Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

The Blood Trials by N.E. Davenport

16 reviews

reddeddy's review

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queergoth_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional 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? Yes

4.0

I struggled to get into this at first and then it kicked off about a third of the way in and I was completely hooked. And that ending! I'll have to get to the second one soon because I need to know how on this is all going to play out. 

My only thing I wasn't so keen on is a huge plot spoiler so proceeded with caution.
I felt like thete were a lot of character deaths that just didn't draw a lot of emotion from me as I felt like I didn't really know them. This is particularly true for Zayne. I felt Ikenna's emotion but I didn't feel much for Zayne as he was kind of pushed to the side for a lot of the story, which just made me feel like some of the impact was lost. But at the same time I don't know how much of this is just me. I think I just wanted to know them more before we lost them.

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emerentina's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious tense
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75


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blakeandbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad 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

5.0

LFGGGGGG

Why did no one force me to read this sooner?! What’s freaking masterpiece. Ikenna is such a badass who doesn’t take shit from anyone! So much happened from beginning to end — I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. The audiobook? So so good! I’m excited to read book 2.

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erincrichter's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense 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


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hollyk's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny 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

5.0

HOW DOES THIS NOT HAVE MORE READS???? Genuinely astounded. This is so good, it goes places other fantasy books with similar presences do not go. Some of the world-building is shaky and a bit cloudy/confusing, but with the more you read the easier it is to grasp. I would also say this is more new adult than young adult.

Ikenna is an absolute badass. She's also flawed, and I like that she's hotheaded, impulsive, and doesn't back down. Her resilience is commendable and I think she's incredibly complex. She shows a lot of growth, but I also think a lot of other characters show growth as well, which I think can often get lost in other books. Several characters have some big changes and I am glad to see that growth. 

The pacing is a little slow at first, but once the Trials start, they Start™. One of the twists is kind of obvious, but I think that the details of it are well executed and are shocking. I won't say more because spoilers. Speaking of, TW in spoilers:
racism, sexism, gore, violence, death, murder, body horror(?), cannibalism (?), mentions of slavery, death of a parent/parental figure, grief
I think that covers most of the major ones.

I loved this book and I will not stop thinking about it for the foreseeable future

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headinthepages's review against another edition

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medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0


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mjdedevis24's review against another edition

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adventurous dark 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

4.5


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thelostartofsecretkeeping's review

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adventurous challenging dark 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? Yes

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nytephoenyx's review

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adventurous dark emotional slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The Blood Trials was a great story set up, and I enjoyed it. There was the right amount of action and just enough character and background to set everything up for a great book two—honestly, a great debut.

Why four stars instead of five? The Blood Gift Duology should be a trilogy. There were clear signposts for an ending after the Praetorian trials, but the book continued for another 150 pages. The next book comes out next year (and I will be reading it!), and I assume there's a similar point that will feel like a transition should have happened. There was a three-act feel to it, and the last third of the book felt disjointed.

That is honestly my only complaint! Otherwise, I liked the lore and the twists (so many twists!), and I eagerly anticipate the bloody, grimy story the next book is sure to tell.

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