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rednikki's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
I generally bounce off books where all dialogue is paraphrased, but I was very interested in the period and the setting so I gave it a go. And man, I wish I had not. Most of the characters have very little personality, and they can be identified either by a skill or a deformity. (A couple of characters have Exactly One Quirk. Someone is very rude! Or someone is insane! Or someone is always very sweet! But only a few characters have a personality trait.) As a result, I mixed up the characters a lot.
The author lingered on gruesome death a lot. I get it, "it's 1183 and we're all barbarians!" (to quote The Lion in Winter), but it kind of felt like torture porn.
There were still interesting aspects to the book, and it would probably have been a 3.5 from me if it weren't for the last five pages.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and War
adymae11's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Child death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, and Death of parent
Minor: Animal death, Cancer, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Dementia, Grief, and Religious bigotry
edamamebean's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
thecriticalreader's review against another edition
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Animal death, Cancer, Death, Miscarriage, Sexism, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Pregnancy, and Classism
Minor: Animal cruelty, Homophobia, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Excrement, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, and War
bookedbymadeline's review against another edition
- 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
It could be a bit slow for my liking and the second half was harder to get through. I liked the references to Melusine, who I’ve heard about prior when reading other books about the war of the roses!
I thought the ending was really well done. Overall an enjoyable read that I devoured in three days despite being slow for my taste! I had read one of Geoff’s works earlier in the year and hated it so I’m happy I gave her a second chance. I’m curious now to see how I like her other works. Highly recommend if you like stories about powerful women challenging that status quo (especially in the world of religion)!
Graphic: Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, and Torture
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Violence
have_a_doris_day's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Dementia, Grief, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Fire/Fire injury, and War
ashareadsbooks's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Mental illness, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Blood, and Abandonment
Minor: Genocide, Torture, Dementia, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Lesbophobia, and War