cataluna49's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
sunsess's review against another edition
3.0
This book was so incredibly hard to read. Many of the paragraphs spanned an entire page, some a page and a half, with several jumbled thoughts or unnecessary descriptions laced within. Back to back to back, I had a hard time convincing myself to read just one more page, or one more paragraph. For this reason alone, I have removed a cow.
The story itself was interesting. I wish I felt a bit more attached to the main character. I do not dislike Fern, but I do not particularly like her either. She feels more like a shell of a person than someone real. The two things I know about her are not even significant. You learn she does not believe in fanciful, magical things, but her position on this is changed rather quickly with little resistance. You also learn she believes in good manners, which has a little more weight on the plot as magic is supposed to follow the rules of curtesy... but the consequences are never shown, which makes me question its validity.
I am also not a big fan of forced romance [spoiler]especially just to turn around and kill one of them off.[/spoiler] It reeks of lust on the characters parts and pandering on the authors. But it was a good cyclical adventure with fantasy and magic abound. Very fairytale-like. So I've settled on three cows and decided to let the story end here.
The story itself was interesting. I wish I felt a bit more attached to the main character. I do not dislike Fern, but I do not particularly like her either. She feels more like a shell of a person than someone real. The two things I know about her are not even significant. You learn she does not believe in fanciful, magical things, but her position on this is changed rather quickly with little resistance. You also learn she believes in good manners, which has a little more weight on the plot as magic is supposed to follow the rules of curtesy... but the consequences are never shown, which makes me question its validity.
I am also not a big fan of forced romance [spoiler]especially just to turn around and kill one of them off.[/spoiler] It reeks of lust on the characters parts and pandering on the authors. But it was a good cyclical adventure with fantasy and magic abound. Very fairytale-like. So I've settled on three cows and decided to let the story end here.
oneheart's review against another edition
3.0
Really enjoyed it up until Chapter 9, which is about 2/3 of the book. This would have been a great place to end on a cliff hanger. But unfortunately, publishers in this genre do not publish too many books of that length (around 200 pages). The last 3rd of the book felt under developed and cramped, and not as nearly as mysterious or suspenseful.
boleary30's review against another edition
4.0
Unique fantasy tale, written for the intelligent, unique prose style, not a quick read, but one that sticks with you.
awildbrady's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
3.5
ellie_bell's review against another edition
4.0
The prologue to the book is really beautiful, poetic and lyrical. I enjoyed the book, but my rating is up-scaled from 3 stars to 4 stars purely because of that prologue.
wonderumpus's review against another edition
Slightly verbose, I found myself drifting in and out of realizing what was going on. But wonderful! Just great, can't wait to read the next 2 - inhale them, mostly likely.
jennie_bunnie's review against another edition
4.0
The story line was OK, it didn't really grab me. But the last page and a half, that brought the ENTIRE book together. I had to put the book down and go "Oh....."
Those last pages are going to make this book very memorable.
Those last pages are going to make this book very memorable.
odeocowboys's review against another edition
5.0
For the PopSugar 2019 Reading Challenge: a book you think should be turned into a movie.
Maybe I have rose colored glasses on for this one, but I have always loved this book. In the world of film, I think the pacing of the book would almost lend itself to horror, which I really love the idea of. Not likely to happen, but I think it would be cool.
Maybe I have rose colored glasses on for this one, but I have always loved this book. In the world of film, I think the pacing of the book would almost lend itself to horror, which I really love the idea of. Not likely to happen, but I think it would be cool.