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hollowhallow13's review
adventurous
emotional
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, War, and Injury/Injury detail
bookishflower's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
*SPOILERS*
I hate writing reviews of books I didn’t like, but these are my thoughts.
This series had potential, but was stunted by character assassinations, unexplained changes in character arcs and an anticlimactic ending.
The first offender is Rhen. While being the primary and successful love interest, he is a walking (and flying) red flag who goes from being untrustworthy and unlikable to outright cruel and torturous with little explanation or reason beyond unnecessary plot tension. (Also, the comparisons to Tamlin that could be made are well founded).
This is made worse by Grey being x100 times more likeable than Rhen in the first 2 books at least. But, again, his character is tainted the moment he rejects Harper and throws their friendship and development down the drain. I was rooting for Zo to end up with Harper in the end.
Speaking of Harper, the strength, stubbornness and fire she shows in the first book disappears the moment you close the last page and instead we get a passive character who defers to Rhen and is sidelined. What’s worse is how her bravery and headstrong attitude that praised her as a “[princess by spirit and not birth]” before, becomes twisted into a weakness and easy dismissal by other characters and the plot.
If the books explored the trauma and ptsd the characters face more and reflected on how this changed their characterisation I might have been more invested, but instead we are offered little to no explanation with a finale attempting to balance somewhere between ya and adult and succeeding with neither.
While book 2 was mostly filler and travelling, it was saved by the introduction of a new romance plot and repartee between characters. Unfortunately, book 3’s filler and posturing about war does not redeem itself but falls flat on its face. War? Never comes. Brotherly tension? Just needed to be locked in a room face-to-face to resolve. Overpowered enchantress? Gone. The true nail in the coffin for me though was the surprise pregnancy trope, I was done after that.
This series had its moments and potential, but unfortunately the combination of an anticlimactic finale and character assassination made it disappointing.
I hate writing reviews of books I didn’t like, but these are my thoughts.
This series had potential, but was stunted by character assassinations, unexplained changes in character arcs and an anticlimactic ending.
The first offender is Rhen. While being the primary and successful love interest, he is a walking (and flying) red flag who goes from being untrustworthy and unlikable to outright cruel and torturous with little explanation or reason beyond unnecessary plot tension. (Also, the comparisons to Tamlin that could be made are well founded).
This is made worse by Grey being x100 times more likeable than Rhen in the first 2 books at least. But, again, his character is tainted the moment he rejects Harper and throws their friendship and development down the drain. I was rooting for Zo to end up with Harper in the end.
Speaking of Harper, the strength, stubbornness and fire she shows in the first book disappears the moment you close the last page and instead we get a passive character who defers to Rhen and is sidelined. What’s worse is how her bravery and headstrong attitude that praised her as a “[princess by spirit and not birth]” before, becomes twisted into a weakness and easy dismissal by other characters and the plot.
If the books explored the trauma and ptsd the characters face more and reflected on how this changed their characterisation I might have been more invested, but instead we are offered little to no explanation with a finale attempting to balance somewhere between ya and adult and succeeding with neither.
While book 2 was mostly filler and travelling, it was saved by the introduction of a new romance plot and repartee between characters. Unfortunately, book 3’s filler and posturing about war does not redeem itself but falls flat on its face. War? Never comes. Brotherly tension? Just needed to be locked in a room face-to-face to resolve. Overpowered enchantress? Gone. The true nail in the coffin for me though was the surprise pregnancy trope, I was done after that.
This series had its moments and potential, but unfortunately the combination of an anticlimactic finale and character assassination made it disappointing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Death, Gore, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Vomit
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Miscarriage, Rape, Terminal illness, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
andromeda_1998's review against another edition
adventurous
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
2.5
In this review, I will review the last book but also the series and well I have some opinions…
First things first, Rhen isn’t cute, or “broody” he is abusief AF. It’s almost always emotional but that’s still abuse. Yes ,the character has gone through a lot of crap and his mental stability is well broken, but that doesn’t excuse the way he treated Grey and Harper. This series is the typical YA fantasy with an abusief relationship that gets romanticized. So, now on to the book:
Worldbuilding
I can get into detail about the worldbuilding but I’ve done that before. The world is like every other basic fantasy realm and I did enjoy it. I
mean it’s why I read fantasy but
in this case a lot of details are missing.
Writing style
I enjoy the writing style of this series. It’s fast and easy but it’s not unique. That it’s wrong ofcourse, there is just not a lot to say about it.
Characters
Tbh I’m conflicted about the characters. There are some characters I like, like Harper and Grey but I dislike Rhen. I hate him even. He is the typical edgelord toxic straight male character a lot of these kinds of fantasy romance stories seem to have. These kinds of relationships in media just give teenagers such a wrong image of what love should be like. This trend is worrisome…
Recommendations
No, it’s not an amazing series. It’s not a series I want teens to read. The series is at best okay, but toxic.
First things first, Rhen isn’t cute, or “broody” he is abusief AF. It’s almost always emotional but that’s still abuse. Yes ,the character has gone through a lot of crap and his mental stability is well broken, but that doesn’t excuse the way he treated Grey and Harper. This series is the typical YA fantasy with an abusief relationship that gets romanticized. So, now on to the book:
Worldbuilding
I can get into detail about the worldbuilding but I’ve done that before. The world is like every other basic fantasy realm and I did enjoy it. I
mean it’s why I read fantasy but
in this case a lot of details are missing.
Writing style
I enjoy the writing style of this series. It’s fast and easy but it’s not unique. That it’s wrong ofcourse, there is just not a lot to say about it.
Characters
Tbh I’m conflicted about the characters. There are some characters I like, like Harper and Grey but I dislike Rhen. I hate him even. He is the typical edgelord toxic straight male character a lot of these kinds of fantasy romance stories seem to have. These kinds of relationships in media just give teenagers such a wrong image of what love should be like. This trend is worrisome…
Recommendations
No, it’s not an amazing series. It’s not a series I want teens to read. The series is at best okay, but toxic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
mybookthrone's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
lighthearted
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Emotional abuse, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Murder