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emilia_thereader's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- 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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Torture and Blood
zozo_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- 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
4.5
Great world building did sort of expect the ending though. There was a plot twist in the beginning that I would have never expected.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child abuse and Child death
littletiramisu's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail
mildtee's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Blood
theteamsreader's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
A well imagined world with a Robin Hood-esque main character sets off the start of a promising epic fantasy. When reading this book I found difficulty, at first, with the many locations and side characters to keep track of. Certain characters I couldn't bond with either. A sequel is desperately needed to hand, as, by the end of the book, all opinions will be shifted entirely. Recommend to anyone looking for a Medieval fantasy revolving around disease, high politics, minor romantic tensions and a small flavour of found family.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Torture, Police brutality, and War
Minor: Blood and Excrement
kirstenf's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Terminal illness, Torture, and Alcohol
Minor: Confinement, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Vomit
alyb_batgirl's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- 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? No
3.5
Enjoyable and relatively easy read. I was a little disappointed by the ending - the resolution for the book climax was kind of a letdown, while also feeling rushed. Basically, they paused the violent revolution by saying "let's talk about it", which seems unrealistic and relies too much on everyone in the book implicitly trusting the main character .
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Blood
Minor: Torture
literarypenguin's review
adventurous
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
4.0
After the assassination of the King and Queen, Prince Harristan was forced to take the throne at a time when the kingdom was at its worst. Prince Corrick, his brother, and the King’s Justice had only one task protect Harristan at all costs. Tessa is a girl raised in the wilds after her parents were killed right in front of her and using her father’s knowledge he gave her, Tessa makes medicine to give to the people for a disease ravaging the kingdom. With the help of her friend Wes, Tessa delivers medicine under the cover of night but with rebels and riots taking over Wes and Tessa might have to trust in each other now more than ever. I picked up this book because the cover and the synopsis intrigued me very much and wanted to give it a try. When I finished the book I felt satisfied and wanted to read the sequel to find out what happens to the characters. I had hopes for this book to deliver an interesting addition to the fantasy genre and a unique twist to the idea of a Robin Hood type of character and situation. This was a very interesting addition to the fantasy genre. I was looking forward to reading about kingdom politics and learning more about this mysterious sickness running rampant in the kingdom and learning how it came to be. I think what makes this book stand out among other books of this kind is showing both sides of politics and how not just one side is at fault and the use of a Robin Hood-like persona was cool too! I liked how they used this disease and showed how dire it was and how much damage it has done in the kingdom. It added a sense of unrest in the kingdom and made you understand why the unrest was there.
I thought the writing was very well written and it appealed to all of my senses quite well! The pace was pretty moderate and wasn’t too fast or too slow, It moved the story along well and worked with the plot. It felt like with the pace you were learning more and more about the story slowly instead of all at once which worked for the story. It was easy to read and keep up and it stayed pretty consistent across the whole story. One thing I liked about the story was the different points of view in the story and each chapter you were reading between the two main characters' perspectives. It made the story more interesting and gave it a bit more immersion.
The book focuses on Tessa and Corrick, their different places and roles in this kingdom, and how they played a part in each other lives. It also talks about this sickness overtaking the kingdom and efforts to try to find a cure or medicine to help quell it. It also dealt with the politics of ruling a kingdom and how resistance can make or break a system for running a kingdom. What I loved the most about the plot was seeing how both sides can cause trouble and not just one side can be at fault. I also liked how it showed people in positions of power can be just corrupt or worse than people who are not.
The two main protagonists were Tessa and Corrick. Tessa is a hardworking and independent woman living in the wilds after the deaths of her parents. She with her friend Wes deliver medicine to the less fortunate people in the kingdom who need it. Prince Corrick is the brother of the new King Harristan and his King’s Justice. He is cunning and intelligent and emotionally closes himself off to protect himself so that he can protect his brother from harm. As you progress in the story Tessa and Corrick both go through changes together and apart. Tessa begins to let her guard down and allow others to help her and protect her. Corrick begins to trust more and let himself grieve and feel for the loss of his parents as Tessa does as well. The relationship between Tessa and Corrick was very interesting and went through a couple of ups and downs. They had to learn to trust and rely on each other. They had to work together and eventually, they began a romantic relationship. Harristan was a very good character and was a good foil to Corrick’s character. He was a caring older brother who just wanted what was best for his brother and didn’t want any harm to come to him. He had to do things he didn’t like to do just for the betterment of himself and his brother.
The book takes place in a fantasy-like kingdom run by a King and Queen and a Council who help run the kingdom. The worldbuilding is great and one of my favorite parts of the book! The world is beautiful and very unique! There are different parts of the kingdom and different kingdoms in parts of the world. This place had the wilds, a place for the less fortunate and poorer, and a gated place for the rich and well-to-do people. There were clear lines between the rich and the poor in this world. I felt that worldbuilding was important because it built up the world and showed just how bad things were for people. It showed why a rebellion was happening and made you understand why the people were getting tired of it. It showed the lavishness of how the rich lived and how unnecessary it was.
Some of the themes in the book were the division of the rich and the poor, corruption from any side of the political system, and learning to trust those you wouldn’t normally trust. I loved how they were portrayed in this book, subtle and not forced. I think making both sides of the politics at fault for the state of the kingdom was a brilliant idea and made it more believable. It really makes you think of situations like that and that not just one side is completely at fault.
I hope people give this book a chance and take away positive things from this review. I think you should read this book if you want a good fantasy filled with political intrigue and very interesting characters. I can’t wait to read the sequel and find out what happens to these characters and how the story ends. Maybe we will learn what this illness is and why it came to be.
I thought the writing was very well written and it appealed to all of my senses quite well! The pace was pretty moderate and wasn’t too fast or too slow, It moved the story along well and worked with the plot. It felt like with the pace you were learning more and more about the story slowly instead of all at once which worked for the story. It was easy to read and keep up and it stayed pretty consistent across the whole story. One thing I liked about the story was the different points of view in the story and each chapter you were reading between the two main characters' perspectives. It made the story more interesting and gave it a bit more immersion.
The book focuses on Tessa and Corrick, their different places and roles in this kingdom, and how they played a part in each other lives. It also talks about this sickness overtaking the kingdom and efforts to try to find a cure or medicine to help quell it. It also dealt with the politics of ruling a kingdom and how resistance can make or break a system for running a kingdom. What I loved the most about the plot was seeing how both sides can cause trouble and not just one side can be at fault. I also liked how it showed people in positions of power can be just corrupt or worse than people who are not.
The two main protagonists were Tessa and Corrick. Tessa is a hardworking and independent woman living in the wilds after the deaths of her parents. She with her friend Wes deliver medicine to the less fortunate people in the kingdom who need it. Prince Corrick is the brother of the new King Harristan and his King’s Justice. He is cunning and intelligent and emotionally closes himself off to protect himself so that he can protect his brother from harm. As you progress in the story Tessa and Corrick both go through changes together and apart. Tessa begins to let her guard down and allow others to help her and protect her. Corrick begins to trust more and let himself grieve and feel for the loss of his parents as Tessa does as well. The relationship between Tessa and Corrick was very interesting and went through a couple of ups and downs. They had to learn to trust and rely on each other. They had to work together and eventually, they began a romantic relationship. Harristan was a very good character and was a good foil to Corrick’s character. He was a caring older brother who just wanted what was best for his brother and didn’t want any harm to come to him. He had to do things he didn’t like to do just for the betterment of himself and his brother.
The book takes place in a fantasy-like kingdom run by a King and Queen and a Council who help run the kingdom. The worldbuilding is great and one of my favorite parts of the book! The world is beautiful and very unique! There are different parts of the kingdom and different kingdoms in parts of the world. This place had the wilds, a place for the less fortunate and poorer, and a gated place for the rich and well-to-do people. There were clear lines between the rich and the poor in this world. I felt that worldbuilding was important because it built up the world and showed just how bad things were for people. It showed why a rebellion was happening and made you understand why the people were getting tired of it. It showed the lavishness of how the rich lived and how unnecessary it was.
Some of the themes in the book were the division of the rich and the poor, corruption from any side of the political system, and learning to trust those you wouldn’t normally trust. I loved how they were portrayed in this book, subtle and not forced. I think making both sides of the politics at fault for the state of the kingdom was a brilliant idea and made it more believable. It really makes you think of situations like that and that not just one side is completely at fault.
I hope people give this book a chance and take away positive things from this review. I think you should read this book if you want a good fantasy filled with political intrigue and very interesting characters. I can’t wait to read the sequel and find out what happens to these characters and how the story ends. Maybe we will learn what this illness is and why it came to be.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Grief and Death of parent
theespressoedition's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
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
5.0
Whew. What a wild ride this was!
I really enjoyed the Cursebreakers trilogy and was excited to find out that Brigid was starting a new series. I heard tons and tons of raves about this when it was first released, which made me simultaneously more excited to read it and also totally wary. I'm not always huge on hyped books, but I gave it a go - and I'm glad I did.
Personally, I would categorize this as new adult. Somewhere in the middle of the book, Corrick mentions how several years ago, he and his brother were 17, which means that they've got to be at least 19-20 in the story, if not older. I'm not sure Tessa's age is discussed, but no matter what, the content felt older than just YA. Not because of anything sexually explicit (there's romance and some subtle physical contact, but nothing further) - but because of the gore. There was quite a bit of it and it even made me uncomfortable at times.
I was completely entranced by the story. It was pretty quick-paced, with great character development, short chapters, fantastic twists and turns, and political intrigue that actually kept me intrigued. This is a feat, I must say. Political intrigue usually bores me to tears, but this time, I was interested. The characters actually made you care about the cause and I found myself feeling so hopeful for a solution throughout the story.
The secondary characters were nearly as fascinating as the protagonists and I'm looking forward to seeing how the sequel might dive into their stories a bit more. I just know that this felt like a really refreshing high fantasy and I'm excited for whatever's next.
I really enjoyed the Cursebreakers trilogy and was excited to find out that Brigid was starting a new series. I heard tons and tons of raves about this when it was first released, which made me simultaneously more excited to read it and also totally wary. I'm not always huge on hyped books, but I gave it a go - and I'm glad I did.
Personally, I would categorize this as new adult. Somewhere in the middle of the book, Corrick mentions how several years ago, he and his brother were 17, which means that they've got to be at least 19-20 in the story, if not older. I'm not sure Tessa's age is discussed, but no matter what, the content felt older than just YA. Not because of anything sexually explicit (there's romance and some subtle physical contact, but nothing further) - but because of the gore. There was quite a bit of it and it even made me uncomfortable at times.
I was completely entranced by the story. It was pretty quick-paced, with great character development, short chapters, fantastic twists and turns, and political intrigue that actually kept me intrigued. This is a feat, I must say. Political intrigue usually bores me to tears, but this time, I was interested. The characters actually made you care about the cause and I found myself feeling so hopeful for a solution throughout the story.
The secondary characters were nearly as fascinating as the protagonists and I'm looking forward to seeing how the sequel might dive into their stories a bit more. I just know that this felt like a really refreshing high fantasy and I'm excited for whatever's next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Torture, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder