Reviews with content warning for Death - An Unkindness of Magicians

I stopped reading because I’m concerned that this book where a secret and powerful group of magic users whose power is propped up by a secret location where children (and some adults) are tortured and killed in New York City might be antisemitic. It’s at least playing way more into blood libel than I’m comfortable reading.

I hated almost every character. Sydney and her employer are the most sympathetic characters among the magicians, and it seemed like most of the other magicians were meant to be somehow repulsive. Sydney are her employer are also the only magic users who are in the competition but not part of the established houses. At least as far as I got in the book, the members of the houses are varying degrees of unpleasant, from just generally complicit in the pain caused by their magic, all the way up to one being a serial killer who thinks his method of direct murder is better than the secret torture dungeon. I don’t know if he’s right or wrong, but I’m uninterested in the debate.

Content Warnings

tamara_joy's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

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cloudypages's review

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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bookcaptivated's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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miak2's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

"Besides." Laurent grinned. "An enormous magic fight? This is going to be fun." p. 12

This book kind of felt like being on a roller coaster that's missing one of its wheels: fast-paced, exhilarating, a little dangerous, and just missing that final piece to truly make it a spectacular ride.

But, overall, this book was FUN . This was probably one of the most enjoyable reads I've had in a while, maybe not as deep or as polished as some other books, but really fun nonetheless. It's told from a number of perspectives, which you all know I tend to enjoy in fantasy books. At first this was a lot to keep up with - too many characters sharing too much information at once. But it came together really nicely, and the twists and reveals, while not earth-shattering, were pretty fun.

If I had to name the 'wheel' that this book was missing (shh I'm trying to keep the analogy alive), I'd say that this just needed a bit more polish. Howard wasn't scared to go the distance when it came to dramatic events and consequences, and I definitely commend her for that. But the twists were a little predictable, the characters a little shallow, the plot a little simple. Don't get me wrong, as I've stated before, it was a really fun read nonetheless. It just needed a little bit more to turn this from a fun read to a truly spectacular one.

Content Warnings

evpie's review against another edition

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dark emotional fast-paced

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

3.0

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