caseythereader's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Grief, Gun violence, Death, Drug use, Abandonment, Ableism, Child abuse, Classism, Gore, Vomit, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Violence, Blood, Colonisation, Death of parent, Murder, Drug abuse, Addiction, Child death, Medical content, and Slavery
Moderate: Sexual content
moonchild_cos'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
4.25
Graphic: Addiction, Blood, Classism, Drug abuse, and Drug use
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Ableism, Alcohol, Genocide, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Slavery
Minor: Grief, Vomit, War, Body shaming, Bullying, and Sexual content
bookcaptivated's review
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Confinement, Addiction, Blood, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Drug abuse, Murder, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Body shaming, Colonisation, Slavery, Ableism, and Alcohol
Minor: Medical content and Stalking
just_one_more_paige's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Ableism, Blood, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Torture, Body shaming, Confinement, Death, Grief, Classism, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, Violence, Child death, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Trafficking, and Toxic friendship
hattieosha's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Ableism, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Violence, Police brutality, Racism, Slavery, Addiction, Blood, and Child abuse
Moderate: Classism, Alcohol, Colonisation, Sexual content, and Body shaming
readingthroughinfinity's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
This is a spirited adult fantasy about three women trying to find ways of surviving and changing their fates in a world where blood determines social standing. With inventive world-building and a tournament-style plot, this story really takes off at the half way point (though that does mean that the first half is, unfortunately, slow-paced).
Sylah, Anoor, and Hassa are all interesting characters, but Sylah and Anoor frustrated me at the beginning with their complete lack of interest in anything around them (Sylah) and entitled, naïve outlook on life (Anoor). They did, however, develop and grow significantly throughout the book, making it satisfying to see how far they'd come in the closing chapters. The romance also drew me in, but I just wanted to see more of it! Hopefully we'll get that in book two, though.
Graphic: Torture
Moderate: Classism, Drug abuse, Murder, Addiction, Ableism, Blood, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Child death, Cursing, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
thatenbyisisreads'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? No
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Toxic friendship, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Violence, and Slavery
cozyscones'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: Ableism, Alcohol, Colonisation, Slavery, Classism, Gore, Sexual content, Death, Drug use, Violence, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Addiction, Confinement, Police brutality, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Body shaming, Torture, and Fatphobia
Minor: Vomit and Excrement
gurofl's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.75
I liked the character Anoor, the start of the relationship between the two main characters, the quest, and that the society is very diverse (both when it comes to identity and sexuality). And I would be interested to find out what happens next with the empire and the politics if I hadn't been so annoyed with the characters feeling like they're teenagers when they are 20-22.
It feels like this borders between adult and young adult fantasy. What I didn't like: the characters are a bit flat, things become very melodramatic at times, and the characters' mood swings a lot very fast.
The ending was quite interesting, but the juvenile feel of things is putting me off continuing with this series.
Graphic: Torture and Colonisation
Moderate: Classism and Drug use
Minor: Ableism, Body horror, Racism, Confinement, Fatphobia, Genocide, Kidnapping, Addiction, and Police brutality
burstofhope's review
- 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? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Drug use and Confinement
Moderate: Addiction, Blood, Drug abuse, Violence, Racial slurs, Slavery, Racism, and Alcohol
Minor: Abandonment, Ableism, Self harm, Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Cursing, Colonisation, Classism, Sexual content, Hate crime, Death, and Child death