e_papankova_333'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
5.0
Graphic: Death, Deportation, Addiction, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Murder, Slavery, Ableism, Abandonment, Antisemitism, Blood, Bullying, Classism, Genocide, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Pandemic/Epidemic, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Trafficking, and Violence
luna_a'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
4.5
Graphic: Death, Blood, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, and Drug use
Moderate: Slavery
Minor: Bullying
infjkiki'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Violence, Murder, Animal death, Gun violence, Slavery, Death, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Torture, Gore, Trafficking, Blood, and Genocide
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Excrement, Grief, Misogyny, Child death, Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, Abandonment, Ableism, Alcohol, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Cursing, and Panic attacks/disorders
mxbluet18'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? No
5.0
alcohol consumption and recreational drug use; drugging without consent; forced and coerced drug dependency. As well as implied panic attacks and nightmares; implied coerced suicide; blood and gore depiction, graphic physical injuries, emesis, medical experimentation, dead bodies, plague, body modifications (with consent).
Grief depiction and death of a father, brother, family and friend; murder, attempted murder, physical assault, knife and gun violence, torture, strangulation, explosions. Kidnapping, drowning.
☆
☆
Realistically I picked this up three days ago and finished it in the early hours. Once I started it I didn't really put it down. It's a duology that's been sitting on my TBR list for a while, as was the Shadow and Bone series, and it took a while for me to get to them, which is something I regret. My friend recommended them to me a while ago, and I understand why they did now. I even sent them a message while I was reading saying that I understand the pull of Kaz Brekker now.
~
One thing that really stood out to me was the amount of representation in this. Both in terms of sexuality and disability and neurodivergency. There's a bisexual character and a gay character.
And Kaz walks with a cane because of a severe limp and chronic pain, as well as the leather gloves he always wears, which is somewhat discussed as being because of trauma and a resulting aversion to touch, he the flashbacks and fainting he experiences are potentially the result of PTSD from childhood trauma. And while it's not actually confirmed in the books, the descriptions make it fairly plain that Jesper probably has ADHD. He also has a gambling addiction.
~
Two other things I feel the book does really well, and I feel are written very well is flesh out the characters, give them a really rich backstory, but make their motives subtle but clear. Like for Kaz, he clearly has a reason for persuing Pekka Rollins, and his childhood was explained in segments. But it's left to the reader to connect those dots because nothing is explicitly stated.
Graphic: Gore, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Blood, Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Drug use, Medical content, Trafficking, and Gun violence
Minor: Bullying and Ableism
sehwa'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
4.5
I haven't read the Grisha series written before this one so the beginning of the book was slow and difficult. It was taking my brain a good minute to wrap itself around the new terminology and places and characters etc.
Don't be afraid to read the first few chapters slowly to fully digest everything, the pacing does pick up once we've got a better idea of who are main characters are.
The Six of Crows are a fantastic group who shouldn't work in theory, but ended up working really well together and I loved seeing their friendship grow while they risked their lives together. The plot is amazing, the writing is amazing, the characters are amazing. Can't wait to get started with the next book :)
Graphic: Bullying, Grief, Slavery, Drug use, Drug abuse, Addiction, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Violence, Child death, and Death
oliverreeds's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Abandonment, Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Violence
laurenn'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
5.0
Moderate: Drug use and Violence
Minor: Animal death, Bullying, Death of parent, Sexual violence, and Trafficking
cleo_wylde'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? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Medical content, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Slavery, Toxic friendship, Trafficking, and Violence
klyanovska'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
4.5
Graphic: Child death, Death, Mental illness, and Slavery
Moderate: Drug use, Grief, and Gun violence
Minor: Bullying and Sexual assault
nebraskanwriter's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Sexual violence, Racism, Murder, Gun violence, Grief, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and Vomit