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chalkletters's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
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? No
4.0
Full disclosure up front: I found out about The Butterfly Assassin because Finn Longman and I are both in the same Discord server, and I read the book because Finn was doing a chapter-by-chapter readalong on their blog (starting here). I won't pretend these reviews are ever objective, but I may be more than usually biased about this book in particular. The Butterfly Assassin probably ins't a book I would have picked out to read otherwise, dystopian cities and teen assassins not being things I particularly look for, but there's a lot more going on under the surface that I really came to appreciate.
The Butterfly Assassin is tightly focused on its main character, who goes by both Isabel and Bella. While there are on-page assassinations, the story is really about Isabel's struggle to escape from her training and the environment that went with it. Where some novels might treat assassin training as cool, Finn presents Isabel's past as deeply traumatic, and engages skilfully with what character and personality development look like coming out the other side. While Isabel is indisputably the star, all The Butterfly Assassin's characters stand out as deeply complex. There are few, if any, easy choices presented on these pages.
As you might expect for a city run by two guilds of assassins, the setting of The Butterfly Assassin is dark, but not unremittingly so. The moments of defiant light emerge all the more clearly against a background that deliberately reflects the bleakest aspects of our real world. In particular, the relationships and connections between characters provide a sense of hope, even when the story turns tragic. It's too rare to read about friendships being just as important as other kinds of relationship, but Finn presents them beautifully.
While the prose of The Butterfly Assassin isn't particularly descriptive most of the time, there are moments of visual beauty, mostly around pictures the characters have painted. The lack of description elsewhere serves to make these moments really pull the reader's attention, and end up being one of the most memorable things about the setting. It's also worth mentioning that the narrative voice is occasionally laugh-out-loud funny.
While this isn't a review of the readalong, it definitely improved my experience reading the book and gave me a lot to think of in terms of metaphor and character mirroring. Finn's careful not to spoil book two, but there are a few places where if you're reading chapter-by-chapter, you will find out some things in advance of where they feature in the text. That didn't spoil it for me, but I'm not a very spoiler-sensitive reader, so your mileage may vary.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Violence, and Blood
Minor: Kidnapping and Gun violence
thetewaiwizer's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
wvelociraptor's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
theaceofpages's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
"It's my trauma. You don't get to tell me how to deal with it."
The Butterfly Assassin is a book about pain and trauma set in a city run by assassin guilds (no, not like the game). We follow Isabel as she tries to scape the darkness, which seems to insist on continuing to follow her. I can't actually remember where I first came across this book but I remember thinking it sounded interesting and was very happy when my library got a copy. I was a little disappointed by the first chapter or two but I quickly got invested in the characters and plot. It is a bit of a weird mix of being quite YA at times (not meant as a bad thing -neither more typical YA style writing nor the writing found in books intended for an older audience is better than the other) and simultaneously rather grim and gritty. There were some points where the story was a bit predictable or formulaic, but overall, I loved what the author did with the characters and the fact that Isabel wasn't magically "cured" of all her struggles and problems by the end. The book explores a lot of dark themes (some of which are based on the author's own experiences - although they aren't an assassin as far as I know) and may may contain content that is difficult for some to read (I would definitely recommend taking a look at content warnings if you need them.
Isabel is definitely a complex character. At times it feels like she isn't actually sure of who she is - understandable given her incredibly traumatic past. I am interested to see what direction the author takes her in in the next book. Especially if she isn't sick for half the book and can actually work on herself and find out what she wants. She is also aroace. Although this is only brought up in the authors' note (in which they mention she is asexual and uninterested in romance like they are), knowing that makes me happy. I hope this is explores on page a bit more in the next book though. I do absolutely love that it never feels like she is missing anything because of her orientation though as strong friendships can be just as fulfilling as relationships. I must say that I really enjoyed the lack of romance in this book as so many stories present it as this crucial component of life and magic solution to all your problems, even when in the depths of an intense and life-threatening scenario. It was so nice to read about how other kinds of people can have just as much of an impact on your life.
If you are interested in a dark YA story where everything isn't all neatly tied up at the end I can definitely recommend this one to you (although do check the content warnings first if you need them). I will definitely be picking up the sequel as I am very interested to learn more about Isabella and the world she lives in.
Some notes on some of the content warnings. All are individually spoilered.
Child death:Brief mentions but goes higher if you consider older teen deaths
Chronic illness:Effects of poisoning
Medical content:Includes doctors visits, needles for taking blood and minor surgery
Mental illness:PTSD, trauma and anxiety
Toxic relationship:Parent-child relationship rather than romantic
Injury detail:Lots of discussion of scars. may also be triggering for SH but they aren't self inflicted
Medical trauma:Includes experimentation and loss of reproductive ability
The Butterfly Assassin is a book about pain and trauma set in a city run by assassin guilds (no, not like the game). We follow Isabel as she tries to scape the darkness, which seems to insist on continuing to follow her. I can't actually remember where I first came across this book but I remember thinking it sounded interesting and was very happy when my library got a copy. I was a little disappointed by the first chapter or two but I quickly got invested in the characters and plot. It is a bit of a weird mix of being quite YA at times (not meant as a bad thing -neither more typical YA style writing nor the writing found in books intended for an older audience is better than the other) and simultaneously rather grim and gritty. There were some points where the story was a bit predictable or formulaic, but overall, I loved what the author did with the characters and the fact that Isabel wasn't magically "cured" of all her struggles and problems by the end. The book explores a lot of dark themes (some of which are based on the author's own experiences - although they aren't an assassin as far as I know) and may may contain content that is difficult for some to read (I would definitely recommend taking a look at content warnings if you need them.
Isabel is definitely a complex character. At times it feels like she isn't actually sure of who she is - understandable given her incredibly traumatic past. I am interested to see what direction the author takes her in in the next book. Especially if she isn't sick for half the book and can actually work on herself and find out what she wants. She is also aroace. Although this is only brought up in the authors' note (in which they mention she is asexual and uninterested in romance like they are), knowing that makes me happy. I hope this is explores on page a bit more in the next book though. I do absolutely love that it never feels like she is missing anything because of her orientation though as strong friendships can be just as fulfilling as relationships. I must say that I really enjoyed the lack of romance in this book as so many stories present it as this crucial component of life and magic solution to all your problems, even when in the depths of an intense and life-threatening scenario. It was so nice to read about how other kinds of people can have just as much of an impact on your life.
If you are interested in a dark YA story where everything isn't all neatly tied up at the end I can definitely recommend this one to you (although do check the content warnings first if you need them). I will definitely be picking up the sequel as I am very interested to learn more about Isabella and the world she lives in.
Some notes on some of the content warnings. All are individually spoilered.
Child death:
Chronic illness:
Medical content:
Mental illness:
Toxic relationship:
Injury detail:
Medical trauma:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Injury/Injury detail, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Medical content, and Murder
Minor: Cancer, Child death, Confinement, Infertility, Vomit, and Cursing
Also poisoning (moderate - both development and effects)est_her's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
manuthebooknerd's review against another edition
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
This book was much darker and grittier than I expected a YA thriller to be. Isabel, the main character, had to deal with a lot growing up. She was raised by her abusive parents to become an assassin, which has shaped her behavior in a certain way, but she tried to break free of this life. There are quite a few twists and turns along the way. The pacing was good, the writing was fine. The audiobook narration was well done and I ended up enjoying the book more than I thought.
maineagle's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
hobbitinn's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
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: Emotional abuse, Torture, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Grief, Physical abuse, Death, Murder, and Gaslighting
girlreading's review against another edition
4.0
A fast paced, murderous thriller following an ace-aro teen assassin with a chronic illness as she attempts to live a life away from her abusive parents and the oppressive life of murder guilds.
A dark and gritty exploration of trauma, PTSD, abuse (parental, medical, physical and mental) and the pains it takes to get help with a chronic illness, Finn Longman brilliantly places very contemporary issues within this dystopian setting.
This works brilliantly as both a standalone and the start of a series and I look forward to seeing where Finn takes this story in future books.
TW: abuse, trauma, panic attacks, PTSD
A dark and gritty exploration of trauma, PTSD, abuse (parental, medical, physical and mental) and the pains it takes to get help with a chronic illness, Finn Longman brilliantly places very contemporary issues within this dystopian setting.
This works brilliantly as both a standalone and the start of a series and I look forward to seeing where Finn takes this story in future books.
TW: abuse, trauma, panic attacks, PTSD
amiegrace's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
2.0