Scan barcode
A review by pandothiel
Before the Broken Star by Emily R. King
2.0
2.5 stars.
It was an okay book, a quick read, but I absolutely did not connect with it. The writing could be beautiful, but it overall felt quite bland; it lacked a voice that would make me plunge into it and not stop reading.
I did not care for any of the characters. Once again, they felt very bland and not necessarily likeable; Everly is defined by her loss and her will to avenge her family, but I didn't see any strength in her, even less any character development. She's exactly the same at the end of the book as she was in the beginning. Her clock-heart was an interesting idea, at the center of her persona, but in itself it wasn't a strong enough element to carry the story.
Quinn seemed extremely childish for a 12 year old. Vevina disappeared halfway through the story. The Cat and the Fox were bland. The blond girl could have been interesting, but ended up a caricature of the character she should have been.
Jamison was either weak, abusive, gentle, kind; overall, very inconsistent. The big bad guy was predicatble from the beginning and how... just how a 300 something year old being could be bothered to deal with a 17-year old girl with a clock-heart? Bro, just threaten her, scare her, and get everthing you want from her. He was not a scary or believable villain overall.
Ah, and I forgot one character. I even forgot he was there, that's the mark of a very insignificant character. I didn't even care that he died.
Plot-wise, I felt like a lot of things happened, but nothing at the same time. Although I didn't guess the twist despite all my guesses, it wasn't surprising at all. Pre-boat and settlment part I was just waiting for something to happen, and after it I lost interest.
Overall, an okay read. I just didn't connect with it. I might give a chance to the next book only because I have Kindle Unlimited and can read it for free.
It was an okay book, a quick read, but I absolutely did not connect with it. The writing could be beautiful, but it overall felt quite bland; it lacked a voice that would make me plunge into it and not stop reading.
I did not care for any of the characters. Once again, they felt very bland and not necessarily likeable; Everly is defined by her loss and her will to avenge her family, but I didn't see any strength in her, even less any character development. She's exactly the same at the end of the book as she was in the beginning. Her clock-heart was an interesting idea, at the center of her persona, but in itself it wasn't a strong enough element to carry the story.
Quinn seemed extremely childish for a 12 year old. Vevina disappeared halfway through the story. The Cat and the Fox were bland. The blond girl could have been interesting, but ended up a caricature of the character she should have been.
Jamison was either weak, abusive, gentle, kind; overall, very inconsistent. The big bad guy was predicatble from the beginning and how... just how a 300 something year old being could be bothered to deal with a 17-year old girl with a clock-heart? Bro, just threaten her, scare her, and get everthing you want from her. He was not a scary or believable villain overall.
Ah, and I forgot one character. I even forgot he was there, that's the mark of a very insignificant character. I didn't even care that he died.
Plot-wise, I felt like a lot of things happened, but nothing at the same time. Although I didn't guess the twist despite all my guesses, it wasn't surprising at all. Pre-boat and settlment part I was just waiting for something to happen, and after it I lost interest.
Spoiler
And why did Markham(?) take all those people when he could have done with Everly (and maybe her brother as a threat) to get what he wanted? Why the need to involve four other characters who were completely useless, and weaponless?Overall, an okay read. I just didn't connect with it. I might give a chance to the next book only because I have Kindle Unlimited and can read it for free.