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lucybbookstuff 's review for:
The Diviners
by Libba Bray
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I bought this on Libro.fm because it was on sale for like $2 and had an interesting enough summary, but I knew nothing beyond said summary. I definitely didn't know I was starting a 4-book YA series. 😂
The downsides first.
- It was quite silly; I suppose teenage flappers were very silly people but it felt gratuitous here. Some of the slang seemed VERY overused. It became pretty grating hearing it on the audiobook over and over.
- It was very free with its supernatural lore. Bray definitely made up her own lore, which is perfectly fine, but some of it seemed over the top and often a little too convenient lol.
- Soooo many characters. Though unlike our *barely* tolerable heroine (my GOD was she annoying), most of them are thankfully quite likeable or lovable.
- If I could erase one character, it would be Jericho. At best, he was superfluous. At worst, he was extremely boring. And the whole bionic man thing is totally outrageous. Stick to the kids with supernatural powers. We don't need a moody robot. I also was NOT pleased when Evie started having feelings for Jericho. I AM TEAM SAM! The chemistry is SO much better (it EXISTS, for one thing). I rolled my eyes every time she and Jericho interacted. Blech. Looking forward to love triangle drama and her ending up with Sam at the end (please 😤).
Ok, now all that said. The characters that I loved, I really loved and I really want to hear more from. And the plot was very intricate and interesting, and the cliffhanger ending made me at least want to read book 2, if not all 4 eventually. I enjoyed the spooky atmosphere. I haven't read a lot of supernatural stuff and I'd like to read more of it!
Plus it is diverse, trauma-aware, and has very strong anticapitalist, ACAB vibes, which I am always a fan of. 👌 Despite the things I didn't love about it, I'm actually excited to start book 2 sometime soon!
The downsides first.
- It was quite silly; I suppose teenage flappers were very silly people but it felt gratuitous here. Some of the slang seemed VERY overused. It became pretty grating hearing it on the audiobook over and over.
- It was very free with its supernatural lore. Bray definitely made up her own lore, which is perfectly fine, but some of it seemed over the top and often a little too convenient lol.
- Soooo many characters. Though unlike our *barely* tolerable heroine (my GOD was she annoying), most of them are thankfully quite likeable or lovable.
Ok, now all that said. The characters that I loved, I really loved and I really want to hear more from. And the plot was very intricate and interesting, and the cliffhanger ending made me at least want to read book 2, if not all 4 eventually. I enjoyed the spooky atmosphere. I haven't read a lot of supernatural stuff and I'd like to read more of it!
Plus it is diverse, trauma-aware, and has very strong anticapitalist, ACAB vibes, which I am always a fan of. 👌 Despite the things I didn't love about it, I'm actually excited to start book 2 sometime soon!