Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - The Atlas Six

Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake

97 reviews

dosymedia's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I. Loved. This. It was super addictive and had (for me) the right balance between relationships and everything else, which I think it manages primarily by being so about intergroup politics/backstabbing & personal drama.

- do you love pretentious intelligentsia & academicians with murderous bents? imo, if you liked the prose and the narration in the Red Rising series or in Micah Nemerever's These Violent Delights, specifically for the broad inclusion of the social sciences and philosophy, this might intrigue you
- the magic is wishy-washy, v. soft, but worked for me tonally
- everybody queer, yay!
- romantic relationships develop out of nowhere, i was most convinced by preexisting romances.
- most characters had shallow arcs, but i loved the characters as written, there wasn't a dull combination to read on-page
- highly recommend the audiobook! it's a full cast

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bookishgoob's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-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? N/A

5.0

I went into this with high hopes, and in the beginning i was worried those hopes were too high. I felt like I had hyped myself up too much to enjoy what was in front of me. However, after some time with it I realized I hadn’t necessarily hyped myself up too much, I was just far too impatient to let the story unfold. The way that the characters each had their own perspective added so much depth and life to the story. The fact that I could hate and love these characters added an element of me being there with them. I loved that these characters weren’t two dimensional what so ever, even the side characters had dimension and purpose. The way that the story unfolded and came together at the end was a perfect mystery answered with a slight cliffhanger for what’s to come. I enjoyed every moment of this book, from the dark academia aesthetic, to the moral ambiguity each character had. I felt like I related so much to libby and reina, and loved parisa and nico. I couldn’t stand callum the whole time but his character still added so much to the story. The questions my mind was going over of “Is he wrong because I think he’s wrong or is he actually morally wrong?” was a constant on the forefront of my mind. People say that they hated the “pretentious” language used, like it wasn’t the entire point. It’s a secret society. Of course it’s pretentious. Anyway, I am so excited for book 2 and I am finding myself feeling so impatient for it! I highly recommend this book if you’re in the mood for secret society, rivals to lovers, and hot people.

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kabrahams's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional

Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Great book, just not for me, which was disappointing as I was really looking forward to it. The premise of a magical library and a contest of wits sounds so good. And it is, just felt like it was trying to do too much with more characters than necessary, an overly complicated science-based magic system, and many plot twists that aren't fully explained. I'm also pretty sick and not fully functioning brain wise, so maybe this wasn't the best time to read this? Audiobook was fantastic with different voices for each character.

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parkerknoll's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The concept is wildly entertaining; the execution falls short. Up until the last two or three chapters it was a struggle to care about the plot. Such a great opportunity to build huge suspense and it didn’t deliver on that throughout the book. Legit the last 50 pages were great- should have had that pacing and intensity the whole time. The build was too slow, I didn’t care to read in one sitting. The character development was iffy and felt like character choices were constantly repeated to propel their actions but it didn’t. it all seemed like filler? Especially if the last 50 pages were the true mystery, what was the point of diving into such small details for pages and pages. Not everything seemed intentional I guess. I don’t know, felt like this really great concept fell short.

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allisonwonderlandreads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark funny mysterious reflective tense slow-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

3.0

Academic rivals are a trope that I typically take only minor interest in. School was more often a collaborative than competitive affair for me, so it clashes with my experience, leaving me baffled at who has the energy for it. This book had me convinced within the first chapter. YES Libby, Nico is clearly the worst. Continue with your banter. Shoot to emotionally maim. Not only was I convinced, but I was having a great time.

In fact, all six POVs quickly brought me under their thrall by eliciting strong reactions with their voices. I could give an itemized summary of how I feel about any of them and why because each character is so carefully formed and fills a specific role in the group. The sometimes vicious competition among them adds another layer, as I came to support certain alliances while wishing other liaisons a swift death for the threat they posed to themselves or others through their choices. I found myself irrevocably interested in all the characters' sharp edges, their darkest thoughts, their jangling worries at odds with their lofty ambitions. I admired the unexpected pathways the characters followed, the twisty growth to their relationships, and the queer (pan representation at minimum--most of the characters seem fairly fluid in terms of sexuality) and BIPOC representation (Black, Japanese, Persian, and Cuban protagonists).

I did get stuck on a couple points. For one, my initial investment in the characters was a bit frayed by the end. This was partially due to choices made in the quest for power and partially related to the way the cast would fixate on each other's perceived weaknesses, amplifying them for the reader. A related concern is that I'm not sure there was a single relationship I wouldn't ultimately categorize as toxic and/or unbalanced. It's not glorified, which I appreciate, but I personally need at least one strong, supportive bond to hold onto in a story. It's what keeps me motivated and excited to come along for the darker bits.

In terms of world-building, the magic system isn't necessarily revolutionary, but the periods of academic contemplation regarding different abilities and talents left me in the dust as a matter of both mental fortitude and attention span. I may be a science teacher, but honestly, ew physics.

I liked that the story seems to be winding up for some intriguing commentary on power and institutions, on knowledge and ambition. Already, there were some fun asides and acute observations that I highlighted as fuel for my dark, cynical worldview that Tristan would surely appreciate. Dark academia fans will especially find a lot in these pages to live up to the hype.

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kelleykamanda's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Amazing, amazing characters. The complexity of them is just great writing. The plot though was tough and lacked significantly. I will still read the second novel though because I truly fell in love with the world and the people in it. Hoping to see some better editing since it will have gone through a more traditional publisher.

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caseythereader's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Thanks to Tor Books for the free copy of this book.

- THE ATLAS SIX shouldn't work, but it does. Does it? It does. I liked it. I was sometimes bored? But I kept going? Yeah, I have no idea how I feel about this book.
- It's definitely very clever and keeps you hooked, unspooling plot twists and major actions slowly, between all the long conversations about the nature of time and whatnot.
- I think my main reaction is that this is what THE MAGICIANS should have been.
- Also, that Parisa realllllly verges on the trope of the insatiable bisexual (yet also unclear if she's actually queer or just slept with some women for power reasons? Why is this book hailed as full of queer characters?), though the reasons why she is who she is are laid out in the text, it still felt weird.
- I dunno, I'll probably read the sequel? Have you read this? Tell me what you think.

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aliyachaudhry's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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oliviafendrich's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This book was quite interesting. The characters' interpersonal relations largely drive the narrative but are skillfully easy to keep track of. Get ready for lots of dialogue! This book could almost be described as a long string of conversations. It's well-written, though repetitive on occasion. I'd recommend this book to anyone who's a bit afraid of fantasy, as it's not overcomplicated. Some good romance, and well-paced. Hoping to check out the rest of this series, and Blake's other works.

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fierymoon's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

this book was awesome, highly recommending but check the triggers before you do!!

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