A review by claudcloud
Cruel Illusions by Margie Fuston

dark mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I wanted to love this way more than I did because the edition I own is ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL, but between a world that felt like it lacked any depth, characters that you have no way to get attached to (other than our main trio who, surprise surprise, are the exact same trio we've been getting since the 2010s), a magic system that... honestly just wasn't that interesting, and the very trope-y vibe that also enabled me to predict a lot of the plot within the first hundred pages, it unfortunately ended up falling quite flat.

The premise had a lot of potential, and I can't say that I didn't enjoy my time with this book, but I just wanted so much more from it, especially since it's a 500-page chonker!!