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aklaux 's review for:
And I Darken
by Kiersten White
5 stars
Reread this February 2021, about 6 months after my first read. I'm raising my rating to 5 stars.
My first time around I enjoyed it via audiobook. Then halfway through the sequel, I wasn't paying much attention, I got bored, and I never finished. It kept bothering me, so I decided to start the series again, this time with the hard copy books.
I found out there is so much that I missed/forgot in the first book. I recall the pacing being slow and boring at points to where I would just zone out. But in this read, everything was happening so quickly. Time flew by. Even the politics were much more interesting since I could recall names and dynamics. The plot itself was still a little lacking as we didn't necessary have a clear direction with the story, but it didn't matter with such strong characters.
Which brings me to how much more I loved the characters this time through. I really think Lada is such a unique character to capture that no narrator can perfectly nail it. It's very difficult to make her come across so cruel without accidentally sounding like a bratty little girl. While I was tolerant of Lada in the audiobook, I adored her as I was reading the physical book. I even loved Radu this time around, even though his emotions are taxing after awhile. Mehmed is still… meh.
I think I've finally come to terms that for fantasy/sci-fi series, I need to read them and save audiobooks for other genres.
TL;DR
▌5.0 —One of the best I've ever read. Will be burned into my brain. Couldn't care less about weaknesses (if any). Would recommend to everyone and their mother.
4.5 —Loved this read. Will remember it fondly. Few weaknesses. Would recommend to anyone.
4.0 —Enjoyed this read. Will remember it fondly. Minor weaknesses. Would recommend to fans of the genre.
3.5 —Somewhat enjoyed this read. Might be memorable. Notable weaknesses. Would recommend to fans of the genre.
3.0 —Somewhat enjoyed this read. Not very memorable. Notable weaknesses. Would recommend to people who like similar books.
2.5 —Neutral or Underwhelming read. Not very memorable. Significant weaknesses. Would recommend to people who like similar books.
2.0 —Underwhelming or unenjoyable read. Not very memorable or memorable for the wrong reasons. Significant weaknesses. Might recommend to people who like similar books.
1.5 —Unenjoyable read. Not very memorable or memorable for bad reasons. Major weaknesses. Probably wouldn't recommend.
1.0 —Awful read. Memorable for bad reasons. No significantly redeeming qualities. Would never recommend.
0.5 —I wish I never wasted minutes of my life on this trash. I would go out of my way to convince others not to read it.
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Original Review 2/28/20
I couldn't decide what to feel as I read this book, and I loved that. It's a complex story of friendship and family and love triangles and politics. This book seemed to defy norms in fantasy writing. The female protagonist ( if you can consider her that) is vile and beautiful and mean and terrible. Her brother is sensitive but also depressing. The prince is enticing but also stupid.
It took me a while to get used to the very slow pace of this book. I didn't really grasp what the plot was until the end (or close to it) when I looked back over the long arch of the story. However, the writing was amazing and the characters were so interesting that it didn't really matter that the plot was lacking to me.
Reread this February 2021, about 6 months after my first read. I'm raising my rating to 5 stars.
My first time around I enjoyed it via audiobook. Then halfway through the sequel, I wasn't paying much attention, I got bored, and I never finished. It kept bothering me, so I decided to start the series again, this time with the hard copy books.
I found out there is so much that I missed/forgot in the first book. I recall the pacing being slow and boring at points to where I would just zone out. But in this read, everything was happening so quickly. Time flew by. Even the politics were much more interesting since I could recall names and dynamics. The plot itself was still a little lacking as we didn't necessary have a clear direction with the story, but it didn't matter with such strong characters.
Which brings me to how much more I loved the characters this time through. I really think Lada is such a unique character to capture that no narrator can perfectly nail it. It's very difficult to make her come across so cruel without accidentally sounding like a bratty little girl. While I was tolerant of Lada in the audiobook, I adored her as I was reading the physical book. I even loved Radu this time around, even though his emotions are taxing after awhile. Mehmed is still… meh.
I think I've finally come to terms that for fantasy/sci-fi series, I need to read them and save audiobooks for other genres.
TL;DR
▌5.0 —One of the best I've ever read. Will be burned into my brain. Couldn't care less about weaknesses (if any). Would recommend to everyone and their mother.
4.5 —Loved this read. Will remember it fondly. Few weaknesses. Would recommend to anyone.
4.0 —Enjoyed this read. Will remember it fondly. Minor weaknesses. Would recommend to fans of the genre.
3.5 —Somewhat enjoyed this read. Might be memorable. Notable weaknesses. Would recommend to fans of the genre.
3.0 —Somewhat enjoyed this read. Not very memorable. Notable weaknesses. Would recommend to people who like similar books.
2.5 —Neutral or Underwhelming read. Not very memorable. Significant weaknesses. Would recommend to people who like similar books.
2.0 —Underwhelming or unenjoyable read. Not very memorable or memorable for the wrong reasons. Significant weaknesses. Might recommend to people who like similar books.
1.5 —Unenjoyable read. Not very memorable or memorable for bad reasons. Major weaknesses. Probably wouldn't recommend.
1.0 —Awful read. Memorable for bad reasons. No significantly redeeming qualities. Would never recommend.
0.5 —I wish I never wasted minutes of my life on this trash. I would go out of my way to convince others not to read it.
------
Original Review 2/28/20
I couldn't decide what to feel as I read this book, and I loved that. It's a complex story of friendship and family and love triangles and politics. This book seemed to defy norms in fantasy writing. The female protagonist ( if you can consider her that) is vile and beautiful and mean and terrible. Her brother is sensitive but also depressing. The prince is enticing but also stupid.
It took me a while to get used to the very slow pace of this book. I didn't really grasp what the plot was until the end (or close to it) when I looked back over the long arch of the story. However, the writing was amazing and the characters were so interesting that it didn't really matter that the plot was lacking to me.