Scan barcode
fromjuliereads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
tense
fast-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
For most of this book, I thought it was a steady 4.5 - just not quite as good as the first but still blowing my mind. BUT WITH THAT ENDING this could be nothing but a 5. I am obsessed. I love these characters. I want to fiercely protect 2 of them (if you've read the first book, you know), and I just NEED to know how this ends. Even if I have an inkling that it is going to HURT ME. But into the darkness we go...
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Blood, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, Confinement, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Religious bigotry
alas_aly's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
As the Shadow Rises is the sequel to There Will Come a Darkness and contains a lot of what I liked about the first book. I love a multiple-perspective story. I think the ways that all the perspectives are connected is quite compelling. The journey of Ephyra continues to be one that is surprisingly complex. She is a morally grey character who you don't know if you should root for or not. I appreciate that all of the characters grew in this book. They gained more self-awareness and were mostly active in their journeys.
For the things that I didn't like about this book. I think having so many characters naturally means that there are some you are more interested in. The momentum of the story can feel like it stalls when you move from the varied circumstances that the characters have. This also had some of that middle book syndrome of really just moving the plot along. The characters, literally, just spent a good amount of time traveling from place to place. This isn't something that I usually mind in a story and I didn't mind it that much here but second books aren't usually people's favorites.
Personally, I don't love some of the characters. I also don't find the world-building to be as compelling.
For the things that I didn't like about this book. I think having so many characters naturally means that there are some you are more interested in. The momentum of the story can feel like it stalls when you move from the varied circumstances that the characters have. This also had some of that middle book syndrome of really just moving the plot along. The characters, literally, just spent a good amount of time traveling from place to place. This isn't something that I usually mind in a story and I didn't mind it that much here but second books aren't usually people's favorites.
Personally, I don't love some of the characters. I also don't find the world-building to be as compelling.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Grief, and Kidnapping
More...