annasneddon'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: Murder
hannahbailey's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Fable was by no means a revolutionary work of YA, but the things it did well really stood out. The father-daughter relationship was cleverly crafted as was the high-stakes setting, first of Jeval, and then of the seas the characters sail on.
In Namesake, the world-building is left behind and instead the author focuses on the MC's inner conflict between her father and her found family. This still could have been interesting if executed well, but sadly it dwelled too much upon the love interest and his 'bad boy' behaviour, their lovers' quarrels and their attempts to save one another by going behind each other's backs. It was so boring!
As I mentioned in my review of Fable, the side characters had potential that I was hoping would be explored further in the sequel. Some were, but only in a way that furthered the plot, rather than providing a richness of character for the reader. Despite the author heightening the stakes, they never felt so low for me.
Graphic: Murder, Grief, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Death, and Violence
shannnne's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Grief
Minor: Abandonment, Murder, Sexual content, and Fire/Fire injury
mrssmithreadsrom's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Somewhat
Spoiler
Spoiler-y thoughts:I took a star off because how quickly the feelings toward characters shifted and changed. Just about the time I got comfortable with a character being a foe, they turned out to be a friend, and vise versa. I also felt the same way about all the main plot points: just about the time you start feeling all the things piling against the heroine and crew, someone walks in and takes care of the whole mess.
I would have liked to have seen more of the heroines efforts in resolving the conflicts be successful instead of someone else coming in to save the day.
However, I love the romance I’m not just the main character, but also the beauty in a very complicated child/parent situation. The ending felt good overall, so I wasn’t disappointed with the whole story. Just not a 5 star for me.
Moderate: Blood and Murder
lottsofplots's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.75
Graphic: Murder, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Death of parent
thereaderfriend's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Violence, Death, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Death of parent, Murder, and Blood
Minor: Sexual content
walmartblairwaldorf'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
Moderate: Murder
aspoonfuloflanguage's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Murder
maregred's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Death of parent, Murder, and Toxic relationship
camiclarkbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Spoiler
Although we barely saw it, even the love story between Fable and West feels bland in comparison to the love story that potentially developed between Willa and Koy. We just glimpse a few brief allusions to something between them possibly developing. For our main love story between Fable and West, we spent a lot of time rehashing that he had done bad things for Saint, and that the darkness had a hold of him, which concerned Fable, but not enough to do anything about her concern.Minor: Blood, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Death, Abandonment, and Murder