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hayzey'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? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Torture, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
chirin_reads'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
3.5
Pros: THOROUGHLY enjoyed the last 1/4 of the book, not just because of the sudden chemistry, but mostly because it seemed like Kellyn had a real personality outside his macho bravado. Maybe this was intentional, but I would have liked to see more of a gradual build. Temra and Petrick were excellent. Hopefully even more of them in book 2. The world building was interesting! Classically medieval, fun fairytale references. Ziva’s anxiety makes her a unique main character; I also would have liked a more gradual development of this as well. Looking forward to seeing the cast again in book 2!
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, and Religious bigotry
kassidyreads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders and Violence
Moderate: Death and Blood
Minor: Death of parent
coldmorningair's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Death and Violence
Minor: Murder
shadereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Death
Minor: Murder
katja24's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Death and Violence
beautifulpaxielreads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Let's start with the good stuff first. Levenseller's depiction of the MC Ziva's social anxiety was very, very well done and realistic. I also liked reading about the relationship Ziva had with her sister, and the
The main areas which I felt were lacking were mainly to do with worldbuilding and pace. As the novel began, I assumed it to be taking place in some kind of quasi-medieval fantasy setting - a country called Ghadra which is split into territories. But then I kept finding inconsistencies that took me out of the world completely. The really big one I noticed came when Ziva mentioned the term
The pacing was also really weird. There were parts of the novel where not a lot happened, and when the action did take place there was no build-up, no suspense. For me, this meant whenever the characters were under attack by enemies, it took a moment for me to realise that "oh, they're meant to be in danger now."
I also wasn't clear on all aspects of how the magic was supposed to work. I felt Ziva's magic was described in most detail, but other parts seemed pretty vague.
All up, Blade of Secrets had some good, and some not-so-good. I'm not sure yet whether I'll continue with the series, given how this book ended on something of a cliffhanger. But we'll see.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Medical content
Minor: War
kynthebookworm'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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
There isn't honestly much to say about this it was just a kind of typical fantasy? I had elements I enjoyed like the social anxiety representation, the somewhat cozy feel of the journey, and the way the primary relationship developed, which were all pros. Still, there were some pretty significant flaws in this as well.
We start the book following a blacksmith named Ziva that is gifted to be able to make weapons and infuse them with her magic. She ends up being commissioned by one of the most powerful people in the world to make a sword that is the most powerful Ziva has ever made. The sword ends up being able to obtain people's secrets when it cuts them and that sets up the story.
Although the main character, Ziva, was relatable I found myself questioning her character because she would constantly go back and forth between what she wanted, which I understand is most likely what was meant to happen but I just found it repetitive. I did relate to her quite a bit though which contributed to my liking of her character overall.
The main love interest was interesting at first but as we go through the book he becomes more of a stereotype. Strong, handsome, and a softie with a hard exterior. I didn't dislike him though and he contributed to the storyline well.
Temra who is Ziva's sister is probably my favorite character. She is the person that Ziva feels she must protect but in most cases, Temra seems to protect Ziva instead. Temra proves that you can be flirty and boy-crazy while also being an extremely determined person and fighter. I also quite like her love interest, Petrick, and the way that they seem to be best friends even with Temra's constant flirting.
There are other characters but I honestly don't have much to say about them as they pretty much fit regular fantasy character molds. The plot was essentially a journey across the land because a villain was chasing the main characters, which was interesting to read but not anything very new. I did want to mention though that I found Ziva's power very interesting and I will probably read the second book just to get her and her mother's history.
Thanks to BookishFirst and Square Fish for a free copy of this book
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, and Religious bigotry
middle_name_joy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Moderate: Death and Violence
Minor: Death of parent
thecatconstellation's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Moderate: Death, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcohol and War