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carolinejane's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
The book is written well and I did enjoy it… However, in terms of pace, it was very slow and I found having the relationships as the focus instead of the plot immensely boring. It was rather like a magical version of Bridgerton but with an actual plot line, although thin. Character development was small and actual action minimal. The relationships were average and quite stereotypical. I appreciated the different ethnicities and representation, on the other hand, I feel it certainly could have been done better as there was a feeling of it not quite hitting the mark. There was a lot of world building but since it is set in familiar places, I feel this was unnecessary. Overall, I think it was fun to read and I do want to finish the series, albeit due to my inner gossip girl curiosity. This is also in spite of the title and concept being more exciting than the execution. I am in no rush to buy the next book. You would not be missing out if you skipped this one but it is an easy read to pass the time.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Gun violence
Minor: Child death, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, and Toxic friendship
aino_maria23's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Child death, Death, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and Alcohol
Minor: Drug use and Death of parent
saretta02's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Suicide, and Murder
Moderate: Child death, Gun violence, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Minor: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, and Grief
arkonrad's review against another edition
The characters are mean and arrogant. The characters have spent the first half of the book judging each other. I didn’t even feel the intensity of the fight they had because of all the judgmental internal dialogue.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Murder, Gaslighting, and Classism
I would not consider this a YA book. This is absolutely an adult book.brekaboujie's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
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? It's complicated
4.5
This was SO GOOD. It's quite a chunky book and so I took some points as it was quite leisurely pace wise at points, but overall gripped me very quickly. Another excellent example of how to do multiple perspectives well, I really enjoyed the characterisation throughout.
The exploration of magic felt so unique and interesting, I was impressed by how the author was able to balance so many specific types without it all becoming a muddled mess. I like how all the characters are flawed, they felt realistic (though very dramatic, but that's allowed as this is a book and not real life).
The twists were really good! Clues were artfully placed and the plot was very interesting, there were so many aspects that grew slowly in the background and then cropped up fully formed unexpectedly. I really loved the tone of the writing too, super easy to read and a satisfying and clever narration. Really good!!!! Finding a good uniqu fantasy series can be so difficult, I'm excited to make my way through these.
The exploration of magic felt so unique and interesting, I was impressed by how the author was able to balance so many specific types without it all becoming a muddled mess. I like how all the characters are flawed, they felt realistic (though very dramatic, but that's allowed as this is a book and not real life).
The twists were really good! Clues were artfully placed and the plot was very interesting, there were so many aspects that grew slowly in the background and then cropped up fully formed unexpectedly. I really loved the tone of the writing too, super easy to read and a satisfying and clever narration. Really good!!!! Finding a good uniqu fantasy series can be so difficult, I'm excited to make my way through these.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death of parent
loop_laurens's review against another edition
mysterious
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? It's complicated
2.5
Intriguing concept and characters, but a little anticlimactic - mostly just setting the stage for the next book in the series. Well paced, an engaging cast, and overall enjoyable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Sexual content and Murder
paperbacksandsnacks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Usually when I read a book my thoughts on it are pretty clear. But with this one I had to really sit and think on it for a couple of days to decide where I stood. I think the answer is somewhere in the middle of I loved it and I wish I’d never wasted my time.
This was my second attempt at reading this which I think is important to note. The first attempt I had to do a soft DNF because I just really couldn’t get into the story at all. So at least this time was better. But I do still think this took a while to really get my teeth into, and even then I felt like I was a bit bored until maybe the last 25%.
Tbh it’s a very confusing book. I don’t read a lot of dark academia so maybe that’s just the genre as a whole but for me I was just like what is actually going on for a solid 40% of the book (although not necessarily all the first 40%). It was both vague and far too detailed. And you’d start to like a character or a part of the storyline and then it would just change and be from someone else’s perspective or that subplot would be forgotten. Idk. Also, I was never sure of the chronological order because it all felt a bit chaotic. That did add more mystery I guess but I’m not super convinced.
I think the series as a whole has potential. With the way this book ended I’m thinking the second book will be far more interesting. That’s not to say this one wasn’t, I just think it was a lot of build up for the series as a whole. I am super intrigued about the connection between Nico and Libby, and also Tristan. I think the characters were written well because I did have a lot of read and vivid feelings towards them like the rage I felt at Callum if I’m being very honest.
Overall, I think this book was an okay part of a potentially promising whole. It wasn’t the best book I’ve ever read and tbh I’m not going to rush to read the second book. But it was an interesting and different read for me. If you like dark academia with magical elements then you’ll probably be super in your comfort zone with this one.
I’d sum it up by saying this is a seductive novel that challenges your thoughts and ideals. Would you betray all your morals for a chance at true power and almost infinite knowledge?
This was my second attempt at reading this which I think is important to note. The first attempt I had to do a soft DNF because I just really couldn’t get into the story at all. So at least this time was better. But I do still think this took a while to really get my teeth into, and even then I felt like I was a bit bored until maybe the last 25%.
Tbh it’s a very confusing book. I don’t read a lot of dark academia so maybe that’s just the genre as a whole but for me I was just like what is actually going on for a solid 40% of the book (although not necessarily all the first 40%). It was both vague and far too detailed. And you’d start to like a character or a part of the storyline and then it would just change and be from someone else’s perspective or that subplot would be forgotten. Idk. Also, I was never sure of the chronological order because it all felt a bit chaotic. That did add more mystery I guess but I’m not super convinced.
I think the series as a whole has potential. With the way this book ended I’m thinking the second book will be far more interesting. That’s not to say this one wasn’t, I just think it was a lot of build up for the series as a whole. I am super intrigued about the connection between Nico and Libby, and also Tristan. I think the characters were written well because I did have a lot of read and vivid feelings towards them like the rage I felt at Callum if I’m being very honest.
Overall, I think this book was an okay part of a potentially promising whole. It wasn’t the best book I’ve ever read and tbh I’m not going to rush to read the second book. But it was an interesting and different read for me. If you like dark academia with magical elements then you’ll probably be super in your comfort zone with this one.
I’d sum it up by saying this is a seductive novel that challenges your thoughts and ideals. Would you betray all your morals for a chance at true power and almost infinite knowledge?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Alcohol
clairelisebella's review against another edition
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Suicide, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Violence
crypticspren's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-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? It's complicated
3.75
The Atlas Six takes an international group of young adults and situates them in a pseudo-hunger-games magical 'fellowship'. Generally, I think the premise is exciting and there was a lot of 'oooh mystery' moments. However, the first 2 thirds of the book are SO much slower than the final third of the book. The last 100 pages were 10/10 for characters, plot, suspense, everything. The first 200 were a bit... 'eh, nothing special'.
Although it was a bit of a slog to begin with, the conclusion to the book definitely left nothing to be desired and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think it's overall done a good job of setting up the world and the sequel should (hopefully) have much better pacing.
Although it was a bit of a slog to begin with, the conclusion to the book definitely left nothing to be desired and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think it's overall done a good job of setting up the world and the sequel should (hopefully) have much better pacing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual content
grace_b_3's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
If you are fan of V.E. Schwab, particularly if you like The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, you will probably like this book. Their writing styles strike me as similar. Personally, I was underwhelmed by Addie LaRue, and I feel underwhelmed by The Atlas Six as well. To paraphrase one of my old coworkers, V.E. Schwab's works have the appearance of darkness but none of the bite. The same is true of The Atlas Six. It feels like a book that desperately wants to dark and edgy, but doesn't know how to get there, so it ends up having the same vibes as a middle schooler discovering black eyeliner for the first time. Personally, when it comes to dark academia, I want a book that hits harder. This book is all style, no substance, when it comes to the vibes, and so it just feels so empty. Not a series I plan to continue.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, and Murder
Minor: Terminal illness and Death of parent