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nexon's review
adventurous
fast-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
2.5
Okay, I have very mixed feelings about this book, but they are leaning towards negative.
I was looking forward to more on the Dead Men and I was definitely enjoying it at the start, but as soon asValkyrie was revealed I... didn't lose interest, exactly, but it was like, why? What is the point? It didn't feel necessary at all, and it made everything way more confusing than it should have been. I expected a straightforward story about Dead Men shenanigans, not more exposition on how unpredictable time travel is. Come on, it's supposed to be a PREQUEL. I love Valkyrie as much as the next guy, but she doesn't need to be in everything. It just... really was not needed in this plot and felt incredibly out of place.
It did pick up near the end so it was, overall, a pretty enjoyable read, but not something I would go through again.
Some extra gripes I had:
• This may just me be getting older, but I feel that the humour isn't as good as it used to be in the earlier books. There are way too many "haha we're so amazing and hilarious" jokes like bro, we get it. Plus the "literally I literally mean literally" stuff was annoying the first time, no need for it to be there twice.
• How isValkyrie STILL being like "waa waa I can't do this it makes me feel bad boo hoo" after all they've been through? It just feels so forced at this point.
• All that set up forGhastly and Rapture's relationship and for what? It just got completely erased. The book would've been 97% the same without all that. I dunno, it just didn't really add anything, and even though I was rooting for them, it amounted to nothing.
• Adding on to that,every death was meaningless because a) we already know what happens in the future books and b) the timeline got reset anyway. So it was just a whole lot of nothing. This book could've worked so well as a study of the Dead Men and their relationships but nah, we HAVE to keep the focus on Valkyrie and beating up the bad guys.
• Even if you can somehow argue that there was character development in this book it doesn't matter becauseIT ALL GOT ERASED. Like cmon man, how is this a prequel if it didn't even technically happen?? It's just Valkyrie saving the world, again.
• Not to mention that while supposedly being a Dead Men-centric book, Shudder and Hopeless were still shoved to the side, as always. There were times where those two seemed to be absent, so I would backtrack trying to figure out where they went, only for there to be no indication that they're anywhere but the current scene. My boys deserve better.
I would probably give it a 2 but it gets an extra .5 forSaracen/Dexter kiss (even if was alternate versions of them).
I was looking forward to more on the Dead Men and I was definitely enjoying it at the start, but as soon as
It did pick up near the end so it was, overall, a pretty enjoyable read, but not something I would go through again.
Some extra gripes I had:
• This may just me be getting older, but I feel that the humour isn't as good as it used to be in the earlier books. There are way too many "haha we're so amazing and hilarious" jokes like bro, we get it. Plus the "literally I literally mean literally" stuff was annoying the first time, no need for it to be there twice.
• How is
• All that set up for
• Adding on to that,
• Even if you can somehow argue that there was character development in this book it doesn't matter because
• Not to mention that while supposedly being a Dead Men-centric book, Shudder and Hopeless were still shoved to the side, as always. There were times where those two seemed to be absent, so I would backtrack trying to figure out where they went, only for there to be no indication that they're anywhere but the current scene. My boys deserve better.
I would probably give it a 2 but it gets an extra .5 for
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
liliana_b's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: War and Gore
livimack's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
#NotMyDerekLandy
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Death, Suicide, and War
david_slack110507's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I have always been a big fan of the Skulduggery Pleasant universe and book series and so it's always nice to have new releases following the end of a Phase of the main books even though this wasn't anything incredible or innovative, it did keep me entertained and having a good time whilst I read it.
I really liked the fact that we got to see more of the Dead Men who haven't really been much of a showcase in the series as of late even if it was versions of the Dead Men who aren't canon following the events of this book. I really like that we go to see more of The Great War during this, even if the plot that was focused on was something minor in comparison to the grand scheme of the War, as this period is often referenced but never fully seen so it was nice to have a full-length book set in this time period rather than a chapter flashback or an alternate universe version of the War and its aftermath.
I would be interested in seeing where this goes as it does set up a potential plotline for a potential Phase 3 while also managing to wrap up the main conflict of the book well but I will admit that while the character dynamics were still strong and it was entertaining and enjoyable to read, I did find that the humour and trademark Skulduggery Pleasant charm was missing from this one. Maybe it's because I've expanded my taste and knowledge with books meaning I can recognise that the writing is much simpler than I remember or I'm not looking at it with rose-tinted glasses.
Overall, this is a really fun addition to the Skulduggery Pleasant universe, however I do feel like while it does have its positives of expanding on characters we haven't seen much of lately in the series as well as giving us nearly an entire focus on Ghastly - one of my favourite characters in the entire series - it doesn't have the strengths, charm, and humour found in the original Phase of the series rather reflecting more of the messiness of Phase 2 which I still enjoyed but didn't love overall. However, this book, even if I'm giving it 3 stars, reminded me why I love this series so much and has tempted me to think about a potential series reread, whether I will act on that is pretty unlikely, but it has reminded me why I love this series and for that I am grateful.
I really liked the fact that we got to see more of the Dead Men who haven't really been much of a showcase in the series as of late even if it was versions of the Dead Men who aren't canon following the events of this book. I really like that we go to see more of The Great War during this, even if the plot that was focused on was something minor in comparison to the grand scheme of the War, as this period is often referenced but never fully seen so it was nice to have a full-length book set in this time period rather than a chapter flashback or an alternate universe version of the War and its aftermath.
I would be interested in seeing where this goes as it does set up a potential plotline for a potential Phase 3 while also managing to wrap up the main conflict of the book well but I will admit that while the character dynamics were still strong and it was entertaining and enjoyable to read, I did find that the humour and trademark Skulduggery Pleasant charm was missing from this one. Maybe it's because I've expanded my taste and knowledge with books meaning I can recognise that the writing is much simpler than I remember or I'm not looking at it with rose-tinted glasses.
Overall, this is a really fun addition to the Skulduggery Pleasant universe, however I do feel like while it does have its positives of expanding on characters we haven't seen much of lately in the series as well as giving us nearly an entire focus on Ghastly - one of my favourite characters in the entire series - it doesn't have the strengths, charm, and humour found in the original Phase of the series rather reflecting more of the messiness of Phase 2 which I still enjoyed but didn't love overall. However, this book, even if I'm giving it 3 stars, reminded me why I love this series so much and has tempted me to think about a potential series reread, whether I will act on that is pretty unlikely, but it has reminded me why I love this series and for that I am grateful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Gore, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, War, Body horror, Torture, Grief, and Violence
Moderate: Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Kidnapping
Minor: Deadnaming, Stalking, Gaslighting, Genocide, Cursing, Slavery, and Child death
abiofpellinor's review
dark
funny
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Murder, and Death
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