Reviews - Threads that bind. Fili che legano

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Threads that bind. Fili che legano

4.5/5 - A strong debut that feels like it could have easily been adult fiction. This is a new adult fiction book through and through.

I absolutely loved this book and most of what I could say negatively of this book is subjective.

The positives for me were;

1) The worldbuilding - The Silts is well developed and textured in the ideal way for a book of its reading level. Hatzopoulou interweaves descriptions of her world in with care and in conversation. Exposition that spans several pages would not have fit the sort of book I think Hatzopoulou wanted to make.

2) The Mystery - Hatzopoulou writes a great red herring ( the person you're lead to think is the culprit but isn't) and genuinely has the reader second guessing what has actually happened. The conclusion of the book has me hungry for the sequel!

3) The magic/divinity- Hatzopoulou uses the divine powers of the cast with care as to ensure their impact elevates the story, whilst never relying on them to solve every problem. I really appreciated that.

The negatives for me were;

1) The book feels a little too complex at times for a young adult book and a little shallow for an adult book - This can make the book a little hard to recommend at times. The worldbuilding and intrigue I just praised can show this somewhat. I have seen other reviewers (who might be closer to YA than I am at 27!) mention how they struggled to remember everything they needed to stay engaged. This wasn't a personal issue for me, but it's worth a mention.

2) The true "villain" felt a little abrupt- This might just be a case of spending too long developing the central heroines and heroes and a plan to give the villain depth in later books. However, as a standalone story, this does drag the book down.

How would I improve the book?

1) Ensure it's sold to the right crowd - I will openly admit I took longer than I should to read this book out of fear that there wouldn't be "enough to it" due to some personal bias to YA ( I'm learning to get over it!) and I worry that others may feel this way too. This is the sort of book that belongs in new adult literature seconds if or when they become more of a thing. It's not quite YA and not quite a young adult book.

2) A bit of time spent developing the "revealed villain" - This only feels like an issue because the red herring is so expertly developed, that the sudden reveal of who is behind the wraiths doesn't have the impact it should.

Fantastic debut, I look forward to the sequel.

manonh90's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

murphey_kloey's review against another edition

3.5

challenging emotional hopeful mysterious tense 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: Yes

This book had such a promising start with such a unique tie to magic, government, and mythology. The main character Io is a Fate-born, meaning she and her two sisters are able to see and manipulate people’s threads to life, loved ones, and other things they love. Io is a private investigator in a world of bias, discrimination, and power, and she spends this book fighting for herself to realize that she deserves to be happy too. My issues with this book is that at times I thought the plot was a little hard to follow. There were times when I felt like I was getting not enough back story before diving in to a new group of characters or a new major scene. I also thought some of the characters seemed a little shallow, or that there was a lot of room to grow our interested in the main characters. Overall, it was an entertaining read but I’m not sure if I’ll continue with the next book.

sareshea's review against another edition

3.0

It was good but I’m not sure I’ll ever remember to finish the series.

phantom_tribble's review against another edition

4.25

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This was a great urban fantasy mystery. It really reminded me of Garden of The Cursed, so if you liked that book, this is a great one to pick up! The worldbuilding felt very real and solid without needing a whole lot of exposition. I loved the mystery plotline- it wasn't too confused but had enough twists and turns that I wasn't sitting waiting for the characters to catch on to the murderer.

mel13199's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous mysterious 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: Yes

One of the most interesting sci fi concepts I’ve ever seen before, all wrapped around a mystery where the twists just keep on coming!! It was amazing and had me gripped to the last second! Can’t wait to read the sequel.