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tamara_joy's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, and Genocide
Moderate: Misogyny, Antisemitism, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Blood, Classism, Alcoholism, Child death, Animal death, and Confinement
matcha_pages's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Great story, I enjoyed seeing the characters evolve and women outsmart their situations. Wanda was my favorite heroine. My biggest critique is while the women were single they were protrayed as intelligent and determined to survive, yet at the end Irina and Miryem stayed married with their captors. I know this is a fairy tale re-telling and the men changed for the better, but the romance felt so shallow.
I had a good time listening to the audio book, but it was challenging recognizing when POVs changed. The narrator sublty changes her voice between the female characters so it's really easy to miss if you aren't fully paying attention.
I had a good time listening to the audio book, but it was challenging recognizing when POVs changed. The narrator sublty changes her voice between the female characters so it's really easy to miss if you aren't fully paying attention.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Child abuse, and Antisemitism
Moderate: Alcoholism
Minor: Rape and Death
starlit_pathways's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
- 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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Sexism, Domestic abuse, Violence, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Antisemitism, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Grief
Minor: Sexual violence and Rape
sshinesea's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
The best Novik novel yet! Incredible depth of character, showing the many shades of grey in female characters missing in so many other books. Beautiful.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Child death, and Xenophobia
annastorm's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- 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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Murder
Moderate: Abandonment, Child abuse, Death, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Rape
aloeverra's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Absolutely fantastic read, it started out a little slow but as soon as you add a few more perspectives in the story it picked up for me. I listened to the audiobook of this and the reader was incredible. I loved every voice, I could tell who was talking within the first few sentences even though the perspective changes weren't announced.
The book had a fun blend of different fairy tale retellings, though all were subtle. The strongest link was to rumplestiltskin, though how that story was adapted was very clever in this books plot.
The topic themes in this book really resonated with me. The idea that the three main women in the book are all stuck in these circumstances out of their control. Instead of despairing or complaining about it, they find ways to control aspects of their life little by little. At first, its small but their strength grows. I also loved the idea of what is magic really? Each person sees miraculous or wonderous things in different places depending on their experiences. Even just the act to give without wanting anything in return can seem impossible to some people.
The book had a fun blend of different fairy tale retellings, though all were subtle. The strongest link was to rumplestiltskin, though how that story was adapted was very clever in this books plot.
The topic themes in this book really resonated with me. The idea that the three main women in the book are all stuck in these circumstances out of their control. Instead of despairing or complaining about it, they find ways to control aspects of their life little by little. At first, its small but their strength grows. I also loved the idea of what is magic really? Each person sees miraculous or wonderous things in different places depending on their experiences. Even just the act to give without wanting anything in return can seem impossible to some people.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse
Minor: Animal cruelty
Domestic abuse tagbebobel's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
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? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Child abuse
Moderate: Antisemitism and Physical abuse
shostakofish's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- 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? No
3.75
A fantastic and fresh take on a Fae based fairy tale that has about 20% too much of any given part. I enjoy multiple POV characters but this is over the top, and at the point where I thought it would be nice if the story wrapped up soon there was still a whole damn story arc left.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Death, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Death of parent
ru_bunny's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Antisemitism, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Bullying, Death of parent, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Death, Toxic relationship, Miscarriage, Child abuse, and Child death
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
madmadmaddymad's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
It took me an embarrassingly long time to realize I was reading a Rumplestiltskin retelling. I was all the way at the wedding of Miryem’s cousin, and watching the fight between the demon and the Staryk before “Tell me your name!” “Never!” Felt like anything other than a quirk of their fantasy race. That being said, I loved the way all the pieces of this story unfolded and came together.
Wanda’s story moved me to tears at several points. I loved when she first learned from Miryem how to do the debt collecting, and she called adding numbers together “magic.” For Wanda, anything sufficiently remarkable is magic, and Miryem, even in the mortal world, was a sufficiently remarkable woman. The book had a really good juxtaposition of the ordinary with the fantastic, and Wanda, watching it all come to pass really made me feel like lots of things can be magic… I was crying during the entire last chapter, when Miryem called her “sister” and Sergey and Stepon “brothers”
Oh, and I LOVED the love story and how it genuinely snuck up on me. I am a simp for fae and monsters, and even though I got to the wedding and the three storerooms of silver-to-gold, the fight between the two evil husbands, and watching the demon carry the Staryk away, I thought, “Oh. Bummer.” Because I was a little bit rooting for them to fall in love.
AND THEN. Like I was having a dream…!
Miryem returns to free the Staryk!
And he *asks* to court her in the mortal way!
Oh! And Irina and Mirnatious! The way she saved him with the silver ring was so satisfying!!!!!!!! AND HE THOUGHT SHE WAS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING IN THE WORLD!
Just such a wonderful, wonderful read. Definitely a top 10 of all time for me. 5 stars, and it deserves more, to be honest.
Wanda’s story moved me to tears at several points. I loved when she first learned from Miryem how to do the debt collecting, and she called adding numbers together “magic.” For Wanda, anything sufficiently remarkable is magic, and Miryem, even in the mortal world, was a sufficiently remarkable woman. The book had a really good juxtaposition of the ordinary with the fantastic, and Wanda, watching it all come to pass really made me feel like lots of things can be magic… I was crying during the entire last chapter, when Miryem called her “sister” and Sergey and Stepon “brothers”
Oh, and I LOVED the love story and how it genuinely snuck up on me. I am a simp for fae and monsters, and even though I got to the wedding and the three storerooms of silver-to-gold, the fight between the two evil husbands, and watching the demon carry the Staryk away, I thought, “Oh. Bummer.” Because I was a little bit rooting for them to fall in love.
AND THEN. Like I was having a dream…!
Miryem returns to free the Staryk!
And he *asks* to court her in the mortal way!
Oh! And Irina and Mirnatious! The way she saved him with the silver ring was so satisfying!!!!!!!! AND HE THOUGHT SHE WAS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING IN THE WORLD!
Just such a wonderful, wonderful read. Definitely a top 10 of all time for me. 5 stars, and it deserves more, to be honest.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Child abuse
Moderate: Violence, Animal death, Misogyny, and Death