Scan barcode
booksthatburn's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
DAMSEL is a fable of a prince, a dragon, a princess, and her Sorrow. It is languid, methodical, and unsubtle in its metaphors in a way that wraps all the way around to making it difficult to discuss without spoiling the plot.
This is an extended, decently layered metaphor for a bunch of things related to sexism, misogyny, and ideas of cis women in relation to cis men. Given the particulars of the Ama's characterization, it feels like she's someone who isn't a cis woman but is being forced to behave as though she is. That is literally what's happening, in one sense, but I can't tell whether the book is engaging with ideas of queerness or if this very long metaphor for a woman's role in relation to men is missing ideas of queerness entirely. In one very important sense, Ama is not a woman, is not attracted to men (or at least is not attracted to Emory), and is being made to behave as if she is a woman who likes men. She must fulfill her role in order to support Emory in his role, where that someone does what she is told to do is essential, but the very fact of her being the one to do it is completely irrelevant. Her station matters but her personhood does not, as far as everyone around her is concerned.
In order to save her wildcat's life from her king's wrath, Ama must tame her, removing those qualities which make Sorrorow (the wildcat) so fierce and vibrant. The more Ama learns what is and will be required of her, the more she tries to find a way out, some other option which will let her be happy.
I like the audiobook narrator, this was a good performance which helped the story flow easily. My favorite part is Ama's project towards the end of the story.
There are some pretty explicit discussions of sex but they use antiquated terms for everything, in keeping with the vaguely medieval setting. I was able to guess the ending reveal ahead of time. Part of that is the way it's coy but not subtle. At the end my reaction is kind of meh. I liked it, but its bluntness meant I wasn't waiting to find out happened. Instead I was waiting for it to get where I already knew it was going. That can be fun, but I thought it would have more to it in the end.
This is an extended, decently layered metaphor for a bunch of things related to sexism, misogyny, and ideas of cis women in relation to cis men. Given the particulars of the Ama's characterization, it feels like she's someone who isn't a cis woman but is being forced to behave as though she is. That is literally what's happening, in one sense, but I can't tell whether the book is engaging with ideas of queerness or if this very long metaphor for a woman's role in relation to men is missing ideas of queerness entirely. In one very important sense, Ama is not a woman, is not attracted to men (or at least is not attracted to Emory), and is being made to behave as if she is a woman who likes men. She must fulfill her role in order to support Emory in his role, where that someone does what she is told to do is essential, but the very fact of her being the one to do it is completely irrelevant. Her station matters but her personhood does not, as far as everyone around her is concerned.
In order to save her wildcat's life from her king's wrath, Ama must tame her, removing those qualities which make Sorrorow (the wildcat) so fierce and vibrant. The more Ama learns what is and will be required of her, the more she tries to find a way out, some other option which will let her be happy.
I like the audiobook narrator, this was a good performance which helped the story flow easily. My favorite part is Ama's project towards the end of the story.
There are some pretty explicit discussions of sex but they use antiquated terms for everything, in keeping with the vaguely medieval setting. I was able to guess the ending reveal ahead of time. Part of that is the way it's coy but not subtle. At the end my reaction is kind of meh. I liked it, but its bluntness meant I wasn't waiting to find out happened. Instead I was waiting for it to get where I already knew it was going. That can be fun, but I thought it would have more to it in the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Sexual assault
Moderate: Death, Excrement, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Sexism, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Suicide, Self harm, Pregnancy, and Violence
destiel74's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I read this book for one or two years and didn't know what to make of it. I don't love it but I don't hate it either and I do think it's an important story. The book is a unique, fresher take on the feminist reimagining of fairytales other than other books within that category. It inspired quite a few ideas of mine. The story is far from a love story than what the summary would have you believe. Men surrounding the protagonist Ama especially Prince Emory subject her to many horrors that can be found in our world. The ending is satisfying. However if one is uncomfortable reading about topics about sexual assault and domestic abuse you probably should sit this one out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Rape, and Sexual assault
plutotoujors's review against another edition
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Rape, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, and Animal death
scribblesandsuch's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
God this was awful. The writing was clumsy. I figured out the twist on page 8. In all fairness you were probably supposed to work it out early on anyway? But the pacing of the book means the character doesn't work it out until literally 300 pages in, right at the end of the book, so you're just waiting the whole time. The whole book has a feel of thinking it's giving subtle nods and hinting at complexities whilst being incredibly blatant and superficial. The obsession with male genitalia was not subversive, and having the protagonist being the obeying victim until the very end is neither empowering or believable characterisation. It contains things that are unpleasant to read, such as triggering topics, and because it's written so badly none of them have any real impact on the story or reading, turning them into ineffective shock tactics. Despite all the descriptions of just how hard the prince's 'yard' was, all in all I found both the characters and plot to be v limp. It also isn't bad in a fun way, so I couldn't even recommend it as something to love hating.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Animal cruelty, and Sexism
egurgens's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
TLDR: excessively obscene writing, excess of misogynistic characters, and weak willed women.
First of all, let me just say the writing in this is VULGAR. Now, I'm not afraid of smut, even graphic smut. But the author added obscene details to parts of the book where they don't belong! Like during sex, I get it. But when the character is just being dried off, you don't need to go into such detail. "...he started with her arms, rubbed her breasts, the hard, pink, nubs of her nipples, her stomach, her buttocks, the fire of red hair between her legs, her legs themselves." Keep in mind, this is supposed to be a young adult novel. This is meant for 12-18 year old kids. Just so much unnecessary graphic nudity. Now, there is no smut, or any sex written in this book. Just graphic nudity. While reading this, I thought the author was a man, based on the descriptions used. How overly sexualized un-sexual moments are. Like, I don't want (or need) to know that "...the thick meat of him, a fleshy tusk, white like ivory in the bed of curled black hair." Like, it was a non-sexual moment. The reader does NOT need to know that much detail. Like sure, you can describe the dick some, but maybe not to that amount of detail. Damn.
Anyways. Now for the actual review. Rant over. The character of Emory is so wholly misogynistic, I wanted to stab him myself. Through the pages. As if rescuing someone makes them your property. As if her being your fiancé gives you the right to gaslight her, emotionally abuse her, and more. The men in this story are so shitty, not one is even decently mannered. You would think that the queen mother, who was in the same position as Ama, would be sympathetic. It seems as though Ama is the only sane character in the book! Like, who doesn't resent someone forcing themselves on you, someone that tries to kill your only companion, someone who won't even let you go OUTSIDE on your own? Who parades you around on a leash because you didn't ask permission for something? Who treats you like an object, "You are my bride, and your flesh is my flesh. Do not treat it so roughly," she literally just got a small burn, dude. She is not your property.
I am sorry that I am so critical of this book. I really enjoyed the general idea, and the general plot. But some things I just cannot get over. I read the whole book, and I greatly enjoyed the end. However, the whole time I was just super frustrated with the writing and the characters. The only acceptable characters in this are Ama, Tilley, and Sorrow. That's it. Ama did grow throughout the story. She tries to accept her role, but as she learns more about it, the more uncomfortable she becomes with her role. But still, she stays long after any reasonable character would have taken some sort of action. I mean, to be fair, she has no prior knowledge of any family or anything, so she would try to make the best of things. But I think there should be a limit. It's not like she loves him, or anyone in the castle. She is not pregnant with his child. She could have left. Where would she go? I don't know. Anywhere but there. So she is a bit weak willed, but eventually takes action. Tilley isn't perfect, she was only a servant, and she obeyed what she was told. She could have helped Ama, or told her what she knew about the other Damsels. Anyways. There were no strong female characters in this book. As a 20 something woman, I think we need to do better. Women need to write strong women, to help raise other women up. Don't write every woman as pathetic or weak, have some diversity, set some good examples for your young readers. Do better, Elana K. Arnold.
TLDR: excessively obscene writing, excess of misogynistic characters, and weak willed women.
First of all, let me just say the writing in this is VULGAR. Now, I'm not afraid of smut, even graphic smut. But the author added obscene details to parts of the book where they don't belong! Like during sex, I get it. But when the character is just being dried off, you don't need to go into such detail.
Anyways. Now for the actual review. Rant over. The character of Emory is so wholly misogynistic, I wanted to stab him myself. Through the pages. As if rescuing someone makes them your property. As if her being your fiancé gives you the right to gaslight her, emotionally abuse her, and more. The men in this story are so shitty, not one is even decently mannered. You would think that the queen mother, who was in the same position as Ama, would be sympathetic. It seems as though Ama is the only sane character in the book! Like, who doesn't resent
I am sorry that I am so critical of this book. I really enjoyed the general idea, and the general plot. But some things I just cannot get over. I read the whole book, and I greatly enjoyed the end. However, the whole time I was just super frustrated with the writing and the characters. The only acceptable characters in this are Ama, Tilley, and Sorrow. That's it. Ama did grow throughout the story. She tries to accept her role, but as she learns more about it, the more uncomfortable she becomes with her role. But still, she stays long after any reasonable character would have taken some sort of action. I mean, to be fair, she has no prior knowledge of any family or anything, so she would try to make the best of things. But I think there should be a limit. It's not like she loves him, or anyone in the castle. She is not pregnant with his child. She could have left. Where would she go? I don't know. Anywhere but there. So she is a bit weak willed, but eventually takes action. Tilley isn't perfect, she was only a servant, and she obeyed what she was told. She could have helped Ama, or told her what she knew about the other Damsels. Anyways. There were no strong female characters in this book. As a 20 something woman, I think we need to do better. Women need to write strong women, to help raise other women up. Don't write every woman as pathetic or weak, have some diversity, set some good examples for your young readers. Do better, Elana K. Arnold.
TLDR: excessively obscene writing, excess of misogynistic characters, and weak willed women.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Medical content, Pregnancy, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Violence
Would NOT rereadmayhem24_7reads's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.5
Until now, I have never hated a book so much that I drove back to the store to return it
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Not suitable for children or teens, this should not be marketed as a YA bookamanda12's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Spoiler warning. Trigger warnings for sexual assault and animal abuse.
Okay, so when I bought this book I was expecting a wild dragon escapade with some twists and turns. Instead, I got a book that I can't really comprehend. I mean, I can, but at the same time I'm just so confused as to why this book is the way it is. Right of the bat, based off summary alone, I figured that Emory, the soon to be king charged with rescuing the damsel, wasn't going to be that great of a character. The summary mentioned that Ama, the damsel, would face great dangers after being "rescued" from the dragon and that there was like an air of mystery to the whole rite of the damsel, I figured she'd probably been kidnapped or something especially since she didn't remember anything.
What shocked me was that early on, I managed to call the twist: Ama herself had been the dragon. It was easy to spot in the description of Ama because it briefly mentioned amber eyes which had been a big talking point when Emory had first faced the dragon. I thought to myself, okay cool, an interesting twist.
And it was interesting, the last few parts giving the story of how Ama had become human and how she remembered her lair of spice-tang scents and mountains of gems. I had been ecstatic when she finally killed Emory, ate his heart, and finally became a dragon again, fleeing the castle she'd been confined too.
My problem is honestly the author's seeming obsession with detailing animal abuse (that rabbit killing scene haunts me to be honest) and Emory's blatant abuse of Ama. Acting like he owns her, putting her on a leash like an animal acting as if was a bit of fun, threatening to kill her animal when she "stepped out of turn", ranting about a woman's place and how he should be revered by everyone as a hero, and sexually assaulting her on many occasions. He claims she should give him thanks, though, because apparently he has more restraint than other men in the kingdom. Like, yeah, oh gee thanks, dude, you're such a winner.
So honestly, while the book has a good twist, I don't really think it's worth a read. I gave it two stars for the twist and ending alone, where Ama was finally able to kill her captor and be free as a dragon once more. Emory's entire character was so off putting I almost didn't finish this thing, but maybe that's just me.
Okay, so when I bought this book I was expecting a wild dragon escapade with some twists and turns. Instead, I got a book that I can't really comprehend. I mean, I can, but at the same time I'm just so confused as to why this book is the way it is. Right of the bat, based off summary alone, I figured that Emory, the soon to be king charged with rescuing the damsel, wasn't going to be that great of a character. The summary mentioned that Ama, the damsel, would face great dangers after being "rescued" from the dragon and that there was like an air of mystery to the whole rite of the damsel, I figured she'd probably been kidnapped or something especially since she didn't remember anything.
What shocked me was that early on, I managed to call the twist: Ama herself had been the dragon. It was easy to spot in the description of Ama because it briefly mentioned amber eyes which had been a big talking point when Emory had first faced the dragon. I thought to myself, okay cool, an interesting twist.
And it was interesting, the last few parts giving the story of how Ama had become human and how she remembered her lair of spice-tang scents and mountains of gems. I had been ecstatic when she finally killed Emory, ate his heart, and finally became a dragon again, fleeing the castle she'd been confined too.
My problem is honestly the author's seeming obsession with detailing animal abuse (that rabbit killing scene haunts me to be honest) and Emory's blatant abuse of Ama. Acting like he owns her, putting her on a leash like an animal acting as if was a bit of fun, threatening to kill her animal when she "stepped out of turn", ranting about a woman's place and how he should be revered by everyone as a hero, and sexually assaulting her on many occasions. He claims she should give him thanks, though, because apparently he has more restraint than other men in the kingdom. Like, yeah, oh gee thanks, dude, you're such a winner.
So honestly, while the book has a good twist, I don't really think it's worth a read. I gave it two stars for the twist and ending alone, where Ama was finally able to kill her captor and be free as a dragon once more. Emory's entire character was so off putting I almost didn't finish this thing, but maybe that's just me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
_fallinglight_'s review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Rape
Minor: Suicide
emakay's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
missindyrose's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
1.0
Got through this book in an afternoon. I was hoping to enjoy it more but didn’t. It’s an interesting reimagining of a fairytale but I wish it’d come with a content/trigger warning, that way I’d have gone into it knowing somewhat what was coming. I enjoyed the ending and the main characters development. The writing style is very enthralling and most people would enjoy it. Just be warned that it isn’t for everyone and does contain sexual violence, abuse, animal cruelty/abuse.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, and Rape