tguccione's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Confinement, and Death
Moderate: Child death, Kidnapping, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail
nataliebootlah's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
I was definitely more engaged for this book than the previous one. All of that war and destruction really keeps the pace going strong.
A lot happened in this one—world building (yes, more of it), war, the desperation of freeing a heartmate, lust, love, and the ongoing battle between mother and daughter. Not only did we get to see POVs from Poppy and Casteel, which was a nice switch up, we also got to see a whole lot more.
Count me in for the next book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Gore, and War
Moderate: Grief, Confinement, and Kidnapping
readinganonymous's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Death, Child death, Kidnapping, and Blood
mamat5925's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, War, Torture, Cursing, Murder, Grief, and Confinement
immdanii's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Torture, Sexual content, Death of parent, War, Kidnapping, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Confinement and Cursing
Minor: Alcohol and Panic attacks/disorders
eleek0609's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- 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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, Child death, Kidnapping, Cursing, Death, Grief, Murder, Sexual content, and War
cady_sass's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
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
3.75
By far the best in the series so far, color me highly surprised and very intrigued. It’s still very long, too long, but didn’t feel as long as the other ones because the story continued at a good pace all throughout. If it weren’t for the massive and disjointed info dump at the end this would’ve been 4 solid stars and I’d be eating my words. The writing is still not excellent and a bit cringy but I had a hard time putting it down because I needed to know what was going to happen. Chapter 44, though…. Holy 🌶️ 🥵. There are a LOT of plot holes and things that simply cannot and won’t make sense, but it didn’t bother me as much this time. Either she’s worn me down that much or it is slightly better. I think it’s slightly better. It might also just be my borderline obsession with Reaver. I would read an entire series about Reaver….. someone make it happen
There is no next book yet, and I kind of wish this was the final installment. There was a clear ending available here but she didn’t choose it, and the cliffhanger is a bit underwhelming.
There is no next book yet, and I kind of wish this was the final installment. There was a clear ending available here but she didn’t choose it, and the cliffhanger is a bit underwhelming.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Child death, Blood, Violence, War, Sexual content, Gore, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Kidnapping, and Death
Moderate: Death of parent, Alcohol, Torture, Sexual violence, and Rape
roget's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
1.0
This reads like a crack fic.
This series would be so much stronger if space that was given to all the tone-ignorant quipping and pages of unnecessarily aggressive, uncomfortable exchanges were instead given to expanding the lore.
The real plot is crammed into info-dumps in dialogue—just like, lecture after lecture of some being or another backtracking like “Well, ACTUALLY…” and then re-explaining lore and ancient relationships that’d already been explained and re-explained half a dozen times but apparently incorrectly. The consort? Interesting plot line. I wish we’d have gotten more of that development.
The Malik-Poppy backstory reveal was absolutely undercut by the series’s penchant for throwing gossip girl-style shocking “twists” at us every five minutes, not to mention the tonally inconsistent suggestive and situationally abhorrent illicit comments. The series isn’t respectful to Kieren, either. He’s basically treated like Poppy’s arm candy this book, and Poppy’s character is shockingly undynamic given the many, many changes she’s been through. She’s still acting like the angry, impulsive, and brash kid who’s playing at power without really understanding it.
The pacing is weird.
As for the content…
I’m interested to know more about the primals and their clearly warped family tree. I want Poppy to return to Ileesium. I want to see more of those dynamics unfold. I wish the book would spend more time and nuance developing that and Poppy herself.
Kind of just reading to find out what happens and how it wraps up at this point, which is disheartening. I’m sure some people find this series fun or entertaining, but the issues have sort of spoiled it for me, at least.
This series would be so much stronger if space that was given to all the tone-ignorant quipping and pages of unnecessarily aggressive, uncomfortable exchanges were instead given to expanding the lore.
The real plot is crammed into info-dumps in dialogue—just like, lecture after lecture of some being or another backtracking like “Well, ACTUALLY…” and then re-explaining lore and ancient relationships that’d already been explained and re-explained half a dozen times but apparently incorrectly. The consort? Interesting plot line. I wish we’d have gotten more of that development.
The Malik-Poppy backstory reveal was absolutely undercut by the series’s penchant for throwing gossip girl-style shocking “twists” at us every five minutes, not to mention the tonally inconsistent suggestive and situationally abhorrent illicit comments. The series isn’t respectful to Kieren, either. He’s basically treated like Poppy’s arm candy this book, and Poppy’s character is shockingly undynamic given the many, many changes she’s been through. She’s still acting like the angry, impulsive, and brash kid who’s playing at power without really understanding it.
The pacing is weird.
Spoiler
It takes them over half the book to rescue Cas, then it’s a large chunk of just adult scenes—the most awkward of which occur in the house of a set of resistance people who take them in and offer shelter only to be melted by Isbeth once Poppy and Cas are done using their familial home as a love shack.As for the content…
Spoiler
There are numerous mature scenes, and if you’re not up for that, you’ll find yourself paging through them frustratedly and wading through neverending passages of violence as you wait for eons for an update about the more integral parts of the plot.I’m interested to know more about the primals and their clearly warped family tree. I want Poppy to return to Ileesium. I want to see more of those dynamics unfold. I wish the book would spend more time and nuance developing that and Poppy herself.
Kind of just reading to find out what happens and how it wraps up at this point, which is disheartening. I’m sure some people find this series fun or entertaining, but the issues have sort of spoiled it for me, at least.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Toxic relationship, Death, Confinement, Gaslighting, Genocide, Gore, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Kidnapping, Sexual content, Self harm, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Grief, War, and Torture
fireinherveinzz's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I’m sick of the plot twists at this point , it’s getting really old like poppy would have been enough and worthy just being a mortal and didn’t need all these extra super special super powers or finding our she’s the the chosen one in this prophecy. or oh great she has a long lost sister who she didn’t get to bond or interact with at all after losing her brother . Also the joining scene definitely overhyped to be way more than it actually is . She’s not cheating on or lying to Casteel it’s consentual and healthy communication even when she was feeding from Kiernan which she was forced to do to survive and was extremely reluctant to. She didn’t have sex with him without Casteel there . People really got all up in arms about this for no reason. When really this story had other issues . It just kinda dragged out with some light hearted comedic moments and a lot of violence and torture and scenes of aftermath of mass murder of children etc which JLA seems to be found of . Then the anti climatic moment of her ending her mothers life after all that build up over how scary powerful she was just. I love how this story started in the first couple books now this is getting really dull and not interesting anymore . JLA over relying on plot twist and random reveals that just won’t stop happening to make the story interesting does not in fact make for an interesting story . The only scene I truly loved was Poppy being assertive about deciding she what she would wear to see her abuser her biological mother and not the former white dress she was forced to wear or she would show up naked . That should have been the energy of the death scene or punishing Isbeth some other way it just wasnt that satisfying.
She kept saying she didn’t want to turn into her or become like a god who demolished cities and killed innocents . But acted really selfishly and like a brat at times .
I don’t see how much more this story can get dragged out for .
She kept saying she didn’t want to turn into her or become like a god who demolished cities and killed innocents . But acted really selfishly and like a brat at times .
I don’t see how much more this story can get dragged out for .
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Trafficking, Slavery, Sexual harassment, Self harm, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, War, Racism, Pedophilia, Death, Murder, Blood, Genocide, Emotional abuse, Child death, and Body horror
thedisabledreader's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Blood, War, Violence, Murder, Kidnapping, and Confinement
Minor: Sexual assault