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A review by battyaboutbooks
Hearts That Cut by Kika Hatzopoulou
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
🦇 Hearts That Cut Book Review 🦇
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
❓ #QOTD What's your favorite mythology retelling? ❓
🦇 With a god's golden thread in her hand, Io leaves Alante alongside a revenge-thirsty Bianca to find the entity responsible for so much death and destruction. With each turn, they uncover new threads in a conspiracy that traces back centuries. The more they learn, the more tangled the mystery becomes. Meanwhile, a prophecy looms over Io's head: that she'll destroy the world by cutting a single thread. Can Io follow—or defy—the threads leading to her fate?
💜 Kika Hatzopoulou's world-building is exquisite. Many mythology retellings run the risk of either sounding dry or repetitive, either plopping us in the time of the Trojan War or infusing Greek mythology into modern reality. Instead, Hatzopoulou created a world entirely of her own; a refreshing hierarchy of overlapping mythologies, of those with god-derived powers and those relying only on the mortal powers within themselves. If the beauty of this world doesn't grasp you, allow Io to; the cutter, the unseen blade, the reaper of fates. Io carries the weight of a prophecy that claims she'll end the world. Worse yet, her sisters seem to have a hand in it, her fate-thread seems to be fraying, and THE gods are seemingly pulling everyone's strings. When you strip away the mythology of it all, Io is a layered, stunning, emotionally-powered character. Her relationship with her sisters--watching her eldest sister shoulder the burdens of responsibility and parenthood at a young age, their other sister stuck in the middle as the peacemaker--is realistically messy and flawed. That sisterhood plays a huge part in Io's present, in her decision-making, and in her development. Each sister has distinct motivations--none the villain, each doing the best she can.
💙 By now, you know one of my biggest pet peeves is telling, not showing. While this story is action-packed, the mythology begins to put too much weight on the exposition. We're given explanations we don't necessarily need when the story could have focused more on emotion. Io's powers allow her to see the threads that connect people to those they love. She has to sacrifice her own threads to destroy another's. There's so much potential for metaphor and artistry there, but Io cuts nearly without remorse, even though she's upset that her sisters manipulate threads with a similar mindset.
💙 Normally, when I'm disappointed with a book, I can set it aside and move on. Threads That Bind was one of my top five picks of last year, though, and Hearts That Cut was one of my most anticipated reads for 2024. Reading the first page should have felt like greeting an old friend. Instead, the first 30% of the book felt detached from the original story, providing us with seemingly unnecessary puzzle pieces that could have been placed elsewhere as Io unravels this mystery. It's not until she's reunited with her friends that the story finally returns to the dizzying, delightful, action-packed pacing from the first book. Just as we grow accustomed to that pacing, the story reaches a sudden, almost rushed ending. Usually, I never complain about the lack of an epilogue (most stories don't need one), but given Io's brash actions and the consequences it may trigger, Hearts That Cut sorely does. We're left with no hint as to the new world order, or Io and Edei's future (yes, I'm sure they're thriving in love, but STILL), or if the sisters can rebuild what they lost. While these details aren't necessary, readers have been on a wild ride with these characters. A real resolution would have been nice, but instead we're left without closure.
🦇 Recommended for fans of Percy Jackson, The Lunar Chronicles, and other retellings.
✨ The Vibes ✨
🧵 Second in a Duology
🧵 Fated Lovers
🧵 Mythology Retelling
🧵 Young Adult Fantasy
🧵 Sisterhood
🧵 Magic
🦇 Major thanks to the author and publisher for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book. #HeartsThatCut
💬 Quotes
❝ Cunning was her weapon now, and she would wield it with precision. ❞
❝ “Just because it works doesn’t mean it’s right.” ❞
❝ “Io, let me choose you.” ❞
❝ Change was uncomfortable, sometimes filled with growing pains, but without it, there was no way forward. No way to keep going, to shed the scabs of your past and heal yourself in the present. Without change, there was no future. ❞
❝ Fate was powerful. Fate was deadly. Fate could topple gods. ❞
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
❓ #QOTD What's your favorite mythology retelling? ❓
🦇 With a god's golden thread in her hand, Io leaves Alante alongside a revenge-thirsty Bianca to find the entity responsible for so much death and destruction. With each turn, they uncover new threads in a conspiracy that traces back centuries. The more they learn, the more tangled the mystery becomes. Meanwhile, a prophecy looms over Io's head: that she'll destroy the world by cutting a single thread. Can Io follow—or defy—the threads leading to her fate?
💜 Kika Hatzopoulou's world-building is exquisite. Many mythology retellings run the risk of either sounding dry or repetitive, either plopping us in the time of the Trojan War or infusing Greek mythology into modern reality. Instead, Hatzopoulou created a world entirely of her own; a refreshing hierarchy of overlapping mythologies, of those with god-derived powers and those relying only on the mortal powers within themselves. If the beauty of this world doesn't grasp you, allow Io to; the cutter, the unseen blade, the reaper of fates. Io carries the weight of a prophecy that claims she'll end the world. Worse yet, her sisters seem to have a hand in it, her fate-thread seems to be fraying, and THE gods are seemingly pulling everyone's strings. When you strip away the mythology of it all, Io is a layered, stunning, emotionally-powered character. Her relationship with her sisters--watching her eldest sister shoulder the burdens of responsibility and parenthood at a young age, their other sister stuck in the middle as the peacemaker--is realistically messy and flawed. That sisterhood plays a huge part in Io's present, in her decision-making, and in her development. Each sister has distinct motivations--none the villain, each doing the best she can.
💙 By now, you know one of my biggest pet peeves is telling, not showing. While this story is action-packed, the mythology begins to put too much weight on the exposition. We're given explanations we don't necessarily need when the story could have focused more on emotion. Io's powers allow her to see the threads that connect people to those they love. She has to sacrifice her own threads to destroy another's. There's so much potential for metaphor and artistry there, but Io cuts nearly without remorse, even though she's upset that her sisters manipulate threads with a similar mindset.
💙 Normally, when I'm disappointed with a book, I can set it aside and move on. Threads That Bind was one of my top five picks of last year, though, and Hearts That Cut was one of my most anticipated reads for 2024. Reading the first page should have felt like greeting an old friend. Instead, the first 30% of the book felt detached from the original story, providing us with seemingly unnecessary puzzle pieces that could have been placed elsewhere as Io unravels this mystery. It's not until she's reunited with her friends that the story finally returns to the dizzying, delightful, action-packed pacing from the first book. Just as we grow accustomed to that pacing, the story reaches a sudden, almost rushed ending. Usually, I never complain about the lack of an epilogue (most stories don't need one), but given Io's brash actions and the consequences it may trigger, Hearts That Cut sorely does. We're left with no hint as to the new world order, or Io and Edei's future (yes, I'm sure they're thriving in love, but STILL), or if the sisters can rebuild what they lost. While these details aren't necessary, readers have been on a wild ride with these characters. A real resolution would have been nice, but instead we're left without closure.
🦇 Recommended for fans of Percy Jackson, The Lunar Chronicles, and other retellings.
✨ The Vibes ✨
🧵 Second in a Duology
🧵 Fated Lovers
🧵 Mythology Retelling
🧵 Young Adult Fantasy
🧵 Sisterhood
🧵 Magic
🦇 Major thanks to the author and publisher for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book. #HeartsThatCut
💬 Quotes
❝ Cunning was her weapon now, and she would wield it with precision. ❞
❝ “Just because it works doesn’t mean it’s right.” ❞
❝ “Io, let me choose you.” ❞
❝ Change was uncomfortable, sometimes filled with growing pains, but without it, there was no way forward. No way to keep going, to shed the scabs of your past and heal yourself in the present. Without change, there was no future. ❞
❝ Fate was powerful. Fate was deadly. Fate could topple gods. ❞