Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Deeplight by Frances Hardinge

12 reviews

erin2802's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective tense fast-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

4.75

I absolutely loved this book, it really gripped me tight from the very beginning. It is so beautifully written, the descriptions used make the sea seem so mysterious, enchanting, terrifying and cruel. The characters were amazing, the Gods frecht and awe inspiring, and the flow of the story was incredible. 
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mothiver's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective 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

5.0

Ohhhhhhhhh it’s so good. It’s SO good. Read this, you won’t regret it - go in as blind as you can, too, don’t even read past the first paragraph of the blurb if you haven’t already. 
The worldbuilding is genuinely incredible, everything just hangs together so well - one of those worlds that just feels so… thought-through? Everything links together like a puzzle, and the web of causality is complex but clear. The choice to set the story years AFTER The Big Event is very interesting. It’s pretty LOTR-eque in its approach there.
Also, I loved the characters dearly, and even the ones who were shitty people I felt a lot of empathy for - that line about how the downside of being good at working out how people tick is that, once you do, you feel bad for them and don’t want them to die? That’s the experience of reading this thing. 
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kwthor's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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deepti_g's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging 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? It's complicated

4.5

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guessgreenleaf's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-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

5.0

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slighte's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense 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

3.75

Loved the fantasy world and learning more about it and its history throughout the book. Loved the plot. Loved the deaf rep - this was integrated really well throughout and echoed really well with irl Deaf culture! However it did feel a little longer than it needed to be, and although the story relies on the toxic friendship, it did get a bit tedious and I was expecting a more emotionally triumphant moment in the ending of it. 
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sandy_dream's review against another edition

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dark
  • 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

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paige_bunnie's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This is in the wrong age category. It is an incredibly dark book, with murder, slaves, monsters and a main character who is blamed for everything despite how he is a child. It should not be in the teens section and would have worked better for an older audience. Had I expected these darker topics I think I would have enjoyed it more. I did enjoy the writing style and will read more from this author now that I know what kind of topics will be touched upon. I did enjoy the deaf representation and how it fit in with the story. I wish there was more focus on the twisted relationship between jelt and hark - if your going dark go all the way.
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mdwsn27's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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mar_gier's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional 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? Yes

3.75

I liked this book, but it was... weird. Like, really weird. A good-weird, but also a weird-weird. Like, Unraveller this book should really be considered a horror book as well as a fantasy book. (Also this book should definitely be classified in the dark fantasy subgenre of fantasy.) Deeplight was honestly even more dark and unsettling to read than Unraveller.

But yeah, I don't know, I guess it's cuz I found creepy Lovecraftian sea monster-gods and evil magical purple-black not-actually-seawater more disturbing than a dark fantasy about a dark magic forest with a mind of its own. I guess the latter just felt less unnatural to me for whatever reason. (Plus, the deep ocean is super freaky.)

Even though I did enjoy it, it also kind of disturbed me the same way that Subnautica does, so I couldn't quite give it four stars. But if you like Frances Hardinge's other books, and weird, unsettling fantasy is your thing, you'll probably like this book.
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