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savannahrosema's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Genocide, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Classism
karydiazc's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Are three stars of rating too high for this book?
Maybe...
I guess I'll collect my thoughts and then proceed the rant...
Maybe...
I guess I'll collect my thoughts and then proceed the rant...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Torture and Pandemic/Epidemic
natraf_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
A YA Romatasy that felt like a classic 2010s dystopian love triangle.. LOVE. Middle school me would’ve made this book my new obsession because adult me is in LOVE!!!
The banter!!!! The enemies to friends /wanna be lovers ?!
The trials!!!! The love triangle!!!! The fucked up king with horrible genocidal views!!!!
Everything. This book had me in so deep. Buying the second book asap.
The banter!!!! The enemies to friends /wanna be lovers ?!
The trials!!!! The love triangle!!!! The fucked up king with horrible genocidal views!!!!
Everything. This book had me in so deep. Buying the second book asap.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Genocide, and Torture
athenian_frog's review against another edition
This book has been on my TBR for ages for its raving reviews. I was super excited to read it. Unfortunately, over halfway in, I've got to throw in the towel.
This book left me absolutely devoid of feeling anything except frustration. It became a real chore to read, even when the death trials came into play. I only have so much good will and time to give, and this book used too much of both.
The world of the book is very poorly explained. The Fourth Wing world lost me a bit, but somehow Powerless feels even more uninspired. At least in FW, Yarros actually tried to sit down and explain several things. Powerless exposition is scarce at best and confusing at worst. The system of abilities feel random, we know almost nothing about the Purging Trials and their history, and the land of Ilya itself seems to have what...three cities MAYBE?
The arena being comprised of various talented Elites also makes no sense, when they could have been using the trials as a way to inflict suffering on the Ordinaries. Especially considering someone as important as the second prince was chosen...when there are only two princes of the kingdom.
But even if these were lackluster, the main draw I kept seeing in reviews was the is the romance. That would require Kai and Paedyn to be fleshed out, and to me they aren't. The subtropes the book employs (pet names, flirty-fighting, touching while training, "who hurt you?") that I might find cute all happen here, but since I don't really feel for either character, all of it is unearned. Instead of kicking my feet I was rolling my eyes. I can take a lot in the way of clunky writing but very forced chemistry is not one of those things.
Kai goes on to call Paedyn his "toy," "plaything," "darling," and "vicious little thing." He's also very handsy with her. It made me a bit uncomfortable to read since they barely know each other, and the power dynamic is so stilted. This might've been remedied if they spent more time working together on a similar level, and got some more characterization.
The poorly developed interpersonal relationships were another huge sore point in the book. Almost no effort was put into establishing relationships outside the main three (Kai, Kitt, Paedyn). I say almost, because I think the author tried to do something with Jax and Adina (albeit unsuccessfully). I can confidently say she put zero effort into making the other trials contestants relevant to the main three. There were several opportunities to show different sides to the MC's by having them form bonds, or showing off the princes' existing childhood friendships. That would have made the purging trials far more engaging, because you have to see them work through killing people they care about, whose parents they know.
I feel like this issue, combined with how often the author skips out on describing/characterizing anything, was why the book didn't hit the proper emotional notes for me. A tragic thing happens, then the scene is over. If Kai kills someone, he thinks about Paedyn, not the horrors his own government is putting him through---and then the chapter ends.
I was irritated more often than sad or charmed. If I had to pick, the most I felt was for Kai and Jax's relationship, but it even that was surface level in the book. Jax was only Kai's "little brother" when his life was at risk. Kitt and Kai's relationship felt even more sterile, even though they had more page time.
We get very few vulnerable moments between the two brothers where they show they care for one another. One of the moments we did get made Kitt sound extremely out of touch: He feels insecure that he can't participate in the trials to prove himself like his brother, even when he knows that being in the trials means A) killing their childhood friends and B) risking the future of the country by fighting as the crown prince. I'm pretty sure Kitt is supposed to be the more tutored one of the two so...this came across as pretty stupid, IMO.
Overall, I'm glad to have tried reading this book! Even if I didn't like it at all, it gave me a better sense of my taste in books.
This book left me absolutely devoid of feeling anything except frustration. It became a real chore to read, even when the death trials came into play. I only have so much good will and time to give, and this book used too much of both.
The world of the book is very poorly explained. The Fourth Wing world lost me a bit, but somehow Powerless feels even more uninspired. At least in FW, Yarros actually tried to sit down and explain several things. Powerless exposition is scarce at best and confusing at worst. The system of abilities feel random, we know almost nothing about the Purging Trials and their history, and the land of Ilya itself seems to have what...three cities MAYBE?
The arena being comprised of various talented Elites also makes no sense, when they could have been using the trials as a way to inflict suffering on the Ordinaries. Especially considering someone as important as the second prince was chosen...when there are only two princes of the kingdom.
But even if these were lackluster, the main draw I kept seeing in reviews was the is the romance. That would require Kai and Paedyn to be fleshed out, and to me they aren't. The subtropes the book employs (pet names, flirty-fighting, touching while training, "who hurt you?") that I might find cute all happen here, but since I don't really feel for either character, all of it is unearned. Instead of kicking my feet I was rolling my eyes. I can take a lot in the way of clunky writing but very forced chemistry is not one of those things.
Kai goes on to call Paedyn his "toy," "plaything," "darling," and "vicious little thing." He's also very handsy with her. It made me a bit uncomfortable to read since they barely know each other, and the power dynamic is so stilted. This might've been remedied if they spent more time working together on a similar level, and got some more characterization.
The poorly developed interpersonal relationships were another huge sore point in the book. Almost no effort was put into establishing relationships outside the main three (Kai, Kitt, Paedyn). I say almost, because I think the author tried to do something with Jax and Adina (albeit unsuccessfully). I can confidently say she put zero effort into making the other trials contestants relevant to the main three. There were several opportunities to show different sides to the MC's by having them form bonds, or showing off the princes' existing childhood friendships. That would have made the purging trials far more engaging, because you have to see them work through killing people they care about, whose parents they know.
I feel like this issue, combined with how often the author skips out on describing/characterizing anything, was why the book didn't hit the proper emotional notes for me. A tragic thing happens, then the scene is over. If Kai kills someone, he thinks about Paedyn, not the horrors his own government is putting him through---and then the chapter ends.
I was irritated more often than sad or charmed. If I had to pick, the most I felt was for Kai and Jax's relationship, but it even that was surface level in the book. Jax was only Kai's "little brother" when his life was at risk. Kitt and Kai's relationship felt even more sterile, even though they had more page time.
We get very few vulnerable moments between the two brothers where they show they care for one another. One of the moments we did get made Kitt sound extremely out of touch: He feels insecure that he can't participate in the trials to prove himself like his brother, even when he knows that being in the trials means A) killing their childhood friends and B) risking the future of the country by fighting as the crown prince. I'm pretty sure Kitt is supposed to be the more tutored one of the two so...this came across as pretty stupid, IMO.
Overall, I'm glad to have tried reading this book! Even if I didn't like it at all, it gave me a better sense of my taste in books.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Genocide, Torture, and Death of parent
sfarfalfa's review against another edition
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
Main love interest committed an ethn*c cleans*ng and we’re supposed to think he’s all good because he didn’t actually raise the sword?
As a descendant of genoc*de survivors, literally what is this? This guy did to those people exactly what was done to my de*d ancestors.
As a descendant of genoc*de survivors, literally what is this? This guy did to those people exactly what was done to my de*d ancestors.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Genocide
krosebooks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Pros: Flirting is gold.
Cons: Unrealistic power description. Lack of description about the length of the trials. Mirrored a lot of previous work like the hunger games, ACOTAR (darling).
Cons: Unrealistic power description. Lack of description about the length of the trials. Mirrored a lot of previous work like the hunger games, ACOTAR (darling).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic
liv2000's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic
skillyillian's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This is the most formulaic pile of tropes I've ever seen smashed into one book, and it was a blast. Predictable plot and simple characters, but honestly? I was smiling and cackling most of the time. It was all simple and straightforward honestly but I still had fun 🤷🏻♀️ like watching romcoms. You know what's gonna happen but you're still watching bc it's entertaining. Idk how else to explain it. I wasn't in this for the unsolvable plot or deeply complex characters. If you want every romantasy trope with good banter but without any smut then this is the one. 🤷🏻♀️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
thebookaddict's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
🇳🇱: Ik heb echt moeite met functioneren na dit boek. Wat een verhaal! Ten eerste Kitt en kai zijn echt geweldig, ze worden zo goed neergezet dat het net is of je ze persoonlijk kent. De romance is slow burn en ik vond het geweldig! Het geeft je precies genoeg om meer te verlangen. De proeven vond ik erg op hunger games lijken, maar dat vind ik niet erg! Het verhaal bevat alle elementen voor een goed fantasy boek. Ik kan niet wachten op de volgende delen😍 ik had niet verwacht hem zo leuk te vinden. Het is namelijk een vrij dik boek met kleine letters, maar de schrijfstijl is zo fijn. Ik vloog erdoorheen, ondanks dat ik weinig tijd had om te lezen! Het verhaal zelf is niet geheel uniek, maar raakte alle goede plekken. Het gevoel was echt een 5 sterren, dus ik raad het boek 100% aan ✨️
Na zo'n einde moet ik natuurlijk ook echt alle delen hebben!
Na zo'n einde moet ik natuurlijk ook echt alle delen hebben!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Torture and Vomit
kinsportch's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Genocide
Minor: Animal death and Alcohol