ka_ke'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
5.0
Graphic: Gore, Murder, Violence, Blood, Classism, Sexual content, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Racism, Genocide, Grief, Racial slurs, and Colonisation
Minor: Torture, Child abuse, Abandonment, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and War
readbyella_'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
4.0
Graphic: Death, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, and Blood
Moderate: War, Murder, and Torture
Minor: Alcohol, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Cursing, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, Grief, Gore, Slavery, and Rape
tlaynejones's review against another edition
3.5
Graphic: Violence, Ableism, Colonisation, Gaslighting, and Blood
melere's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I could go on but many aspects of this book were just so bad from a technical perspective that I found it difficult to overlook. The characters had no depth so it was hard to get into. I actually liked Fourth Wing MORE and I thought it was pretty dreadful!
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Death, War, Grief, Toxic relationship, Rape, Murder, Gaslighting, Cursing, Blood, Violence, Gore, and Sexual violence
prunechips's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Sexual content, Blood, Murder, Genocide, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Death, War, Colonisation, and Gaslighting
katvou's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Blood, Torture, Animal death, Alcohol, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, Death, Violence, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
Moderate: Emotional abuse, War, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Medical content, and Gore
Minor: Vomit, Slavery, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Rape, Pregnancy, and Sexual violence
edilyaaang's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Death, Gaslighting, War, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Child death, Animal death, Cursing, Physical abuse, Rape, and Grief
booshort's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Where was this book when I was in all of my previous fantasy book slumps?
The first ~7 chapters were fine enough, it felt like any other fantasy read, really. Jumping in to a new world, learning terms, and just sort of accepting things as they come up. Oh there’s vampires with different types of wings? Ya sure. This big mega vamp wants this rando human child as a pseudo child of his own? Go wild. But once you’re securely in the trials that take place in this book, *you get hooked*. The world is simple but still feels so real with the way Broadbent describes it. It was almost a theme while I was reading; expecting something shallow due to how little this book/author has been talked about in the mainstream until now (thank you booktok), but then being utterly surprised when proven wrong. Each chapter just revealed more and more strings and important details and connections and and and. I am thoroughly amazed.
I know many people are comparing Broadbent’s series and their respective tones to Sarah J Maas’ books, but there really is no better parallel. I’ve yet to read any other books by Broadbent, but there is no doubt I will collect as many as I can get my hands on.
Seriously though, if you are a fan of SJ Maas, give this author a go.
Graphic: Sexual assault, Grief, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Rape, Death, Blood, Sexual content, Gaslighting, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and Cursing
Moderate: Torture, Child abuse, Murder, Sexual violence, Classism, Genocide, Confinement, Death of parent, and Vomit
Minor: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Toxic relationship, Animal death, Alcohol, Vomit, and War
amanda_reads13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The vampires in this book are savage, bloodthirsty, and brutal. Humans are merely livestock providing a constant flow of blood.
I found Vincent to be a very interesting character. On one hand he was a ruthless killer responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths. Yet on the other hand, he was a protective and caring father. He taught Oraya how to survive in a world that wants her dead.
Oraya wasn't a super original character, but she was very interesting. I enjoyed her arc through the book as she struggled with her feelings about Vincent and Raihn. She loves her father but knows he is a terrible man. She was a strong, clever badass. She was underestimated every step of the way, but showed everything just how brave she was.
Raihn was a confusing character. He came across kind of bland at some points in comparison to the other characters in the book. He was a vampire, yet very unlike any of the other vampires. He was very human like in his behaviour. This is why he and Oraya worked so well together. They balanced each other. She gave him space to embrace his humanity where he spured her to fight harder.
I am interested to see how their relationship progresses into the next book.
Spoiler
I was not a huge fan of the ending. Starting with Oraya winning and onwards. She just betrayed her father like it was nothing. Yes, she had been wrestling with the knowledge of what he had done, but she made a huge decision based on her limited knowledge and feelings for Raihn. Seemed slightly out of character.Also I would have liked more backstory as to why the two Nighborne Clans were always at war. We got a bit of the history near the end of the book, but I think having that knowledge near the beginning would have been beneficial.
Tropes: vampires, slow burn, badass FMC, forced marriage, enemies to allies to lovers, forced proximity
Graphic: Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Blood, Death, Gaslighting, Grief, and Sexual content
booksalacarte's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Cursing, Sexual content, Violence, Gore, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Blood, Death of parent, and Confinement