craftymxlibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
A solid 4.5. Rounded down because of Zelie's romances... Her relationship with Inan was just weird and too fast with little natural development, and the interaction between her and Roen is entirely too eyeroll-worthy. But the magic system, the quest, the world building, the pacing, the tragedy and triumph... All so amazingly perfect!
intoxicatedflower's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
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? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Police brutality, Racism, Torture, Death, Death of parent, Blood, Hate crime, Sexual harassment, Slavery, and Violence
minty's review against another edition
2.0
The metaphor here is thinly drawn--however, that's fine, because there's so much relevance. The author's note spells out exactly what she was talking about, but the persecution here could be applied to any number of groups.
I think that fantasy is just not my genre these days. This took itself SO SERIOUSLY and felt like a slog.
I think that fantasy is just not my genre these days. This took itself SO SERIOUSLY and felt like a slog.
megelsewhere's review against another edition
3.0
I really liked the world and the characters and I would recommend the book to others, with a few notes since it hit some of my pet peeves.
The internal monologues we hear are pretty repetitive- with so many new experiences I'm sure they were thinking new things more often. Once or twice characters are having a change of heart that we didn't hear about through the repetition, which felt whiplashy. I also get bothered when the odds are always completely against our heros but their wild plans work, over and over. A full risk analysis would likely not make good reading, and would probably make many adventure books much shorter and more depressing, so that's on me. Maybe just a plan b that's discussed, so my heros seem less naive after all they have been through? These are nitpicky details, though, this is a good book and I'm glad there will be more in this world.
The internal monologues we hear are pretty repetitive- with so many new experiences I'm sure they were thinking new things more often. Once or twice characters are having a change of heart that we didn't hear about through the repetition, which felt whiplashy. I also get bothered when the odds are always completely against our heros but their wild plans work, over and over. A full risk analysis would likely not make good reading, and would probably make many adventure books much shorter and more depressing, so that's on me. Maybe just a plan b that's discussed, so my heros seem less naive after all they have been through? These are nitpicky details, though, this is a good book and I'm glad there will be more in this world.
mimi_13's review against another edition
2.0
Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing bad about this book, it just didn’t catch my interest I guess? Or I don’t even know. It’s definitely not my preferred genre.
It’s a great book full of action, but I feel like nothing surprised me throughout the whole book (I DNFd it around page 350). I definitely get why people would enjoy it. I just didn’t. I feel like I was forcing myself to read it.
It’s a great book full of action, but I feel like nothing surprised me throughout the whole book (I DNFd it around page 350). I definitely get why people would enjoy it. I just didn’t. I feel like I was forcing myself to read it.
jess_y's review against another edition
Marking as NRN - think I’d like it better in print
annemariewellswriter's review against another edition
5.0
Really great allegory of any oppressor/oppressed cultures. The common tropes used (ignorant member of the oppressing group befriending a member of the oppressed group; oppressed group member helps the ignorant become aware; the now enlightened member of the oppressed group takes the charge to right the wrongs of the oppressing group) still felt fresh and I still found myself wondering what was going to happen even thought I kind of could tell what was going to happen. I didn't feel surprised by the story line, but I still enjoyed it.
I particularly appreciated the author's note calling upon the reader to see the characters in our reality when it comes to police brutality. It was a risk that could have prevented book sales and made the book unpublishable. It's not common to see such a blatantly political stance being taken.
I particularly appreciated the author's note calling upon the reader to see the characters in our reality when it comes to police brutality. It was a risk that could have prevented book sales and made the book unpublishable. It's not common to see such a blatantly political stance being taken.
kiperoo's review against another edition
5.0
I don't read a lot of fantasy, but CHILDREN OF BLOOD AND BONE sounded different enough for my tastes, and WOW, I am so, so glad I read. I loved everything about this book--the richly-drawn villains, the strong female characters, the culture, the language, the uniqueness of the magic. So much awesome here. Fans of YA fantasy will love this, but other non-fantasy fans will surely love it too. An absolute must-read!!!
larissachiara's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
2.5