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brynalexa's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Second time reading this, first time by audio format. I enjoyed the print version more. It’s fun to see the growth of the characters but, wow, do they make some awful decisions. The ending shocked me all over again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism, Death of parent, Child death, Death, Deportation, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Kidnapping, Violence, War, Misogyny, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Medical content
Minor: Alcohol and Animal death
bookishperseus's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Emotional abuse, Gore, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Death, Blood, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Genocide, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Racial slurs, Violence, War, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Torture and Fire/Fire injury
good_names_dont_exist's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Mâzeli was annoying.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and War
Moderate: Child death, Genocide, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual content
amschelly153's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Well written, complicated and lovable characters. Beautiful and intriguing magic system!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Classism, Death, Grief, Child death, Violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail
lizzie24601's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
An interesting installment for the trilogy that deals with a lot of the same themes of the first book. This one frustrated me, tho, because of the lack of character growth. The main characters continue to make the same mistakes time and time again and grapple with the same flaws that it becomes boring.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and War
Moderate: Blood, Child death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Violence
Minor: Confinement
ethuiliel's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Blood, Death of parent, Deportation, Grief, Physical abuse, and Torture
Minor: Sexual content
paintedpolarbear's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
3.0
To start with, the introduction of Titans was, at the beginning, a logical progression from the ending of the previous book. "The Gods work in mysterious ways" indeed, and it appeared to be a natural consequence of magic returning to the world. How would maji, with their closed cultural practices revolving around magic, adapt to the sudden influx of non-religious magic users? How would the new Titans adapt to their unprecedented powers? The answer was badly, on both counts, with the arrival of Titans sowing immediate chaos and disunity among the nation. Nobody handled this well. My major gripe was how quickly the argument among the maji devolved from actual cultural concerns to "well we just have to account for them when drawing up plans on how to kill as many people as possible." The idea that this was the gods' plan all along just never came up, which is insane considering how many other discussions revolved around trying to puzzle out the gods' will. What should have been a metaphor for socio-religious conflict became "my enemy leveled up, so now I have to level up as well," ad infinitum. Nobody wins in an arms race, btw.
One constant bugbear throughout the entire book was Amari's choices and actions. She quickly went from a character I was rooting for to a character I was hoping would die in a rockslide or something. Like, I get it, what are you supposed to do when the person whose approval you need says to your face that the best thing you can do for your country is die, but...I think the right answer is NOT to turn around and immediately magically lobotomize that person, take up the role of tribal elder (it's giving settler colonialism 🥴), and proceed to develop your own special and unique take on magic that completely disregards the cultural history that you have only just now become even slightly curious about. I'm also side-eyeing Mama Agba for condoning and encouraging literally everything about this.
Not to mention the LITERAL ACTUAL WAR CRIME of TARGETING CIVILIANS. Over which she has the AUDACITY to be shocked and dismayed that people are upset that she committed. Of which SHE is upset ONLY BECAUSE IT DIDN'T WORK. And expected everyone (including her boyfriend) to forgive her when OTHER PEOPLE have to resort to BLOOD SACRIFICE to invent NEW MAGIC just to UNDO WHAT SHE DID.
(This is not to say I am not side-eying Zelie/the Iyika literally using the exact same superweapon in their attack against the monarchy in the next scene, but it's fine because they're targeting soldiers? Can we be serious.)
Oh and the epilogue. Why was the trans-Atlantic slave trade overture necessary at all?
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Child death, Torture, Colonisation, Religious bigotry, Violence, Trafficking, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Death, and Genocide
sweetchocolatez's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Violence, Murder, War, and Death
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Slavery, Torture, Genocide, Blood, Body horror, and Child death
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Alcohol
straw_hat_kd's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-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
4.75
I loved Children of Blood and Bone. I loved Children of Virtue and Vengeance just as much. They are very different tonally. Children and Blood was a cat-and-mouse chase meets a race against the clock to return magic before it's lost forever book. This book deals with the consequences of the characters returning magic back. Relationships deepen. We meet new characters and new forces of opposition arise to challenge the maji's pursuit of peace. Once again, we read this book from different perspectives and it is just as successful this time around. Because of the stakes, the different POVs makes you question who is wrong and who is right throughout the book. I know my thoughts changed with each chapter. I loved the continued growth of the characters. The new characters introduced in this book are fantastic additions to the cast, and returning characters have significant impact. I cannot wait for book 3 to release shortly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Gore and Blood
ayvie's review against another edition
Honestly, I'm exhausted by the rehashing of the same issues and fights that we faced in book 1. There is, understandably, a lot of trauma and mistrust from the main characters. And I don't discount or dismiss that. But I also want *more* and better. It's just too much pain being flung at everyone.
This is somewhat spoilery, but not with a lot of specifics.
I *hated* Inan's choices in book 1. To the point where I thought the romance between he and Zélie was a horrible add-on. I did not and do not forgive him. And I understand - wholly - why Zélie doesn't. So when he makes a point to try to end the war and be better here, I really hoped that he could. But he has no conviction. So when his offer is rebuffed (understandably), he just continues along with the status quo and hurting those with magic. Instead of standing strong against the atrocities, like he said he would, he just goes right back to eliminating magic and those that use it. Which apparently includes torture.
Zélie and Amari (whom I still love) are having the same fight they have been having since the beginning. I just desperately want them to band together to make things better. But the constant fighting against each other is helping no one. Least of all them.
Zélie wants to be done with the war and everything, believing that it was all for nothing. And there's no point in anyone else dying - they should just leave. I totally get her feelings on this. What frustrates me is that instead of doing that, she goes the revenge route and instead of seeing what's good for her people, she is singleminded in being *against* Inan. Which is going to place her people in more danger.
Amari continues to beat her head against the wall of being accepted by the magi. They do not accept her (since she is a royal that now has magic), and despite her trying to help them, and all of Orisha, be safe and healthy and happy, she's mistrusted and abused.
Since this seems to be rehashing all the issues from book 1, I think I can probably come back in book 3 to see how it ties up without even really reading the last half of book 2.
This is somewhat spoilery, but not with a lot of specifics.
Zélie and Amari (whom I still love) are having the same fight they have been having since the beginning. I just desperately want them to band together to make things better. But the constant fighting against each other is helping no one. Least of all them.
Zélie wants to be done with the war and everything, believing that it was all for nothing. And there's no point in anyone else dying - they should just leave. I totally get her feelings on this. What frustrates me is that instead of doing that, she goes the revenge route and instead of seeing what's good for her people, she is singleminded in being *against* Inan. Which is going to place her people in more danger.
Amari continues to beat her head against the wall of being accepted by the magi. They do not accept her (since she is a royal that now has magic), and despite her trying to help them, and all of Orisha, be safe and healthy and happy, she's mistrusted and abused.
Since this seems to be rehashing all the issues from book 1, I think I can probably come back in book 3 to see how it ties up without even really reading the last half of book 2.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture and Violence