readwithacapricorn's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster AU for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
In this intriguing world built by Margaret Roberson, the dead must be put to rest by the Gray sisters of Loraille, or risk roaming the earth as mindless spirits. Such spirits, or ‘thralls’, are categorised into different orders to help identify their threat level. They can be controlled by being trapped in relics (items of significance) that allow the wearer to harness their power. Our MC, Artemisia, gets pulled into wearing such a relic, despite being untrained and unwilling, and has to harness the power of the revenant (a dangerous entity of the fifth order) to defeat the plot that threatens her world.
This book is generally not what I gravitate toward due to its paranormal genre, but it does also lean into the traditional magic side of YA.
It’s a hard feat for me to enjoy a book that has no romantic sub-plot, but this story definitely has you gripped with its unique world. Artemisia is able to hold her own and adapt to the new circumstances that she’s faced with.
The banter between Artemisia and the revenant provide a much needed comedic relief. The revenant definitely holds its own as being their own person, despite being trapped in the body of a teenage girl.
It was difficult for me to be completely engrossed with the story, mostly because it felt as if Artemisia’s motives were lacking. There just weren’t high enough stakes to make me fully care for the outcome and her personality was lacking that special something. She wasn’t a bad protagonist, but it was hard to care for the story when the main characters personality is not as deep as it could be. Her childhood trauma gives range for a lot of depth that just wasn’t explored.
Overall, I would say it’s an enjoyable read with great world-building, but there was so much more the explore with the characters.
In this intriguing world built by Margaret Roberson, the dead must be put to rest by the Gray sisters of Loraille, or risk roaming the earth as mindless spirits. Such spirits, or ‘thralls’, are categorised into different orders to help identify their threat level. They can be controlled by being trapped in relics (items of significance) that allow the wearer to harness their power. Our MC, Artemisia, gets pulled into wearing such a relic, despite being untrained and unwilling, and has to harness the power of the revenant (a dangerous entity of the fifth order) to defeat the plot that threatens her world.
This book is generally not what I gravitate toward due to its paranormal genre, but it does also lean into the traditional magic side of YA.
It’s a hard feat for me to enjoy a book that has no romantic sub-plot, but this story definitely has you gripped with its unique world. Artemisia is able to hold her own and adapt to the new circumstances that she’s faced with.
The banter between Artemisia and the revenant provide a much needed comedic relief. The revenant definitely holds its own as being their own person, despite being trapped in the body of a teenage girl.
It was difficult for me to be completely engrossed with the story, mostly because it felt as if Artemisia’s motives were lacking. There just weren’t high enough stakes to make me fully care for the outcome and her personality was lacking that special something. She wasn’t a bad protagonist, but it was hard to care for the story when the main characters personality is not as deep as it could be. Her childhood trauma gives range for a lot of depth that just wasn’t explored.
Overall, I would say it’s an enjoyable read with great world-building, but there was so much more the explore with the characters.
ark99's review against another edition
4.0
~I received an e-arc from netgalley~
This was really interesting! It was a bit hard to get into throughout the book, really, but once I reached maybe like half way through it picked up a little bit?? My favorite part of the book was really the bickering between the revenant and artemesia. It was just really entertaining and watching them sort of bonding throughout the book was interesting. I do wish that there was more involvement of other characters like more dialogue with them, I feel like a lot of the book was just her mind and I could've enjoyed more background into certain things. Other than that a really entertaining book! And I didn't really mind the lack of romance, which is something I usually like in fantasy books, but this book didn't need it and it wasn't missing at all.
This was really interesting! It was a bit hard to get into throughout the book, really, but once I reached maybe like half way through it picked up a little bit?? My favorite part of the book was really the bickering between the revenant and artemesia. It was just really entertaining and watching them sort of bonding throughout the book was interesting. I do wish that there was more involvement of other characters like more dialogue with them, I feel like a lot of the book was just her mind and I could've enjoyed more background into certain things. Other than that a really entertaining book! And I didn't really mind the lack of romance, which is something I usually like in fantasy books, but this book didn't need it and it wasn't missing at all.
musesx's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
nicky7899's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
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
4.0
books_andprobablysome_wine's review against another edition
4.0
Suspense to the very last word!
Got it from my library without seeing the cover and if I´ve would have seen the cover only I probably would not have gotten it... so happy I did tough! Hoping for more!
Got it from my library without seeing the cover and if I´ve would have seen the cover only I probably would not have gotten it... so happy I did tough! Hoping for more!
polly_ang's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
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? It's complicated
4.25
taylorreadsbooks's review
5.0
I loved this! It’s the perfect example of a great book with no romance.
silthuri's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.5
arthvmis's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0