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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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
dark
fast-paced
Love. Have not read the Hunger Games yet but I imagine its a similar plot. Characters are easy to both root for and hate. A lot of teenagers trying to break away from their family's history and abuse and of course we want them to succeed. #teamalistar
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I went in expecting characters that were varying shades of villain. Instead, I found them to be strangely detatched from the situation. For a group of kids who have spent their lives living in the shadow of a potential death tournament that will decide the fortubes of their family for the next several years, they all seemed remarkably sanguine about it. Never mind the inexplicable decisions that are made solely in service to the plot. Definitely not for me.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Complicated
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I’m not mad at it... I enjoy books that follow the Hunger Games formula. However, I have never been a fan of books that swap points of view, and this book takes that to the extreme. Every chapter follows a different champion on the Blood Veil, regardless of what was just happening in the previous chapter, and while sometimes it is a smooth transition to another character in the same scene, other times it is an abrupt change to a different character in a completely different area. We follow four of the seven champions: Alistair Lowe, Gavin Grieves, Briony Thorburn, and Isobel Macaslan. Now, of the four characters, I only cared for three of them and that quickly fell to only two. Isobel starts off the story flirting with Alistair and befriending him, openly using him to free herself from the consequences of her failed spell and then, when he is given the chance to interact with someone very important to him, she betrays him... and dooms him with her own hands. This genuinely pissed me off after everything he did for her, and it knocked her out of a top spot and all the way to the bottom of my list. I mean, at least with Gavin, Alistair and the others always knew where they stood.
I really enjoyed the idea that no one in this story was a ‘hero’. Some of them may fight against what they are and delude themselves into thinking they aren’t as bad as the others, but they are all villains. They are all willing to kill each other, vying for the high magick that they will be rewarded with if they are the last man standing. None of them have noble thoughts, unlike Katniss Everdeen, even if they try to pretend that they do. That is something I feel isn’t explored enough. I want more stories where every character has a dark and twisted side.
Now, don’t think that just because they are characters out for glory and power you won’t feel sympathy for them, because trust me, you will, especially when it comes to Alistair. This is a boy who was raised by one of the most brutal, cunning, and villainous families in town and he only ever felt love from one person, his brother, Hendry. What happened to that boy is absolutely despicable and I am glad the Lowe’s got what was coming to them in the end. Alistair has been through far too much betrayal, and it is easy to see why he makes such a good villain, and it is nice to see an LGBT person that isn’t comedic relief.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes