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4.05 AVERAGE
4.05 AVERAGE
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Sexual content, Blood
ADORED this book. The pacing was fantastic, I adored the MMC and MFC together, and the atmosphere was phenomenal.
adventurous
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Blood, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Infidelity, Torture
Minor: Self harm, Vomit
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
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
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Would probably give this 2.5 stars if I could, but I can’t, and I don’t think it deserves three, so it’s two from me.
This book was… fine. I found I was more interested in the second half than the first and I did want to see how it ended.
However. I did not think the writing was particularly good (why does everyone in a Gothic Victoriana New Orleans talk like a modern American teenager?). Why were there such detailed descriptions of clothes, yet the city outside Phantasma was confusingly vague? It read like fanfiction. Decent fanfiction, to be fair, but I expect higher standards of professionally edited traditionally published books.
I found a lot of it very cliché. I realise this is kind of just a thing with romantasy and tropes, but it meant that I always felt like I knew where it was going and was never particularly surprised by any turn of events. While I appreciated the trials were properly difficult and had high stakes, I felt they were a bit repetitive. After about trial three, I thought to myself ‘Christ, we still have six more of these to go…’
I quite liked Ophelia, but had very little patience for her when she thought that she might have to end it with the fella she’d known for five days was the worst thing to happen to her… after the death of her mother, the disappearance of her sister, the horrific trials where she was often injured and others died…. But sure, girl, Blackwell thinking he needs to take a step back is what tips the scales 🙄. Blackwell I found indistinguishable from any other standard romantasy MMC. The cat was cute, though.
Maybe I just didn’t connect with the author’s voice. And that’s ok, nobody is for everybody. This was not the book for me.
This book was… fine. I found I was more interested in the second half than the first and I did want to see how it ended.
However. I did not think the writing was particularly good (why does everyone in a Gothic Victoriana New Orleans talk like a modern American teenager?). Why were there such detailed descriptions of clothes, yet the city outside Phantasma was confusingly vague? It read like fanfiction. Decent fanfiction, to be fair, but I expect higher standards of professionally edited traditionally published books.
I found a lot of it very cliché. I realise this is kind of just a thing with romantasy and tropes, but it meant that I always felt like I knew where it was going and was never particularly surprised by any turn of events. While I appreciated the trials were properly difficult and had high stakes, I felt they were a bit repetitive. After about trial three, I thought to myself ‘Christ, we still have six more of these to go…’
I quite liked Ophelia, but had very little patience for her when she thought that she might have to end it with the fella she’d known for five days was the worst thing to happen to her… after the death of her mother, the disappearance of her sister, the horrific trials where she was often injured and others died…. But sure, girl, Blackwell thinking he needs to take a step back is what tips the scales 🙄. Blackwell I found indistinguishable from any other standard romantasy MMC. The cat was cute, though.
Maybe I just didn’t connect with the author’s voice. And that’s ok, nobody is for everybody. This was not the book for me.
challenging
dark
mysterious
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Drug use, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Gaslighting, Alcohol