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4.21 AVERAGE
4.21 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
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:
Complicated
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
The pacing is weird and heavily unbalanced, but this was surprisingly quite lovely as long as you know what to expect. I picked this up thinking it’s romantasy with heavy focus on the romance, so in that sense I got what I wanted. For about 70-80% of the book, it reads like a cozy fantasy. Like yes, there’s a war going on, but Iris spends most of her days writing, moving, adjusting to a new life, and also bantering with Roman. Then suddenly the conflict kicked in, and the last 20% is just chaos erupting at breakneck speed.
Still, I enjoyed this because the writing is beautiful and the banter is fun. The atmosphere is fantastic too, as it really captures the doom and gloom of a wartime period. Iris and Roman’s relationship develops gradually through many moments of shared vulnerabilities and emotional attraction, and I really liked how Rebecca Ross writes about emotions without telling the readers how to feel. Most of all, I love the way misunderstandings are solved properly instead of dragged out for the sake of prolonging conflict. Roman always tries to communicate first and foremost. Iris can get frustrating at times, but she eventually learns to talk it out too.
Maybe that’s why I like this a lot, because I’m really into the romance. The fantasy elements are paper thin. So is the worldbuilding, which makes the war aspect rather lackluster despite it being so important to the plot. I get the feeling we’re getting more worldbuilding and less romance in the next book though, so we’ll see how I feel about that. It’s important to manage one’s expectations after all.
Still, I enjoyed this because the writing is beautiful and the banter is fun. The atmosphere is fantastic too, as it really captures the doom and gloom of a wartime period. Iris and Roman’s relationship develops gradually through many moments of shared vulnerabilities and emotional attraction, and I really liked how Rebecca Ross writes about emotions without telling the readers how to feel. Most of all, I love the way misunderstandings are solved properly instead of dragged out for the sake of prolonging conflict. Roman always tries to communicate first and foremost. Iris can get frustrating at times, but she eventually learns to talk it out too.
Maybe that’s why I like this a lot, because I’m really into the romance. The fantasy elements are paper thin. So is the worldbuilding, which makes the war aspect rather lackluster despite it being so important to the plot. I get the feeling we’re getting more worldbuilding and less romance in the next book though, so we’ll see how I feel about that. It’s important to manage one’s expectations after all.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, War
Moderate: Sexual content
i feel like roman changed a lot throughout the book…
anyway, THE CLIFFHANGER
that’s criminal
spice: once scene, skippable tho
anyway, THE CLIFFHANGER
that’s criminal
spice: once scene, skippable tho
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, War, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Cursing, Sexual content, Vomit
A beautiful, unputdownable story
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 Stars
When I tell you I could not put this book down, I mean it. I read the entire thing in a single day instead of being productive. That’s how hooked I was.
I adored the magical typewriters and the letters exchanged between the characters. The fact that only one of them knew who the other truly was added such a wonderful layer of tension. I also really loved that the gods had their own backstories, and that the war itself centered around them. It added such a rich, powerful depth to the overall story. Enemies turned to lovers, set against the backdrop of war and loss, made for such an emotional read. There were scenes so intense I felt like I was right there with them.
And then that ending… I was screaming. I did not see it coming, and the cliffhanger was so intense that I would have died if the sequel hadn’t been immediately available. I had to know what happened next!
It’s beautifully written, and even though it’s YA, it felt incredibly engaging and meaningful. I immediately downloaded the sequel and can only hope it’s just as good. This one has definitely earned a spot on my list of favorite reads.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5 Stars
When I tell you I could not put this book down, I mean it. I read the entire thing in a single day instead of being productive. That’s how hooked I was.
I adored the magical typewriters and the letters exchanged between the characters. The fact that only one of them knew who the other truly was added such a wonderful layer of tension. I also really loved that the gods had their own backstories, and that the war itself centered around them. It added such a rich, powerful depth to the overall story. Enemies turned to lovers, set against the backdrop of war and loss, made for such an emotional read. There were scenes so intense I felt like I was right there with them.
And then that ending… I was screaming. I did not see it coming, and the cliffhanger was so intense that I would have died if the sequel hadn’t been immediately available. I had to know what happened next!
It’s beautifully written, and even though it’s YA, it felt incredibly engaging and meaningful. I immediately downloaded the sequel and can only hope it’s just as good. This one has definitely earned a spot on my list of favorite reads.
This book doesn't think you're stupid and I'M HERE FOR IT!
This book was so good. I can't expressive that absolute chokehold it had on me within like the first ten minutes. I CANNOT recommend it enough. Possibly my favorite book of the year? I do not give 5 stars away easily but this book was so unique and engaging, I would give it 6 stars if I could.
I feel like I need to start off with the fact that I am NOT a historical fiction girly. I usually like my books to be modern or totally fantastical. I had to work myself up to starting this one because I caught a whiff of historical fiction and I was not about it. However, I started it and the world immediately felt so tangible and intriguing that I was hooked. It has enough familiarity to be understood without much exposition with the 1950's aesthetic and familiar technology but the God's inclusion made everything very new and the political drag that I normally would want nothing to do with was so captivating and fantastical. The inclusion of magic was subtle and actually felt very at ease with the other elements of the story. It breathed a whole new life into a very simple yet beautiful love story. I have never fallen so hard in love with a setting in all my life.
*SPOILERS*
This books treats you like you are a fully formed corporeal being and I cannot express the breath of fresh air that that was. The letter getting sent under the door and coming back with "I'm not Forrest." written on it was so intriguing! However, it took me about five minutes to come to the conclusion that it was actually Kit and, I kid you not, THE VERY NEXT PAGE it switched to Kit's perspective of sending the letter. A lesser book would have desperately clung to the mystery of who was sending the letters and it was amazing to be treated with so much respect by the author. She knows we know and she's not going to pretend we're dumb in favor of a plot twist. It was also so nice to get Kit's perspective in the whole thing. He had so much character and I'm really glad we got to know him as well as Iris as they each progressed through their own stories.
There was another moment of this later on, when Kit's proposal is interrupted and Iris goes to get a trolly leaving him alone on the street. I thought it was going to do the classic, rip them apart before they can say their peace. But the author acknowledged that feeling, tying it into Iris' feelings of inadequacy and lets the story move forward without any convolution. MUAH BEAUTIFULLY DONE. Amazing stupendous! Even without the usual plot structure that a lot of these books follow, I was never bored. The characters and the worldbuilding and the emotional conflict didn't need any cheap tricks to keep me hooked.
The writing was really well done as well. I felt the author's voice throughout and I appreciated how well done the dialogue and action scenes were. The FMC was fully fleshed out and the romance somehow felt elevated because of it. At no point was she oblivious of her feelings or blatantly making poor decisions because of them. She felt real, with more problems than boys and strange letters. She wasn't always perfect but she was decisive and consistent throughout the story. UGH I lOVE IT. JUST SO GOOD.
The scene where she's writing her mother's obituary and then again after alone in her apartment. I genuinely felt like crying. It was gut wrenching. I've never lost a parent but I felt her pain and loneliness so intrinsically in my soul. It was so well done and that feeling follows you with her as she leaves her life behind. Iris just feels real so even when she's a bit impulsive or is anxious about saying something wrong you just FEEL it. She's a MC I won't forget anytime soon and I'm excited to reread this book in a month or two.
ALSO THAT ENDING WHAT THE FUCK MAN I"M SOBBINgh
This book was so good. I can't expressive that absolute chokehold it had on me within like the first ten minutes. I CANNOT recommend it enough. Possibly my favorite book of the year? I do not give 5 stars away easily but this book was so unique and engaging, I would give it 6 stars if I could.
I feel like I need to start off with the fact that I am NOT a historical fiction girly. I usually like my books to be modern or totally fantastical. I had to work myself up to starting this one because I caught a whiff of historical fiction and I was not about it. However, I started it and the world immediately felt so tangible and intriguing that I was hooked. It has enough familiarity to be understood without much exposition with the 1950's aesthetic and familiar technology but the God's inclusion made everything very new and the political drag that I normally would want nothing to do with was so captivating and fantastical. The inclusion of magic was subtle and actually felt very at ease with the other elements of the story. It breathed a whole new life into a very simple yet beautiful love story. I have never fallen so hard in love with a setting in all my life.
*SPOILERS*
This books treats you like you are a fully formed corporeal being and I cannot express the breath of fresh air that that was. The letter getting sent under the door and coming back with "I'm not Forrest." written on it was so intriguing! However, it took me about five minutes to come to the conclusion that it was actually Kit and, I kid you not, THE VERY NEXT PAGE it switched to Kit's perspective of sending the letter. A lesser book would have desperately clung to the mystery of who was sending the letters and it was amazing to be treated with so much respect by the author. She knows we know and she's not going to pretend we're dumb in favor of a plot twist. It was also so nice to get Kit's perspective in the whole thing. He had so much character and I'm really glad we got to know him as well as Iris as they each progressed through their own stories.
There was another moment of this later on, when Kit's proposal is interrupted and Iris goes to get a trolly leaving him alone on the street. I thought it was going to do the classic, rip them apart before they can say their peace. But the author acknowledged that feeling, tying it into Iris' feelings of inadequacy and lets the story move forward without any convolution. MUAH BEAUTIFULLY DONE. Amazing stupendous! Even without the usual plot structure that a lot of these books follow, I was never bored. The characters and the worldbuilding and the emotional conflict didn't need any cheap tricks to keep me hooked.
The writing was really well done as well. I felt the author's voice throughout and I appreciated how well done the dialogue and action scenes were. The FMC was fully fleshed out and the romance somehow felt elevated because of it. At no point was she oblivious of her feelings or blatantly making poor decisions because of them. She felt real, with more problems than boys and strange letters. She wasn't always perfect but she was decisive and consistent throughout the story. UGH I lOVE IT. JUST SO GOOD.
The scene where she's writing her mother's obituary and then again after alone in her apartment. I genuinely felt like crying. It was gut wrenching. I've never lost a parent but I felt her pain and loneliness so intrinsically in my soul. It was so well done and that feeling follows you with her as she leaves her life behind. Iris just feels real so even when she's a bit impulsive or is anxious about saying something wrong you just FEEL it. She's a MC I won't forget anytime soon and I'm excited to reread this book in a month or two.
ALSO THAT ENDING WHAT THE FUCK MAN I"M SOBBINgh