Scan barcode
r_j_setser's review against another edition
5.0
Sky in the Deep is such a fresh YA Fantasy compared to what I've been reading lately. It's a simple, straightforward plot that is both exciting and easy to follow. I loved the sibling's relationship. I loved the portrayal of how intimate friendship looks, both male friendships and female friendships. And of course, the romance was very natural and sweet.
The Viking clan theme is one of my favorites and this one was done very well. And the parents that are in this? Viking parents have always been some of my favorites in literature and the parents in this book are no different. I kept picturing Hiccup's dad from How to Train Your Dragon whenever Eelyn mentioned her father. The family dynamics are just so nice in this book. Highly recommend it to lovers of Viking fantasy!
Moderate: Gore and Torture
Minor: Rape
Content warnings: Spice levels are very low, two semi-detailed kissing scenes and implied/fade-to-black seggsy scenes. There are also a couple of suggestive, sexual harassment comments made, as well as an attempted r*pe scene. Gore levels, however, are very high with battle scenes very descriptive and some torturous acts made by the main character. This is very unlike me, but I cannot for the life of me remember if there was any cursing... If there was, it would've been mild enough that I overlooked it. But I truly don't think there was any language.hannae's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and War
Moderate: Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Ableism and Xenophobia
roosveld's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gore, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Minor: Animal cruelty, Misogyny, and Pregnancy
alyssasaurus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Slavery, Violence, Medical content, Kidnapping, and War
Moderate: Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
bookling_thoughts's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
egurgens's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
There is SO much tension in this story, but it really keeps the reader engaged. The reader gets to watch as Eelyn struggles through her emotions and difficult situations, and enjoy watching her develop into the character we end up loving. There are definitely some difficult topics touched on, like the threat of sexual assault, violence, graphic violence, and lots of loss / grief.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Vomit, Trafficking, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
navibo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Death of parent
Moderate: Slavery and War
michellemaas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I am going to start with the pacing. My version of this book was 300 pages on the dot, and I read it in two sittings with 150 pages read per sitting. While the first chapter jumps right into the action (maybe one of the best opening chapters I have ever read), the next half of the book just focuses on our main characters with nothing interesting happening. Then you get onto the last 100 pages or so and the pacing is perfect with an ideal mix between action and characters development. While I didn't necessarily mind reading the first half (I was still entertained enough to finish the book, after all) I have found that pacing problems, especially in a book this short, could spell disaster. Luckily Adrienne Young made up for it in a hell of an ending, but the inconsistent pacing was inconvenient and something to note.
Next, I want to discuss our main love interests: Fiske and Eelyn. Their relationship was enemies-to-lovers and also a slow-burn supreme. I enjoyed the development of their relationship (especially with the pacing of the plot being a bit off I was worried their relationship might feel a little rushed, but that was not the case at all). Their interactions and falling in love all felt like a very natural progression and also a realistic portrayal of love between the ages of 16 and 24. There was passion and loyalty between them but they were responsible enough to not neglect their duties to their clans in favor of their happiness. I also liked that they were true enemies-to-lovers (down to him shooting her with an arrow) instead of an "I kind of dislike you for no good reason other than it serving the plot"-to-lovers situation. The resolution of their relationship-based conflict was also masterfully done in my opinion since we would usually see the girl giving up everything to be with the guy in a situation like theirs but it wasn't the case this time.
Overall I enjoyed this book even if I felt it could have been better. There were a lot of times that it felt like there was more of a concept than necessarily a plot. Young did a great job of capturing Viking mythology and incorporating their ways of life, beliefs, and rituals into her storytelling but I wish she would have skipped out on the world-building a little to flesh out the actual plot more. Since there are only two books in this series with neither of them being super long the world-building isn't as important as it would be in something like Throne of Glass or From Blood and Ash which are both series with 4+ books with each book clocking in with more than 500 pages.
Finally, I just want to put a disclaimer that I read this book right off of a reading slump, so I was kind of forcing myself to read it since I have been wanting to read it and wanted to get over my reading slump. I don't know if that affected my reading experience and therefore rating. I try to be very fair and unbiased when reviewing the books I've read but I did want to put the disclaimer out there. If you love YA, enemies-to-lovers books with a bit of gore and a few emotional plotlines I think this will be right up your alley. For me, I was just hoping for a more plot-driven book this time around (meaning that there was more stuff happening in the book instead of just focusing on the characters for long periods), but with that being said I still really enjoyed it, and would probably reread in the future so please do not take my criticisms as hate towards the author since there were several redeeming qualities to Sky in the Deep despite its flaws.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Hate crime, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Medical content, Grief, Pregnancy, and War
Minor: Chronic illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and Sexual harassment