unicornofthesea's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Blood, Pandemic/Epidemic, Chronic illness, Murder, Grief, Death, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Terminal illness
Moderate: Death of parent
readingwithkelsey's review against another edition
1.0
I think I am most upset with this installment in the series over them all. I was actually really enjoying how the mythical aspects of this story was wrapping up and I had even thought we were finally getting a solution to the incest relationship . But all Sierra Simone did was drag me for 500 pages and tell me ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ sorry but I like that they are brothers . Oh and also that female character whose perspective you really enjoyed from book one? She will actually be pushed aside and IN FACT, be actually a side character in her own fucking relationship and literally, disappear into the shadows. OH and!!! The mystery of this Thornchapel home? Pretty useless actually because there are no consequences.
I also believe I am the most angry at this book because book one absolutely took my breath away and I was really expecting this to be a favourite series, BUT ALAS I GUESS NOT because it was all downhill from book two.
Also, I still cannot fucking believe it is never concluded that Auden and St. Sebastian are not brothers. It ends with them married and deciding that they do not care if they are brother because St. Sebastian "would've been a Guest anyways" . I am shook. I am appalled. I am disgusted.
I also believe I am the most angry at this book because book one absolutely took my breath away and I was really expecting this to be a favourite series, BUT ALAS I GUESS NOT because it was all downhill from book two.
Also, I still cannot fucking believe
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest and Sexual content
mellikesbooks's review against another edition
I mean, do I really have to explain why I dnfed a book where the author made incest her main plotline and killed her MC just because of a magic door??? It should have been the incest boys, not her. Her only crime was being horny 24/7 and being an incest apologist .
Reading this book and the last one caused me emotional distress and made a me a shed a tear because of the incest sex scenes. Anyway, A Lesson in Thorns is a stand-alone where everyone is attracted to each other and have trust between them😁😁😁😁
I did this for Becket, baby I'm so sorry. I'll miss you
Reading this book and the last one caused me emotional distress and made a me a shed a tear because of the incest sex scenes. Anyway, A Lesson in Thorns is a stand-alone where everyone is attracted to each other and have trust between them😁😁😁😁
I did this for Becket, baby I'm so sorry. I'll miss you
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Grief
Yeah, only read A Lesson in Thorns and Feast of Sparks until the last chapter😆storiesdontcare's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
This is really a review for the entire series, which I positively devoured. I spent the last week as consumed by this world and these characters as they are by one another.
I'm sure someone out there has already taken the time to quantify the percentage of these books that deal with plot versus smut, so I won't bother trying to do that, but there is a LOT of smut. Like a lot a lot. But layered in there are relationships, interesting characters, and fantasy elements, and for me at least, there was a good balance of the smut and the literary.
This series deals with themes of physical and sexual assault, adult incest, ritual murder, ritual suicide, faith crises--it's a lot. It is not for the faint of heart. Bearing all that in mind...I absolutely loved it. I can see how this series is not for everyone, how it could be divisive, how some would rate these books lower. But for me, I was obsessed. Thornchapel worked its spell on me.
Fairy lore, ancient rites, dark academia, angsty bisexuals (all of the characters are bi, which is just...yes, please), ethic diversity (four of the six main characters are white, one character is black, and one is Latino), plus size representation, gothic atmosphere--if this combination appeals to you and the content warnings aren't too much, check the series out.
Some more specific thoughts:
These books do have multiple POVs and shifting first/third person narration. I wasn't too distracted by this most of the time, but there were a few instances throughout where I had to look back to the beginning of the chapter to see whose POV I was in.
Of the six, Becket felt like the least developed character to me and he is the only one who didn't have a first person narrative. A Lesson in Thorns introduces us to his zeal for the cloth and rituals, but as the books progressed I still didn't feel like I knew him in the way that I knew the others. The connection to his intensity within Catholic priesthood and its relationship to his enthusiasm for the pagan feasts the group decide to embrace is obvious and makes perfect sense as far as his chatroom development, but his particular obsession with Poe was one of my least favorite things about the series. It worked, but I feel like if we'd had a first person POV from him for a bit, then it would have better served him.
Delphine and Rebecca I also felt could have used a bit more development. A lot of focus was given to the physical and D/s aspects of their relationship, but most of the emotional work seemed to happen within themselves and not with each other (lack of/miscommunication tropes are not my fave). I didn't feel their relationship as much as I would have liked. While Harvest of Sighs (book 3) featured them on the cover and does give them some more presence, for Rebecca especially it's not really until Door or Bruises where she truly becomes more fleshed out for me. Here is where she finally allows herself to be vulnerable.
Poe, Saint, and Auden are the primary protagonists and relationships at the heart of the series. I found Auden to be more sympathetic in A Lesson in Thorns and Door of Bruises (his first person narration book) than the middle two books, but that works with his development overall. His role is to come into his own, and that happens through the course of the series. Of all the characters, Poe is the most constant for me. She doesn't have the qualms about showing her vulnerability that many of the others do, and because of that she helps the others awaken those parts of themselves that they've kept at bay. Saint is probably my favorite character--I just want to wrap him in a hug and never, ever let go.
A Lesson in Thorns contains a piece of information that ties Thornchapel to the New Camelot series--this didn't do anything for me in particular, and it's not really relevant except that a character is mentioned who knows Poe, but who she isn't familiar with. How he comes to know her name and recommend her ultimately isn't important, but it did stick out as a piece of unresolved information in-series (there's a crossover novella that explains the connection, though I haven't read it).
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed (i.e., became absolutely obsessed with) this series, these characters, this world. Door of Bruises resolves things to the point where there's not much else to say, yet I still want MORE.
I'm sure someone out there has already taken the time to quantify the percentage of these books that deal with plot versus smut, so I won't bother trying to do that, but there is a LOT of smut. Like a lot a lot. But layered in there are relationships, interesting characters, and fantasy elements, and for me at least, there was a good balance of the smut and the literary.
This series deals with themes of physical and sexual assault, adult incest, ritual murder, ritual suicide, faith crises--it's a lot. It is not for the faint of heart. Bearing all that in mind...I absolutely loved it. I can see how this series is not for everyone, how it could be divisive, how some would rate these books lower. But for me, I was obsessed. Thornchapel worked its spell on me.
Fairy lore, ancient rites, dark academia, angsty bisexuals (all of the characters are bi, which is just...yes, please), ethic diversity (four of the six main characters are white, one character is black, and one is Latino), plus size representation, gothic atmosphere--if this combination appeals to you and the content warnings aren't too much, check the series out.
Some more specific thoughts:
These books do have multiple POVs and shifting first/third person narration. I wasn't too distracted by this most of the time, but there were a few instances throughout where I had to look back to the beginning of the chapter to see whose POV I was in.
Of the six, Becket felt like the least developed character to me and he is the only one who didn't have a first person narrative. A Lesson in Thorns introduces us to his zeal for the cloth and rituals, but as the books progressed I still didn't feel like I knew him in the way that I knew the others. The connection to his intensity within Catholic priesthood and its relationship to his enthusiasm for the pagan feasts the group decide to embrace is obvious and makes perfect sense as far as his chatroom development, but his particular obsession with Poe was one of my least favorite things about the series. It worked, but I feel like if we'd had a first person POV from him for a bit, then it would have better served him.
Delphine and Rebecca I also felt could have used a bit more development. A lot of focus was given to the physical and D/s aspects of their relationship, but most of the emotional work seemed to happen within themselves and not with each other (lack of/miscommunication tropes are not my fave). I didn't feel their relationship as much as I would have liked. While Harvest of Sighs (book 3) featured them on the cover and does give them some more presence, for Rebecca especially it's not really until Door or Bruises where she truly becomes more fleshed out for me. Here is where she finally allows herself to be vulnerable.
Poe, Saint, and Auden are the primary protagonists and relationships at the heart of the series. I found Auden to be more sympathetic in A Lesson in Thorns and Door of Bruises (his first person narration book) than the middle two books, but that works with his development overall. His role is to come into his own, and that happens through the course of the series. Of all the characters, Poe is the most constant for me. She doesn't have the qualms about showing her vulnerability that many of the others do, and because of that she helps the others awaken those parts of themselves that they've kept at bay. Saint is probably my favorite character--I just want to wrap him in a hug and never, ever let go.
A Lesson in Thorns contains a piece of information that ties Thornchapel to the New Camelot series--this didn't do anything for me in particular, and it's not really relevant except that a character is mentioned who knows Poe, but who she isn't familiar with. How he comes to know her name and recommend her ultimately isn't important, but it did stick out as a piece of unresolved information in-series (there's a crossover novella that explains the connection, though I haven't read it).
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed (i.e., became absolutely obsessed with) this series, these characters, this world. Door of Bruises resolves things to the point where there's not much else to say, yet I still want MORE.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Incest
Minor: Sexual assault
slightlyrebelliouswriter23's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Suicide attempt and Suicidal thoughts
Sexual Content: explicit BDSM/Kink, Dom/sub Suicide attempt/thoughts: one of the main plot points centres around the idea that there must be a "sacrifice" in order to save the village of Thornchapel from demise. A few of the characters consider sacrificing themselves. A couple attempt.janeymacd's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The final instalment of the Thornchapel story fell short of the mark for me.
There was so much lead up to the final set piece and I felt that the story dragged on and on a bit too much.
Overall it was an interesting story, with some hot and sexy scenes that did not disappoint.
There was so much lead up to the final set piece and I felt that the story dragged on and on a bit too much.
Overall it was an interesting story, with some hot and sexy scenes that did not disappoint.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Incest
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