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chelseaj_'s review against another edition
4.0
I received this arc from the publisher in exchange for an honest review
This book is set in the same world as Marie Rukoski's other book: The Winner's Curse, which I haven't read yet, but do want to pick up after having read this book. The events of the story occur on an island that is almost completely isolated from the rest of the world. The main character Nirrim is 'Half-Kith', the lowest class in their society, and lives in the Ward, which she is not allowed to leave. She was orphaned as a baby, grew up in an orphanage, and was adopted by Raven who seems to be like a mother to Nirrim. Throughout the story, the reader finds out along with Nirrim about the reasons for this divide in society, and about her own personal past. For lovers of romance: there is also an f/f relationship in this book.
Not yet having encountered this world, I was quite confused in the beginning about the different social classes, and I was afraid I could not keep up. Luckily, the world building is done in a way that makes the world understandable, even though little of it is revealed in the beginning. When slowly, the secrets of the island start to reveal itself, and the history behinds the island becomes known, I was very intrigued by it. Especially the element of the traveler reacting to this world is something I liked a lot.
The main character Nirrim is nineteen years old, but at the beginning of the book she seems very childish. This is part of the way she has been brought up: shielded from reality and truth. Her inability to tell truth from her 'visions' do not help with this, she does not rely on her senses and this gives people close to her the ability to manipulate her. The child-like qualities that are given to Nirrim's personality did serve a purpose, because as the reader we can clearly see her grow in confidence and intellect. Throughout most of the novel, however, she does not lose the ability to see the good in people. I thought Nirrim was a very loveable character, although sometimes I did want to speak to her sternly and tell her to know her own worth and to fight for herself and what she wants. The growth Nirrim goes through was very exciting to see, and in the end maybe also slightly terrifying....
On the other hand, a character that I hated a lot from the beginning was Raven, but she for sure was not meant to be liked. She would anger quickly, and after hurting Nirrim she would be full of repentance. Raven is definitely an abusive guardian, both mentally and physically. To be honest, she reminded me a lot of Mother Gothel in the disney movie Tangled. Nirrim, just like Rapunzel in Tangled, is quick to forgive her dear 'mother' every time, and blames it on her own shortcomings rather than Raven’s. These were the moments in which I would root for Nirrim to know her own worth. Without spoiling anything, I want to say that I still hate Raven, but that I liked how Nirrim eventually dealt with her.
Then we have Aden. Nirrim starts out as his (pretend?) lover at the beginning of the novel. She acknowledges that she had always thought that his infatuation with her was pretend to disguise the illegal activities they were doing, but turns out it is totally real. Aden was another very unlikeable character. The power dynamics between Nirrim and Aden are truly not in the favor of Nirrim. Aden holds most of the power, and Nirrim goes along with things he wants to do, because she feels like it is expected of her, and also because it is what he wants. This applies to their sexual relationship, as well as to other aspects of their 'relationship'. Truly, Aden was just very egocentric, even though he accuses Nirrim of this exact same thing.
There are also some relationships that I loved in this book. One of them is the sisterly relationship between Nirrim and Morah. Morah is slightly older than Nirrim, both in actual age as in behavior. Morah knows Nirrim well, and even though Nirrim does not want to hear it, warns her of Raven's two-faced personally. I think that Morah was quite a big factor in Nirrim's realization of what it is to be truly loved, and that it certainly is not the kind of manipulative love that Raven gives her.
The last character is Sid, and I think I'm safe to say that this is one of my favorite characters. Sid is a traveler and quite mysterious in the beginning, but also very humorous and witty. Through the eyes of Sid, Nirrim is being questioned about her own world view: the usual answer 'it is as it is' is not enough anymore. Due to spoilers, I don't want to say too much about this character, but I will say that I loved Nirrim's and Sid's relationship a lot. It is another character that helps Nirrim to grow immensely!
I loved the way the writing showed the growth Nirrim went through. Especially the Epilogue gave a very different tone to Nirrim's voice, that showed the change that she had undergone. The writing also made it easy to distinguish past narratives from the 'current' one, which was really helpful for someone like me who normally gets very easily confused. The description of situations were vivid where needed, but it didn't use any arbitrary descriptions if it wasn't needed, which I enjoyed a lot, as someone who can get distracted by descriptions of great length. I have been reading a lot of different types of YA lately, and lowkey getting bored by the writing style, but this writing style intrigued me from the beginning.
The reason I gave it four stars, rather than five, is due to several factors. Although I liked Nirrim a lot, and I know why she believed certain things and did certain things the way she did, she sometimes frustrated me and I lacked identification with her. Normally, I love it when I can identify with a character and that sadly was not there for me. Furthermore, up until almost the ending, I felt like I didn’t know enough of the world yet and I was even afraid not everything was going to be revealed, which felt as a slight disappointment.
Lastly, the ENDING. I'm not going to lie, I know I just read the ARC and that this book is not even out yet: but I need the sequel. The ending revealed a lot of stuff, some of it is already hinted on earlier in the story and I had kind of expected it, but the major reveal and especially the events following it left me shocked and wanting more. As I said, the epilogue had a very different tone from the rest of the book, as Nirrim goes through a major change that had me fascinated. I look forward to see what the next book will bring, as (looking at the epilogue) it will go into a very different direction.
Overall, the writing style and the plot had me intrigued, and the characters had me feeling a lot of things, ranging from hatred, to love, to giddiness and a lot of other emotions. I know it is a big deal to say the L word, but I’m gonna do it: I loved this book.
It is a midnight lie, she said.
A kind of lie for someone else's sake, a lie that sits between goodness and wrong, just as midnight is the moment between night and morning.
This book is set in the same world as Marie Rukoski's other book: The Winner's Curse, which I haven't read yet, but do want to pick up after having read this book. The events of the story occur on an island that is almost completely isolated from the rest of the world. The main character Nirrim is 'Half-Kith', the lowest class in their society, and lives in the Ward, which she is not allowed to leave. She was orphaned as a baby, grew up in an orphanage, and was adopted by Raven who seems to be like a mother to Nirrim. Throughout the story, the reader finds out along with Nirrim about the reasons for this divide in society, and about her own personal past. For lovers of romance: there is also an f/f relationship in this book.
Not yet having encountered this world, I was quite confused in the beginning about the different social classes, and I was afraid I could not keep up. Luckily, the world building is done in a way that makes the world understandable, even though little of it is revealed in the beginning. When slowly, the secrets of the island start to reveal itself, and the history behinds the island becomes known, I was very intrigued by it. Especially the element of the traveler reacting to this world is something I liked a lot.
The main character Nirrim is nineteen years old, but at the beginning of the book she seems very childish. This is part of the way she has been brought up: shielded from reality and truth. Her inability to tell truth from her 'visions' do not help with this, she does not rely on her senses and this gives people close to her the ability to manipulate her. The child-like qualities that are given to Nirrim's personality did serve a purpose, because as the reader we can clearly see her grow in confidence and intellect. Throughout most of the novel, however, she does not lose the ability to see the good in people. I thought Nirrim was a very loveable character, although sometimes I did want to speak to her sternly and tell her to know her own worth and to fight for herself and what she wants. The growth Nirrim goes through was very exciting to see, and in the end maybe also slightly terrifying....
On the other hand, a character that I hated a lot from the beginning was Raven, but she for sure was not meant to be liked. She would anger quickly, and after hurting Nirrim she would be full of repentance. Raven is definitely an abusive guardian, both mentally and physically. To be honest, she reminded me a lot of Mother Gothel in the disney movie Tangled. Nirrim, just like Rapunzel in Tangled, is quick to forgive her dear 'mother' every time, and blames it on her own shortcomings rather than Raven’s. These were the moments in which I would root for Nirrim to know her own worth. Without spoiling anything, I want to say that I still hate Raven, but that I liked how Nirrim eventually dealt with her.
Then we have Aden. Nirrim starts out as his (pretend?) lover at the beginning of the novel. She acknowledges that she had always thought that his infatuation with her was pretend to disguise the illegal activities they were doing, but turns out it is totally real. Aden was another very unlikeable character. The power dynamics between Nirrim and Aden are truly not in the favor of Nirrim. Aden holds most of the power, and Nirrim goes along with things he wants to do, because she feels like it is expected of her, and also because it is what he wants. This applies to their sexual relationship, as well as to other aspects of their 'relationship'. Truly, Aden was just very egocentric, even though he accuses Nirrim of this exact same thing.
There are also some relationships that I loved in this book. One of them is the sisterly relationship between Nirrim and Morah. Morah is slightly older than Nirrim, both in actual age as in behavior. Morah knows Nirrim well, and even though Nirrim does not want to hear it, warns her of Raven's two-faced personally. I think that Morah was quite a big factor in Nirrim's realization of what it is to be truly loved, and that it certainly is not the kind of manipulative love that Raven gives her.
The last character is Sid, and I think I'm safe to say that this is one of my favorite characters. Sid is a traveler and quite mysterious in the beginning, but also very humorous and witty. Through the eyes of Sid, Nirrim is being questioned about her own world view: the usual answer 'it is as it is' is not enough anymore. Due to spoilers, I don't want to say too much about this character, but I will say that I loved Nirrim's and Sid's relationship a lot. It is another character that helps Nirrim to grow immensely!
I loved the way the writing showed the growth Nirrim went through. Especially the Epilogue gave a very different tone to Nirrim's voice, that showed the change that she had undergone. The writing also made it easy to distinguish past narratives from the 'current' one, which was really helpful for someone like me who normally gets very easily confused. The description of situations were vivid where needed, but it didn't use any arbitrary descriptions if it wasn't needed, which I enjoyed a lot, as someone who can get distracted by descriptions of great length. I have been reading a lot of different types of YA lately, and lowkey getting bored by the writing style, but this writing style intrigued me from the beginning.
The reason I gave it four stars, rather than five, is due to several factors. Although I liked Nirrim a lot, and I know why she believed certain things and did certain things the way she did, she sometimes frustrated me and I lacked identification with her. Normally, I love it when I can identify with a character and that sadly was not there for me. Furthermore, up until almost the ending, I felt like I didn’t know enough of the world yet and I was even afraid not everything was going to be revealed, which felt as a slight disappointment.
Lastly, the ENDING. I'm not going to lie, I know I just read the ARC and that this book is not even out yet: but I need the sequel. The ending revealed a lot of stuff, some of it is already hinted on earlier in the story and I had kind of expected it, but the major reveal and especially the events following it left me shocked and wanting more. As I said, the epilogue had a very different tone from the rest of the book, as Nirrim goes through a major change that had me fascinated. I look forward to see what the next book will bring, as (looking at the epilogue) it will go into a very different direction.
Overall, the writing style and the plot had me intrigued, and the characters had me feeling a lot of things, ranging from hatred, to love, to giddiness and a lot of other emotions. I know it is a big deal to say the L word, but I’m gonna do it: I loved this book.
veyeris's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
ieemee's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
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
4.5
This sapphic is romance,
Is coming of age , finding your sexuality.
The pacing was slower than my preferred pacing for a Romantasy.
I would say it’s on the cusp of slow for pacing
“I’ll have no place you’ll have me”.
Is coming of age , finding your sexuality.
The pacing was slower than my preferred pacing for a Romantasy.
I would say it’s on the cusp of slow for pacing
“I’ll have no place you’ll have me”.
jkwriting24's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
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
4.0
It took awhile for me to become invested in the story, but the last 1/3 of the book was beautiful.
megsbookishtwins's review against another edition
5.0
disclaimer: I received this free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Nirrim lives in the Ward, a walled off city within a city where oppression and inequality thrive . She is Half Kith – they are forbidden from wearing colour, tasting food with flavour, or doing anything above their class. If rules are broken, a tithe must be paid, whether it is hair, blood, or even body parts. It’s grim and it’s punishing, but they accept it. When Nirrim meets Sid, a traveller from across the sea, she tempts Nirrim to question everything she has ever known and to uncover the secrets of the Ward.
The Midnight Lie is a brilliantly written fantasy novel full of magic, secrets, and hidden histories. The Midnight Lie is a very character-driven story and is far from action-heavy, but there is a compelling mystery which is expertly weaved throughout the story that has a delightful and shocking reveal towards the end – I can’t wait for the next book!!
‘It is a midnight lie, she said. A kind of lie told for someone else’s sake, a lie that sits between goodness and wrong, just as midnight is the moment between night and morning. Or a lie that is not technically false, like a misleading truth.’
The Midnight Lie has one of the best slow-burn romances I’ve ever read. It is a f/f romance between Nirrim, our protagonist, and Sid, a traveller. The two have an intense relationship full of longing, stolen glances, witty conversations, playful banter, and lots of sexual tension.There is a class imbalance between the two. Nirrim is used to simplicity because it is all she has ever known, she doesn’t question the rules because no one else does. Yet when Sid comes along, her whole worldview changes. Sid, who is laid back, feigns indifference, takes certain luxuries for granted, and trades in secrets, encourages Nirrim to question everything around her.
The Midnight Lie also delves deep into class divisions and inequality, which is usually a hit with me. It shows the higher classes, mainly High Kith, indulging in extravagant luxuries that are made by or from the lowest class, the Half-Kith. A phrase that is used often is ‘it is as it is‘ – this is the reason no one questions the divisions. Towards the end it is revealed how this class sytem came into being and it was riveting, I really enjoyed the reveal.
The secrets that Nirrim and Sid are attempting to uncover is that of magic – is it actually magic, where does it come from, who controls it? I really adored this aspect and how it related to Nirrim and how it impacted upon her character arc. I enjoyed the mythology and the pantheon of gods. Excellent and innovative worldbuilding.
The Midnight Lie is a book I would highly recommend to those looking for a sapphic romance in a high fantasy setting but also for those who crave a good fantasy novel about secrets, deception, and magic.
Nirrim lives in the Ward, a walled off city within a city where oppression and inequality thrive . She is Half Kith – they are forbidden from wearing colour, tasting food with flavour, or doing anything above their class. If rules are broken, a tithe must be paid, whether it is hair, blood, or even body parts. It’s grim and it’s punishing, but they accept it. When Nirrim meets Sid, a traveller from across the sea, she tempts Nirrim to question everything she has ever known and to uncover the secrets of the Ward.
The Midnight Lie is a brilliantly written fantasy novel full of magic, secrets, and hidden histories. The Midnight Lie is a very character-driven story and is far from action-heavy, but there is a compelling mystery which is expertly weaved throughout the story that has a delightful and shocking reveal towards the end – I can’t wait for the next book!!
‘It is a midnight lie, she said. A kind of lie told for someone else’s sake, a lie that sits between goodness and wrong, just as midnight is the moment between night and morning. Or a lie that is not technically false, like a misleading truth.’
The Midnight Lie has one of the best slow-burn romances I’ve ever read. It is a f/f romance between Nirrim, our protagonist, and Sid, a traveller. The two have an intense relationship full of longing, stolen glances, witty conversations, playful banter, and lots of sexual tension.There is a class imbalance between the two. Nirrim is used to simplicity because it is all she has ever known, she doesn’t question the rules because no one else does. Yet when Sid comes along, her whole worldview changes. Sid, who is laid back, feigns indifference, takes certain luxuries for granted, and trades in secrets, encourages Nirrim to question everything around her.
The Midnight Lie also delves deep into class divisions and inequality, which is usually a hit with me. It shows the higher classes, mainly High Kith, indulging in extravagant luxuries that are made by or from the lowest class, the Half-Kith. A phrase that is used often is ‘it is as it is‘ – this is the reason no one questions the divisions. Towards the end it is revealed how this class sytem came into being and it was riveting, I really enjoyed the reveal.
The secrets that Nirrim and Sid are attempting to uncover is that of magic – is it actually magic, where does it come from, who controls it? I really adored this aspect and how it related to Nirrim and how it impacted upon her character arc. I enjoyed the mythology and the pantheon of gods. Excellent and innovative worldbuilding.
The Midnight Lie is a book I would highly recommend to those looking for a sapphic romance in a high fantasy setting but also for those who crave a good fantasy novel about secrets, deception, and magic.
alle_kat97's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-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
4.0
cristina_02's review against another edition
5.0
A really enjoyable YA book filled with mysteries, love and betrayal. Exquisite works building and very high paced.