mimi_throughthepages 's review for:

River of Shadows by Karina Halle

3.0

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River of Shadows landed on my Want to Read list as soon as I learned it would be a dark fantasy version of the Finnish God of Death. While I enjoyed the story, I didn't get the level of dark fantasy that'd I'd been expecting. The setup and intro were my favorite parts of the story. Hannah's first interactions with shamans and the City of Death were my favorite parts of the story. I loved how dark and gritty the story seemed at that point. From there, the book very much took on a tone of the classic Beauty & the Beast story, complete with an amazing library, and lost that dark edge. There was a lot of humor, which I was surprised by, but enjoyed. What didn't work for me in this story were the modern pop culture references and language. It pulled me out of the fantasy time and time again, which was disappointing. Ultimately, I am fascinated by the God of Death and his family. While this book wasn't everything I was hoping for, I am hooked enough to want to know more about the threats facing their rule, and what will become of the City of Death.