Reviews with content warning for Racism - D'ombre et de vengeance

Reviews tagging 'Racism'

D'ombre et de vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi

21 reviews

abby_can_read's review against another edition

adventurous medium-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? It's complicated

3.0

📱
After finishing the first book, I had high exceptions and I don't think this book lived up to them. This was a decent book and there were parts that I enjoyed reading.

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ci_eden's review against another edition

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adventurous dark hopeful inspiring sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

This took me a year to read due to my ADHD but definitely a great sequel! I could definitely feel how the characters matured throughout the book. The smaller chapters spur me on and I feel like the POV is evenly spread between each character. I honestly can't wait for this to get picked up for a TV show, it'll be absolutely stunning. The way Adeyemi described things, I can truly visualise it in my head.

The fact that the war technically hasn't ended and that they're on a boat in the sea?! Who is this new player Tomi, I need to read the next one right now!!

Also I love how flawed Zelie is. I love a strong woman going through shit, and she doesn't want to run away anymore, she found her purpose, fuck yeah! Although she has horrible taste in men. Also did NOT expect Amari to kill innocent people. Trauma and abuse really twists you.

These are tortured characters that just keep getting battered and abused. Children fighting wars, as the title says. I feel for them, I really do. I feel like their deaths are inevitable but I can't look away...

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sv_m04's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad 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

I really wanted to like this more since I love the worldbuilding and loved the first book. But in the end I think that maybe the author tried to do too many things at once and a lot of the character arcs felt rushed to me.

Amari suddenly becoming a mass murderer after one chapter where she was betrayed by Inan after fighting for peace the entire book felt wrong. Especially since she faced so much negativity because she wanted peace (something which I personally found hard to read, the hatred towards Amari before she turned bad).

I did really love Inan's character arc, it felt very natural and logical to me as did Ojore's, Nehanda and Mama Agba. I love the new cast (even if I find it hard to read

how they treat Amari

). The strongest elements in this book are not just the physical but the emotional battles as well. I love the romantic subplots and familial bonds this book introduced, though even more Iove the new magic lore and getting to see more Maji culture, though I don't like the

plottwist that they can bring people back from the dead. It lowers the stakes, makes the past deaths seem unnecessary and it mainly just feels like an excuse used by the writer to make Amari's deeds seem less awful. Even though that probably wasn't the intention. I am also sad to see Inan didn't get to shine as much this book.

Something I personally can't stand and never have liked are miscommunication tropes and this book is full of people misunderstanding each other and hating each other because of it, though it isn't a bad thing just a personal thing. It works extremely well in the context of the war and with these high stakes. I cried multiply times, once more mainly for Zélie.

Her character arc went all over the place and how she changed her mind was very frustrating at times, though very realistic. Still, my biggest frustration lies with the end and the sudden kidnapping by a third party. I don't feel like there was any buildup to that ending at all and it feels like a very cheap cliffhanger and a dissatisfying ending. That and the treatment of Amari are my biggest issues with this book.

I'm still very interested in seeing what comes next for these characters that I've grown so attached to.

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andromeda_1998's review against another edition

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dark tense 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? It's complicated

2.75

Well let’s say I’m conflicted, I liked children of blood and bone, it wasn’t the best book ever but I liked it still… but this sequel isn’t it for me and I don’t need to read book 3. I’m going to end things here. The characters where annoying, the plot was cluttered and the ending… well the ending was a dumpster fire 🔥. I wanted to love this book so badly or at least enjoy it but it just wasn’t for me.

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sometimes_samantha_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional 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? It's complicated

3.75

I enjoyed reading this second book! However it was constant pain of thinking: "WHY did they do/say THAT!?" the entire time. The character development was there but I don't really know exactly where the plot led to in the end. Well, it led me to a giant cliffhanger! I hope there will be a third because I've come to really enjoy the characters, even though they can be impulsive and annoying - actually, I love them just for the reason because it makes them feel more human. I want to know where their story takes them.

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internalnonsense's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional sad 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

3.0

3 feels pretty generous for how underwhelmed I am by this sequel, but disappointed expectations doesn't inherently diminish the quality. It did offer more diversity, more magic, more Mama Agba. There were good set piece moments and some compelling writing.

It just did not continue the story or the character's stories in a way I enjoyed or engaged with. Some characters are set back to square one, some are just pushed to the side, and others are jerked along as the plot requires. They introduced a lot of new characters who, with the exception of two more plot-relevant ones, blended together. The world building expanded some, but there wasn't a moment where I felt it really built from what's been established, as much as playing with new elements. One piece of backstory actively ruined a pretty essential element of the conflict for me. That all said, I do see the vision, the why of the overall story, and I can see of how it can arrive at the same place in a way that really satisfies. As for the last minute twist, I'm not going to say I saw it coming but it didn't catch me entirely off guard. It also justified Ronan's prominence, which felt like a sore thumb for me. Still, what foreshadowing there was was sparse and blunt so the twist still feels abrupt. Again, I can see how it could work, but right now it isn't and doesn't set up enough for the next book.

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