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stelepami's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
On the surface it's a coming-of-age, sibling-rivalry, dragon-focused magical realism story; various combinations of those tropes are not uncommon and often fun.
What makes this book extraordinary for me is the way one of the sister's anxiety is portrayed. It manifests as perfectionism and people-pleasing and panic attacks. She goes to a therapist. She uses coping skills I've learned from real-life therapy (e.g., the diving response, counting different sensations). It's beautiful to me that
The main characters aren't white. There isn't automatic romance between best friends of different sexes. A character who is described as beautiful is also described as fat in a purely factual and non-derisive way. Biphobic misconceptions are mentioned briefly and dispelled.
I love that this is a stand-alone book in a genre full of trilogies and series. I'd like to spend more time with these characters but it's refreshing to have resolution at the end of a single volume.
Unfortunately, the narrator cannot perform the Scottish accent of the father (it mostly sounds like a strange Irish lilt). The Spanish-speaking Latinx characters sounded better to my untrained ear.
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, and Violence
Minor: Biphobia
dlrosebyh's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
though i did enjoy the sisters’ adventure, i found eden’s character quite intolerable. the bad guys were stereotypical, and it felt like everything was rushed. i also felt like that the pov’s switch too frequently which makes it for me to understand the story better. i did love the world building, though— with the dragons and fantasy elements.
overall, it was an alright read. i wouldn’t probably continue to the next book in the series.
Graphic: Animal death, Torture, and Blood
Moderate: Ableism, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Biphobia, Bullying, and Sexism
lennie_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
"I made a mistake, trusting you, but having anxiety doesn't make me a coward. It doesn't make me weak."
This book is a standalone urban fantasy featuring two sisters who have been secretly raised as Dragon Slayers their whole lives, whilst also trying to live as normal teenagers. The two often feel in competition with each other and have a bit of a strained relationship because of it.
One day Dani is attacked by a Dragon, who then becomes her bond mate, and everything the sisters thought they knew about dragons, slayers, sorcerers and family is put to the test.
The book explores identity in a lot of different forms. The sisters are mixed latinx but feel a bit separated from the latinx side of the family, they can't be fully open with their friends because of being slayers, Dani is bisexual & Eden suffers with severe anxiety.
Dani was arguably more likeable but I feel like Eden was probably more relatable (for me anyway!)
She was a flawed character, never felt good enough, didn't always make the right choices and had a lot of things to deal with.
I fell that this book deals with anxiety very well & shows the prejudice that can come with it. Eden's anxiety was a big part of her story but she comes to realise that it doesn't need to stop her from doing the things she wants doesn't make her weaker & it doesn't have to push people away.
There's some romance, lots of character development, interesting world building and lots of action.
The book was a good standalone but I do feel like there could've been a bit more to it and some parts felt a bit rushed.
CW: Biphobia, anxiety, panic attacks, death, violence, blood
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Biphobia and Mental illness
sporemiette's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child death, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Torture, Blood, Kidnapping, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Mental illness and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Biphobia
emily_mh's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
However, this is where my cons start to come in. The first one being the romance.
Another thing I didn't like was the execution of the plot. The pacing was really strange, and I feel like
Finally, I thought the side characters were underused. Frankie, Tomás and Sadie were all so interesting and could have added some real colour to Dani's activities. Overall, these significant cons meant that although it was a pretty enjoyable book, I couldn't give it more than 3.75 stars.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Cursing, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Biphobia, Bullying, Child death, Drug abuse, Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Vomit, Medical content, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and War