Scan barcode
ethuiliel's review
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
pacifickat's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This book was a decent second installment of the series, albeit not as polished and clearly directional as Children of Blood and Bone (one of my favorite YA Fantasy books to date, so I don't blame Virtue and Vengeance for not reaching that bar). It felt a bit like Prince Caspian in the Chronicles of Narnia series, where the preceding book had a plot with a lot of upward momentum ending on a clearly positive note after the main characters experienced notable development in a single direction, but the following book is mired in character flaws, violence, and a bleaker outlook. I actually liked that to a certain extent, because mixed motives, continued resolve, and not becoming frustrated with a cause that is slow to succeed are all very real and believable.
As I grew frustrated (likely by author design) with the foibles of each character and their seeming devolving character arcs, I also realize the plot of the first book took place in what I believe was a matter of weeks. It's no wonder the characters are experiencing some backsliding, especially when their next steps toward success are less defined, and debatable depending on each one's motivations and past traumas. However, it was often difficult to be in their heads, particularly Zélie's POV chapters. Our girl turned it around by the end though, once her vendetta became less personal and she found strength in truly uniting her people. Can magic fix everything? Maybe.
In truth, I was a bit baffled by Inan's chapters, as he repeatedly experienced horrific realizations regarding his family's past and the corruption of the monarchy, and yet (for the most part) continued on their side in spite of feeling sick about it. He is truly a slow-turning vehicle, and it felt unbelievable to see him continue to believe in his corrupt institution. A bit on the nose in today's political climate? Perhaps.
And Amari, my favorite character through the bulk of this story, arguing for a future with peace for all Orïshans, had an enormous, disappointing twist. I'm not sure the author did enough to develop Amari to then make her murder of civilians a believable course of action, but she did sprinkle in Amari's (violently abusive) father's voice in Amari's head throughout the book as she becomes increasingly desperate to succeed. It's a clever use of POV to capture internal monologue that I am unsure will translate well into movie form should they decide to do a live action version of this series. Ultimately, she learns that peace at any price is too high a cost to pay. The author makes it sound like Amari could have a path back to grace following this murderous episode, but that will be a difficult pill for some readers to swallow after she massacred an entire village (even if the author copped out of it by conveniently resurrecting everyone...but this is YA after all).
Ultimately, it turns out that Roën, the mercenary side-character without a POV chapter of his own, displayed the most character development of anyone. He pulls a Severus Snape, going from a grey area of working for both sides for personal gain to finding a reason to fight for something better, a transformation nearly entirely driven by his love for Zélie. While I remain skeptical that two highly-volatile characters who have been primarily fueled by rage and pain can make for a successful long term relationship (perhaps one of the Healers can invent cognitive therapy), their story still felt like one of the few satisfying elements of the entire book.
So, in the end, it turns out war, genocide, structural racism, and governmental overthrow are messy. Everyone involved has mixed motivations and violence is a near a guarantee. Are vengeance-fueled teens frustrating and a little scary? Yes. Can idealism turn dark? For sure. Are child warriors disturbing? Absolutely. All in all, this is a book with complicated plot and subject matter that meanders so much I wasn't sure how the author would wrap it all up. An abrupt, cliff-hanger, twist ending may not be what we, the faithful readers, disserved after hanging on through this entire book. But what did we expect? I guess we'll have to wait for the third and final installment to see if we get any real resolution to what has been a wild ride of a series.
In truth, I was a bit baffled by Inan's chapters, as he repeatedly experienced horrific realizations regarding his family's past and the corruption of the monarchy, and yet (for the most part) continued on their side in spite of feeling sick about it. He is truly a slow-turning vehicle, and it felt unbelievable to see him continue to believe in his corrupt institution. A bit on the nose in today's political climate? Perhaps.
And Amari, my favorite character through the bulk of this story, arguing for a future with peace for all Orïshans, had an enormous, disappointing twist. I'm not sure the author did enough to develop Amari to then make her murder of civilians a believable course of action, but she did sprinkle in Amari's (violently abusive) father's voice in Amari's head throughout the book as she becomes increasingly desperate to succeed. It's a clever use of POV to capture internal monologue that I am unsure will translate well into movie form should they decide to do a live action version of this series. Ultimately, she learns that peace at any price is too high a cost to pay. The author makes it sound like Amari could have a path back to grace following this murderous episode, but that will be a difficult pill for some readers to swallow after she massacred an entire village (even if the author copped out of it by conveniently resurrecting everyone...but this is YA after all).
Ultimately, it turns out that Roën, the mercenary side-character without a POV chapter of his own, displayed the most character development of anyone. He pulls a Severus Snape, going from a grey area of working for both sides for personal gain to finding a reason to fight for something better, a transformation nearly entirely driven by his love for Zélie. While I remain skeptical that two highly-volatile characters who have been primarily fueled by rage and pain can make for a successful long term relationship (perhaps one of the Healers can invent cognitive therapy), their story still felt like one of the few satisfying elements of the entire book.
So, in the end, it turns out war, genocide, structural racism, and governmental overthrow are messy. Everyone involved has mixed motivations and violence is a near a guarantee. Are vengeance-fueled teens frustrating and a little scary? Yes. Can idealism turn dark? For sure. Are child warriors disturbing? Absolutely. All in all, this is a book with complicated plot and subject matter that meanders so much I wasn't sure how the author would wrap it all up. An abrupt, cliff-hanger, twist ending may not be what we, the faithful readers, disserved after hanging on through this entire book. But what did we expect? I guess we'll have to wait for the third and final installment to see if we get any real resolution to what has been a wild ride of a series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, War, Racism, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Murder, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Hate crime, and Violence
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Child abuse, and Child death
Minor: Slavery, Sexual content, and Vomit
This book contains child soldiers.robinks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
4.25
Compared to the first volume, this one felt a little less intense and more about internal struggles, and I found myself super frustrated at different points. The epilogue had really powerful imagery.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Violence, Blood, Emotional abuse, Child death, Racial slurs, Racism, Genocide, and Police brutality
Moderate: Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, and Gore
Minor: Alcohol, Trafficking, Vomit, Physical abuse, and Torture
cecinamo's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
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
3.75
I really liked this book. It was really good, but very very sad and there was also quite a lot of violence.
There is also a lesbian background couple <3 I am definitely looking forward to the third book. Hopefully their story ends well! >~<
There is also a lesbian background couple <3 I am definitely looking forward to the third book. Hopefully their story ends well! >~<
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Genocide, Gore, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, Colonisation, Torture, Violence, Blood, Body horror, and Murder
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
More...