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A review by cryptofauna
Blood Over Bright Haven by M.L. Wang
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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
3.75
i'm SO conflicted on one this one!! i really struggled to get into it at the beginning mostly because of how insanely racist siconia was. like i get why! she didn't really know anything different and her whole character arc was being not racist but it was pretty uncomfortable and frustrating to read because she just refused to change earlier on in the story? once i powered through the beginning with all its lore dumps (again. i get it. but there has to be a better way than her just monologuing through her whole magic system to thomil) it was really interesting!!
the worldbuilding is super cool and i do like their magic system a lot. it felt a teensy bit high and mighty at some points regarding both feminism and the racism, but i think it got away with it 90% of the time. i appreciated siconia's character growth and the way they handled mental illness (although she wasn't really manic? unclear if that was a hysteria thing or if the author didn't really get what that word meant). the plot was fast paced and i was really excited to learn more and more as it was revealed, i think i read 70% of this book at school during classes. and the ending was definitely unexpected (jn a good way!)
thomil was amazing and i loved him so much. i think its extremely funny to be like no my native people aren't like real life native people!! they have red hair!!!! so its obviously different lol.
generally i got hooked on it once i got a little further in, but it took a little more than i would have preferred to get going!
the worldbuilding is super cool and i do like their magic system a lot. it felt a teensy bit high and mighty at some points regarding both feminism and the racism, but i think it got away with it 90% of the time. i appreciated siconia's character growth and the way they handled mental illness (although she wasn't really manic? unclear if that was a hysteria thing or if the author didn't really get what that word meant). the plot was fast paced and i was really excited to learn more and more as it was revealed, i think i read 70% of this book at school during classes. and the ending was definitely unexpected (jn a good way!)
thomil was amazing and i loved him so much. i think its extremely funny to be like no my native people aren't like real life native people!! they have red hair!!!! so its obviously different lol.
generally i got hooked on it once i got a little further in, but it took a little more than i would have preferred to get going!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Blood, Grief, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Xenophobia