thinking back to ones including a prince and a male commoner, and of course the one of Winter and her lover. It was a great touch on the author’s behalf, and really added a lot to the story.
The budding tension between Ayla and Crier was just amazing. Their entire dynamic, the dual POVs, and the glorious world building continued to amaze me on how well they were pulled off.
I definitely think Iron Heart is the better of the duology, just because there are so many moments in Criers War where I didn’t get enough i information (yet), to piece everything together. In Iron Heart, almost everything blended together well and left me satisfied.
I love that a lot of the main characters in the story are good or bad, they’re both. Getting the opportunity to read so many character arcs, especially Aylas, and following along as they find their footing was pure gold.
I will say, those shades are FUCKING CREEPY!! I can’t remember the last time I’ve read something as horrifying as what Varela was describing the rotting, black veined, zombie-like corpse people. Absolutely harrowing and had me on the edge of my seat every time a person had come across one.
One of my favorite elements in the novel was Crier’s continued remembrance of queer stories. She kept thinking back to ones including a prince and a male commoner, and of course the one of Winter and her lover. It was a great touch on the author’s behalf, and really added a lot to the story.
I don’t know why I expected a more complicated ending, but this still left me happy. Maybe it was the buildup that led me to believe it would end in a drawn out conclusion but everything was tied up fairly quick. I’m not complaining though, it was nice.
The epilogue was done really well, I truly loved everything about this novel.
The epilogue was done really well, I truly loved everything about this novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and War
Minor: Vomit
golden_like_dior's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
I LOVE THIS SOOOOOO MUCH AHHHHH
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, War, Violence, Torture, Physical abuse, Murder, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, and Death
cemeterygay's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
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? It's complicated
5.0
I really loved the first book and I somehow adored this book even more.
I honestly don't have much to say negatively about this book. Instead I'm going to focus on why this was a five star read for me.
I loved how Ayla and Crier's relationship was explored in this book. I adored the way Ayla and her brother's interactions were portrayed specifically how much their relationship has changed since childhood and how that's reflected.
I adored how the complications of war were portrayed in this book and how Crier interacting more with the world was portrayed. I especially adored Crier's time spent with the rebellion. I love the reveal about the Iron Heart and what actually helps Automae run and the horror behind it. It's so satisfying to watch so many people who have been subjugated and had their autonomy stripped from them regain their autonomy and truly rise to the occasion. The most satisfying example of this is the conclusion of Faye's story. Watching her become a pivotal character in this book after having so much stripped from her is phemomenal.
The explorations of what it means to be human, conversations about the complexity of privilege and what revolution actually entails is so beautifully handled. I love the hopeful messaging and the emphasis on the beauty of life and love. I think the political intrigue was so well handled and came to a satisfying conclusion in this book. I also adored the explorations of trust in this book and how it impacted everyone's interactions with each other and specifically the importance of trust and solidarity in revolutionary movements.
The epilogue is probably one of my favorite parts of the book and wraps up the intense journey Crier and Ayla go through so well.
Everything about Crier's love for both humanity and Ayla is so beautifully written and will stick with me for a while.
If you're looking for a duology that heavily features a sapphic romance that doesn't involve homophobia and centers the beauty of humanity and regaining autonomy in the face of oppression, I could not recommend this book enough.
This is a beautiful read that will stick with me for quite a while.
I honestly don't have much to say negatively about this book. Instead I'm going to focus on why this was a five star read for me.
I loved how Ayla and Crier's relationship was explored in this book. I adored the way Ayla and her brother's interactions were portrayed specifically how much their relationship has changed since childhood and how that's reflected.
I adored how the complications of war were portrayed in this book and how Crier interacting more with the world was portrayed. I especially adored Crier's time spent with the rebellion. I love the reveal about the Iron Heart and what actually helps Automae run and the horror behind it. It's so satisfying to watch so many people who have been subjugated and had their autonomy stripped from them regain their autonomy and truly rise to the occasion. The most satisfying example of this is the conclusion of Faye's story. Watching her become a pivotal character in this book after having so much stripped from her is phemomenal.
The explorations of what it means to be human, conversations about the complexity of privilege and what revolution actually entails is so beautifully handled. I love the hopeful messaging and the emphasis on the beauty of life and love. I think the political intrigue was so well handled and came to a satisfying conclusion in this book. I also adored the explorations of trust in this book and how it impacted everyone's interactions with each other and specifically the importance of trust and solidarity in revolutionary movements.
The epilogue is probably one of my favorite parts of the book and wraps up the intense journey Crier and Ayla go through so well.
Everything about Crier's love for both humanity and Ayla is so beautifully written and will stick with me for a while.
If you're looking for a duology that heavily features a sapphic romance that doesn't involve homophobia and centers the beauty of humanity and regaining autonomy in the face of oppression, I could not recommend this book enough.
This is a beautiful read that will stick with me for quite a while.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Kidnapping, Murder, Torture, and War
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
recycled_personalities's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Literally the PERFECT ENDING! This series was very well written and the characters are phenomenally written as well! PLEASE READ IT!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and War
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Death of parent, and Racism
Minor: Ableism and Adult/minor relationship
starccato's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, War, Xenophobia, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Abandonment, Self harm, and Alcohol
katte's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
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? It's complicated
5.0
This was so. good. I read it in two sittings only because I needed to sleep and work. Excellent adventure. After getting to know the protagonists in the last book, we get introduced to more characters in this one and it is not overwhelming, which is nice. I also love the fact that even though we follow two storylines for a while, I never feel like there’s a character I’d prefer to be following over the other. Each story feels like as important, just as intense, and I wanted to absorb them both at the same time!
From book one I found the dynamic between Crier and Ayla to be problematic with the lady-handmaiden thing. But in this book they are equals, which makes their interactions and relationship so much more fun. It was genuinely funny in many places! It almost makes their relationship dynamic from the first book better - if it hadn’t been so tense and weird, would it have been so good in this book?
The ending was very satisfying in several different ways. I feel the characters stayed true to themselves, and a plot point I’d been hoping for from book 1 happened! It felt good and satisfying instead of cheap and predictable. Fabulous read!
From book one I found the dynamic between Crier and Ayla to be problematic with the lady-handmaiden thing. But in this book they are equals, which makes their interactions and relationship so much more fun. It was genuinely funny in many places! It almost makes their relationship dynamic from the first book better - if it hadn’t been so tense and weird, would it have been so good in this book?
The ending was very satisfying in several different ways. I feel the characters stayed true to themselves, and a plot point I’d been hoping for from book 1 happened! It felt good and satisfying instead of cheap and predictable. Fabulous read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Violence, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, and Body horror
Moderate: Torture, War, Grief, and Confinement
Minor: Animal death, Death of parent, Child death, and Fire/Fire injury
angstifies's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
- 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
really great ending, loved how much more adventure this book had and both the romance and the characters were just as amazing as the previous book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
Moderate: Confinement, Blood, Cursing, and War
Minor: Murder, Alcohol, and Death of parent
averyrembish's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and War
Moderate: Gore, Murder, Police brutality, Addiction, Confinement, Physical abuse, Death, Body horror, Medical content, and Torture
Minor: Alcohol, Self harm, and Death of parent
lottie3126's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
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
I loved this sequel to the first book, 'Criers war'. I was really satisfied with the way that it ended, the I would have loved to see more of the relationship development between Ayla and Storme. Aside from that, there is not much more that I have to critique. This is now DEFINITELY my favourite duology and I'll probably re-read within the next year as I just don't want to let Ayla and Crier go.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: War
alyxinthestars's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Violence, War, Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, and Alcohol