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kirstym25's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- 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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Animal death and Confinement
Minor: Rape
kirstym25's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- 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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Confinement
aseel_reads's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
this was a fun fantasy, quite slow and predictable. I enjoyed learning more about grim and I'm interested to see where his and Blackthorn's story goes next. wish there was more of a plot in this one
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Death, Sexual assault, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder
liteartha's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- 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
3.75
enjoyed this! blackthorn and grim remain such lovable leads and i’m so invested in them. grim especially made my heart ache in this one and i was also particularly appreciative of the thought and care that has gone into depicting two main characters with ptsd
marillier’s writing weaves cosy historical fantasy, mystery, folklore, and some very dark and emotional plots together seamlessly. as in dreamer’s pool the main mystery was easy enough to solve but there was still plenty going on in the background to make for an exciting conclusion
i do think i’d prefer for things to remain platonic between blackthorn and grim, but i’m holding off judgement until book three and am not really all that fussed either way. that said, the “true love’s tears” bit was a bit trite and felt almost too faerie tale-esque even for this setting lol
i also found the whole set up for ash and lily’s curse to be a little flimsy and didn’t like that an overly proprietary and mad fey was really all there was to it. blackthorn’s involvement with the curse also felt weirdly contrived and not nearly well enough considered…
overall, very much looking forward to finishing this series and reading more from marillier in the future!
marillier’s writing weaves cosy historical fantasy, mystery, folklore, and some very dark and emotional plots together seamlessly. as in dreamer’s pool the main mystery was easy enough to solve but there was still plenty going on in the background to make for an exciting conclusion
i also found the whole set up for ash and lily’s curse to be a little flimsy and didn’t like that an overly proprietary and mad fey was really all there was to it. blackthorn’s involvement with the curse also felt weirdly contrived and not nearly well enough considered…
overall, very much looking forward to finishing this series and reading more from marillier in the future!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Death, and Mental illness
Minor: Child death, Torture, Blood, and Vomit