Reviews with content warning for Torture - A Vow So Bold and Deadly

Reviews tagging 'Torture'

A Vow So Bold and Deadly by Brigid Kemmerer

24 reviews

justagirlwithbooks's review against another edition

3.75

"One poor choice shouldn't undo a thousand good ones."

Oh man, there's a lot to say about this book, but for that, I need to go into spoilers... But the non-spoiler summary is that this book felt rushed at the end, and I didn't enjoy Lia Mara's pov, which is a shame because I liked her in the last book. This finale as a finale of a series felt rushed and unresolved, probably due to Brigid Kemmerer planning a sequel series with Forging Silver into Stars. I don't know if I'm going to read that book or not. Now, onto spoilers...

All these characters are flawed, and they all made choices, some of which, I don't agree with. Grey's development felt OOC to me. I get that he's upset with Rhen, but did he really have to be upset with Harper, too? Speaking of Rhen, he deserved a better ending. I wasn't picking a side in this book, I didn't choose team Grey or team Rhen, I just wanted everything to be OK. I couldn't help but feel for Rhen after everything he's been through. And I don't like how Grey became King in the end, because it doesn't make sense: he's inexperienced, he said it himself. A similar situation unfolded in We Free the Stars, but in that book, althoughI didn't like it, it made sense. In this book, it would have made sense if Rhen and Grey's roles were reversed at the end, because Rhen has done so much for his kingdom. I also really enjoyed Rhen and Harper's relationship development, because it felt realistic after everything they've been through.

This book definitely could have benefitted from an extra 50 pages like A Curse so Dark and Lonely and A Heart so Fierce and Broken had, to help the pacing issues. The writing was good, but the pacing fell flat at the end. I was expecting this book to be better than it was, so I'm a bit disappointed.

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ameydireads's review

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adventurous emotional 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

2.25

“You looked like you were going to level the courtyard.”

“For you, my lady, I would have leveled the entire city.”

Hmmm… what can I say? I am quite disappointed. The story was all over the place. It felt shallow and ridiculous. Apparently, Rhen had to consent to being cursed and he did because he was afraid for his life. What the heck? I don’t like how magic works in this world. And Lilith is very monotonous and has no depth as a villain. Her only goals in life are revenge and going to extremes torturing Rhen.

The ending was very anticlimactic, rushed and uneventful. Even intended plot twists left me cold. The story also doesn’t deal with all the supposed opposition towards Grey and the politics within Syhl Shallow. It’s left open, probably to be discussed in the next books.

And what’s up with the sudden pregnancy and Grey actually becoming king?

And Harper was frustrating at times as well, especially when she misunderstands Rhen’s intentions and says things like:
“And I'm the idiot who stayed here. Because I believed in Rhen.”

Ugh, come on. But on the other hand, she was determined to help him whenever time calls for it.

To be honest, Harper’s cerebral palsy felt too forced. I do believe it’s good to shine light on this subject and to raise awareness, because I did not know much about this condition prior to reading this book. The only thing I learned was that people with this condition can have more difficulty doing particular things but that does not mean it’s impossible. After the first book, however, there is almost no focus on cerebral palsy except for the occasional surprise of characters when they are reminded of Harper’s condition.

Let’s end on a more positive note. One thing that did warm my heart is when

Rhen and Grey were being all brotherly at the end.

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luna_lovelace's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad medium-paced

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

4.75

I finally got the courage to finish the last book in the series. I wasn't ready for the journey to end!

I love Grey and I especially love Grey and Lia Mara together. He doesn't undermine her decisions, on the contrary, he supports her in not using violence to rule. It was impressive how Lia Mara slowly gained trust from her people.

I felt for her when she had a hard time knowing people saw her as weak, yet she never gave up to resort to violence.

I love Harper too, but there were times I couldn't stand Rhen's decision making and I wished Harper would speak up more like she did on the first book.

There are some loved characters that did not make it. They were brave until the very end.

I'm satisfied with how the story ended, but do I wish there was a fourth book? Absolutely! I feel like there is enough questions left unanswered to have a fourth book.

Especially when Rhen kept feeling like he didn't know what else to do but be King. Also, Lia Mara seemed to worry about her pregnancy due to her child being born with magic. I also don't trust her sister to hold down the fort while she's gone. Iisak's son also doesn't trust Grey so I wonder how that will affect them.

I'm not holding my breath for a fourth book, but I definitely see potential for one!

Content Warnings

jackiepreston's review against another edition

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dark emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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_alyssar_'s review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

4.0

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qrschulte's review against another edition

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adventurous dark slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

It was decent. Not great, but okay.

What I liked:
- Finally some steaminess for the romances.
- Harper and Rhen finally addressing their utter lack of communication.

What I didn’t like:
- How anti-climactic the end battle was.
- The body horror.

Content Warnings

eve_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Overall Thoughts:
⁕ The good news is that this book finally gave insight to the erratic and abrupt change in Rhen's behavior that occurred in A Heart So Fierce and Broken. The bad news is that the explanation was rushed and sloppy. I think had she included the additional narratives of Rhen and Bre in the previous book, it would have been more believable.

⁕ I am relieved that this book focused less on travelling and more on the grander politics of two nations.

⁕ SPOILER: I love that the ending is an imperfect sort of happy. The characters obviously still have a lot of healing to do after the trauma of the last two books and, even though they ultimately make up, it's clear that there's still so much they'll have to overcome together. Kemmerer's conclusion is unique to the YA genre in that it really honors the impact of war, death, etc. instead of sweeping their circumstances under the rug in favor of a golden sunset.

To read my full review, visit: https://evereads.online/
For regular book-related content, follow my Instagram account: @eve_reads

Content Warnings

queer_bookwyrm's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

5 ⭐ CW: violence, torture, descriptions of blood and gore, death, minor sexual content (off page sex)

A Vow So Bold and Deadly by Brigid Kemmerer is the third and final book in the Cursebreakers series. I have loved this series from the very beginning, and none of these books let me down! This series just feels so magical and homey to me (despite a dark sorceress torturing everyone).

We pick up with Grey and Lia Mara in Syhl Shallow after the events of the last book. Lia Mara is struggling with how to be a queen without being like her mother, while keeping the respect and trust of her people. Grey is struggling with gaining the trust of the army he's supposed to be leading to Emberfall in order to claim his birthright. He also continues to try to figure out his magic.

Rhen and Harper are dealing with Lilith yet again (dis bitch won't die!), As she pushes Rhen's hand toward a war against his brother, and threatening Harper. All of our characters have so much growth this book, especially Rhen and Grey. Everyone loses their virginity this book (except for Rhen. Princes are notoriously hos lol), although it all happens off page. I just love that the love interests are full people in their own right and don't exist just to further the male characters. I love how strong all the women in this series are.

Happy that Tycho, my sweet boy, made it to the end, but I think Iisak was done dirty. I don't know what to do with myself now that I'm done with this world for awhile. I can't wait to get into Forging Silver into Stars to learn more about the Syhl Shallow people!

Content Warnings

scarlett_f's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

LGBTq, cerebral palsy

Content Warnings

littletiramisu's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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