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A review by caroline_mclaughlin
Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
I already didn’t enjoy the first book, but this one takes everything bad about the first book and makes it worse. I’m not sure I’ve ever been so bored reading a book, especially ya fantasy. This book absolutely suffers from act II lull and it’s felt like the characters were wandering relatively aimlessly throughout. In the end, it felt like little progress had been made and there was little intrigue as to what will happen next, despite the story absolutely trying to convince me I should care. I’m pretty sure the 1 min pov dystopian story tiktoks have more depth than this and don’t waste hundreds of pages just reiterating the same boring lines over and over again (“I’m the lightning girl” “anyone can betray you” etc).
And, as far as mare goes, I know she has a “special power”, but she really thinks highly of herself and her abilities despite literally no evidence of her skill. She has no personality, and despite her romance occurring throughout, there is essentially no indication of her romantic interest in any of the men. The only time she has called people attractive is when she referred to Evangeline or other women, and she frequently displays disgust at Cal and other’s attempts to show her romantic affection. I’m not convinced she actually likes men, despite the book half-heartedly trying to state otherwise.
And, as far as mare goes, I know she has a “special power”, but she really thinks highly of herself and her abilities despite literally no evidence of her skill. She has no personality, and despite her romance occurring throughout, there is essentially no indication of her romantic interest in any of the men. The only time she has called people attractive is when she referred to Evangeline or other women, and she frequently displays disgust at Cal and other’s attempts to show her romantic affection. I’m not convinced she actually likes men, despite the book half-heartedly trying to state otherwise.
Also this book is so full of weird or badly stated metaphors that make the writing seem juvenile. The one I remember best is “they followed us like rats would a mouse,” and I have no idea what that’s supposed to indicate. Once it said something like “he lifted his palms up like a man surrendering to a battle” and I don’t understand why she didn’t just say “he lifted his palms, surrendering…” I was so confused by so many choices made throughout the story though that, after a while, noticing how bad the literary devices were was just funny.