Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Book of Night (B&N Exclusive Edition) by Holly Black

120 reviews

kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Really interesting premise for a story. Fantasy with a badass, curvy, female protagonist who is a little rough around the edges but sharp as a tack. I’m excited for the second one…in 2024. Really starting to get into fantasy stuff more and more. Will also be checking out this author’s other books. 

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kayladaila's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5


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lacowie's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5


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thayet's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0


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bobbie_l's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

3.5 Stars

Shadows are power in Charlie Halls world. A place where a shadow can be altered, and used to hide the darkest parts of a person. But messing with a shadow comes at a cost. Charlie is a thief, who works part time at a bar and does odd con jobs for customers. But when a billionaire asks Charlie to find the Liber Noctem for him, its a job she cannot refuse (mainly because he’s blackmailing her). And so Charlie is thrown into the world of secrets, and shadows.


I think the concept of this book is super interesting. The magic system of shadows, that are fed with blood, and can be made more powerful dependent on a variety of measures is very clever. But its also quite a lot to try and understand. Sometimes it felt a little confusing to follow.

The main plotline of Charlie trying to find the Liber Noctem was very well done. There was a perfect mix of action, suspense and mystery. There were also side plots such a Charlies familial relationships and the relationship between Charlie and her boyfriend Vince.

Overall I enjoyed this book, but based on the slightly confusing magic system, and sometimes it feeling a little slow is the reason its only a 3.5 for me.

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hello_linzie's review against another edition

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adventurous dark sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0


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micheala's review against another edition

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3.25

So once again, this book has an unlikable main character which is not really my preference. The plot concept was interesting, however it took about 50% before it started to feel like things were actually happening. 

This is set in an alternative, magical USA in modern time. I would say that this is urban fantasy (but not Urban Fantasy - the romance is definitely a small side plot point rather than being about 50% of the plot). I wasn't a huge fan of the writing style, I felt like things were overly discribed (not always but on a reoccurring basis).

This is the author's first adult novel. I've previously read the Spiderwick Chronicles (many years ago) and DNF'd The Coldest Girl in Cold Town, so I'm not sure if the writing style is the same as their YA novels. 

Everything indicates that this is a standalone, however if it remains so, it has a very unsatisfactory ending. I'm not sure if I liked this book enough to want to read a sequel, so I probably won't be keeping an eye out to see if it does continue. 

Overall, this book was fine, but very middle of the road for me. 

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eepemma's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0


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zzaakkiiyyaa's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

Too many one dimensional characters. Disappointing writing in parts. Strange pacing. Zero character development. Great concept that could’ve been done really well but sadly wasn’t. 

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leahjanespeare's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

3.0

I'm 99% sure this was announced as a standalone but the last few pages I was like WAIT A SECOND WHAT-and then it ended. So that was fun. I would like more.

This is a SLOW PACED book. Do not expect Cruel Prince vibes. I am glad I was advised beforehand that it's more similar to Black's Curse Worker series, which are probably my least favorite of her work, so I had different expectations going in. That's not to say I didn't like it, but it took me a long time to finish, and I did read a couple books in between which I rarely do. I think if you like general urban fantasy novels you'll love the noir/magic themes. And there is a lots of character development and world building more than any action. I did like the untrustworthiness and ulterior motives of basically all characters, and also the con artist elements. 

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