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hedonsgaybookshelf's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I was impressed by the large critical themes taken on by this YA book - structural class/religious oppression, relationship anarchy, gender fluidity and dysphoria. I really enjoyed MC Ash, who’s brash rejection of authority is clearly informed by a lifetime of class oppression. Raised by a single mother in a low-income neighborhood, he never had access to education or the privilege to practice alchemy that he so deeply craved. The MCs are all of similar age, yet at wildly different statuses due to family background, wealth, politics, and education, and it’s interesting to watch Ash grapple with both his resentment and attraction for Ramsay and Callum. I also love love love a polyamorous endgame, and really resonated with Callum’s rejection of the inherent limits of monogamy and openness to the infinite nature of love. House Lune represents organized religion in the novel, and the messaging is pretty explicit about religion as a control strategy and it’s leaders as deceitful hypocrites - I personally am here for it. I would have liked more attention to race, as we only know that Callum has “dark brown skin” and then I don’t believe this is never mentioned again. I also would have liked a clearer explanation of Ramsay’s gender fluidity and how the MCs knew when to switch Ramsay’s pronouns, as this was a major through-line but only briefly mentioned. I think the book did a nice job of explicitly detailing Ash’s gender dysphoria, both generally and during intimacy, which will be relatable for trans teen readers. The cliffhanger at the end felt just a little rushed, but overall I’m excited to read a sequel to this book!
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gore, Torture, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Sexual content
vemiline's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
So I got this book as an ARC from NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group in exchange for a review, so thank you so much for giving me this opportunity!
“Why go back to his body, to this illusion he had created, to a world where desires that would never be filled were slowly killing him, where he couldn’t escape his own wants and thoughts and fears?”
This book…. was something I completely did not expect from it. There was a problem, yet there were so many layers to it, it was pretty interesting. I was expecting just magic and adventure and hoorah, but what I got were very thought provoking messages and an adventure that went on a lot longer than I thought it would.
“Maybe it wasn’t death that Ash feared, but the idea of dying with regret, thinking in his last moments everything he failed to achieve.”
I really appreciated the diversity. I loved that moment of realization that Ash was in the LGBTQ+ community and that there were even gender-fluid aspects in here too. I think that there needs to be more transgendered protagonists, and more insight to their thoughts and struggles about being born in the wrong body. There was also another… type of relationship between the characters and I thought that it was good to see because we don’t see it enough. I know a lot of people are probably gonna be against this aspect though.
“Magic. The word implied universes unknown and adventures undiscovered, power unfulfilled and possibilities that were endless.”
I think it was interesting to understand the world building and all that. I was worried it was going to be really confusing, and with all the different houses it was at first, but I just bookmarked the page that had all the houses and kept referring to it until the relevant houses stuck to my mind. I think I might need to reread this book again, but with the knowledge of how the world is like in this book. I didn’t hate it, but I also didn’t love it. I’m honestly not even sure how I’d even improve it though, so that’s a whole other conversation.
“But Gresham again was a hypocrite. Weren’t all the great men?”
I did see that this is going to be a series, and while I know this wasn’t my favourite, becoming my favourite series is a very hard thing to do anyways, I think I want to keep up with this series. I appreciate that there was an ending to this book (sorry if that’s a spoiler….let me know if it’s too spoiler-y) and I hope Kacen Callender brings more of Ash Woods for me :)
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Death of parent and Murder
vagaybond's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Death, Blood, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Trafficking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Dysphoria
dionsaur's review
- 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
4.25
Graphic: Sexual content, Dysphoria, and Classism
Moderate: Terminal illness and Death of parent
Minor: Child abuse
blackorchids's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Violence, Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Death of parent, Murder, and Dysphoria
Minor: Bullying
Multiple POVs made the story feel choppy at times, and I wish more people were on the “good” side.seekittyread's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Torture, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Classism
Minor: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Religious bigotry
marmarlad's review
- 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
Graphic: Violence and Death of parent
Moderate: Religious bigotry
Minor: Transphobia
andromedaexists's review
- 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
Once again calling back to any book that makes me physically feel something get an automatic five star, but this book did more than that. This book wrapped my heart in tendrils of alchemical magic and refuses to let go.
Ramsay is a prodigy, the genderfluid child of known and executed terrorists hell-bent on atoning for their sins. She uses he/she pronouns, though leans more towards she/her throughout the book. She is also such an uptight prick... until she's not. I genuinely love how prickly and rude she is and how much that shows to me as an autistic mask. I just love her so much.
Callum is a black man and the youngest son of the Kendrick house, more or less the police state in book. He is kind and caring despite the heavy hand of his father and all he wants to do is heal. He wants to heal and help others, like the good man he is.
- The world became a white blur. The snow turned red. It fell to the ground, drops spreading like blots of ink. The blood dripped from Amelia's cheeks. Her smile faded as the screams began.
- That's what privileged assholes like you always say.
- [redacted] paused, but only for a moment. He opened the [redacted]. There was an explosion of light.
- It was too late. [redacted] was already there.
- It wasn't death he'd feared, he realized, but the change—the transformation that forced him to release.
- This light held the vibration of energy that the physical body would translate as love.
- They all created the same infinite light. They were eternal.
- It was an interesting place to be caught, stuck between grief and gladness that they were gone.
Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Dysphoria, and Classism
Minor: Sexual content
ABUSE (FAMILIAL, ON PAGE), DEATH (MURDER), GUILT, GRIEF, MENTIONS OF SEXUAL ENCOUNTERS (FADE TO BLACK), VIOLENCEbooksnbcys'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
4.25
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Homophobia, Torture, Grief, Death of parent, Dysphoria, and War
asims723's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.75
Moderate: Sexual content and Death of parent