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A review by gabbadabbadoo
The Blood Trials by N.E. Davenport
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
one of my first few books of the year and it set the bar impossibly high!
i went into this not expecting much -- there's no shortage of protagonists trying to avenge dead family members in the fantasy genre -- but I was extremely pleasantly surprised. i personally haven't read a book that was so consistenly action-packed, there is literally never a dull moment. this book is violent and bloody and cruel and i am obsessed with it!! reading some of the characters injuries and deaths made me wince a bit, but i respect Davenport for being able to come up with so many ways for people to hurt. so, if lots of blood and violence and death are your thing look no further. the brutal nature of the trials initially struck me as a little superfluous, but it makes more sense and the country's history and culture develop more as you read.
the mc also sold this book for me. i typically don't like characters that are easily blinded by rage, but i loooooove Ikenna. there were more than several times where she'd do smt and i thought were unneccessary and would come back to bite her in the ass, but i support women's rights and women's wrongs!!! but fr i'd read and wonder if she was trying to get herself killed, but she never beat someone's ass who didn't deserve that or worse. and she'll do it again!
i also loved that the romance was extremely minor. like eensy teensy weenie minor. a bigger romantic subplot would definitely ruin a book like this, so i loved that the cehemistry was definitely there and i saw it coming, but it never took over the plot. hg has revenge to get and people to kill, she is on a mission.
i went into this not expecting much -- there's no shortage of protagonists trying to avenge dead family members in the fantasy genre -- but I was extremely pleasantly surprised. i personally haven't read a book that was so consistenly action-packed, there is literally never a dull moment. this book is violent and bloody and cruel and i am obsessed with it!! reading some of the characters injuries and deaths made me wince a bit, but i respect Davenport for being able to come up with so many ways for people to hurt. so, if lots of blood and violence and death are your thing look no further. the brutal nature of the trials initially struck me as a little superfluous, but it makes more sense and the country's history and culture develop more as you read.
the mc also sold this book for me. i typically don't like characters that are easily blinded by rage, but i loooooove Ikenna. there were more than several times where she'd do smt and i thought were unneccessary and would come back to bite her in the ass, but i support women's rights and women's wrongs!!! but fr i'd read and wonder if she was trying to get herself killed, but she never beat someone's ass who didn't deserve that or worse. and she'll do it again!
i also loved that the romance was extremely minor. like eensy teensy weenie minor. a bigger romantic subplot would definitely ruin a book like this, so i loved that the cehemistry was definitely there and i saw it coming, but it never took over the plot. hg has revenge to get and people to kill, she is on a mission.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Racism, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Sexual content, and Racial slurs
Moderate: Cursing, Grief, and War
Minor: Torture and Alcohol