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claresbookshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Is this book mainly plot- or character-driven?
Character. Whilst the plot is very densely packed, with A, B and C plotlines, the events within them are only really explored due to the character's actions. Things happen in the background, and it's only when Skulduggery and Valkyrie get involved that you really get to understand what's happening. Even some of the backstory only happens because Skulduggery starts to explain more about his time as Lord Vile.
Character. Whilst the plot is very densely packed, with A, B and C plotlines, the events within them are only really explored due to the character's actions. Things happen in the background, and it's only when Skulduggery and Valkyrie get involved that you really get to understand what's happening. Even some of the backstory only happens because Skulduggery starts to explain more about his time as Lord Vile.
Is there strong character development?
Yes, absolutely. From the very start of the book to the end, you get to see the impact of Season One, particularly on Valkyrie, but on pretty much every character, Main or Side.
Valkyrie has matured in the span of time between The Dying of the Light and Resurrection, but you can also see throughout the book the way that the trauma she's developed has affected her. She's still strong, she's still a survivor, but there's now a vulnerability to her. At one point, there's what I'll call a discussion of her mental health and it genuinely had me sitting back gun-punched for a moment. Derek Landy's handling of it was equal parts brutal and delicate.
Skulduggery felt different in this novel from the pervious ones, but I feel like I can give the same sort of description of him as I did Valkyrie. He's better - he's funny still, and incessantly cool, but there's a more level-headedness to him that I enjoyed just as much as when he's showing off. Also, on the flip-side of that, when he's under the influence of the enemies, that was such a fun series of events. Seeing what it's like on the other side, when he's against you, that was genuinely a little nerve wrenching. He's an incredibly cool character.
Omen, our newbie, I adore him. From start to finish of this novel, you can really get a sense of his low self-esteem, and Derek isn't afraid to just straight up say how this poor boy has been abused in favour of his Chosen One brother. I love Omen. He's an incredibly sweet and well-meaning character. He genuinely loves his brother and doesn't let how his parents treat them affect his relationship with him - even though the Chosen One could spend a little more time with him. I hope that Omen falls further into this Found Family as much as possible, probably with some trauma, that's unavoidable in these books, but he'd have more support.
Side characters of note:
Gnosis is a cutie. Auger and his two friends were such a HP rip-off and watching their adventures from the outside with Omen really did highlight how obnoxious those characters would have been to be around if you were just another student at the school. Martin Flannery I read in Trump's voice. That man was 100% Trump-coded and you cannot tell me otherwise.
Did you find the characters loveable?
Yes. Even the evil ones were "loveable". These books always ooze charisma.
Would you say the cast of characters is diverse?
This book was effortlessly diverse.
There were multiple POC characters, a gender-fluid character who actually had lines and a fully fleshed-out backstory, and a married gay couple, just to name a few examples.
Are the flaws of the main character(s) a main focus of the book?
They aren't the main focus of the book, but they certain have an impact on the plot.
Multiple times, Valkyrie's past actions that led to Darquesse are brought up both by her and by other characters. Her arrogance in her youth and her selfishness are a constant source of trauma for her - she's attacked in the street, another character straight up tells her to "unalive" herself... It's a rough journey for Val.
Overall, I gave this book 4.25 stars out of 5.
This was a genuinely great return to the series. I finished the last 40% of this book in one sitting tonight, and had just as much fun with it as I have with other books in the series. My rating isn't as high as previous book simply because I fell away from the story for a moment and because I wasn't engaged for a short while, I can't give it any higher.
It's still an amazing book.
Multiple times, Valkyrie's past actions that led to Darquesse are brought up both by her and by other characters. Her arrogance in her youth and her selfishness are a constant source of trauma for her - she's attacked in the street, another character straight up tells her to "unalive" herself... It's a rough journey for Val.
Overall, I gave this book 4.25 stars out of 5.
This was a genuinely great return to the series. I finished the last 40% of this book in one sitting tonight, and had just as much fun with it as I have with other books in the series. My rating isn't as high as previous book simply because I fell away from the story for a moment and because I wasn't engaged for a short while, I can't give it any higher.
It's still an amazing book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
linblythe_pub22's review
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence, Violence, and Blood