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A review by deena_
The Last Immortal by Natalie Gibson
2.0
2 ★ stars.
❝Violence is only horrifying when it is done to those who don’t deserve it.❞
➽ DNF at 70%
First of all, thanks to Netgalley and BHC Press for providing me an ARC of this book.
I have never been so conflicted over a book. I'm even conficted whether it's in a good way or a bad way. It was the toughest read I had in a while. My thoughts are so messed up right now, I'll try my best to sum it all up.
[spoiler free]
Before reading this, I strongly request you to check the content warnings so you have an idea what you're getting into. The author wasn't joking with the content warnings; it it serious. If you're skipping that part, be prepared to greet the unexpected, it won't be pretty.
➽ Vibes of this book:
Shatter me meets A Dowry of Blood in the world of the Bridgertons and gets rained on, only leaving behind the darker and twisted parts.
↳ Haven't read those books? I've got you.
Imagine a heavy mixture of science fiction with blood, gore and horror in a Victorian setting. Imagine putting on pretty ballgowns, twirling around scandalous social seasons; just blink and all the lights get sucked out of the room, the daze of glee is gone and the pretty gowns get stained with blood as the pitchblack darkness kicks in.
➽ Theme & Plot:
↳ Saying this book is dark would be an understatement. You can't blame a dark book for being too dark. I don't read books of this genre often, so I'm not sure I can compare it's levels of darkness. It deals with a lot of problematic issues I thought I could handle but ended up feeling terribly uncomfortable half the time. Other than that, I really liked the gothic atmosphere Natalie Gibson created here. I played some dark academia soft piano playlists from yt while reading this and it was amazing. It's the kind of slow-paced, gothic-horror read that'd be perfect for gloomy days.
↳ In this book, we are taken back to the dark age of the Victorian period. In the midst of evolution, creatures of nightmares and evil powers are taking root, infesting darkness within the land. Ramillia Winmoore, a child locked in an asylum far away from civilization for the murders she doesn't remember committing, is well on her way to becoming the monster that lives inside her. She doesn't understand the lethal power that hums beneath her skin and the endless voids in her head.
They fear her so they lock her up. They loathe her so they inflict pain. They don't understand her so they destroy her.
Until her noble betrothed, Sir Julian Lawrence, the man she only knows in letters, comes to claim her, promising her great things she never dared dream of. Soon she realizes she escaped one hell for another as she learns more about her husband and the evil that is his kind and comes to terms with her own powers she spent all her life afraid of.
➽ Characters & Writing:
↳ The characters of 'The Last Immortal' were twisted in their own ways while still maintaining individuality. It felt like they were eerie, empty and hollow from inside out and as we go further into the storyline along with the details we learned, they turn into more than words on paper and we slowly get a grasp on their personalities.
No moral. No judgement. No remorse. No redemption.
It took me a long time to sync with their thought process and understand what they were working towards; even then, I couldn't connect with them, couldn't feel anything for them. They were just another fictional character stuck in books who couldn't reach out to me. Honestly, Remillia was the only one with real developments here, though it was one of those that didn't feel like a development at all.
↳ The writing was beautiful, don't get me wrong. It was just difficult to get through. I didn't like the narrative, especially Ramillia's point of view. You need to be partially fond of a character to be invested in their thoughts, while I found Ramillia interesting, I wasn't fond of her; she actually made it super hard to be. I don't know if it's just me but I would read through a page, reach the ending and realize my mind went completely blank and I didn't catch a single detail. I had to go back and read that page again, that's why it took me much longer to reach the 70% mark than I thought it would. The story was intriguing but the writing style and pace couldn't keep my attention grounded for more than a few minutes.
➽ What I liked:
• The overall atmosphere of this book.
• FMC pushed her love interests in the backseat and was a force of nature all on her own.
• She made the right choices most of the time.
• The original idea of Carriers and Incolas, it was refreshing to read about.
• FMC knew where to project her rage and not being cautious of it.
• She embraced her deadly powers and violent nature.
• Despite being morally corrupt, she protected the ones who needed her protection.
➽ What I didn't like:
• More intrigue than explanation.
If you're going to put together a bunch of complex things, you need to back it up with sufficient explanation. I loved the idea of genetic disorders/ genetic superpowers that make a human invincible, immortal; the idea of Carriers and Incolas, carefully choosing and breeding to create more of their own. A lot was lacking in the build up, it could've been laid out a lot better.
• Character development or more like Ramillia's development.
I was completely thrown off guard by the huge leaps her personality was taking when it should've been a rather slow process. I know the book is already slow-paced, but it should've slowed down with the things that actually come first and foremost. Besides, I didn't get the chance to get to know the other characters better; they didn't get enough spotlight or much-needed details.
• The first half of the book was super slow, nothing important happening and a bunch of detail dumps on the world building that made little to no sense. The main plot and explanations came in later in the book but it was kind of too late; the first half was almost spent in confusion.
I'm so sorry, I really wanted to like it but it was way too confusing and a letdown in so many ways. There were interesting bits, yes, but it's dark elements overcrossed it many times. The level of darkness just goes up and up until it turns straight out horrifying. This book had no romance and no scope for romanticizing anything even. I didn't get the justification I needed and I'm thoroughly disappointed.
☑️ [dec 4/23]
∘₊✧──────✧₊∘
☑️ [dec 2/23]
My original plan was to read 'powerless' but I woke up this morning and received an ARC of this gorgeous book. ✨
-> I'll make a quick stop for this, so 'powerless' has to wait for now. In love with the cover already❗