Scan barcode
lilifane's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
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
5.0
This book broke me. So if this sounds appealing to you, and you read it based on my review, please don't complain afterwards.
The start was very promising, but then there was a lot of world building and getting to know characters for like 30-50% of the book. Enough action and plot twists to keep me interested, but also very few bread crumbs of what I really wanted to read about to make me impatient. The second half is just a wild ride.
It is supposed to be YA and I recognize the typical tropes coming with a YA fantasy books. But most of them have a spin or are resolved in a new way, which I really loved. You expect things to happen, and then they do happen, but in unexpected ways to mess with your head. In fact, I truly believe, the author just wrote this book to mess with my head specifically. Especially with the ending, which makes me question everything I thought I knew about myself.
Anyway, this book also seems a little too brutal for YA? The stakes are definitely higher than usual, and the author isn't afraid of showing it.
The world building is interesting, and the mysteries are intriguing, but what I loved the most were the intense and intimate scenes between the characters. I held my breath so many times I lost count, tbh. Thank goodness, the sequel is coming out next month. Can't wait to get my heart ripped out and trampled on again.
The start was very promising, but then there was a lot of world building and getting to know characters for like 30-50% of the book. Enough action and plot twists to keep me interested, but also very few bread crumbs of what I really wanted to read about to make me impatient. The second half is just a wild ride.
It is supposed to be YA and I recognize the typical tropes coming with a YA fantasy books. But most of them have a spin or are resolved in a new way, which I really loved. You expect things to happen, and then they do happen, but in unexpected ways to mess with your head. In fact, I truly believe, the author just wrote this book to mess with my head specifically. Especially with the ending, which makes me question everything I thought I knew about myself.
Anyway, this book also seems a little too brutal for YA? The stakes are definitely higher than usual, and the author isn't afraid of showing it.
The world building is interesting, and the mysteries are intriguing, but what I loved the most were the intense and intimate scenes between the characters. I held my breath so many times I lost count, tbh. Thank goodness, the sequel is coming out next month. Can't wait to get my heart ripped out and trampled on again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Slavery, Torture, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Genocide, Grief, and Violence
xiggy's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death, Torture, and Toxic relationship
kal517's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Torture, Blood, and Slavery
Minor: Racism and Animal death
khargaotte's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I was expecting to love this book as I've been very into anything Pacat has written so far, and was not disappointed! It does have all the things that make her "signature", including plots that involved big brothers, but also twisted, delicious codependent relationships that no doubt will explode in drama in the next volume. This was a fairly dark read, but one that engrossed me nonetheless!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Torture, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Animal death and Death of parent
aexileigh's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, War, Death of parent, Blood, Classism, Genocide, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Torture, Child death, Racism, and Adult/minor relationship
letiross's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Death of parent
Moderate: Torture, Blood, Slavery, and Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Animal death and Racism
arobear's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Slow to start, but worth a read. I enjoyed the worldbuilding and mystery of the bigger picture and the war. After the big twist I waned to throw my book across the room, which seems to be a theme for books I read by C. S. Pacat (in a good way). I'm interested to see where the story goes in the next book. If you enjoyed the political intrigue of Captive Prince you'll enjoy this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Violence, War, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Xenophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, and Blood
Minor: Animal death, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, and Abandonment
dododenise's review
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-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
4.25
Damn, this book really won me over. It was slow to start with and I needed to take my time with it, but with each new chapter I was pulled into this world more. By the end I just wanted to keep reading, get to know these characters even better and see their relationships develop. All the relationships of the main characters are so interesting. It took me one to two scenes for me to be on board with a certain dynamic and craving for more. It was masterfully done.
The twists and turns of the story kept me on my toes and I can’t wait to see where it will go.
Now I desperately want to continue reading.
The twists and turns of the story kept me on my toes and I can’t wait to see where it will go.
Now I desperately want to continue reading.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Torture
Minor: Animal death
onthesamepage's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I spent 80% of this book thinking about how slow paced it was, how much it followed the standard good vs evil, light vs dark plotlines that we've all seen a million times before, how the writing and the characterizations were uneven, and how much I really dislike instalove. Our main character has the personality of mashed potatoes (bland and inoffensive) except for those moments where he is suddenly either charismatic and charming, or kind of ruthless. It almost gave me whiplash trying to keep up with how often Will changed to suit the plot. But the last 20% was a trip with twists that I did not see coming, and that makes me very curious to see where this series goes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture
Moderate: Slavery