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midnacine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
When I first started reading this I thought Auren, the main character, was annoying and a little stupid. I felt like stuff just happened around her and it didn't make sense for the book to be written from her perspective. I had to continuously remind myself she had been through traumatic events and was clinging to any source of safety she could find- as someone who's been in abusive situations, this part really hit home.
Then in the final third, she starts becoming proactive instead of reactive, and all of the world and character building from the first two thirds build up to have you root for Auren to grow.
If this was a hard read for you, know that the second and third books are so much better, but it is important for you to read this before those so you have a more comprehensive understanding of Auren's inner turmoil. Trust me, just keep reading and you'll fall in love like I did.
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Grief, and Gaslighting
Minor: Child abuse, Trafficking, and Death of parent
eevacasey's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Gore, Infertility, Infidelity, Grief, Murder, and Classism
hannahbaysinger_jones's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Infertility, Grief, and Gaslighting
michellemaas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Second read: 4 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Gild suffers from first book syndrome. By that, I mean that there's not a lot of stuff actually happening, more so just exposition. I consider the first book in a fantasy series the sacrificial lamb. You have to speed through it to get to the good stuff that usually starts during book 2.
I heard the rest of the series is amazing, and the author is clearly very creative so I am willing to hold off my harsh judgments until I've read books 2 and 3. Like I said there seems to be a lot of potential since it is an interesting concept and the author is good. But just reviewing this book individually, it's very meh. Not bad but not good. I am hopeful for the rest of the series though.
*Edit
I have since read Glint and Gleam and I fully stand by my earlier assessment. The first book just had to set up the world-building and as soon as you get to book 2 the plot starts to kick in. I would definitely say that this series is worth the read, so don't judge it based on the first book alone. At least read until book 2 until you make any decisions.
Also, the series gave me strong From Blood and Ash vibes so if you enjoyed that series I think you will like the Plated Prisoner series and vice versa.
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Body shaming and Mental illness
chellbear's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Blood, Trafficking, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
ktbookbug'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
4.5
I give up to 1 star for each category: characters, world, plot, my emotional investment, and my entertainment/interest level. My rating break down is below.
REVIEW
This book shocked me, thrilled me, had me on the edge of my seat, surprised me, and had me running to get the next book. Half the book is getting inside the head of the main character, setting up the story, etc. and the rest is just a series of "What's going to happen next, oh I can't look, shoot I'm reading I have to look, oh that wasn't so bad--OH MY GOSH!" The best way to read this is to go in blind so I don't want to say too much, but please check out the content warnings/trigger warnings because those are absolutely necessary to know. Here's my rating break down:
- Characters - 1 star
- You can tell a great deal of thought went into each character, no matter how small, and their role in this story.
- World - 1 star
- This will make more sense when you read it, but I love how our understanding of the main character's world is limited to what she's experiencing so that when you get flashbacks you're experiencing them as a memory too instead of learning about the world for reference.
- Plot - 0.5 star
- I loved where the story took me and there were awesome surprises, but there were a couple of times where I thought to myself, "Is this a plot twist or did the author just forget to leave some breadcrumbs for me to follow. Not only did I not see it coming, but it felt a bit like a deus ex machina (essentially, a feeling like, "Oh, well that was convenient..."). Instead of being this WOW moment I was kind of confused. Other surprising moments were done incredibly well though.
- Emotional Investment - 1 star
- I had to drag myself away at points because I was so incredibly connected to this story and knew it had the potential to destroy me, especially at some of the darker parts I could see coming up. I would get some fresh air, drink some water, make sure I had nothing else planned and that no one would come and bother me before I started reading again.
- Entertainment/Interest - 1 star
- This was one of the few books I've read where even the internal dialog of the main character working through something was entertaining. Sometimes it can get repetitive or boring and you just want new information to be introduced already! But I hung on every thought the main character had because I was going through this story with her. Anytime she would figure something out or have a revelation I'd be like, "Oh good I didn't know how we were going to find our way out of this." When I wasn't reading it I was thinking about it, and that's the first thing I look for in this category.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Trafficking, Grief, and Gaslighting
clementine_reading13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Moderate: Infidelity and Alcohol
Minor: Infertility
narsere's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Grief, and Murder
pb914's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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
Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Gaslighting