strawberry_jam_man's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Sexism, Death of parent, and Racism
Minor: Homophobia
libre_coffeeandpages's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Moderate: Classism, Death of parent, War, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Violence
Minor: Forced institutionalization, Slavery, and Homophobia
kynthebookworm's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Homophobia, Death of parent, Injury/injury detail, Colonisation, and Racism
Moderate: Death, Religious bigotry, Injury/injury detail, Kidnapping, and Panic attacks/disorders
lovebugger's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Car accident, Gore, Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Grief, Racism, War, Violence, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Medical content, and Misogyny
perseffable's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Racism, Transphobia, War, Violence, Slavery, Sexism, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Misogyny, Mental illness, Homophobia, Grief, Death of parent, Child abuse, and Car accident
abby_shupe's review
- 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
The lore, the talk of generational trauma, the magic, the characters were all so well thought out, meticulous, and made for an amazing and unforgettable book.
The author managed even in a predominantly white environment to weave in the most diversity I’ve seen in a book in ages, which definitely says something.
Every scene was done so seamlessly, though I hope in the sequel Bree can find a community of which she can relate too more when it comes to <spoiler- root, and her medium abilities -spoiler>.
The romance was amazing, normally I’m not a fan of love triangles, but I’m on the edge of my seat with this one! (team Sel over here 😇) I found all the (likable) characters to be extremely lovable, Sarah, Alice, Russ, Felicity, Sel, Whitty, and Greer were definitely my favorites! I devoured this entire book in a day and a half, and I put it on my TBR because I love the Renegades series and heard there were some similarities, but also as I continued reading, found it has similarities to the book, “This Poison Heart”, in terms of magic via black ancestors, and deep hidden secrets. If you liked any of those books, I highly recommend giving this one a try!
The writing is SO GOOD for a YA fantasy book, and is as good as you’re ever going to get.
There is a large amount of names and vocabulary you have to learn, (like when books make up random words), and it’s a lot to memorize and keep in your head when it’s referred to. And lastly, the ending was a tad bit rushed; everything happened so fast! but i’m not complaining about it, it made the last few chapters all the more captivating.
And now I’m editing this review to say, this is a book that when you re-read it, it’s even better. I know the terms used and am more familiar with the plot to be able to pick up on smaller details that make the storyline even better!
I can say with certainty this is the best book I’ll ever read, a complete masterpiece! I’m looking forward to Bloodmarked but mad I have to wait till November!
Graphic: Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Racism, and Death
Moderate: Medical content, Misogyny, Murder, Slavery, and Vomit
Minor: Classism, Homophobia, Infertility, and Rape
wherethemarigoldsgrow's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Spoiler
Graphic: Slavery, Racism, Violence, and Death of parent
Moderate: Death
Minor: Homophobia and Transphobia
The death of a parent isn’t explicitly shown but it is talked about throughout the entire bookrachaelsfantasyland's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Racism and Racial slurs
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Rape
Minor: Homophobia and Transphobia
toshita's review
- 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
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, Death, and Racism
Moderate: Gore, Violence, and Blood
Minor: Homophobia
drchronicallyreading's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Moderate: Blood, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Homophobia, Murder, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Slavery, and Violence