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bookishkellyn's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Saoirse is the last of the sirens living in disguise within a magically fortified kingdom (Keirdre). Her world is turned upside down when she becomes the target of blackmail and her quest to discover the culprit is complicated by Prince Hayes–who’s taken a keen interest in her. I don’t normally read fantasy but really enjoyed this book. It was fast-paced, easy to follow, kept me guessing, and the banter between the characters was entertaining. I’m looking forward to the sequel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Violence and Grief
Minor: Bullying, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Abandonment
gaynidoking's review against another edition
adventurous
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
3.5
The plot and the world are very interesting, but I did struggle in the middle and final act. This is partially on me for not realizing it was YA until the protagonist revealed she was only 17. The synopsis and the way Saoirse conducts her assassinations gave me the impression of a character at least in her twenties. I think this book would have benefitted a lot from the character being even a few years older.
The protag does consistently make decisions that remind me (not in a good way) that she is supposed to be 17. She pulls some real bonehead moves, especially as the story goes on. There is also that unfortunate YA staple where she decides to hate the only other female character around her age for literally no reason as soon as she meets her.
I also think that the character's development in the final act was completely undermined by the actual events of the book, and felt very contrived. A great deal of personal anguish is due to the character's belief thatshe is literally unable to resist the urge to kill as a siren. There is a VERY good conversation with her father towards the end where he calls her out for using this as an excuse to avoid responsibility for her actions. And then, randomly, she is told the only reason the urge to kill overwhelms her (and sometimes literally causes her to blackout and kill) is because she is afraid of her power and refuses to embrace it. But it is ALSO revealed that the reason she is afraif of her power is when she was a child (before she even knew that was an option), she did embrace her power, and it made her black out and kill people. It was a very confusing stance to take, because she was literally just told "just embrace your power!" and then she just decides to do that, and suddenly everything is fine and she can control herself perfectly fine.
The protag does consistently make decisions that remind me (not in a good way) that she is supposed to be 17. She pulls some real bonehead moves, especially as the story goes on. There is also that unfortunate YA staple where she decides to hate the only other female character around her age for literally no reason as soon as she meets her.
I also think that the character's development in the final act was completely undermined by the actual events of the book, and felt very contrived. A great deal of personal anguish is due to the character's belief that
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Genocide, Slavery, Vomit, and Trafficking
hal00alex's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
It is definitely reflective of current media trends, but still a unique take on an fae and sirens. Writer relies more on senses when world building. And it ends in a cliff hanger which my by a metaphor on civil rights? There are certain aspects of the senses that get repeated a lot which may break immersion, but it adds more to the characters.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Drug use, Death of parent, and Alcohol
victoriousbookworm's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
5.0
This book exceeded all of my expectations for it. The pacing was perfect, the characters were complex and twisted in a way that felt real, and the story kept me hooked. Saoirse’s love for her sister was so powerful and relatable. From start to finish, this book had me anxiously needing to know what happens next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Murder
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Slavery, Blood, and Classism
Minor: Genocide
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I honestly have mixed feelings about this book. The world created, with the creatures and the way their society was set up, was really interesting and really detailed, actually. Burton did a good job setting that up and showing what was at stake from the beginning.
However, I think this could have been a standalone book, rather than make it into a series. For me, I felt like the story could have been wrapped up at the end of this book. There's a cliffhanger, sort of, at the end of this one that didn't quite feel like it was necessary.
I've read other books with Sirens before, and I also wasn't a huge fan of how they were portrayed in this book. It was like Saoirse was being made to be an anti-hero, but there wasn't enough balance there. There was just something off about it for me.
Overall, there was a lot of potential here, but the story just fell flat for me.
However, I think this could have been a standalone book, rather than make it into a series. For me, I felt like the story could have been wrapped up at the end of this book. There's a cliffhanger, sort of, at the end of this one that didn't quite feel like it was necessary.
I've read other books with Sirens before, and I also wasn't a huge fan of how they were portrayed in this book. It was like Saoirse was being made to be an anti-hero, but there wasn't enough balance there. There was just something off about it for me.
Overall, there was a lot of potential here, but the story just fell flat for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Bullying, Misogyny, and Racism
Minor: Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
takarakei's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I’m having a hard time deciding how I feel about this book. It was a little slow to start but the overall world building was interesting and well done. However, I can’t decide if the main character being morally gray because she is a siren is well developed enough for me to understand why beyond a surface level. Basically it seemed to be to just be like “she’s a siren so she kills people” and that was it, but idk how I feel about that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Bullying, Misogyny, and Racism
Minor: Death of parent and Alcohol
aquillesaurus's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-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: Emotional abuse, Genocide, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Murder, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying
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