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foxwish's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Keyne is the most compelling character in the book and the actual plot of the Twa Sisters seemed very tagged on, the plot reveals, particulary Tristan being a secret Saxon leader was very obvious to me so I found how late that plot reveal was in the story irritating as it made a lot of the characters appear dumb.
The magic system was highly derivative other than the connection to the land aspect, characters like Gwen and Mori were highly enjoyable. The book itself was fine to read, but I wish it had either entirely focused on Keyne or on both Riva and Sinne as I felt like both storylines suffered from having to share time with the other. For me this resulted in Keyne's plot being a more interesting read and feeling very annoyed at the way Sinne and Riva's plot merged for the climax of the book.
I also despised the way Riva's story ended I cannot stand when characters avoid facing justice, Riva chose not to save her sister and Sinne died because of it and although her own people hate her she gets to choose to go the enemy kingdom to have children and be the lady of a far bigger kingdom. I suppose you could argue that never seeing her own kingdom again, giving up her magic and never seeing Keyne again is punishment enough but I think she deserved worse.
The magic system was highly derivative other than the connection to the land aspect, characters like Gwen and Mori were highly enjoyable. The book itself was fine to read, but I wish it had either entirely focused on Keyne or on both Riva and Sinne as I felt like both storylines suffered from having to share time with the other. For me this resulted in Keyne's plot being a more interesting read and feeling very annoyed at the way Sinne and Riva's plot merged for the climax of the book.
I also despised the way Riva's story ended
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Transphobia
Moderate: Child abuse, Physical abuse, and Child death
zghutcheson01's review
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
While I wasn't really interested in Riva or Sinne in the first 150 pages, by the middle and throughout the end all of the siblings had compelling stories and beautiful character arcs. I eas very wary when I recognized the Aurthurian references but it seems to be more references and I wouldn't call it an Arthurian story. I also was very familiar with the ballad "The Twa Sisters" before reading and I think it gave the whole thing a much more tragic lens considering the first few chapters bear little to no resemblance to the song.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Death of parent, Child death, Pregnancy, Grief, Death, and Sexual content
Moderate: Biphobia, Physical abuse, Ableism, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Religious bigotry
hannahbailey's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
Whilst this is a stand-out novel for me (my first 5 star read of 2022 too), the relationship between the siblings and the magical elements reminded me of The Once and Future Witches, so those who loved this book I think would also like this!
From beginning to end, I truly loved this book! There were many elements of it I didn't expect, from the trans and bigender characters to the paganism and magic system which I think enhanced my reading experience. It's a retelling of a ballad I'm unfamiliar with, yet whilst it brings modern ideas (which aren't as modern as people think) the narrative and setting still felt very authentic and real.
Despite the focus on the three siblings, the side characters also had a lot of depth to them and I found myself enjoying each POV equally (which is very unusual for me!). I was also captivated by the plot as well as the tenuous relationships between the siblings. I wasn't sure if the ending could do the rest of the book justice, but Lucy Holland certainly pulled it out of the bag! That said, there were some subplots I could see coming from a mile-off, but because the novel is rich in its descriptive atmosphere and characterisation, this didn't affect my enjoyment of the story. Seeing these themes in an ancient/historical setting was really refreshing and different too, so I hope to see more historical-fiction or retelling authors weave this into their stories.
From beginning to end, I truly loved this book! There were many elements of it I didn't expect, from the trans and bigender characters to the paganism and magic system which I think enhanced my reading experience. It's a retelling of a ballad I'm unfamiliar with, yet whilst it brings modern ideas (which aren't as modern as people think) the narrative and setting still felt very authentic and real.
Despite the focus on the three siblings, the side characters also had a lot of depth to them and I found myself enjoying each POV equally (which is very unusual for me!). I was also captivated by the plot as well as the tenuous relationships between the siblings. I wasn't sure if the ending could do the rest of the book justice, but Lucy Holland certainly pulled it out of the bag! That said, there were some subplots I could see coming from a mile-off, but because the novel is rich in its descriptive atmosphere and characterisation, this didn't affect my enjoyment of the story. Seeing these themes in an ancient/historical setting was really refreshing and different too, so I hope to see more historical-fiction or retelling authors weave this into their stories.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Transphobia, Violence, War, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Deadnaming, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, and Misogyny
Moderate: Pregnancy, Vomit, and Religious bigotry
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