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nikitanavalkar 's review for:
To Bleed a Crystal Bloom
by Sarah A. Parker
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I feel so fortunate to live in a time when fantasy romance is having a major moment, because these are the kind of books being produced at a rapid rate that I can’t even keep up with, and I just want them all in my eyeballs right meow. Speaking of this specific book, imagine this: what if in ACOTAR Tamlin was the hero after all? Or well, antihero. Before you leap too far, I’m not saying this book was like ACOTAR in any way or that Tamlin should have been the hero (eww no), but it did give me dark ACOTAR vibes as a Rapunzel reimagining with a yummy forbidden twist.
The story is told in a very unique way where we are never really told what kind of beings any of the MCs are? But that makes sense since we’re in their head and humans don’t often refer to themselves human in their heads, do we? This makes for a slightly jarring start but soon I was into it and it only adds to the layer of secrets wrapping around this story because there are many. MANY. Several. In fact, we still don’t know most of them by the end of book one. The writing is beautiful and poetic, if a little purple.
Orlaith is again an FMC who forces you to think and reflect about the definition of strength and how it looks different in each individual. We get an up close look into her fragile mental health and anxiety stemming from PTSD, so much so you can feel it viscerally, and how it’s held her back through so much of life. To see her peel out of her shell and bloom is both terrifying and heartening. The author had me at her dedication alone, because we don’t even realize how many of us are afraid to bloom. And it’s MCs like Orlaith that show that one can bloom whenever and however they choose.
Rhordyn, well, he’s a muscular, intimidating daddy enigma wrapped in swathes of mystery and sxxy black clothes. Dude does not know if he wants to stow away his ward or stay away from her or kiss her and we enjoy that type of torment around here. He’s moody and growly and secretive and completely unreasonable most of the time, but what man isn’t honestly. Even though we see a tiny bit of it, Imma need to see them both unleash and descend chaos upon each other before long.
A slow burn dark fantasy is just the kind of special t0rture I revel in, and this one had my glasses steamed up without even a lot ot action you guys. The cliffhanger takes that t0rture to the next level so I’m just glad the trilogy is complete because waiting on the resolution on this one would drive me to madness.
TW: depictions of PTSD, anxiety, mental health struggles, and grief
The story is told in a very unique way where we are never really told what kind of beings any of the MCs are? But that makes sense since we’re in their head and humans don’t often refer to themselves human in their heads, do we? This makes for a slightly jarring start but soon I was into it and it only adds to the layer of secrets wrapping around this story because there are many. MANY. Several. In fact, we still don’t know most of them by the end of book one. The writing is beautiful and poetic, if a little purple.
Orlaith is again an FMC who forces you to think and reflect about the definition of strength and how it looks different in each individual. We get an up close look into her fragile mental health and anxiety stemming from PTSD, so much so you can feel it viscerally, and how it’s held her back through so much of life. To see her peel out of her shell and bloom is both terrifying and heartening. The author had me at her dedication alone, because we don’t even realize how many of us are afraid to bloom. And it’s MCs like Orlaith that show that one can bloom whenever and however they choose.
Rhordyn, well, he’s a muscular, intimidating daddy enigma wrapped in swathes of mystery and sxxy black clothes. Dude does not know if he wants to stow away his ward or stay away from her or kiss her and we enjoy that type of torment around here. He’s moody and growly and secretive and completely unreasonable most of the time, but what man isn’t honestly. Even though we see a tiny bit of it, Imma need to see them both unleash and descend chaos upon each other before long.
A slow burn dark fantasy is just the kind of special t0rture I revel in, and this one had my glasses steamed up without even a lot ot action you guys. The cliffhanger takes that t0rture to the next level so I’m just glad the trilogy is complete because waiting on the resolution on this one would drive me to madness.
TW: depictions of PTSD, anxiety, mental health struggles, and grief
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief