Reviews with content warning for Child abuse - Oscuri talenti

When Ordinary Monsters was voted to be our most recent book club pick, I was hesitant at first - partly due to its size and partly because Victorian-era fantasies aren’t typically my jam. However, I was pleasantly surprised within the first few chapters. I immediately became attached to each of the characters and the situations they were thrown into. I really enjoyed that the “good versus evil” theme wasn’t quite what you expected it to be. I feel like the pacing was a little off in places, and I do think the book could’ve been at least 100 pages shorter. Overall, I still really enjoyed this and will most likely pick up the next book in the series when it comes out!

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katieo156's review against another edition

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challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

I enjoyed the story, but this could easily have been two books. There was such a long arc to get to the central setting that I was wearing thin on patience. I'm glad I kept going- I did like the characters and their grit, but I wish we had learned more about the magic and mythology of the book. It was vaguely alluded to and then kind of info dumped, but I feel like there's more left to learn that didn't need to be kept hidden for a sequel. I wondered the whole time if

everyone's instant intense love for Marlowe was part of his powers because it was mentioned so frequently and so soon after anyone met him- guess not.

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saville08's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

4.5
Extremely long story. Would recommend the Audiobook and do it at 1.85 speed - 2.0 as the narrator takes long breaks, and draws out the words.

Overall was almost a 5-star read, had great characters, an atmosphere, and a great plot. Miro did an excellent job of creating the atmosphere and the setting for this story. He is able to capture the reader and draw them in if you are looking for a cozy long read in a dark setting. The fight scenes are descriptive along with the monsters in this story. The plot kept you motivated and the characters were thought out perfectly.
I am not going to lie the bad guy Jacob was my favorite character as you get to see his development and his power in this novel, along with Alice who finds both of the main characters.

I would give this a shot if you are interested in long drawn-out stories that build a great dark atmosphere setting and characters that are easy to fall in love with.

Trigger Warnings include:
Death, child abuse

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unboxedjack's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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khakipantsofsex's review against another edition

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adventurous dark fast-paced

4.0

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aglittercobra's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

5.0

***5 Stars***

Overall,

I received an audiobook of this from Netgalley and the first thing I can tell you is that it was long at 672 pages. I generally prefer to read longer books because I can read faster than I can listen. With that said I really enjoyed this book. It was incredibly original and interesting and pretty dark at times. It is a bit slow paced at parts and there are a lot of POVs with a lot of characters thinking and doing different things. This is where the audio really helped because the narrator did a phenomenal job of distinguishing between characters.

It is kind of difficult to describe this book without adding any spoilers but I will give it a shot. The overall story takes place in the late 1800s, mostly in the UK but there is travel to the US and Asia. It consists of two young boys (talents) who are rescued by “detectives” who belong to a school in Scotland. The school is a refuge for Talents, that is the name given to people with unique abilities. Throughout the book the POV shifts from several adults and some of the children depending on what is happening. They are being chased by a bad guy who is a very strong talent and his motivations are unclear. The story does answer a lot of questions by the end but still leaves you hanging on what will happen next. I have seen some sources count this as dark academia, I would not. While there is a school it is barely a blip in the overall story.

Narration

The book was Narrated by Ben Onwukwe, who, like I said before did a phenomenal job. I listened to most of the book on 1.3x or 1.5x speed, and that has nothing to do with the narration, that is just my preference. If you like Audiobooks and are unsure of this book I would definitely recommend this audio, it was well done, I could (and did) listen to Bens voice for hours.

Cover

The cover is kind of plain and to be honest I am not sure why there is a raven (or crow?) on it. However, it does get the vibe of this book pretty well.

Recommendation

Please check trigger warnings before reading this book, there is some child abuse, racism and violence in this book and if that is not for you then I do not recommend it. For those who love original stories, and dark fantasy set in the real world I would recommend this to you. I hesitate to compare this book to others because in my opinion there really isn’t anything that comes close enough to it. I really loved this book, and I believe J.M. Miro plans on a trilogy, which I am excited about.

**I received an Audio ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my free and honest review. Thank you Flatiron Books and MacMillian Audio Production for the opportunity to read this book.** #Ordinary Monsters #Netgalley

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evafantasy's review against another edition

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5.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
An ARC was lent to me by my local bookshop.

This was spectacular. Perfect balance between dark and gritty and a flicker of hope and warmth. All the characters are so engaging, all of them so complex and compelling. The writing is a pleasure, fluid as a river. Loved it !

I started reading and then Heartstopper and OFMD put me in a reading slump, I wasn't even in the mood to finish it anymore but I did, and I enjoyed it immensely ! So to tell you, it was good xD

TW - , implied rape, miscarriage, death, beating, racism, misogyny, murder, self harm, parental abuse, gore

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