Reviews with content warning for Blood - Powerless

She is the very thing he’s spent his whole life hunting.
He is the very thing she’s spent her whole life pretending to be.

(Be wary of minor spoilers if you haven't read this yet)

4.25 stars.

REVIEW:
THIS.

THIS BOOK.
This has to be my new favourite fantasy book. There is no better feeling when you pick up a book you later can't put down, relentlessly turning through the pages, running alongside the characters, fighting with them, laughing with them, crying with them. This book had me gripped and NEEDING to find satisfaction through the next book. The banter between Paedyn and Kai? Light, fun filled and had me SCREAMING "kiss already!!".

"If I am to be her enemy, I want it to be because she loathes herself for wanting me.”

Paedyn:
I rooted for her throughout the entire book. Incredibly witty, sharp-tongued and even sharper mind, this is the kind of female lead I love. I can see people comparing this to other series like Red Queen and Hunger games, since all the fmcs go through similar things, but I have to say, something about this book trumps the other two. Watching her prove everybody around her wrong was amazing. It gave me the kind of satisfaction that's incredibly hard to find.

Kai:
At first I thought he was an idiot because he couldn't sense Paedyn's power (obviously), but I quickly grew to love him. Once again, THE BANTER. The way I felt giddy inside like a little girl every time they fought. And he braids her hair? That has to be the cutest scene I've ever read. He was smitten with her from the very beginning -- for him, she was the first girl his eyes landed on when he walked in a room. I ALSO love how he fostered her strengths instead of trying to be the cliché overprotective boyfriend and force her to hide away herself.

The slow burn? Top tier. The way Roberts wrote this entire story was genuinely beautiful. I loved it till the very end, and this has to be the first series that made me ANXIOUS for the sequel.

--- Although, quick downside. What was with the editing? Powerless had one mistake too many when it came to grammar. Also, the amount of times eye colour was pointed out was definitely way too much. We got it, Roberts. Billie Eilish is probably crying through her "ocean eyes" right now.

BOTTOM LINE:
Amazing slow burn, quick and fun banter, but lots of grammar mistakes

AGE RATING:
12+

Content Warnings

chickenslover_bookworm's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Content Warnings

caitsreadingcorner's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense 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

3.5

It took me a long time to finish this book. Let me first state that I went into this book completely blind. That said, I was not expecting it to be so similar to The Hunger Games. I’m extremely conflicted about this book for several reasons, the first being that it was entirely too long. I’m sure many people will disagree but the beginning of this book was set at a creeping pace with a lot of recycled playful sarcasm and banter between Kai and Pae. I understand that Paedyn and the two princes are enemies but I didn’t really find it to be true enemies to lovers, as Kai was instantly attracted to her. I see a lot of other reviewers raving about their budding relationship but I didn’t feel butterflies or swoon until towards the end of the book. I was also slightly annoyed by the use of the word darling. I find it more condescending than flirtatious. A lot of the scenes leading up to the trials were hit or miss for me.

It wasn’t until Paedyn started learning more about the resistance that I started to really appreciate the plot line. That said, Adena’s death was predictable and very cruel. It felt necessary to drive home the malice of the king but her character felt so neglected the entire story considering she was supposed to be Pae’s BFF

. With their battle of sarcasm and the undeniable tension, I do hope there is some sort of physical payoff between Kai and Pae in the next book. I really enjoyed seeing Kai soften but I could have used more scenes of Kitt. I feel like he’s underrated. Not saying I think he’s right for Pae but seeing them become friends and him slowly trusting her and realizing he could be different from his father was refreshing. Personally, I think this book redeemed itself in the last 200 pages because the plot thickened and there was more intrigue. The trials didn’t do all that much for me but maybe that’s just because it’s been done before. I do have higher hopes for Reckless because the book got significantly better towards the end and just felt more original and flushed out. I think there is still a lot of growth for all of the characters and I’m interested to see how loyalties and relationships pan out and what becomes of Ilya. If you want book that has smug men with beautiful smiles, a stubborn FMC with stabby tendencies, lots of dancing, battling to the death and extremely drawn out sexual tension, this is for you. Just be warned, there is a quite a bit of filler in this book. There were some very pretty paragraphs but also a lot of forgettable ones. still, mad respect for Lauren Roberts for publishing and having a bestseller at such a young age.

Content Warnings

mstarahall's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

savvyrosereads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Rating: 5/5 stars

Paedyn is an Ordinary hiding among a kingdom of powerful Elites when she is tapped to participate in the deadly Purging Trials.

I absolutely LOVED this one. It is clearly Hunger Games inspired (and sometimes reads like a fantasy version of that series) but that is one of my all-time favorite trilogies so I can hardly be mad at it. The characters here were fantastic, particularly both Kitt and Kai, and even though I am picky when it comes to my love triangles, this one was EVERYTHING (extremely Stefan/Damon coded for any TVD fans out there).

I did predict all the major beats of the ending, but I had a super fun time watching everything unfold nonetheless, and basically never wanted to put this book down, which is MORE than enough to make it a five star read. I can’t wait to continue the series!

CW: Murder/death/violence/injury; torture; death of parent/grief

Content Warnings

mrsalexisrjones's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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? Yes

5.0

The hunger games meets throne of glass meets sky high? There are the elites and the ordinary. The king has banned the ordinary from the kingdom, leaving only those with powers. Our leading girl however, is powerless and forced to find her strength in other ways.

Content Warnings

mads_99's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

goodbye_123's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional sad 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

Content Warnings

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