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toryc's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
I love Samantha Shannon! I read the revised edition and absolutely loved it! It had such great pacing and I really enjoyed the characters and the world that she built. She does such an amazing job as an author of creating characters and worlds that have so many layers and such complexity that it feels real! I am ready for the next book in this series and anything else she writes!
goldenslug's review against another edition
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
theeminha's review against another edition
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? No
3.25
galexandriaw's review against another edition
5.0
5/5 stars for the revised edition!!
She does it again folks, I cannot get enough of Shannon's writing honestly. Everything I loved during the first edition? Elevated. Elements I had qualms or concerns with? Alleviated. How she comes up with these worlds and characters I do not know, her mind is a beautiful place and I'm blessed to be able to get a glimpse.
See below for my original review of the first edition.
---------------------------------------------------------
4.5/5 stars!!!
So let me preface with: I was reading the first edition of this story. I found it at a thrift store before I knew Samantha was going to do a re-write essentially.
But I still freaking loved it. I think I really like the way she writes stories and complex worlds and communities. There's always a badass woman and I can never decide if I want to be them or be with them haha.
I did still have issues with this book. The magic system confused me a good bit of the time, I was definitely doing the "I'm gonna pretend I know what they're talking about until I actually do." I also would have loved more fleshed out side characters and to know their goals a bit better, especially for the humans of the story. It felt that all their motivations were to help Paige but sometimes it felt a bit ingenuine because...they don't know her. It felt a bit like filling gaps for the plot instead of building the characters for the sake of themselves.
However! From what I've seen that Samantha is adjusting in the anniversary edition, she's aware of these issues and is addressing them. So stay tuned for an updated review cause you know I asked for the anniversary edition for a holiday gift haha. Looking forward to immersing myself in yet another Samantha Shannon universe.
She does it again folks, I cannot get enough of Shannon's writing honestly. Everything I loved during the first edition? Elevated. Elements I had qualms or concerns with? Alleviated. How she comes up with these worlds and characters I do not know, her mind is a beautiful place and I'm blessed to be able to get a glimpse.
See below for my original review of the first edition.
---------------------------------------------------------
4.5/5 stars!!!
So let me preface with: I was reading the first edition of this story. I found it at a thrift store before I knew Samantha was going to do a re-write essentially.
But I still freaking loved it. I think I really like the way she writes stories and complex worlds and communities. There's always a badass woman and I can never decide if I want to be them or be with them haha.
I did still have issues with this book. The magic system confused me a good bit of the time, I was definitely doing the "I'm gonna pretend I know what they're talking about until I actually do." I also would have loved more fleshed out side characters and to know their goals a bit better, especially for the humans of the story. It felt that all their motivations were to help Paige but sometimes it felt a bit ingenuine because...they don't know her. It felt a bit like filling gaps for the plot instead of building the characters for the sake of themselves.
However! From what I've seen that Samantha is adjusting in the anniversary edition, she's aware of these issues and is addressing them. So stay tuned for an updated review cause you know I asked for the anniversary edition for a holiday gift haha. Looking forward to immersing myself in yet another Samantha Shannon universe.
paigeeloise's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
Minor: Drug use and Torture
mysteriesofmar's review against another edition
dnf @ 10%
yeah this is a no from me. cannot seem to care one bit about what’s going on or find it in me to learn the world. thankfully i got this secondhand for cheap so i’ll be rehoming this and not continuing with the series
yeah this is a no from me. cannot seem to care one bit about what’s going on or find it in me to learn the world. thankfully i got this secondhand for cheap so i’ll be rehoming this and not continuing with the series
hkbookshelf's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
4.25
kipepeo's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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 never would’ve expected Samantha Shannon to write a dystopian book and to know that it was her debut??? At 21??? Absolutely wild. This was great! I think it’s definitely clear that her writing style has developed since writing this book, even with the revised version, but I had a blast! This was a relatively easy read and I’m incredibly curious about how it’s all going to shake out.