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anjowers'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
4.0
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Vomit and Pregnancy
Minor: Bullying, Death, Physical abuse, and Sexual harassment
cluckieduck's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Slavery, Toxic relationship, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Sexism, Violence, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Sexual content
ka_ke'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
4.0
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Gaslighting, and Classism
kotahlotah'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? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Sexism, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
michellemaas'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? Yes
4.5
Second read: 4.5 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫
This book was a huge step-up from Gild. The world-building is quite intricate, but once the story kicked off, it KICKED OFF.
There was an amazing plot twist (more than one, actually) which was masterfully written and I quite enjoyed having Kennedy go more in-depth with our characters. This is also the first book in the series to be told from multiple point-of-views, including Auren's, Malina's, and Midas' perspectives (I'm not counting that one chapter in the previous book) so that enhanced the story even more.
In conclusion, the book is entertaining, not too long and the characters are likable. That is all I usually ask of my fantasy books so I'm more than happy. Also, the Plated Prisoner series gives me such From Blood and Ash vibes so it's got that going for it too.
Graphic: Body horror, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Kidnapping, Murder, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Body shaming, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment
ktbookbug'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? It's complicated
5.0
I give up to 1 star for each category: characters, world, plot, my emotional investment, and my entertainment/interest level. My rating break down is below.
REVIEW
VERY "A Court of Mist and Fury" vibes in the best ways but still unique. After the emotional roller coaster that was the first book, this one is a breath of fresh air. Some of the confusing pieces of information dropped in Gild are cleared up and explored, the world of the book opens up, and we're introduced to even more great characters. Plus a Queen Melina POV that I was more interested in that I thought I would be. Very "good for her" vibes at the beginning too. A lot of the reviews for this series say something along the lines of "just get to the second one" and while I think the first one is so valuable, the plot is slightly more clear so it has a higher rating. Honestly, I'm glad they're two separate books because it's refreshing to get to know a female main character well and how she handles things before a love interest/love story that "lifts her up" is introduced.
Here's my rating break down:
- Characters - 1 star
- Again, a great deal of thought went into each character, no matter how small, and their role in this story. Each is unique and fun to learn about.
- World - 1 star
- The world opens up for the main character so it does for us too. I don't feel overwhelmed with information but don't feel like anything's lacking - it's a good balance of "need to know."
- Plot - 1 star
- While the first book had some surprises that came out of no where, every twist and turn in this one was set up SO well. Instead of thinking, "Wait what that was an option?" it was more like, "Oh my god I should have seen that coming!"
- Emotional Investment - 1 star
- Once again, my emotional state IRL was heavily influenced by this book. I loved living through this character and could easily do so.
- Entertainment/Interest - 1 star
- This one I read much faster than the first one because, unlike the first one, I had more time on my hands and couldn't bare to just think about what would happen next. This was a "finished at midnight and picked up the next book right after" situation.
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Bullying