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nick13's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-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
2.5
I like this book's plot more than the last one but overall it is pretty much the same trash as the last one lol. Not saying it's bad, bc I am really enjoying myself while reading this but mostly just because the writing is absolutely terrible. If I delved deeper into the writing more than that, this review would take an hour to write because there is just so much terribleness to unpack so I'll just leave it at, I don't recommend reading this series if you want a genuinely good story but if you just want some fun then this is a great series to read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Pedophilia
Moderate: Homophobia and Sexual content
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
bendersreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Infidelity, and Sexual content
Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Emotional abuse
kittycattmeow's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Homophobia, Misogyny, and Car accident
rachaelarsenault's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
0.5
Another book with great potential that is completely squandered.
I didn't mention this in my review of the first book, but part of the pacing problems stem from the authors throwing in plot point after plot point and never addressing any of them. One such plot point was that fledglings who had Rejected the Change would show up again with bright red eyes. Two such characters appeared very briefly in "Marked", but received little to no serious attention. Even in this book, when they become a central plot point, they are mostly ignored until over halfway through the story.
This book has a lot of great, interesting elements. But the execution is atrocious. It seems like these authors can't pace a story to save their lives. So much of the book is spent focusing on boy drama (including an incredibly illegal student-teacher romance) and Zoey's very boring plans to restructure the Dark Daughters, rather than focusing on the teens that go missing and turn up dead or the apparent zombies that are wandering campus. Even when the authors throw in a subplot about calling in a fake bomb threat they manage to make it dragged out and boring.
Another issue I failed to touch on in the first book is how the authors handle Zoey's Cherokee heritage. It seems to mostly exist to make her more exotic and magical, which is incredibly offensive. Also, Cherokee ritualism is inexplicably mixed in with Wiccan circle casting - which was already nonsensical considering they worship the Greek goddess Nyx. But the decision to bastardize any seemingly mystical culture in this series' shoddy excuse for world-building is only made worse when Zoey decides to use eucalyptus in a ritual, citing it as an ancient herb used by her people for centuries. Even though eucalyptus is from Australia. The first book was already dipping into pan-Indianism, but now the story has managed to dive into transcontinental pan-Indianism. It's amazing, honestly.
The narrative also suffers from poor writing decisions that kill tension or spoil the story. For example, very important information regarding the death of a character and the zombie fledglings is revealed in chapter twenty-five, shortly after the character's death, when it should have been kept a secret until the end of chapter twenty-eight - and yet it's still presented as a surprise in chapter twenty-eight. Moreover, the character's imminent death is heavily foreshadowed from the end of chapter eighteen until the middle of chapter twenty-two, but all the characters ignore and dismiss it because it would be inconvenient to the narrative if they were worrying about this character. It showcases the poor pacing of the series and the strange tendency of the authors to prioritize frivolities over the actual plot.
All the same issues that existed in the first book persist in this one. The only reason I gave it more than a zero-star rating is because it mostly had a coherent plot, even if it was dragged out and frequently ignored.
I didn't mention this in my review of the first book, but part of the pacing problems stem from the authors throwing in plot point after plot point and never addressing any of them. One such plot point was that fledglings who had Rejected the Change would show up again with bright red eyes. Two such characters appeared very briefly in "Marked", but received little to no serious attention. Even in this book, when they become a central plot point, they are mostly ignored until over halfway through the story.
This book has a lot of great, interesting elements. But the execution is atrocious. It seems like these authors can't pace a story to save their lives. So much of the book is spent focusing on boy drama (including an incredibly illegal student-teacher romance) and Zoey's very boring plans to restructure the Dark Daughters, rather than focusing on the teens that go missing and turn up dead or the apparent zombies that are wandering campus. Even when the authors throw in a subplot about calling in a fake bomb threat they manage to make it dragged out and boring.
Another issue I failed to touch on in the first book is how the authors handle Zoey's Cherokee heritage. It seems to mostly exist to make her more exotic and magical, which is incredibly offensive. Also, Cherokee ritualism is inexplicably mixed in with Wiccan circle casting - which was already nonsensical considering they worship the Greek goddess Nyx. But the decision to bastardize any seemingly mystical culture in this series' shoddy excuse for world-building is only made worse when Zoey decides to use eucalyptus in a ritual, citing it as an ancient herb used by her people for centuries. Even though eucalyptus is from Australia. The first book was already dipping into pan-Indianism, but now the story has managed to dive into transcontinental pan-Indianism. It's amazing, honestly.
The narrative also suffers from poor writing decisions that kill tension or spoil the story. For example, very important information regarding the death of a character and the zombie fledglings is revealed in chapter twenty-five, shortly after the character's death, when it should have been kept a secret until the end of chapter twenty-eight - and yet it's still presented as a surprise in chapter twenty-eight. Moreover, the character's imminent death is heavily foreshadowed from the end of chapter eighteen until the middle of chapter twenty-two, but all the characters ignore and dismiss it because it would be inconvenient to the narrative if they were worrying about this character. It showcases the poor pacing of the series and the strange tendency of the authors to prioritize frivolities over the actual plot.
All the same issues that existed in the first book persist in this one. The only reason I gave it more than a zero-star rating is because it mostly had a coherent plot, even if it was dragged out and frequently ignored.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, and Blood
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Vomit, and Outing
Minor: Ableism, Forced institutionalization, and Islamophobia
Sex shaming