skillyillian's review
- 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
4.5
The characters are fun, I absolutely adore a good motley crew/found family story and this one hit the nail on the head. Victor, Mitch, and Sydney are one of the best found families I've seen in a long time. Victor is Mr. Brooding, all self control and an unsettling power that's quiet until it's not, and it's hot AF. Mitch is a terrifying, tattooed gladiator, full of intelligence and a soft spot for the little girl he and his cellmate have adopted together, which brings us to Sydney. A tween scared of her own power when the story starts, she grows up in several ways as time progresses, until she's a very different person by the end. You cheer for all three the whole time as you watch them become a team and work together against Eli.
Speaking of which, Victor and Eli are the #1 most gay pair of nemeses I've ever seen in my life. Constantly thinking of each other, what they look like, what they're doing, daydreaming about seeing each other again for literally ten years, the little moments of intimacy during the flashbacks to their college life together. So gay. So in love. Extremely home of the sexual.
The flashbacks thing is such a cool way to write a story, and an awesome tool for keeping the reader in suspense. Something exciting happens and you're like "holy shit, what happens next?!" And boom, it's ten years ago again and you have to wait to see what's next in the scene you just read and desperately want to get back to. What a rad fuckin idea, man. Loved it. Seeing characters make certain choices and then getting backstory to their motivations and why the choice they made is significant was so dope.
The way the powers in this story are created and the effects they have on their users is so incredibly well thought out and unique. I couldn't help but marvel at how interesting it was and I spent the whole time waiting to see what the next EO's powers would be and it was never a let-down when someone else was introduced.
V.E. Schwab is brilliant. I loved this and I will definitely be reading the next one soon.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Blood, Death, Suicide attempt, Violence, Gun violence, Animal death, Medical trauma, Murder, Child death, Medical content, and Self harm
Minor: Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Addiction, and Fire/Fire injury
jkneebone's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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
I loved this book! It's certainly not for the faint of heart, with lots of graphic violence and generally creepy and upsetting themes, but I honestly adored it. Schwab did an amazing job of weaving together the past and present timelines and the various points of view into a cohesive whole, while also using the structure to slowly reveal the whole picture of Victor and Eli's, and Sydney and Serena's, history. The whole thing was deliciously messed up - all of the characters, especially Victor and Eli, were so twisted, which (to me) makes for a very fun reading experience. I was hooked the whole way through, and I'll definitely be picking up the sequel as soon as I can.
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Murder, Torture, Gun violence, Violence, Animal death, and Blood
Minor: Addiction
nekoshka's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Murder, Gun violence, Animal death, Suicide, Self harm, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Blood, Child death, and Torture
Minor: Child abuse, Addiction, and Alcoholism
ladynavalon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Car accident, Violence, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Forced institutionalization, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Suicide attempt, Stalking, Religious bigotry, Murder, Mental illness, Medical content, Abandonment, Addiction, Body horror, Torture, Physical abuse, Gun violence, and Grief
donatio'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
I loved the writing style and how she skipped back and forth between the past and the present. The characters were well-crafted and I found a connection to every one of them, especially Victor's group of strays.
It was not really action-packed but I still loved how the story evolved.
Before reading one should check the trigger warnings, because it gets dark at points and "There are no good men in this game" is quite true. The mix of flashbacks and present might be annoying for some people too.
Graphic: Violence, Toxic friendship, Suicide, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, Child abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Death, Deadnaming, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, and Suicide attempt
astrid_mel's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Medical content, Medical trauma, Blood, Violence, Hate crime, Self harm, Animal cruelty, Religious bigotry, Death, Animal death, Gun violence, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Toxic friendship, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, and Child abuse
Minor: Car accident, Alcoholism, and Addiction
alexandrabelze's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Suicide, Violence, Cursing, Drug use, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Torture, Animal death, Blood, Gun violence, Death, Gore, Alcohol, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Child death, Medical content, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Stalking, and Abandonment
Minor: Addiction and Alcoholism
emohan'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? No
5.0
Graphic: Suicide and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Cursing, Murder, Gun violence, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Self harm, Toxic friendship, and Addiction
rosenau's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death, Car accident, Body horror, Torture, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Gore, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Addiction, Animal death, Violence, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Alcoholism, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Confinement, Drug use, and Religious bigotry
saurahsaurus's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Gaslighting, Gore, Torture, Medical content, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Self harm, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Animal death, Car accident, Abandonment, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Child death, Drug abuse, and Drug use
Minor: Addiction, Classism, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Suicide, Confinement, Suicide attempt, and Stalking