Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Powerless by Lauren Roberts

134 reviews

espurrr's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-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

3.75

The romance in this book is slow and delicious. Everything else could be better. The premise is a little jumbled and the book suffers from some odd pacing. I do really enjoy these characters and their interactions with each other and I'll be reading the next book.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

lomesia's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

hjb_128's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

soph22's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark inspiring sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

I have a complicated relationship with this book. I’d heard before reading that it was a bit of a love or hate kinda book, and I’ll be honest, the first 250 pages I really didn’t think I’d get along with it: the writing in first person felt a bit clunky, the action seemed off, but I kept going because the flirty banter between two characters was absolutely top notch. Something switched at the hallway mark, and I suddenly really started enjoying it. The maritime became more dynamic, the storytelling clearer, and the plot swept me away.
Overall, I don’t t think it was a flawless book, but it did entertain me. It had its issues, and I’m pretty sure it’s similar to Hunger Games (although I’ve never read it - 😲), but I will be continuing the series!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation

eyeleash's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child abuse, Grief, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Torture

cnannery19's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny sad tense fast-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

backitupmoony's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, and Blood

Moderate: Torture, Grief, and Death of parent

Minor: Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, and Alcohol

sweetteaandfiction's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark 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? Yes

5.0

Powerless by @laurenrobertslibrary pulls inspiration from all those dystopian fantasies that got me through college and the epic fantasies that followed me into adulthood without losing its unique voice. 

Now, sometimes (basically all the time) five star reads for me are five stars because I love them. The story pulls me in to the world. I live amongst the pages for a little while. 

PROS: 
🗡️Hunger Game vibes 
🩸Divergent vibes 
🗡️TOG vibes 
🩸Unique Magic System
🗡️Found Family
🩸Star Crossed Loves 
🗡️Hiding in plain sight 
🩸Blood Sport 
🗡️Hunter becoming the hunted 
🩸Are you not entertained?!?!? 
🗡️Heartbreak
🩸Revenge

CONS: 
🗡️It is VERY much a YA novel. Not in a bad way. It is a story about kids fighting in an arena. There are bigger themes, but this is made for consumption by a younger audience. 
🩸The King 
🗡️Elitism 
🩸Caste System 
🗡️Rampant and Unchecked Poverty 
🩸Fear of the Other 
🗡️Abuse of Power 
🩸The King’s Hilter-ish Vibes 

🏃🏻‍♀️🏃🏻‍♀️🏃🏻‍♀️🏃🏻‍♀️🏃🏻‍♀️ out of 5 girl’s on the run 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Grief and Death of parent

pagebypaigebks's review against another edition

4.0

“And I’ll save your life again and again, aimlessly hoping you will allow me to stay in it.”

I'd like to thank Simon & Schuster for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I've also posted this review on Instagram and my blog.

Instagram Post

Blog Post

Content Warnings: violence, death, gore, torture, grief, panic attacks

This book is romantasy in full force! The world-building was intriguing and immediately transported me into a dark and dangerous kingdom. The idea of a trial involving subjects from different areas of the kingdom reminded me of The Hunger Games and the intensity of the trials did not disappoint. There was a lot of action and interesting fight scenes that were nicely balanced with slower character developing scenes. I liked how we followed Paedyn, one of the few magicless people in this world where magic is everything. That said, the magical powers of each of the main and side characters were intriguing to learn about and seemed to fit their personalities perfectly. I enjoyed how Paedyn and Kai each grew and developed throughout this first book. I only wish that we got to see their relationships with the side characters develop more. Before reading this book I had heard a lot about the great enemies-to-lovers romance and it did not disappoint! It was one of the few romantasies I've read lately where the main characters are actually enemies in terms of politics and worldviews. The banter and tension were great and the slow-burn romance was paced perfectly. We're left with an intense cliffhanger ending so I am very intrigued to see what will happen next and to explore other parts of the kingdom. I recommend Powerless to fans of The Hunger Games and the enemies-to-lovers trope!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Violence, and Grief

lilbookishdragon's review against another edition

adventurous 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail