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kayys_library's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Hate crime, Homophobia, and Lesbophobia
mountainfox's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Bullying, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Lesbophobia
caitlinemccann's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Grief, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Outing
Minor: Vomit
The author warns in the beginning that the on-page sexual violence are explicitly in Chapter 2, which she says you can skip. It is referenced throughout the book, but less graphically. So if you need to skip that chapter, you can.thebookishb's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Biphobia, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Lesbophobia, and Gaslighting
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Murder, and Toxic friendship
kelseythestrange's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
DNF at 33%. I don’t usually write reviews but man, this book is so full of cringe. I was excited for a Sapphic DA Medusa re-telling but this one was disappointing and was a disservice to Medusa herself.
Spoilers ahead.
First, let's talk about Lex. I didn't like her from the start as she was a total NLOG. She's different from the other girls as she's more interested in the classics than partying and getting drunk, which nobody has ever heard of before! You can tell just how different she is when she's describing herself in her Athena Halloween costume.
'Regardless of feeling sexy or not, I felt strong and right as I passed the other costume-clad students in the commons. Amid a sea of sexy nurses, Targaryens, and Star Wars characters, I felt uniquely me.' Sigh.
She then has a very uncomfortable discussion with her homophobic professor where they throw classical quotes back and forth at each other for way too long, I guess to build up their short-lived relationship, but it was painful to read. It was almost as bad as Donna Tartt's overuse of Latin in The Secret History.
'You've never had a man treat you right, have you, sweet Lex?' CRINGE
Second, the way the author describes Lex's body made me uncomfortable. I could have sworn the author was male before checking and it reads like some man's WLW fantasy, especially from the professor's POV which would have made sense if it was in his POV, but it wasn't.
'Her breasts were obvious beneath her conservatively buttoned black blouse, but they would have been obvious in anything she wore, heavy, but high with youth.'
As someone who is LGBTQ+, Lex does not read like a lesbian at all, but what a man thinks a lesbian would talk and act like. And the way she acted after the incident? Disgusting. You would think she would be more careful with her actions after what she went through, but instead, she forces herself onto Luna, who is straight (though Lex says she isn't), SA's her, and exposes herself to her all in a cheap act of revenge against Luna's mother, the president of the school.
'Lex,' she breathed, and it was there, both the protest and the longing for more. 'Don't.'
'Don't what? Don't stop? I won't,' I promised darkly, tossing the hem of my short skirt up and over my belly to reveal my underwear-clad groin to her hungry gaze.'
Hello? 911?? This is SA! Luna has a boyfriend, which she makes clear to Lex, but that doesn't stop Lex from getting off in front of Luna without consent. I don't understand how someone who was SA'd could put someone else in this position knowing how they may feel afterward. Even if Luna seemed 'hungry,' she clearly said stop.
Lex also forces herself onto Luna in the library, without consent, and kisses her also knowing then that she has a boyfriend, all for the sake of revenge.
I was on Lex's side before and during the incident, and I was hoping she would come back and seek her revenge cleverly, but from what it seems where I left off, she doesn't.
Briefly talking about Luna, I liked her. Sure, she had a few NLOG qualities too, but she had to be attractive to Lex, I guess. She genuinely feels herself falling for Lex and starts to question her sexuality, which would have been a great subject to write about in this book but it's lost in Lex's gross advances. Luna loves her boyfriend and doesn't want to cheat on him but finds herself torn between loving her boyfriend and having feelings for Lex. I felt bad for her and may never know what happens later since I probably won't finish the book. The one thing that made me uncomfortable when describing Luna was when the author put her in a Slytherin sweater. I don't understand why the author would mention a TERF when (attempting) to write an LGBTQ+ fantasy. Make it make sense.
Now, about the 'Man Eaters,' Lex's group with her sisters where they torture boys on campus who have assaulted women. Again, I stopped at 33% so I was only able to read about their first act of revenge, but it didn't make sense to me at all. I understand wanting to call out boys on campus who have SA'd before, but the whole idea was messy and anyone with a brain would have known it was Lex who did it. Lex, the girl who was SA'd, came back to school wearing all black with snake tattoos and chose a 'disguise' of all-black clothing and a snake mask. Yet she got away with it because she changed her voice. I wasn't convinced at all. When the girl who was SA'd by their victim decided to finally say something, it was Luna and her team that comforted her, not Lex, but were supposed to feel good about it anyway.
Other things that didn't make sense to me:
If Mina (the president of the school and Luna's mother) knew Lex and her foster family for a long time and knew her character, why would she not believe Lex when she admitted she was SA'd? Because she loves her work so much?
If Lex knew Mina and her family, how has she never met Luna before?
Why did Lex choose Luna as her 'tool' for revenge when she, herself went through something so traumatic where she felt the same?
Why is Lex, a lesbian, so insistent that Luna isn't straight? LGBTQ+ people get told all the time that we aren't what we say we are, and it's frustrating. I don't see why she would put someone else through that.
TikTok??
Why did the author mention a TERF in a (supposedly) LGBTQ+ book?!
Also, salted pasta water.
Graphic: Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Lesbophobia, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
thef1bookishgirlie's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
2.0
Graphic: Homophobia, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Lesbophobia
queerafictionado'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? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Biphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Lesbophobia, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Death and Murder
readingwith_kelsey's review against another edition
- 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
“𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘺 𝘸𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩”
🐍 ᴍᴇᴅᴜꜱᴀ ʀᴇᴛᴇʟʟɪɴɢ
✨ ᴅᴀʀᴋ ᴀᴄᴀᴅᴇᴍɪᴀ
🐍 ꜱᴀᴘᴘʜɪᴄ ʀᴏᴍᴀɴᴄᴇ
✨ ꜰᴇᴍɪɴɪɴᴇ ʀᴀɢᴇ
🐍 ᴛʀᴀᴜᴍᴀ ꜱᴜʀᴠɪᴠᴏʀꜱ
✨ ꜰᴏᴜɴᴅ ꜰᴀᴍɪʟʏ
🐍 ʀᴇᴠᴇɴɢᴇ ᴘʟᴏᴛ
✨ ᴏᴘᴘᴏꜱɪᴛᴇꜱ ᴀᴛᴛʀᴀᴄᴛ
What a way to start my Giana Darling journey, omg. This was my first read by her and let’s just say she has a new fan. This Medusa retelling was everything I didn’t know my feminist heart needed.
Serpentine Valentine was the most raw and beautiful depiction of feminine rage. If you don’t know the story of Medusa, make sure you do your research on that before picking this up because *𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔*. Giana was able to hit all of my emotions with her poetic-like writing style.
Lex has easily become a new all time favorite FMC for me. Her resilience, strength, and feminine power left me in awe multiple times throughout this story. Her transformation into darkness was tragically beautiful. Lex’s revenge plan brought Luna into her rage filled atmosphere but the way Luna’s light and kindness softened Lex was incredible. The chemistry between these two dichotomies was truly addicting. I can’t skip over my love for 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒏 𝑬𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑪𝒓𝒆𝒘 turned all woman wolf pack. The found family amongst these badass women was undeniable.
𝐈 𝐚𝐛𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐚’𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭
tw: this story contains topics which may be sensitive to some readers.
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Lesbophobia, and Outing
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
booksplussky's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I enjoyed the revenge plot and this felt similar to Mindf*ck, which is one of my favorite books of all time. I do think the parts of this story that I disliked could be taken out and it would better the story overall. I do not know if there were sensitivity readers for this book but it felt like more were needed.
Overall, I love Giana's writing style and always will. I liked what she was trying to do with this book but the harm in it outweighed anything else for me.
Thank you Valentine PR for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review!
Graphic: Biphobia, Bullying, Homophobia, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Grief, Lesbophobia, and Gaslighting