Reviews with content warning for Gun violence - La memoria di Babel

I'm honestly disappointed how this series kept going downhill for me.

The setting changed completely– instead of the Pole, it's Babel, another ark in this world. The set of side characters changed too. I'm not really a fan of that change but I understand that this fantasy world is getting bigger.

My problem starts with how Ophelia was potrayed. Her motivation since the start was to find Thorn and follow his footsteps. But let's be real, she had no idea what she was doing. Any adversity she encountered, she somehow managed to conveniently overcame it. Even the clues she found, it all felt like chance. She's brave, I'll give her that. Because no matter what, she stuck to the end. But her motivation to endure was probably also because of Thorn. It didn't bode well with me that once she found Thorn, all she wanted to do was to seek his approval. She didn't even seem to care that there is an entity that is out there trying to do something to her world.

And Thorn– Before, I thought that he was an enigmatic man and I found him interesting. But now, I'm just annoyed. First of all, I feel like we skipped a whole book on how Thorn himself managed to be in a position of power in Babel (I know there was a time skip of 3 years and Thorn explained it, but still, it did not feel believable. The Geneologists seemed like characters who were conveniently created to make it believable). Secondly, his complete lack of communication with Ophelia annoyed me. It's not until the end that they finally opened up to each other. But even then, I still felt like there was a barrier between them. Their strained tension got on my nerves. Three books in and I barely feel any chemistry between them.

There was a map at the beginning of the book– a map of all the different arks in this fantasy world. I was disappointed that the map barely had any relevance in this third book. I thought Ophelia was going to travel to the different arks. But alas, we were stuck on Babel, trying to be an aspiring virtuoso because of reasons.

I was only properly invested during Victoria's chapters. Because let's be honest, her powers are so intriguing. If only we got more of that. If only we got more of Archibald traveling to find LandmArk. If only!

The mystery part made me both confused and curious. But, I don't know if I want to continue with the 4th book just to satisfy that curiosity.

Content Warnings

chaoticace's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

Content Warnings

grimmdark's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous inspiring mysterious tense medium-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

out of all 3 books i've read so far, definitely my favorite. it's actually really cool to see how much the author improves and where with each tome. loved babel as a setting!!!! so many cool characters!!!! can't wait to read the next and final book. maybe i'll come back for a review later phew!!

Content Warnings

claudiamacpherson's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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

4.5

Two and a half years after returning to Anima, Ophelia travels to the Ark of Babel in search of Thorn and any information that could help her defeat God. Babel is supposed to be a perfect utopia, but she soon finds that things are not as peaceful and orderly as they seem. Ophelia must keep her true identity secret as she studies to become a virtuoso and access the highly guarded secrets at the center of the Babel library.

The beginning of this third installment in the Mirror Visitor series was a bit slow, but I really loved the introduction of a new Ark with new people and family powers. The world-building was incredibly rich and the characters more diverse, which made it more interesting.

I was sad about Thorn's absence in the first half or so of the book (who knew I'd come to like him so much!). Even when Ophelia finally found him, his coldness made it feel like he'd reverted to how he'd been at the beginning of A Winter's Promise, which was frustrating! I am a complete sucker for a slow-burn, though, so I loved the ending.

Happy ending meter (no specific spoilers, just my judgement of how happy the ending is because I always wish someone would tell me that before I read books):

Pretty happy! But, as is Dabos' style, it was a bit of a cliffhanger, too. Now I just have to wait for the English translation of the fourth book to be released!

Content Warnings

More...