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bespectacled_lemur's review
4.75
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, and Grief
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and War
sabinehunter's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
nos22's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
Graphic: Rape and Violence
nikki_b's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
I love how messy and dumb these characters are (in a very human "making quick, emotionally-charged decisions with none of the necessary information" way, not in a "I am worried this character has a brain-eating parasite" way). Niko is angry 😡 all the time and that does get a bit tiring by later books but... he's got reasons so I let it slide. He's young and f'ed up.
I don't get the Witcher vibes here (aside from white hair) that other people have mentioned. Feels more like a mashup of Game of Thrones and Captive Prince with a sprinkle of orcs + magic from LOTR.
I did see some twists coming but not all of them... and that automatically grants an author some extra stars from me even if I might burn my Kindle reading about someone's "cheeks flickering/fluttering" every two pages. (facial cheeks not 🍑 cheeks, unfortunately LOL.)
DEFINITELY mind trigger/content warnings.
Moderate: Confinement, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Animal cruelty and Blood
bworthit's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
3.0
The world building is exciting and the elves are interesting, but for me, none of the characters are redeemable or likable enough to continue the series.
Graphic: Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Toxic relationship and Toxic friendship
Minor: Animal death
corin_134340's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Murder, and War
Moderate: Incest
nim22_'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? No
2.75
Graphic: Rape, Torture, and Violence
znrtrreads's review
- 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
3.5
the beginning was a bit of a slow start and i almost dnf’d, but around the 60% mark it picked up and was soooo hard to put down. you know that one really big twist at the end of Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard? the one that makes you gasp out loud because it feels like you, as a reader, just got betrayed? the last quarter of this book was like that, over and over. every time i thought i could trust someone or knew what was happening — bam, another twist. and, i guessed correctly, it ended on a cliffhanger and i absolutely need to read the rest of the series to see what happens next.
also i am obsessed with both main characters — niko was true to himself, badass, no-nonsense; visili was the perfect anti-hero cracking out of his shell. i love that their enemies to lovers arc was slow burn, blurring the lines between hatred and obviously falling for each other but not being able to realize it. i’m excited to see where the story takes them.
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and War
Minor: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, War, and Classism
If you’ve ever seen Game of Thrones, think of every triggering thing that could be in there and it’s in here. It’s very dark so go into it expecting that. Plot and characters make it worth it.fyarae'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
4.0
Graphic: Rape, Slavery, and Violence
tough_cookie's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
This is a dark novel, no doubt. Between the PTSD flashbacks, torture, and sexual abuse, it's not for the faint of heart; I myself had to skip over several parts. I also found the plot annoying, especially the love triangle (I strongly dislike that trope) and the way Niko was always left in the dark, forced to unravel each mystery on his own. This resulted in the main character constantly being the last to know -- and ending up betrayed and/or as bait as a result (another literary device that frustrates me), and when very few of the characters are even likable, that gets old really fast. More than once I thought about dropping this book, but the dichotomy of Niko's character interested me just enough to keep me reading, and thankfully the pace of the story was quick enough that I could get through it quickly. However, I endured enough with this book and will not continue the rest of the trilogy.
Graphic: Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, and Murder