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diamondpwrites's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Classism
spatterson7's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
Moderate: Death, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Child death, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Torture, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
themoodreader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Minor: Confinement, Death, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
2blueshoes's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Somewhere along the recent journey of reading fantasy romances about “morally ambiguous shadow zaddies…” I have come to the conclusion that I do in fact require SOME morality to be present in order to root for characters.
In so many ways this book aligns with very typical fantasy tropes:
1. A “feminist for her time” heroine is thrust into a situation where she is competing for power, and finds love along the way.
2. A psychologically tortured hero in a position of political power finds himself captivated by the heroine who originally wont give him the time of day.
3. They are both attractive. Various plot points keep them apart. Lots of longing glances occur. They slowly reveal their true selves to each other. Meanwhile, larger forces threaten their lives and happiness. Happy ending.
Yes, great, sign me up. 👍🏻
Here’s where the tropes end: these characters do not abide by (traditional western) morality. They do not root for the underdogs. They do not seek fairness. They actively pursue injustice to benefit themselves. They are unrepentant in murder and celebrate their success in silencing anyone who questions the monarchy. There is a “Robin Hood” type character who is trying to help poor people, and they happily
I mean, at least they are aligned in their shared values… I guess?
There are a few things to love about this book.
- The author has chosen to write a heroine who is liberated in her body and sexuality, and who knows her own worth, which I applaud. (Side note: despite this, this book is fully fade-to-black when it comes to intimacy scenes.)
- While being an absolute dick to everyone else, the heroine does champion her two closest friends (while also kind of making fun of them in her head).
- There is only a very small element of magic in the story, but it’s a new take. There is some interesting fashion stuff if you are into that, and I only saw half of the surprise twist ending in advance.
If you love stories about really unusual characters, perhaps you’ll love this.
For me, this love story was believable - but I simply didn’t want to believe in it.
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Death of parent and Classism
Minor: Violence and Sexual harassment
kate_arts's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
In the dedication of the book the author says this is a Slytherin Romance. Because of this I kept envisioning Kallias as a dark Harry Potter. Which was at best funny and at worst distracting. Honestly if you read fan fiction you’ll be able to stomach this book. It’s definitely an ok romantasy book. I’ve definitely read worse. I think my biggest gripe is that the author repeatedly addresses the sexism in the fantasy world but actively portrays the classism and xenophobic in the book as a good thing. And like yeah these people are running a kingdom that has conquered a lot of the surrounding kingdoms so like if the shoe fits, but sometimes it was hard to stomach.
Graphic: Sexism, Xenophobia, Sexual harassment, and Classism
Moderate: Violence and Injury/Injury detail
boydgirl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.75
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Gun violence, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment
fernash's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Sexism, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Sexism
karelidz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I thought it would be better. I was expecting it to be better.
It was fine, but i feel like it mostly left me confused with the way the mystery was solved. I was enjoying it and then the ending left me like: "???? THATS the ending?"
It also seemed to me that the secondary characters weren´t thaat fleshed out. I kept forgetting who was who; they all sounded the same.
Also, i feel like there might be plot-holes..?
Idk, either way it was an enjoyable read. Might not reread or buy a physical copy of the book but i had a good time reading it. Might have liked a bit more spice as it's what i think they call a "closed door" romance/situation. But it was over-all fine
Minor: Death, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
brookey8888's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
book_lover206'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
4.75
Minor: Violence, Blood, Murder, and Sexual harassment