kal_of_krypton's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The world building is solid. The plot is rather slow to build, it's only in the third act of the book that things really start to move along and feel like there's more of a plot.
The clothing descriptions started to feel a little tedious to me towards the end. Although, I liked the characters well enough and feel invested enough to give the second book a try.
The clothing descriptions started to feel a little tedious to me towards the end. Although, I liked the characters well enough and feel invested enough to give the second book a try.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
mandkips's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, and Torture
Moderate: Gun violence, Suicide, and Gore
Minor: Homophobia and Fire/Fire injury
bisexualwentworth's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I enjoyed this book a lot! Most of the things I've been reading lately have been either YA or contemporary literary fiction, and this was a very welcome change from all of that.
I love reading about messy adults in fantasy settings, and Amberlough absolutely delivers on that front. The characters were engaging and complicated. Amberlough City was immersive and fascinating. I loved the 1930s vibes.
Amberlough is very much a story about tragic love in the context of a rising fascist regime—with an added dose of smuggling and cabaret performances. The main couple is enemies AND lovers simultaneously, so if that's something that interests you, I highly recommend reading this.
There were some points where I wanted more information about certain things, but since this is the first book in a trilogy, I'm not too worried about it. Overall, it was a super engaging read and a very impressive debut novel.
I love reading about messy adults in fantasy settings, and Amberlough absolutely delivers on that front. The characters were engaging and complicated. Amberlough City was immersive and fascinating. I loved the 1930s vibes.
Amberlough is very much a story about tragic love in the context of a rising fascist regime—with an added dose of smuggling and cabaret performances. The main couple is enemies AND lovers simultaneously, so if that's something that interests you, I highly recommend reading this.
There were some points where I wanted more information about certain things, but since this is the first book in a trilogy, I'm not too worried about it. Overall, it was a super engaging read and a very impressive debut novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Gore, Gun violence, and Suicide
Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Homophobia
octopus_farmer's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- 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
4.0
I really liked it - she did a great job of balancing exposition with action, and every character was meaningful in their own way. I knew it was a trilogy, so I guess I should have expected how dark it would be at the end, but the physicality of it took me by surprise. I think I’d read the rest, given time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Murder, Police brutality, and Sexual content
Moderate: Torture, Suicide, and Gore
corvidkings's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- 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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, Alcohol, Death, Drug use, Infidelity, Murder, Police brutality, and Torture
Moderate: Sexual content and Blood
Minor: Homophobia
alishareadsandrambles's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
This book over all was pretty interesting and I think the concept is great. I thought the execution was a little bit lacking though. While I was listening to this book I felt that the main plot felt less developed than the smaller sub-plots. For me this led to have a few parts during the book where if felt like it was reaching a conclusion to the story and that the book could be done when I still have hours left to listen to.
Lara did do a really good job at making the characters actions and motivations understandable and relatable. And also how the book ended was a perfect mix of wrapping the story up while also leaving so minor cliffhangers to be resolved in the next book.
Lara did do a really good job at making the characters actions and motivations understandable and relatable. And also how the book ended was a perfect mix of wrapping the story up while also leaving so minor cliffhangers to be resolved in the next book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture
Moderate: Sexual content
mirm_the_bookworm's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Torture
Moderate: Gun violence, Sexual content, and Vomit
Minor: Death
sapphiccatto's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Sexual content, Death, Alcoholism, Blood, and Cursing
Moderate: Homophobia, Suicide, Religious bigotry, Police brutality, and Gun violence
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