A review by alainral
The Lights of Prague by Nicole Jarvis

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A very engaging and well-written book with excellent atmosphere. It does fall into tropes here and there but stands out in all the ways that count. The characters all felt unique and were likeable, even though I wished Domek in particular could have had a bit more dimension. I also would have liked to have seen him get called out more for his "knight in shining armor" personality. Likewise, Ora's reformed vampire persona was annoying at times. All in all, it's worth a read just for the solid vibes and plot. The pacing is a consistent medium throughout.

As a side note on the treatment of Judaism: I think it's great that the book dealt with antisemitism and attempted to portray a Jewish character positively. However, Abrahams should have had more personality and integration with the plot to feel less tokenish. Additionally, the author made the insensitive choice to use the word "cabal" more than once. Especially with that applying to a secret vampire group (see the blood libel connection), that made me pause a bit. Overall, though, I think the author's intentions were good.
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