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30something_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
A runaway groom and the hunter sent to retrieve him.
Clandestine meeting in the forest.
Secret identities.
Mutual pining.
Huddling close while they camp outside. ("Only for warmth," they say! Not because they wanna hold each other tenderly.)
This was a delight. I would hazard to call this an accurate Historical- more historical adjacent. It was very A Knights Tale coded and I really loved that.
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Medical trauma, and Outing
haileeraye's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Gore, Sexual content, and Violence
callidoralblack's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Abandonment
jess_justmaybeperfect's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Child abuse
booksthatburn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is set up to have at least one sequel, though its particular story is self-contained. Rather than leave an obvious story hook open, it ends with the characters in new situations which grant the possibility of future events without demanding any particular follow up.
I love Penn and Raff, I like them as individual characters and I enjoy how well they work together. They each have very different relationships with their families. Penn seems to be close with two of his several siblings, despite neither showing up for very long. His father is terrible, rather unambiguously playing the villain. Raff has close and mostly loving relationships with his sister and brother, and, despite their differences, they seem to understand each other fairly well. Not much is shown of Raff's relationship with his father, but what is there seems to be filled with respect and care.
Other things I love, in no particular order: how much of the time is spent just traveling and sleeping in the woods and dealing with inns; the wound care towards the end of the book; the way Penn obviously grows as a person; the more subtle ways that Raff starts to trust in other peoples' competence.
This was great, I want more, and I'm eager for the sequel.
Graphic: Sexual content, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, and Classism
Minor: Child abuse, Vomit, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
bi_n_large's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Homophobia, Physical abuse, Violence, and Blood
ezwolf's review against another edition
- 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? No
2.75
This is one of those cases where I think it's just not for me. I cannot exactly explain why this didn't grab me, the best I can say is that I found it boring. I wasn't drawn to either Penn or Raff and so it made it hard to be interested in either point of view. By the time the story got to plot points I would have been interested in (like Penn's scars) I was 50% of the way through and I was already just reading for the sake of finishing the story.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harper 360 for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Homophobia, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Grief
Minor: Death, Suicidal thoughts, and Xenophobia
thaliareads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death, Homophobia, Death of parent, and War
cateemma's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Confinement, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Death of parent, and War
wilybooklover's review against another edition
4.0
However, the pacing felt a bit off. There was virtually no plot for the first three quarters of the book (which I actually loved, as a big fan of 'no plot just vibes' books) and then a lot of action and drama crammed into a final act that was drawn out far too long. At times the dialogue felt a bit clunky and there were some jarring POV switches, which I'm attributing to this being a debut.
I also wish the early mediaeval setting had been explored a little more in depth. It was really just scenery for the most part and could have been set at any time pre-18th century given how little detail there is. There wasn't even a mention of the plague!
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal cruelty, Homophobia, Xenophobia, and Death of parent