Reviews tagging 'Slavery'

The Wicked King by Holly Black

21 reviews

seastheday's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny tense fast-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? Yes

5.0

I couldn’t put this book down. Okay, I only did  because I have young children. But, otherwise I wouldn’t have put this book down! Listening to Jude slowly talk herself into paranoid madness was so fun to watch. I love and hate Carden’s incongruous ways. He was foolish but learned to play the game. He is akin to Sansa Stark in that way. I love the push and pull of power between Cardan and Jude. Most of the time I’m not even sure who I want to have the power. As a side note, I fucking hate Locke. STILL. And now

Ghost AND Taryn’s

are on my list with their names underlined! I don’t think any of them can really be redeemed. And I don’t think they’re meant to be. I want to pick up Queen of Nothing RIGHT NOW. But alas, I cannot as I have not bought it. I want to know what happens next and steam roll through it this weekend. But I must wait on the library.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: War

Minor: Child abuse, Slavery, Torture, and Vomit

noellegrace8's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

5.0

As stated in my review of The Cruel Prince, I really struggled to get into that first book. But I guess I got used to all the oddities, because I couldn't put this one down. There was less fluff, more politics, and it finally felt like the characters were the correct age for the things that are happening. They are adults now, making adult decisions and playing a dangerous adult game of power, authority, and death. I would no longer categorize this as "teen" literature, but "young adult." What really impresses me is that Holly Black manages to make me root for characters that are truly not good people, which is not typical for me. I wanted Jude to win in the first book. I was smug when she turned her knife on Cardan. But now in this one, I wasn't sure who to vie for. It seems like every time a character does something worth celebrating, they also do something that makes you hate yourself for liking them. The betrayals are painful but enticing. Also the cliff hanger??! My library is backed up 10 weeks for the last book and I am REELING about it. I don't know how I'm going to wait that long. This is fantasy done right, and true enemies to lovers (hopefully? Jury is still out on whether "lovers" is true...).

I don't factor the audiobook performance into my rating of the material itself, but I give Caitlin Kelly 4.5/5⭐. Again, by the second book in a series, I tend to get used to whatever problems I had with the voicing in the first. But honestly, there didn't seem to be as many parts where I felt the narrator wasn't portraying the correct emotion or tone of voice. A good performance, overall.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Violence, Blood, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, War, and Classism

Minor: Ableism, Alcoholism, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Xenophobia, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

esterslibrary's review against another edition

medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Gaslighting, and War

orakuruno's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Now this is an enemies to lovers

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Toxic relationship, Murder, Alcohol, and War

Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Drug use, Gore, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Trafficking, and Kidnapping

2blueshoes's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

After a first book so mind bogglingly horrifying, I surprised myself by truly enjoying this sequel. The Cruel Prince felt like a sort of nightmarish junior high, where love isn’t real, everyone is miserable, and no one wins. The Wicked King felt a bit like high school, with characters finding their footing, and forging real relationships - and of course the stakes are much higher. 

Yes, the FMC is still deeply un relatable to me, and her choices made me want to pull my hair out in frustration. 

Yes, all of the characters continue to operate so far beyond morally grey areas they are all difficult to root for. 

And yet, somehow in the midst of the ever-more-complicated political schemes and endless list of confusing character names… I found myself loving this story. The plot twists were plentiful and intelligently written (I guessed exactly one). There was such steep character development that the FMC and MMC became entirely different people. There was relationship angst, but it was elegant rather than despicable. There was exactly one spicy scene and it was fade to black. The MMC’s tail wasn’t mentioned, praise be. 

 If you don’t care much for back story or world building, read a synopsis of book one and jump to book two. It will absolutely have you on the edge of your seat - or in my case - yelling “OMG” loudly in the car. 

I will immediately read book three. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Murder

Moderate: Confinement, Torture, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Bullying, Gore, Slavery, Suicide, Vomit, Medical content, Trafficking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and War

ejreadz's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Kidnapping

kymboh78's review against another edition

dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

Full review coming soon 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Drug use, Misogyny, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, War, and Injury/Injury detail

wrensreadingroom's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation

eule's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful 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

Definitely more romance going on in this book (love it and I know this is a YA book, but I would love a little more details, because those particular scenes have so much potential). Cardan somehow became surprisingly enjoyable as well as their relationship. Additionally, the plot is way better in comparison to the first book. Highly recommend this series for any YA reader (it was a little to innocent and childish for my spicy taste). 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Torture, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcohol

Minor: Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit

theintrovertsbooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Slavery, Death of parent, and War

Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Incest, Infertility, and Grief