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bespectacled_lemur's review against another edition
4.75
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, and Grief
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and War
sabinehunter's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
nikki_b's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I love how messy and dumb these characters are (in a very human "making quick, emotionally-charged decisions with none of the necessary information" way, not in a "I am worried this character has a brain-eating parasite" way). Niko is angry š” all the time and that does get a bit tiring by later books but... he's got reasons so I let it slide. He's young and f'ed up.
I don't get the Witcher vibes here (aside from white hair) that other people have mentioned. Feels more like a mashup of Game of Thrones and Captive Prince with a sprinkle of orcs + magic from LOTR.
I did see some twists coming but not all of them... and that automatically grants an author some extra stars from me even if I might burn my Kindle reading about someone's "cheeks flickering/fluttering" every two pages. (facial cheeks not š cheeks, unfortunately LOL.)
DEFINITELY mind trigger/content warnings.
Moderate: Confinement, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Animal cruelty and Blood
raintje's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, and Blood
Moderate: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Kidnapping, and War
Minor: Incest
bworthit's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
3.0
The world building is exciting and the elves are interesting, but for me, none of the characters are redeemable or likable enough to continue the series.
Graphic: Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Toxic relationship and Toxic friendship
Minor: Animal death
znrtrreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
the beginning was a bit of a slow start and i almost dnfād, but around the 60% mark it picked up and was soooo hard to put down. you know that one really big twist at the end of Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard? the one that makes you gasp out loud because it feels like you, as a reader, just got betrayed? the last quarter of this book was like that, over and over. every time i thought i could trust someone or knew what was happening ā bam, another twist. and, i guessed correctly, it ended on a cliffhanger and i absolutely need to read the rest of the series to see what happens next.
also i am obsessed with both main characters ā niko was true to himself, badass, no-nonsense; visili was the perfect anti-hero cracking out of his shell. i love that their enemies to lovers arc was slow burn, blurring the lines between hatred and obviously falling for each other but not being able to realize it. iām excited to see where the story takes them.
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and War
Minor: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, War, and Classism
If youāve ever seen Game of Thrones, think of every triggering thing that could be in there and itās in here. Itās very dark so go into it expecting that. Plot and characters make it worth it.sixav's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Drug use, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Minor: Incest, Suicidal thoughts, and War
yoda32's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I think my biggest problem was that I couldnāt get attached to Niko. He was just so STUPID. For someone proclaimed to be a deadly soldier known across the land as āthe butcherā he was a bit of wimp. Now I get heās fighting the darkness and all his inner turmoil- which I guess was interesting- but he was betrayed so many times throughout this book and seen NONE OF IT coming. And youāre perhaps wondering- well yeah, isnāt that the meaning of betrayAl. Yes but Niko was a solider trained to spot shit like this! Where was his cunning? Or his distrustful nature he so promised?
Next to Niko infuriating me, donāt even get me started on the āromanceā and Iām not talking about the set up enemies to lovers( that Iām interested in). So Niko, along with making terrible decisions, thinks with his dick, and instead of scoping out the terrifying palace, and you know, being the assassin we are promised, he instead falls for Julian, the princesā personal guard. And we the poor readers- get a whole load of romantic jargon. Which went EXACTLY how I expected it to go.
The plot was meh. I think personally, Niko and Julians romance annoyed me so much that I couldnāt concentrate. Towards the end, the plot became slightly more intriguing, but for the most part.. no.
Now all that being said- there were SOME parts of the book I liked, or else I wouldnāt have finished it.
Firstly- Prince Vasili. He was awful, cruel and conniving. The exact kind of character I love. At least HE embraced his darkness. Also the actual romance is set between him and Niko and despite all my complaints, Iām curious.
Secondly- The author did something Iāve never read about before, she made the elves evil cruel creatures and damn I want to know more.
Thirdly- Itās clear that the dynamic between Niko and Vasili will change from barely tolerating each other to more and despite it all- Iām hooked. I want to know how they fall in love. Like seriously- how!
Anyways, this wasnāt the best book Iāve ever read but if youāre intrigued by dark fantasy, and are curious about the lethal Prince Vasili, I recommend you try this. You may like it more than me.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Toxic relationship
Minor: Incest
avidreader6's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Drug use and Blood