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amy_salieri's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, and Blood
Minor: Cancer, Vomit, and Sexual harassment
madscientistcat'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
3.0
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Violence, Religious bigotry, and Death of parent
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Alcoholism
fromthefoxhole's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
It being set in Russia in the 20s is basically entirely unrelated to the content of the book - the language is *very* modern and anachronistic and other than the fact that the winter is very bitterly cold, I don’t think the Russia placement has anything to do with anything.
The plot meanders a lot, most of the story is based around snippets of domesticity and fluff between Ilya and Danya. The background is that a vague something bad happened to Danya before they met and Ilya couldn’t heal his father so the town hates him. There is very little context given to the religion or the magic system.
All that said, I still enjoyed reading this immensely. Ilya and Danya are adorable - I especially appreciated Danya’s ham fisted flirting and Ilya’s exasperation with it.
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Outing, and Injury/Injury detail
cryscries'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
3.75
It definitely feels like a slow burn and everything happens near the very end. The book did a really good job with character building. There were times where I felt a bit confused about the time period and setting of the characters because I imagine it to be both very old timey but it also is very modern but I don’t by how much so I would just like more world building.
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, and Religious bigotry
There is graphic or moderate descriptions of sex - I personally don’t feel any way about it but if it makes you uncomfortable to read it’s definitely okay to skip them not all of it really is needed for the plot - the last page does end with the characters having a sort of marriage night but the very last page describes mostly the open ended possibility of another book.rayneelee's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Bullying, Homophobia, Infidelity, Physical abuse, and Violence
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
celestepaed's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Moderate: Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, and Outing
puttingwingsonwords'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Alcoholism, Body horror, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, Cannibalism, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
haileeraye'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? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Homophobia and Death of parent
atlastheninth's review
- 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
"They were both impossible men who had been hurt by so many things, trying to heal the other and find comfort in them. [...] They would come out of this together, stronger together, happier together."
Graphic: Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Homophobia, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Death of parent
abusive parent, abusive church dynamics