Reviews

The Merciless Ones by Namina Forna

beereads_24's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

When the second book is dare I say, better than the first. OOF

littlemaggiemae's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

still good, but felt more juvenile than the original and a lot more confusing/convoluted than the previous one

teesbookishwonderland_'s review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring 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? Yes

4.5

pibbit's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional 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

4.0

artsyandbookishme's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

moretisha's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

tia_leona's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

3.0

om_sammy's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad 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

3.75

A solid addition to the trilogy! I will say that for the first third of the book, I had a hard time getting into it and enjoying it as quickly as I did with The Gilded Ones; I found Deka to be annoying in some ways (especially when she would say "after all, I am the Nuru" to justify her behaviour in any way). To be fair, I do understand why she was like that, but it made it difficult to like her character as much as I did in the first book because I felt as though she lost some of the backbone that she grew. However, as the plot picked up and more was revealed to Deka (who really likes to bury her head in the sand), that backbone came back with a vengeance and I got to enjoy watching Deka come to her own conclusions and make her own choices once again. The storyline builds beautifully, and really makes connections to real life, which makes it that much more heart-wrenching. I can't wait to finish the trilogy!

legallyhot's review against another edition

4.75

Incredible sequel that expands on the themes of the first book perfectly! 
Ixa continues to be adorable 🫶🩷

audreychiao's review against another edition

4.0

A great audiobook! The narration is fantastic (one of the best narrations I’ve listened to!), and the story flows smoothly.

Deka and Britta’s friendship is heartwarming, modeling how deep, supportive, and essential friendships can be. This was my favorite relationship to follow.

It was lovely to hear how deeply Deka’s friends and alaki cared for each other and made me crave belonging to a caring community full of different people and personalities.

I was also moved by the descriptions and insight of characters’ emotions and pain, and how people took different approaches in caring for each other.

Although all of these are so simple, it’s actually quite rare for me to find such insight and depth in friendships and community love. What a lovely YA story. I’m looking forward to the last book.