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wickedgrumpy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Dysphoria, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Pandemic/Epidemic
cinhein's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
The first Sanderson book that was genuinely a slog to get through.
It is distinctly mid-2000s in vibe (not complimentary).
And no, the sex slave-slaver romance will never work no matter how you try to justify it.
There are 3 good characters here, and I spent most of the book hoping that everybody would die violently else. Not a great response to trigger for a book with a main theme of 'war bad'.
Graphic: Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Confinement, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Blood, Police brutality, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Miscarriage
lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This story follows a few different points of view, but the main points of interest are two sisters who are princesses. One of them is to marry the God King, and the other sister sets off on an adventure to save her sister from a predestined fate. The God King is a silent and misunderstood man who is harboring his country's secrets. Will the sisters be reunited and will they be able to stop a seemingly inevitable war?
I did not know what to expect when I started this book, but from the first chapter I was sucked into this story. I 100% recommend the graphic audiobook, if you want to pick this up. The graphic audiobook is full cast, offers dramatic character readings, and has sound effects to accompany the story. I was a little worried that this fantasy book would be a little too political for my taste because it highlights two countries that are on the brink of a war, but I think the conflict was written in an entertaining way, and there was not too much discussion about politics that I would have been bored by. As this story is centralized around a forced marriage, there is a little romance weaved into the violence and betrayal. I think the romance offered a nice balance of "niceness" in a story that could have been much more bloody.
I think this book has a little bit for everyone: love, betrayal, war, politics, violence, friendship, and a huge adventure. I definitely look forward to reading more from Brandon Sanderson in the future!
Graphic: Death, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Sexual content
marareading'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? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Murder, and War