Reviews tagging 'Blood'

To Snap a Silver Stem by Sarah A. Parker

5 reviews

booksalacarte's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

3.75⭐️3🌶️

Book 2

Dark adult Fantasy

Multi POV

Orphan FMC

Fae/fae adjacent

Folklore/mythical creatures

Stockholm syndrome

Slow burn

Fated mates

Forbidden romance

Secret identity

Separation 

Tw: questionable guardian/ward relationship, toxic relationship, repressed trauma

This series is so rich in internal monologue imagery. The flower and foliage. SAP does this so consistently. She also doesn’t back down from putting her characters through the wringer, physically, mentally AND emotionally. 

This is a self discovery book, for sure. Book 1 was such a narrowly focused book. With the only setting being the castle and watching the FMC strain against herself and her fallbacks. 

Book 2 opens everyone’s eyes to the bigger fantasy world and it’s such an interesting one. Learning about the world along with the FMC is interesting and something SAP is very intentional with. However I felt that so many of the characters were fairly inconsistent from book 1 to 2… which was disappointing.

But the angst is at an all time high, throughout the entire book. 

This had the biggest cliffhanger ending. I finished at 1am and immediately had to start book 3.

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Crystal Bloom Series: unfinished

To Bleed a Crystal Bloom- 4.5⭐️2.75🌶️

To Snap a Silver Stem- 4⭐️3🌶️

To Flame a Wild Flower- 3.75⭐️3.5🌶️

Book 4- unannounced

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

weylynn7's review against another edition

It seems pretty obvious that the endgame romantic interest is a grooming, abusive brute. The writing style is so good, and I enjoyed When the Moon Hatched. But I can’t get over the love interest in this series. He’s not “morally gray.” He’s abusive. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship

wildroseoftexas's review against another edition

dark sad tense medium-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

3.0

I want to see character development. The main character looks, acts, and thinks the same from page one to the end of the book swapped in guilt and addicted to a weird “love”. 

The overall storyline and plot is so hard to see. We get glimpses in such tiny bites, I would get frustrated every time we change character points of view. It feels like the layers aren’t fleshed out and ideas were thrown in as it was written without working them out to the whole picture. 

I want less *tension* and changing eye colors. How old is R anyway??? This still feels like a gross and abusive relationship. I need to clear explanations that make this make sense. 

I asked myself several times, “Is this a vampire story?” Spoiler alert: It’s not. 
I have more questions than answers, and not in the excited, what-will-happen-next way.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Child death and Sexual content

aliteraryescape's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Minor: Gore, Blood, and Vomit

deesquared's review against another edition

adventurous challenging mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

I mean, I still have no idea what the story’s about. It was a good book, in the sense it’s addictive to read when you get into it. But I couldn’t really tell you the plot. Or what was going on with Kai’s side quest. 

I am looking forward to the next book, not least so I can find out what happens next. 

Also the cliffhanger o_O

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body horror, Child death, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment