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goofylarz'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
Graphic: Physical abuse and Violence
Moderate: Sexual harassment
Minor: Drug abuse
x_rosered's review against another edition
- 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? No
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Addiction, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Self harm
paperbacksandsnacks's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
It felt very YA, which honestly might just be a me problem. I’m aware it’s not an adult fantasy so I’m not marking it down for that. But I am marking it down for being kind of basic and a bit predictable. The ending to me was so obvious 😬
I loved the found family aspect of this. I thought it was beautiful, and the way that Kiva came out of her shell was great. The bonds she formed were lovely and I liked Tipp, Naari and Jaren a lot. But something just felt lacking for me, and I’m yet to put my finger on what. I will continue the series but not in a huge rush. For me I have read other fantasies I prefer and want to prioritise.
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Physical abuse, Self harm, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
missgarceau's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.5
It’s dark and checking TW’s is recommended- but it’s not shock value graphic or unnecessarily brutal in descriptions. The author paints the picture without overdoing it, and I appreciate that.
I had a few mild annoyances but those were mostly “me” problems that I don’t think would bother most people.
1) The plants/science:
It’s a bit of a pet peeve of mine when high fantasy uses real world elements inconsistently along with high fantasy elements unique to the world. The world building was really lacking for me in this regard.
2) How I met your mother:
Another pet peeve of mine is pop culture references in high fantasy. This just 🤦🏼♀️ All of it was so pointless or could have been done in a way that didn’t make me cringe at the very obvious ode to/copy cat of the show.
3) miscommunication trope/ betrayal trope/ secret identity trope/ enemies to who knows- just all my least favorite tropes.
4) Space invasion:
Some very intimate moments for the main love interest happened in a very unlikely moment and very cringe worthy scenario considering the circumstances and it completely undid all the butterflies/ character development I felt up to that point.
My biggest issue is probably world building & character development- but it’s very addicting. Despite my grievances, I find myself itching to read the second book ever though I will probably hate it, based on where the plot is going.
Is this a romance with an HEA? The answer might determine my willingness to continue- honestly.
Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, and Pandemic/Epidemic
lisa_m's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
3.25
My thoughts on this book are quite complicated. I did not love the majority of the book. Most things that happened felt either like complete coincidences or out of our protagonists control. She was just there for the ride and the few decisions she did make did not make a lot of sense to me. She constantly needed to be saved and I just felt like I didn't have enough information about anything. A huge part of this book is 1. descriptions of the prison and how horrible it is in there and 2. Kiva trying to find a cure for this mysterious illness spreading around the prison.
A very important part of this book are the 4 trials Kiva has to survive. I hoped that these would be interesting but instead it just felt like we're waiting for them to finally happen. The trials themselves are basically just Kiva being put into a situation that is impossible to survive, and then getting rescued.
The majority of the time while reading I was almost bored and waiting for something unique and surprising to happen. I did not understand any of the main characters or their relationships and we got barely any information about them. Things seemingly happened at random just to make a good story and to drive the plot forwards. Kiva also always made wrong assumptions about everyone to the point where you can pretty much assume all her assumptions are false.
BUT all of this boredom and indifference change in the last 50(?) pages. We finally get answers and information that make the whole story make sense. Certain actions get explained so they don't seem as random anymore and it's honestly very intruiging and I was hooked. My problem is that those last few pages don't make up for how I felt throughout the rest of the book.
I really liked the relationship between Kiva and Tipp. It was the one that made the most sense to me and I found it really sweet. I also liked Naari even though we got so little information and I always knew that there was something missing which made it frustrating to read. The same also goes for Jaren. For me personally the idea of keeping all relevant information until the end for the big 'aha' effect did not work out at all because it just made me more frustrated. At the end it just felt like I was being lied to throughout the entire book because important information has been kept from me which was the reason I did not understand what was going on or why people are reacting the way they do. So all in all it kind of feels like this book tried to be smarter than it is.
I think 3.5 stars is very justified considering all that. Still, now that I'm intruiged and I FINALLY know what's going on I will be reading the sequel as well. I hope it will keep up the intruige and perhaps I will really like the second book. It definitely has the potential to be good.
Graphic: Confinement and Abandonment
Moderate: Addiction, Death, Drug use, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic
fleurs_annotations'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? No
5.0
Graphic: Physical abuse and Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Death of parent
tabea1409's review
- 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
Graphic: Addiction, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
ettaviereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This book was phenomenal! I was hooked from the first page until the final plot twist on the final page. The story follows Kiva in a deadly prison as the prison healer and the many things that go on behind the walls.
She makes decisions that lead to her participation in the Trial by Ordeals and it is just about as intense as it can get. Each trial had me questioning what would happen next.
I also fell in love with the three other main characters: Tripp, Naari and Jaren as the story progressed and things got more and more intense.
There were a few plot twists that I didn’t see coming at all and Lynette Noni did a phenomenal job at their reveals. While thinking back on the various twists included in the plot, Lynett Noni does drop very subtle hints into what was going to happen but as a first time through, it will likely catch the reader off guard.
I am glad this is a completed trilogy cuz I’m so ready to find out what’s going to happen next!!
Graphic: Physical abuse
Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Self harm, Medical content, and Death of parent
Minor: Addiction, Child abuse, Confinement, Murder, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
myahthebookfiend'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? No
5.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Moderate: Addiction, Child death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Torture, Grief, and Sexual harassment
karinreadsalot'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? No
4.0
Graphic: Drug use, Physical abuse, Self harm, and Violence
Moderate: Child death, Gore, Sexual assault, Torture, and Death of parent