bibillieophile's review against another edition
4.0
“….what’s love then?”
“Idiocy, in its loveliest form.”
I think this is the book about people who get it, gets it. I read Shakespeare Romeo and Juliette and somehow I get the epilogue of this book. It feels right about being a retelling of Romeo and Juliette.
At first I ate the book, I enjoy reading it, I love both couples and I can feel the pain in my chest for some reasons. But then, I am busy with things and almost losing interest to continue this book but finally I made it. I finished it. It is good actually. It has a lot of characters on it, both from Federvos and Antanovas and yeah it is hard to remember at first. But you are going to deal mostly with only 3 of Antanovas and also 4 of Federovs and other characters outside both families. It is not perfect but it is till enjoyable to read it. Honestly, the last book I read from Olivie Blake is kinda no from me but this one is different. I enjoy it and I understand the epilog.
and if you are looking for a retelling of Romeo and Juliette that has the same message (both tragedy and a form of satire for people who do foolish things for love) from the original one, it is probably what you are looking for.
“Idiocy, in its loveliest form.”
I think this is the book about people who get it, gets it. I read Shakespeare Romeo and Juliette and somehow I get the epilogue of this book. It feels right about being a retelling of Romeo and Juliette.
At first I ate the book, I enjoy reading it, I love both couples and I can feel the pain in my chest for some reasons. But then, I am busy with things and almost losing interest to continue this book but finally I made it. I finished it. It is good actually. It has a lot of characters on it, both from Federvos and Antanovas and yeah it is hard to remember at first. But you are going to deal mostly with only 3 of Antanovas and also 4 of Federovs and other characters outside both families. It is not perfect but it is till enjoyable to read it. Honestly, the last book I read from Olivie Blake is kinda no from me but this one is different. I enjoy it and I understand the epilog.
and if you are looking for a retelling of Romeo and Juliette that has the same message (both tragedy and a form of satire for people who do foolish things for love) from the original one, it is probably what you are looking for.
sydc27's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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
mw_rose's review against another edition
I want to like Olivie Blake's books, but I just don't (it's definitely an "it's me, not you" situation). Blake's writing is lyrical and definitely fits within the world of playwrights. There are pretty moving quotes that move the reader to a swooning motion; however, I didn't feel connected to this book beyond, "ooo, pretty writing."
Blake sets the stage, so to speak, with two families of witches that are vying for wealth and dominion in the backdrop of NY. They obtain and sell creatures and magical drugs, and fight blood with blood (they clearly haven't heard of the concept that an "eye for an eye makes the world blind"). Amidst all of this fighting is the fight for and loss of love - the typical star-crossed lovers.
The first issue I had with this book is a personal preference and one I should have done more research on - I rarely like Romeo and Juliet retellings. Although I feel that Blake's story does deviate from a strict retelling, I couldn't get behind the characters. Imagine this: a tale as old as time with two warring families (all kind of unlikeable and very much morally gre), multiple plays for power, and The Bridge, who just happens to be THE central part of the story since he has dealings with Every. Single. Character. Ever. I also didn't really like the concept of having Romeo and Juliet times two - literally two sets of star-crossed lovers, what are the odds? I was more invested in the description of past loves than the current story, which made this book not my cup of tea.
The main issue I had with the audiobook in particular was the narrator. I think this book, with as many characters as it tried to support, could have benefitted from a male narrator AND a female narrator for more diversity in voices. Most of the characters were made to sound breathy, sick, or trying too hard to be sultry, and it distracted me from Blake's prose.
I know a lot of readers love the niche that Blake inhabits - this was just my experience trying to force my way through this book.
I do sincerely appreciate Olivie Blake, MacMillan Audio, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to listen to this book and provide my honest feedback.
Blake sets the stage, so to speak, with two families of witches that are vying for wealth and dominion in the backdrop of NY. They obtain and sell creatures and magical drugs, and fight blood with blood (they clearly haven't heard of the concept that an "eye for an eye makes the world blind"). Amidst all of this fighting is the fight for and loss of love - the typical star-crossed lovers.
The first issue I had with this book is a personal preference and one I should have done more research on - I rarely like Romeo and Juliet retellings. Although I feel that Blake's story does deviate from a strict retelling, I couldn't get behind the characters. Imagine this: a tale as old as time with two warring families (all kind of unlikeable and very much morally gre), multiple plays for power, and The Bridge, who just happens to be THE central part of the story since he has dealings with Every. Single. Character. Ever. I also didn't really like the concept of having Romeo and Juliet times two - literally two sets of star-crossed lovers, what are the odds? I was more invested in the description of past loves than the current story, which made this book not my cup of tea.
The main issue I had with the audiobook in particular was the narrator. I think this book, with as many characters as it tried to support, could have benefitted from a male narrator AND a female narrator for more diversity in voices. Most of the characters were made to sound breathy, sick, or trying too hard to be sultry, and it distracted me from Blake's prose.
I know a lot of readers love the niche that Blake inhabits - this was just my experience trying to force my way through this book.
I do sincerely appreciate Olivie Blake, MacMillan Audio, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to listen to this book and provide my honest feedback.
kblaisure20's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
camillejslibrary's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.75
maemcdonaldhadafarm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
4.25
camcam83's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0