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imscrem's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I did not enjoy the darkness of a lot of the early story, and often felt that the main character was being mercilessly beaten and picked on. Perhaps this was the author’s way of balancing him out (he may be a genius and good at everything he does, BUT he has terrible luck and every asshole gets to beat him). It didn’t feel like it balanced his genius to me, it just felt like reading about a 12 year old getting beaten for a hundred pages. Maybe I’m sensitive.
Still, there were ~500 pages of an amazing story, complete with a mysterious library, good friends, and many heroic escapades. A good read.
Having read this book, I’m conflicted about whether to pick up the second book in the series. This book was both amazing and terrible.
Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Minor: Forced institutionalization and Medical content
spaceradish's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Classism
dreadspawn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Drug use and Misogyny
Minor: Addiction, Drug abuse, and Forced institutionalization
olivi_yeah's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Death of parent
Moderate: Bullying, Misogyny, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism
danasaur'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
5.0
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, and War
micaelamariem's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I do think the writing could have been more concise, there was no reason this had to be 700 pages. But the academia, conflict, magic, and desires were definitely compelling. The reveal at the end that I proudly predicted will be the main thing that keeps me going through the series. I would say this is an okay read, and perhaps good for fans of thick “hard fantasy” novels with lots of descriptions.
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Drug use, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
vaevin'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
5.0
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Bullying, Alcohol, and Classism
Minor: Death, Drug use, Mental illness, and Sexual violence
leonormsousa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Will I read the sequel: likely but not a priority since the third book hasn't come out yet.
Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
nortsapa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
i don’t like school settings and i wasn’t really prepared for us to spend 75% of this book in a school, or to encounter quite so much patriarchy. another review says the protagonist is a mary sue and i very much agree.
there’s lots of different fictional races, which i presume is why people say this cast is diverse, but it’s more like there’s russians & jews, the french & italians, the british, and romani people. as a jew, i always feel off-put by kinds of oppression/microaggressions faced by some groups in here, and by the fact that there’s a ‘money race’ for lack of a better term.
at many points the book was a chore to get through, and i was disappointed by the lack of a clean ending. also, lots of grammar/spelling/math errors in my edition?
overall i won’t be recommending it to anyone myself, but it’s a genre staple and fun to talk about with friends. definitely check the content warnings area before embarking.
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Addiction, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
graphic depictions of whipping a child, pickup artistry, anti-sex work, timeskipsnerdkitten's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Classism
Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Drug use, Mental illness, Sexism, Xenophobia, Religious bigotry, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Gore, Infidelity, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Vomit, Trafficking, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, and War