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teri_b's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
5.0
This is a sprawling, turbulent, gruesome, fascinating and very entertaining story that starts in a manor with the Stoneses family that is rather dysfunctional to put it mildly.
From there we see Miscellaneous "Lanie" Stones, the youngest daughter of the house, necromancer in hiding and allergic to violence of all sorts, emerge from the manor and find a hiding/living place in the city, as her family has life debts to pay.
As the story unfolds we get to learn more about her ancestral family and the many splendid, eccentric or cumbersome characters it bore.
We also see her making new friends in the city as she carves out a living for herself, and the family that has accompanied her from the Manor House, amongst them her niece, one of the best written child characters I have so far encountered in adult fantasy.
At times the story gets dark, gory, bloody and deadly, to then again focus on lighter matters. It is a celebration of life in the face of death quite literally. I found it thoroughly enjoyable.
From there we see Miscellaneous "Lanie" Stones, the youngest daughter of the house, necromancer in hiding and allergic to violence of all sorts, emerge from the manor and find a hiding/living place in the city, as her family has life debts to pay.
As the story unfolds we get to learn more about her ancestral family and the many splendid, eccentric or cumbersome characters it bore.
We also see her making new friends in the city as she carves out a living for herself, and the family that has accompanied her from the Manor House, amongst them her niece, one of the best written child characters I have so far encountered in adult fantasy.
At times the story gets dark, gory, bloody and deadly, to then again focus on lighter matters. It is a celebration of life in the face of death quite literally. I found it thoroughly enjoyable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, and Gore
aardwyrm's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-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
4.0
Cooney's prose is rich on the scale of croquembouche and should be treated accordingly. The prose and general structure walk a tightrope that passes over twee and saccharine, and there are occasional stumbles, but the overall effect is worth it. The book is the epitome of "no plot, just vibes" for nigh on 500 pages despite having a few vague throughlines. The feeling of being a fourteen year old goth listening to The Black Parade just before falling asleep. There aren't characters so much as beautiful paper dolls with clever joints being puppeted across a stage made of pitch-black cotton candy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Blood, Cultural appropriation, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Abandonment, Body horror, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Animal death, Child abuse, Grief, Murder, Violence, and War
outsmartyourshelf's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Laine (Miscellaneous) Stones is the youngest daughter of Unnatural & Abandon Hope Stones (the names are all out-there ridiculous).- a family with a long line of executioners, poisoners, & assassins - usually in the service of their country, Liriat. Laine is different as she is a necromancer & grew up with an allergy to death, & was mainly raised by Goody Graves, the revenant tied to the Stones family by magic. Her older sister, Nita, is away at school when their parents die within days of each other, & when Nita returns she brings with her a captive, Mak, a man who turns into a falcon. The story unfolds as the sisters attempt to stop a creditor from taking all their worldly possessions, including their home. Laine is in love with Canon Lir, a firepriest, but is also courted by the Blackbird Bride - ruler of the Rook Kingdom & enemy of Liriat. Nita agrees to become a paid assassin to the Liriat court whilst Laine is left to bring up Datu, daughter of Nita & Mak, but Laine's powers continue to grow & soon she cannot hide away any longer.
This is not my usual genre of reading material but I was intrigued by the synopsis. The world-building is first class, there's lots of LGBTQA+ & minority representation, & I grew to like Laine, Mak, & even Goody. It should really have been a four star book, but at times the pace was glacial. There's so much detail (there are footnotes!) that it slows down the pace too much - I swear at one point it took almost a full page just to describe how Laine hesitated too long, & I felt a bit impatient with how passive she is at times. I also wasn't keen on any aspect of Mak's captivity, especially as he felt like he had no option but agree to be Nita's lover. If there is another book, I will probably read it as I would like to know what happens after that shocking betrayal at the end.
My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Rebellion/Solaris, for the opportunity to read an ARC. I am voluntarily giving an honest review.
This is not my usual genre of reading material but I was intrigued by the synopsis. The world-building is first class, there's lots of LGBTQA+ & minority representation, & I grew to like Laine, Mak, & even Goody. It should really have been a four star book, but at times the pace was glacial. There's so much detail (there are footnotes!) that it slows down the pace too much - I swear at one point it took almost a full page just to describe how Laine hesitated too long, & I felt a bit impatient with how passive she is at times. I also wasn't keen on any aspect of Mak's captivity, especially as he felt like he had no option but agree to be Nita's lover. If there is another book, I will probably read it as I would like to know what happens after that shocking betrayal at the end.
My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Rebellion/Solaris, for the opportunity to read an ARC. I am voluntarily giving an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death of parent, Death, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Animal death and Kidnapping
rcsreads's review
Everything had a silly name and it added to the writers struggle to world build without just a dull information dump. It has potential but needed some heavy editing.
Plus 635 pages for part one of a trilogy is too long unless you're Robin Hobb!
Plus 635 pages for part one of a trilogy is too long unless you're Robin Hobb!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Blood
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Suicide attempt, Violence, and Kidnapping
Minor: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Death, and Death of parent
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