stonefruits's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Sexism, Miscarriage, Lesbophobia, Confinement, Infertility, Suicide attempt, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Gore, Emotional abuse, Animal death, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Toxic friendship, Physical abuse, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
rachellherrington's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Bullying, Violence, Suicide, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, and Medical trauma
bookishchef's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
But the rest...
Oh the rest...
I went into this book with low expectations. To be reminiscent of the Handmaid's Tale is quite a big claim, so my expectations plummeted to the lowest circle of Hell.
And that's where my expectations would have remained if the first quarter of this book wasn't so good.
The mystery is interesting. And the flower language worldbuilding feels very unique and not too far removed from our own world at the same time. The author keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time. Is the magic real? Who are the Poachers and what motivates them? Why is Kiersten such a bitch? They're interesting questions, and the answers weren't bad either but the way we got those answers...
At about the 25% mark the story starts to drag a bit. This is made up for by Liggett's excellent writing. At this point, you don't know whether Tierney is spiraling into madness or whether the world around her is truly mad. The plot doesn't move forward, but the story remains interesting.
Then at the 50% it all goes to shit.
Suddenly, we get introduced to the most bland love interest I've ever read about. He has no personality and falls for Tierney for no discernible reason. And of course, Tierney loves him back despite him having the personality of unseasoned chicken.
The author rushes us through a love story. And when I say rushes, I mean RUSHES.
And then, after some shenanigans we're back to the plot and the mystery and the book is actually really good again until the last fucking chapter.
What the fuck was that love story doing in this book? This story really really really did not need a romance plotline. The book would have been an easy 3 (or maybe even 4) star for me if the romance had not been there. It takes away from the themes of the book and undercuts its message. I don't understand how you write a book about sisterhood and fighting the patriarchy, and then have the MC only care about her male love interest for half of the book. Aaaaaaaaaaaaah.
The book also has very white feminism vibes. Can't quite put my finger on what exactly rubs me the wrong way, but to begin with, the book has 0 characters of colour
Graphic: Sexism, Suicide, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Gaslighting, Murder, Death, Animal death, Blood, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Violence, Religious bigotry, and Medical content
Moderate: Vomit and Lesbophobia
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Drug use, and Infertility
liliflynn'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
4.5
very much Handmaids Tale x Lord of the Flies x Hunger Games… and therefore it was made for me 😌
The characters were really fleshed out and the concepts it was dealing with were really well explored. I liked the writing style, but it was a bit flowery at times in a way that was detrimental to understanding what the author was trying to say. Also, because it was YA, I found the foreshadowing a bit obvious and therefore saw almost every plot twist.
Graphic: Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Misogyny and Sexism
Minor: Homophobia, Infertility, and Suicide
grace_lynn08's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Sexism, Torture, Misogyny, Suicide, Cannibalism, Adult/minor relationship, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, Infidelity, Incest, Violence, Murder, Lesbophobia, Gore, Grief, Domestic abuse, and Death
angelino'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
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Body horror, and Gore
Moderate: Vomit
Minor: Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Pedophilia
moodreader89's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Religious bigotry, Gore, Misogyny, and Body horror
Moderate: Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
ann_the_imp's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Vomit, Blood, Bullying, Murder, Death, Emotional abuse, Violence, Confinement, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Grief, Hate crime, Infertility, Sexual content, Excrement, Toxic friendship, Animal death, Pregnancy, Sexism, Addiction, Infidelity, Lesbophobia, Drug use, and Emotional abuse
elysianbud's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Quick read, finished it in one day.
I do like that at the end of the book the main character hasn't magically fixed everything in society through the power of gutsy honesty, and that it takes a more realistic approach of showing small steps towards change instead.
Graphic: Misogyny, Vomit, Confinement, Gore, Body horror, Death, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Drug use, Stalking, Blood, Medical content, Murder, Suicide attempt, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, and Suicide
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Cannibalism, Lesbophobia, Outing, Physical abuse, and Homophobia
readingwithmeredith's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I will say I don’t feel like this is the best written book and I feel like it could have benefited from some more editing and refinement and it could have been a 5🌟 dystopian read. But definitely a fascinating story that is going to stick with me for a while.
Themes reminiscent of Handmaiden’s Tale and Hunger Games but also a completely new story in my opinion.
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Suicide, and Violence
Minor: Sexual content