Reviews

Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater

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biancaf's review against another edition

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4.0

Short sweet and fun read

lulaabees's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful mysterious reflective relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

i have two huge issues with this book. the first being that despite taking place in a victorian england-adjacent realm, there's no mention of race or other forms of discrimination that aren't classicism. yes, the plight of the orphans in the workhouses is indeed a cause worth fighting for, and i understand why it's what the main character focuses her efforts on. but it would have been nice to *at least* make mention of other forms of discrimination at some point or another.
the second issue i have is that i feel that the very ending of the book (the very last paragraph) cheapens the rest of what it tried to convey with the main character's arc. i understand that it's debatable, but it's what it felt like to me. it was a huge letdown in that sense.
HOWEVER, i really felt that the main message of the book, "in the face of misery and a cruel world, do whatever little thing you can" was lovely and well-delivered. i loved the main couple and their chemistry, i loved all of the characters, and the writing was really pleasant. it was a great read!

Content Warnings

sarahlassx's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

5.0

ballen91611's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

4.0

I really enjoyed this! I thought it was just gonna be a silly rom com type book and wasn't expecting much but it actually was so much deeper than that.
I love the themes explored. It gave me ella enchanted vibes which I LOVE but with more depth which was great!
Idk if I will continue with the series since they are not about these characters but maybe! I was pleasantly surprised by this one so who knows.

sheffies's review against another edition

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adventurous dark lighthearted mysterious relaxing sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

phoebeneedsalife's review against another edition

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3.0

people were hyping this up like crazy, but i honestly thought that it was just ok. i didn’t really like the main couple, which is prob the reason—controversial, i know.