berodatheelf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
sad
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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Blood, Sexual content, Chronic illness, Fire/Fire injury, Death, and Grief
latenight_pageturner's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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
3.0
I’ve never read Colleen Hoover, but I feel like this is romantasy for people who really like Colleen Hoover. I also want to disclaim that I am no fantasy expert and this is my first dragon-story and the action didn’t disappoint but I do feel like Yarros could have done better fleshing out the more original pieces to make this more unique. I was getting the Gaelic influences but was thrown off by some other spiritual/religious elements - it just seemed like she took bits and pieces of other stories and threw them together with some bad dialog and nothing was really explained.
Was this exciting? Yes. But was it well-done? No. She has a story that's interesting, but if you're looking for original and technically great, I'm sure there are other books. I think this would be a great place to start for being introduced to romance/fantasy books. Which is why I won't completely bash it, this might lead someone deeper into the genre towards better writing and storytelling (not talking about myself at all teehee). I hope she goes more into the dragon lore in Iron Flame.
TW: There are quite a few death scenes and violence, but none of it is extremely graphic. There was only one death scene I was upset about and it had nothing to do with gore.
Was this exciting? Yes. But was it well-done? No. She has a story that's interesting, but if you're looking for original and technically great, I'm sure there are other books. I think this would be a great place to start for being introduced to romance/fantasy books. Which is why I won't completely bash it, this might lead someone deeper into the genre towards better writing and storytelling (not talking about myself at all teehee). I hope she goes more into the dragon lore in Iron Flame.
TW: There are quite a few death scenes and violence, but none of it is extremely graphic. There was only one death scene I was upset about and it had nothing to do with gore.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, War, and Sexual content
Moderate: Death of parent and Death
Minor: Vomit and Cursing
This book does allude to and mention violence, but for the most part none if it is gorily detailed. A very cursory mention of an incident.sugar_fox's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
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
4.75
Usually, I’m not a huge fan of fantasy books. Specifically romance fantasy. I don’t think I’ve ever read a romance fantasy, at least not since I was incredibly young.
And yet, I found this book positively entertaining and brilliant, wonderfully so. The idea felt fresh despite being a trope I’m sure has been used many times before. I adore the characters within this.
Violet was a strong female character, but not to the level of being a Mary Sue. She’s the perfect level of strength, but having vulnerabilities (and not being fucking emotionless) and imperfections. She has to earn her skill, she doesn’t come into the academy knowing it all.
Xaden was introduced to us as the cold but cool love interest, and from the get-go I was all for that. From his first meeting with Violet in the woods, we see a man fatally loyal to others like him, that actually cares about things (again, not fucking emotionless) and has imperfections and faults of his own. I was expecting the classic ‘bad boy’ trope with Xaden and was pleasantly impressed that the author didn’t go down that route.
As for their relationship, I loved it. I was already biased given I love the romance trope, but this book made me believe in their chemistry. Not through defining the trope, and telling me, but showing me. It seemed like a natural progression from enemies to lovers, and the things they’d argue over wasn’t foolish or fickle unlike other books tend to make arguments between the main couple feel. They had their own grievances and character arcs outside of each other and I loved that.
Now for Dain. I fucking hate dain. I’m not talking about any other side characters (and I mean that as an insult towards dain), but I just had to mention my absolute loathing of this character. And I do not mean this in fault of the author, no, she wrote this exactly as she meant to to evoke these feelings. His character was almost too real. The overprotective smothering ‘friend’ who totally doesn’t want anything more than friendship. The way at every turn, he’d try to prove Violet incapable of making decisions. I almost wanted Violet tokill him over Jack, because at least Jack was plain in his horribleness.
I loved the way the background characters were written as well. They each had their own little arc and moments throughout the story, making them feel more realistic and like actual people would behave. They weren’t just chess pieces to move around in a game, they were the chess masters each with their own agenda and goals in mind. There was no clear 2 sides that people chose, it was a free-for-all.
As for the writing. This book is not complexly written. It does not take the mental mind of Albert Einstein to decode what the authors conveying. despite that, the scenes can be imagined clearly, and the events make excellent sense. I really do like the writing, as can be seen from the time period in which I finished the book (less than 2 days lol). The dialogue was golden and humour was used appropriately. These actually sounded like 20 year old kids in a perilous situation, but still having fun.
Overall, I’d recommend this to anyone thinking about picking it up. And whilst you begin reading this masterpiece, I’ll start hoping that I can buy the next book for myself by Christmas.
And yet, I found this book positively entertaining and brilliant, wonderfully so. The idea felt fresh despite being a trope I’m sure has been used many times before. I adore the characters within this.
Violet was a strong female character, but not to the level of being a Mary Sue. She’s the perfect level of strength, but having vulnerabilities (and not being fucking emotionless) and imperfections. She has to earn her skill, she doesn’t come into the academy knowing it all.
Xaden was introduced to us as the cold but cool love interest, and from the get-go I was all for that. From his first meeting with Violet in the woods, we see a man fatally loyal to others like him, that actually cares about things (again, not fucking emotionless) and has imperfections and faults of his own. I was expecting the classic ‘bad boy’ trope with Xaden and was pleasantly impressed that the author didn’t go down that route.
As for their relationship, I loved it. I was already biased given I love the romance trope, but this book made me believe in their chemistry. Not through defining the trope, and telling me, but showing me. It seemed like a natural progression from enemies to lovers, and the things they’d argue over wasn’t foolish or fickle unlike other books tend to make arguments between the main couple feel. They had their own grievances and character arcs outside of each other and I loved that.
Now for Dain. I fucking hate dain. I’m not talking about any other side characters (and I mean that as an insult towards dain), but I just had to mention my absolute loathing of this character. And I do not mean this in fault of the author, no, she wrote this exactly as she meant to to evoke these feelings. His character was almost too real. The overprotective smothering ‘friend’ who totally doesn’t want anything more than friendship. The way at every turn, he’d try to prove Violet incapable of making decisions. I almost wanted Violet to
I loved the way the background characters were written as well. They each had their own little arc and moments throughout the story, making them feel more realistic and like actual people would behave. They weren’t just chess pieces to move around in a game, they were the chess masters each with their own agenda and goals in mind. There was no clear 2 sides that people chose, it was a free-for-all.
As for the writing. This book is not complexly written. It does not take the mental mind of Albert Einstein to decode what the authors conveying. despite that, the scenes can be imagined clearly, and the events make excellent sense. I really do like the writing, as can be seen from the time period in which I finished the book (less than 2 days lol). The dialogue was golden and humour was used appropriately. These actually sounded like 20 year old kids in a perilous situation, but still having fun.
Overall, I’d recommend this to anyone thinking about picking it up. And whilst you begin reading this masterpiece, I’ll start hoping that I can buy the next book for myself by Christmas.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence, Xenophobia, Cursing, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Death of parent
Minor: Abandonment
bookswithlauren's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body shaming, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Body horror, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Bullying, and Child death
emmiej's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
fast-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Vomit, Blood, Child death, Sexual content, Violence, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Death, War, Cursing, Death of parent, Genocide, and Grief
mattyb's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Bullying, Death, Gore, War, Chronic illness, Violence, Ableism, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Blood
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, Murder, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Medical content, and Body shaming
Minor: Drug use and Vomit
courtreadssmutt's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
5.0
I was hesitant to read this book because of the hype however this has become one of my favorites. Definitely a book I would recommend to friends.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Misogyny, Medical content, Torture, Toxic friendship, Violence, Body horror, Grief, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, War, and Blood
Moderate: Death of parent, Medical content, Animal cruelty, Medical trauma, Body shaming, Ableism, Body horror, and Death
Minor: Vomit
kimveach's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
5.0
I'd seen the hype for this book and finally got around to reading it. I loved it and can't wait to read the second book, which is already out. If you liked the Harry Potter Series, Hunger Games, etc., this is an adult version of the genre. The sex scenes are graphic - no innuendo here!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Dysphoria, Vomit, War, Sexual content, Death, Murder, Abandonment, Body shaming, Bullying, Classism, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Violence, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Blood, Child death, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Ableism, Toxic relationship, Colonisation, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical trauma
alykate's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Sexual content
Moderate: Grief, Animal death, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, and Death of parent
artmuseam's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
alright so i walked into this book with a LOT of expectations considering the hype around it and im not going to lie…it was just alright. i didn’t really like the narration style of the main character, violet, especially because she sounded more like an moody and angry 16 year old instead of the driven and determined 20 year old rider she was supposed to be. i think her character development was also pretty much expected, which made me not like her that much..the world building was overall great and easy to follow, and i liked how there were a lot of other characters that the readers got to meet so we weren’t just focusing so much on violet. now i will say this, (and some people might get mad) but the overall writing and story of this just sounded like it was written by a 14 year old kid writing fanfic on wattpad. i didn’t find the language engaging or poetic at all, nor did it have any level of maturity to it. just a bunch of f bombs thrown around and then very graphic sex scenes that kind of took me out of the book. the nickname thing too….CRINGE. CRINGE CRINGE CRINGE. every time i saw the nickname i audibly sighed out of annoyance. there were so many better ways for xaden to call violet a nickname and it just had to be that. the ending was also greatly expected and i felt like the actual climax of the story wasn’t very compelling. i was expecting to be at the edge of my seat, holding my breath, but the climax was pretty mid. the only thing i genuinely liked about this book was how fast-paced it was. other than that, not really sure why everyone hypes this book up so much. not my cup of tea :/ 3/5 stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Sexual content, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Blood and Death of parent