A review by lisabrune
Blood Over Bright Haven by M.L. Wang

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad 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

3.5

There were many aspects of this novel that I really enjoyed: the development of the central characters who remained flowed, complex, but lovable throughout; and the philosophical questions at hand – whose pain and what violence do we benefit from as a society? Is violence necessary to counter such pain? What makes an act good – the outcome or the intent? However, I had some problems with the pacing. While I was never bored, I really felt like the action of the plot only got underway at the end. The ending left several of my questions unanswered and also left me wanting more. If this is the start of a series, I think it really successfully sets up interesting characters to return to and an interesting magic system that has potential for more exploration. If this is a standalone, I think it honestly could have benefited from being longer. Overall, I still do recommend this book, especially for fans of Babel, A Study in Drowning, even The Golden Compass, and other historical dark academia tales. 
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