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ameydireads's review
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 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.”
“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.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Pregnancy
qrschulte's review against another edition
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.
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
Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual content, Vomit, Medical content, and Pregnancy
Minor: Miscarriage
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
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