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A review by fruitbatwoman
Critical Role: Bells Hells — What Doesn't Break by Cassandra Khaw
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Another great book to expand the Critical Role universe, this time giving us an in-depth look at Laudna's backstory and inner workings.
This story was much darker than the other CR books, and fit the "fun scary" nature of Laudna very well. I am not sure how it would hold up for readers who are not fans of Critical Role, especially as there is not much in terms of plot - I would class this more as a reminiscing slice of life character backstory. That said, I loved the interactions between Laudna and the voice in her head and her childlike innocence, even as a scary undead creature. The things she comes up with to fight her boredom and isolation are bittersweet (and slightly creepy), like Paté, her talking, dead rat. The book had a lot of serious undertones as well, like the notion that a woman is either "a maiden, a mother, or a crone", and touched on archetypical roles and feminism.
The writing style was beautiful and the audiobook was amazingly performed by parts of the cast of Critical Role, as usual. Especially Laura Bailey as "the voice" will give me nightmares. Once again, a must-read for "Critters", otherwise a beautifully written fantasy/horror book somewhat light on plot.
This story was much darker than the other CR books, and fit the "fun scary" nature of Laudna very well. I am not sure how it would hold up for readers who are not fans of Critical Role, especially as there is not much in terms of plot - I would class this more as a reminiscing slice of life character backstory. That said, I loved the interactions between Laudna and the voice in her head and her childlike innocence, even as a scary undead creature. The things she comes up with to fight her boredom and isolation are bittersweet (and slightly creepy), like Paté, her talking, dead rat. The book had a lot of serious undertones as well, like the notion that a woman is either "a maiden, a mother, or a crone", and touched on archetypical roles and feminism.
The writing style was beautiful and the audiobook was amazingly performed by parts of the cast of Critical Role, as usual. Especially Laura Bailey as "the voice" will give me nightmares. Once again, a must-read for "Critters", otherwise a beautifully written fantasy/horror book somewhat light on plot.