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grets_reads's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Xenophobia, and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Death, Genocide, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Death of parent, and Confinement
Minor: Torture and Fire/Fire injury
ci_eden's review
adventurous
dark
hopeful
inspiring
sad
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? It's complicated
4.0
This took me a year to read due to my ADHD but definitely a great sequel! I could definitely feel how the characters matured throughout the book. The smaller chapters spur me on and I feel like the POV is evenly spread between each character. I honestly can't wait for this to get picked up for a TV show, it'll be absolutely stunning. The way Adeyemi described things, I can truly visualise it in my head.
The fact that the war technically hasn't ended and that they're on a boat in the sea?! Who is this new player Tomi, I need to read the next one right now!!
Also I love how flawed Zelie is. I love a strong woman going through shit, and she doesn't want to run away anymore, she found her purpose, fuck yeah! Although she has horrible taste in men. Also did NOT expect Amari to kill innocent people. Trauma and abuse really twists you.
These are tortured characters that just keep getting battered and abused. Children fighting wars, as the title says. I feel for them, I really do. I feel like their deaths are inevitable but I can't look away...
Also I love how flawed Zelie is. I love a strong woman going through shit, and she doesn't want to run away anymore, she found her purpose, fuck yeah! Although she has horrible taste in men. Also did NOT expect Amari to kill innocent people. Trauma and abuse really twists you.
These are tortured characters that just keep getting battered and abused. Children fighting wars, as the title says. I feel for them, I really do. I feel like their deaths are inevitable but I can't look away...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Xenophobia, Blood, Colonisation, Violence, War, Racism, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Hate crime, and Murder
Moderate: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Classism, Religious bigotry, and Hate crime
Minor: Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Medical content, Misogyny, Fire/Fire injury, Confinement, Suicidal thoughts, and Torture
ravenwolf_waf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
My thoughts are all over the place with this one. I thought this was it, there wasn't going to be a third book. So wtf was that ending? And what happened to my characters? Relationships are destroyed all because everyone checked reason and trust at the door and went straight for hot-headed emotion. The story was decent but half of it felt wholly unnecessary. It was as if the author was trying to keep the plot going past when it should've ended by throwing random hurdles throughout. I'll keep an eye out for the third, I guess, but at this point it's feeling more like a skip. :/
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Classism, Death, Genocide, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and War
asourceoffiction's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-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? Yes
3.0
This was an utterly brutal installment to the Children of Blood and Bone series. I enjoyed the direction it took after the magic returned to the kingdom, and how complex all the characters' motivations have become. Zélie loathes Inan after he caused her father's death, but finds herself still inextricably tied to him. Amari is rejected by the other maji but desperately wants to help them win Orisha back. Inan never knows whether to follow what he ultimately knows is right, or his duty to the crown.
Unfortunately, all of this internal conflict leads the trio to make some incredibly misguided decisions and my sympathies wavered with all of them at some point. also found similar patterns emerging through the book, where a plan would form and be shot down at the last devastating minute, right up to the end.
I did enjoy the final twist in the tale and l'm intrigued to see where the next book will take the story. But it started to feel a little repetitive, despite such a clever premise.
Unfortunately, all of this internal conflict leads the trio to make some incredibly misguided decisions and my sympathies wavered with all of them at some point. also found similar patterns emerging through the book, where a plan would form and be shot down at the last devastating minute, right up to the end.
I did enjoy the final twist in the tale and l'm intrigued to see where the next book will take the story. But it started to feel a little repetitive, despite such a clever premise.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, Murder, and War
holly_daze_'s review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Violence, and War
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, and Murder
devourfiction's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
i love the development of the magic system and the world building, as well as some of the descriptive writing. i just wish i could connect to the characters living in that world and not constantly get hung up on some plot holes and motivations. overall, a mixed bag. it's sad that these characters prevented me from staying very interested because the world WAS vibrant (shoutout to the ocean excursion scene!)
as much as the characters underwhelmed me, im still gonna try the third book with hopes that they reach their emotional conclusions there.
I was often taken out of the story by stuff that didn't fully follow or super make sense. Here are some of my plot hole/contrivance questions that are currently coming to mind.
- mama agba said the duel finishes at concession or death. neither of those things happened but amari still won, but whatever. But after ramaya is shuffled off to the infirmary she is not heard from again or mentioned once. did they heal her? did she die later? did she stay in the infirmary in a coma the whole time, in which case did they just ditch her when they left the sanctuary?
- if everyone hated amari so much, why wasn't she challenged immediately again, by someone who wouldn't play games? you could say people might have been scared once they found out she was a center, but there was a chunk of time in which this wasn't revealed.
- if amari became an elder, why didn't she get a vision?
- becoming an elder, amari seems to devote no time to think about the connectors under her. Initially I thought this was a great setup for her character as a lousy maji ally because zelie told her an elder has a communal and leadership role, and amari was going into this cultural role without desire or ability to fulfill it, simply for recognition and power, but then this particular concern was dropped and never heard of again.
- tsain mostly existed as far as his romantic relationship with amari aaaand that's it. :( I get that there was a larger cast of characters now but it felt bad to see a main character have no arc of his own outside of his reactions to amari.
- Nailah also disappeared halfway into the book never to be seen again
- ig this could be chalked up to stupidity but WHY did amari and inan meet right by the sanctuary and not at a neutral location
- mama agba went from being against blood sacrifice and warning away from it to volunteering for it. it's possible but it needed SOME setup i think, felt like whiplash.
- why was amari the only one blamed for the village war crime when she did it with the burner and cancer elders - were they also shackled or in cells, or..?
as much as the characters underwhelmed me, im still gonna try the third book with hopes that they reach their emotional conclusions there.
I was often taken out of the story by stuff that didn't fully follow or super make sense. Here are some of my plot hole/contrivance questions that are currently coming to mind.
- mama agba said the duel finishes at concession or death. neither of those things happened but amari still won, but whatever. But after ramaya is shuffled off to the infirmary she is not heard from again or mentioned once. did they heal her? did she die later? did she stay in the infirmary in a coma the whole time, in which case did they just ditch her when they left the sanctuary?
- if everyone hated amari so much, why wasn't she challenged immediately again, by someone who wouldn't play games? you could say people might have been scared once they found out she was a center, but there was a chunk of time in which this wasn't revealed.
- if amari became an elder, why didn't she get a vision?
- becoming an elder, amari seems to devote no time to think about the connectors under her. Initially I thought this was a great setup for her character as a lousy maji ally because zelie told her an elder has a communal and leadership role, and amari was going into this cultural role without desire or ability to fulfill it, simply for recognition and power, but then this particular concern was dropped and never heard of again.
- tsain mostly existed as far as his romantic relationship with amari aaaand that's it. :( I get that there was a larger cast of characters now but it felt bad to see a main character have no arc of his own outside of his reactions to amari.
- Nailah also disappeared halfway into the book never to be seen again
- ig this could be chalked up to stupidity but WHY did amari and inan meet right by the sanctuary and not at a neutral location
- mama agba went from being against blood sacrifice and warning away from it to volunteering for it. it's possible but it needed SOME setup i think, felt like whiplash.
- why was amari the only one blamed for the village war crime when she did it with the burner and cancer elders - were they also shackled or in cells, or..?
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore, Suicidal thoughts, War, and Xenophobia
jeeniusreads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, War, and Violence
Moderate: Toxic relationship
Minor: Sexual content
tinnuben's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
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? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, War, Genocide, Grief, and Violence
gattolinos_nerdy_nook's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
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
5.0
This is an amazing read, and now I shall wait for the third book.
This book hits the ground running. There is so much going on when reading. The drama, betrayals, and the fights this book has and even the series as a whole so far is just ahh. I love every moment of it. The plot carries on from the first book along with the character growth, which is just perfect.
I cannot wait for the third book. I highly highly recommend reading this series.
This book hits the ground running. There is so much going on when reading. The drama, betrayals, and the fights this book has and even the series as a whole so far is just ahh. I love every moment of it. The plot carries on from the first book along with the character growth, which is just perfect.
I cannot wait for the third book. I highly highly recommend reading this series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Murder, Violence, and War
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
lucille_c's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, War, Death of parent, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Grief, Hate crime, Cancer, Gore, Murder, and Blood
Minor: Alcohol