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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
dark
sad
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
I'd probably give this book a higher rating if the protagonist's "love interest" had, like, a single redeeming quality.
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
To get this out of the way - that cover does this book no favors. This book is a really compelling dark fantasy with a well-done toxic sapphic romance. I liked Hellevir, I thought she was a great character to experience this world through. The lore was interesting, and the romance between our two leads had me on the edge of seat, both in anticipation and frustration. I also loved the portrayal of Death and Hellevir's relationship with him. This book is really what I wanted from both Belladonna and The Bear and the Nightingale.
medium-paced
I enjoyed the writing and atmosphere it created, the descriptions made for an engaging read. The aspects of death within the story were very interesting but the plot really suffered feeling directionless. The pov character is entirely remove from the court politics or murder mystery aspect and it's all handled off page. Leaving us with no suspects and an obvious reveal. The main characters relationship with the princess felt as underdeveloped.
The book ended up with an oddly almost slice of life feel focused on small mostly meaningless missions and character interactions. Which while it wasn't what I wanted and changed drastically from that towards the end, I didn't mind it.
The book ended up with an oddly almost slice of life feel focused on small mostly meaningless missions and character interactions. Which while it wasn't what I wanted and changed drastically from that towards the end, I didn't mind it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Confinement, Death, Blood, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Alcohol, War
Minor: Miscarriage, Self harm, Pregnancy
●Detailed descriptions of dead bodies including loved ones, small children, friendly animals, and people who died by violent means including possioning, burning, and torture.
●Death of mother and baby due to childbirth
●Grief of losing a child, parent, and romantic partner, and more. (On page mourning)
●Public hanging execution and lashings (on page)
●Physical Child Abuse (Mentioned)
Note: a separate relationship has parent figure hit their adult child once on page.
●Punishments and Murders on behalf defying religion/god (Mentioned/off page)
●minor self-harm because a Character sacrifices parts of themselves like fingers and draws their own blood
challenging
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
I will start by saying that at times, I did have to force myself to read the book. There are some very slow parts that are hard to get through. I am happy that I finished it though because I enjoyed the ending.
I feel like the cover style and the summary inferred that there was more of a romance aspect than they’re actually was, which was frustrating. I read books based on my mood, and I was in the mood for a romance.
I did enjoy the story. I feel like the pace could’ve been a bit faster at times, and I wish the MC had not been such a doormat, though I understand why she was.
I am hoping the second book is a little faster paced because I need to know what happens with the death-type character. Lol
I feel like the cover style and the summary inferred that there was more of a romance aspect than they’re actually was, which was frustrating. I read books based on my mood, and I was in the mood for a romance.
I did enjoy the story. I feel like the pace could’ve been a bit faster at times, and I wish the MC had not been such a doormat, though I understand why she was.
I am hoping the second book is a little faster paced because I need to know what happens with the death-type character. Lol
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This wasn’t a bad book by any means, and I think I didn’t love it for different reasons than some other readers. Despite the cover, this isn’t a YA romantasy - while there is an undercurrent of romance, the focus is much more on the magic/mythology, politics, and religion. This focus wasn’t a problem, and in fact I really enjoyed that it didn’t feel like every other book coming out right now. I really liked the necromancy aspect and the dynamic our MC had with a Death-like deity was interesting. Parts of this actually reminded me of “The Bear and the Nightingale” a bit, especially the religion aspect, so if you liked the themes of that novel, you may enjoy this.
However, I found that I never fully connected with the characters, so it just ended up falling flat for me. Some of the side characters were fun and the family dynamics were interesting, but I just don’t think I got to know them enough to really be invested. The hints of the sapphic romance we got could’ve been juicy, but I found I kind of hated the love interest and just couldn’t see the chemistry. I also found the plot could get kind of repetitive with our MC being ordered to resurrect people so many times, and it was tough seeing her get walked all over so many times (she was basically a doormat). Overall, a book that had a lot of cool elements but just didn’t fully connect with me.