Reviews tagging 'Violence'

From Blood and Ash by Jennifer L. Armentrout

467 reviews

adventurous dark emotional funny tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I have mixed feelings about this book. 

On one hand, I find the writing lacking: it reads as an underdeveloped fanfiction-esque amalgamation of fantasy subjects like vampires, werewolves, and zombies. I found other parts of the book frustrating, like how it deals with the ever-common fantasy romance trope of
a teenage girl and centuries-old magical male being falling in love
as well as the issue of informed consent (which was glossed over far too quickly in my opinion). I can recall two explicitly POC (specifically black) characters, both of whom have names relating to being brown/dark in color and are in positions of service to their white friends and main characters.

On the other hand, I still enjoyed the book. Despite my frustrations with the way certain topics were dealt with, I think the author handled some darker issues well. It made me feel giddy and excited like a well-written fanfiction does, and despite my issues with the world building and my amusement with the inclusion of what is essentially vampires/zombies/werewolves, I found myself reading with anticipation. I was eager to learn more about the workings of this fantasy world and see the development of character relationships, however predictable it may have been. I checked out the second and third books in the series as soon as possible from my local library.

TLDR: I thoroughly enjoyed the book even though it left something to be desired.

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adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Love this series!!! I couldn’t put it down once I started!

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dark funny mysterious slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

First half (or like 60%) of this book is super slow and repetitive. Then everything happens in the last 100 pages - still good fun, just takes a while to read

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

this book was a wild ride. it took me on a rollercoaster of emotions! the characters were so easy to love and it was easy to imagine what each of them looked like. the background was very interesting and at no point did i really know how the end was going to turn out. it was predictable for a few aspects, but overall i absolutely adored the writing style. the author definitely kept her readers hooked the entire time. poppy was definitely one of my all-time favorite main characters and i’m excited to see her continuing adventures in the next book!

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adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

so much tension🤭

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

A decent vampire romance with a complex plot. Gender nonconforming readers should be aware that Armentrout inexplicably uses the terms ā€œfe/maleā€ as signifiers of gender. Also, there is a dubious consent kissing scene early in the novel, which I will not mark as a spoiler because I would have liked to know it was there myself. 

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adventurous funny mysterious 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

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dark emotional fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I read the acknowledgements.

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