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brassmonkey's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Rape, Blood, Antisemitism, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Animal cruelty, Miscarriage, Stalking, and War
seadeepy'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: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Antisemitism, Kidnapping, and Death of parent
Moderate: Sexual assault and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Rape and War
readwithde'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? No
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Torture, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, and Classism
Minor: Confinement, Gore, Kidnapping, and Gaslighting
vonny3492'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
4.75
Graphic: Antisemitism
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Religious bigotry, and War
goizi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Gaslighting, and War
Minor: Death of parent
brie333's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
- the book was a bit too long, but somehow the ending was too short. I wish we could’ve gotten a more fleshed out ending. I came to love these characters and it was hard walking away when they were so unsettled. I also feel like some of the lore or the whys behind actions was not discussed enough, but we have whole flashbacks or memories on the clothing everyone wore. Sometimes it felt like the author focused undue attention on building the setting/visuals.
- that being said I loved the set up to the overall story, the world building, and Miryems storyline in particular. Novik is brilliant at details and really bring everything to life for you. Her descriptions felt familiar and well explored. I just wish this wasn’t always at the expense of explanations of how things came to be.
- I purposely picked this book because it was a standalone but I’m now wishing for a sequel to flesh out the ending and explain some of the castoff plot lines.
- I can handle multi-povs but with nothing more than a page break, sometimes I would be deep in a paragraph before getting clarity on who was speaking. I think maybe the intention was to keep time moving and explain everything while keeping the reader a little on the outside of the story. But for me, it was a little dizzying. I understand that there was language choices and symbols that differentiated the povs but while each person had a distinct voice I will admit to being a little lost at some points of the story.
- Overall, a great story, one of the best I’ve read this year. Well crafted and complex. One I would read again but the pacing and abrupt ending to all but one plotlline took away a star. I don’t want to leave the impression that this is not a book to pickup. It absolutely is and I highly recommend it. Novik can write and write well. I just found myself wanting to walk in her cold winter woods a little longer and with a little more knowledge of how we got there.
- this has nothing to do with the author but I was told this was a fantasy with romance and I completely disagree. It’s a fantasy retelling that speaks on love, found family, and how far someone/anyone is willing to go when more is demanded of you. From any side. What little romance there is, and I do mean little, it’s serviceable to the story but not important enough to merit a claim
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Death of parent
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Physical abuse, Violence, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and War
maziodynes'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
The main heroines are all openly flawed or have massive obstacles to overcome. Seeing these women change for the better (but sometimes a little worse!) as the story progressed was an absolute joy. Not to be corny, but I think female empowerment really resonates here. These characters felt incredibly realistic to their unique circumstances. And the last chunk of the story was one of the most satisfying endings I have read in a long time!
A masterpiece standalone fantasy that everyone who loves fantasy and fairy tale retellings needs to read! full stop!!!
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Death of parent
Moderate: Animal death, Misogyny, Antisemitism, War, and Injury/Injury detail
archaicgambit'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? It's complicated
5.0
Mirantius's POV was super fascinating. I loved how every character made difficult choices, and even worked against each other at different points, but you could feel their reasoning was completely sound. Irina and Miryem are brilliant and cutthroat but in different ways. I loved Miryem's selfishness borne out of her parent's selflessness, and how it was both a flaw and a strength. These characters are so rich and complicated.
Graphic: Torture and Antisemitism
Moderate: Violence and War
Minor: Rape
taviarz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, and War
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Domestic abuse