A review by readwithria
Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs

dark mysterious tense 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

3.5

Ink Blood Sister Scribe is a debut I’m unlikely to forget, but not for the right reasons.

I was very intrigued by the premise of this book. Sisterhood, familial magic, and dark secrets are usually things that I enjoy in books. However, it took about 300 pages to get through the setup and to the main plot. Those first couple hundred pages were interesting, but easy to put down. The last 85 pages were much more action-packed, but almost to the point of going by too quickly.

Other than the pacing, it also bothered me that it felt like the decisions the three POV characters made were because of the plot, and I prefer books where the plot happens the way it does due to decisions made by the main characters.

Things that I did enjoy included
- the magic system
- Pearl, Collins, Sir Kiwi, and the little cat
- the themes of colonial deconstruction 
- the division of information through the different POVs

I would recommend this book to people who enjoy books that deal with family secrets, generational trauma, and objects of power. I would not recommend this book to people who are sensitive to self harm (CW: graphic bloodletting for magical purposes)

This was interesting, but missed the mark in a few key ways. 3.5 stars.

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