Reviews

Counterpart by Ella Pyne

Only show reviews with written explanations

Actual 2.5

SPOILERS
.
.
.
S P O I L E R S
.
.
.

I absolutely loved this concept! The royal siblings who are pitted against each other and yet still care for each other? Fantastic. Sofie and Elina were so well done and heartbreaking and I’m glad Elina got her vengeance. The mothers being indifferent? Angsty, loved it! I’m hoping the next book will really delve into the worldbuilding and Leda’s newfound freedom because I absolutely adored that Leda chose herself and her freedom over a man, 10/10 Leda

Sadly at the end, this wasn’t for me. I found Azaria a far more interesting character and I wish I could’ve read her POV because she could be a really complex and nuanced character. Leda was too much of an observer for me, I wanted her to take more action the entire time and get more involved in her escape/rebellion/sibling conflicts. I seriously loved that she chose herself at the end! I also had many questions during the reading about the story and relationships and interactions and sadly it took me out of the story such as important information being given to the reader at least three separate times in a chapter which took away the intensity of the information

I do like the relation between Pyrrhus and Pyrrhic victories, nice!

marcellemml's review

Go to review page

adventurous emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

I think it's 4,5. This is what I expect to find in a romantasy. It has a good world development, not that deep, but not shallow in a way that I keep asking for more information. The romance is a slow burn with stakes, and Leda, the female main character, is not 100% sure she can trust Pyrrhus (my god, what a silly name, lol), the male main character. As the daughter of one of the king's royal mistress, she's bound to be sacrificed to the Gods in the following year, so her sister can fulfill her role as one of the royal heirs But Leda is planning her escape, and she can't risk the king discovering her plan.

The sibling relationship is so good, so full of angst, I was rooting for a redemption arc. Azaria and Leda reminded me of Zuko and Azula, if Azula had some redeemable qualities. And of course there's mommy issues, daddy issues, Pyrrhus becomes the second friend Leda ever had, and the friendship and impossibility of their relationship made me cry a little bit.

It's not a 5 stars because I wish the social aspects had more impact, that the parallels between fiction world and real world were explored. Not that there isn't is just that it's not deep. I still really liked the book, and immediately grabbed book 2 on KU (the whole series is available for free with KU).

marysimii's review

Go to review page

I really liked it for about 5-10% but after the LI was introduced I feel like things just started to go awry.
She has this strange attraction which I found odd, and I didn't like how random it was but I let that slide. I really enjoyed their interactions together and honestly like the romance it's just Leda. Leda is the PROBLEM.
She kept picking fights with him for NO REASON. And then she'd look back on the fight and be like 'I can't believe we had that fight 😢' WDYM WE??? It was just YOU🫵🏾.
There's this scene near the 50% mark where she gets whipped half to death. While tended to her wounds he finds out that she's taking something that isn't too good and decideds to consult with Royal medic and get her to wean of that substance since it will 'kill her by 30' he tells her about this when she wakes up and she's angry, and starts going on about how he's 'babying her' and tells him to stop.
I didn't think any of his actions were babying, but even if I did, the writer didn't have any build up to this- in the first 50% she never talks about him babying her but then has a whole Thing out of nowhere.
That's not even the most egregious one. Right before that one she says this in response to him asking how long she's been using this substance:

"So the royal tutor is curious, is he? I'm surprised you weren't able to tell immediately from the shape of my eyeballs or the length of my hair given your extensive studies." He didn't rise to her bait, and she couldn't help but be grudgingly impressed by his self-control.

'Bait'.So she's doing this on purpose.
But what is she trying to accomplish? What do you get out of making your ONLY FRIEND angry. The person who saved from being burnt to death. The person who goes out of his way to help you. The person who helps you read when it's forbidden for you to do so. The person who is tending to your wounds. WHY?
And she doesn't think anything of it, nothing.

Dropped this shi at 54%
I want my £4 back 😭

laurenslovelylittlelife's review

Go to review page

dark tense medium-paced

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

4.5

c_jansson's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

4.0

maddiegkd's review

Go to review page

dark emotional medium-paced

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

3.75

teeeeeeja's review

Go to review page

This story is so unique and the relationship built between the MC and their siblings was interesting. There is so much nuance in the dynamics and the way they progress throughout the book is compelling. I do wish there was more information about the surrounding areas, though it’s not that important for the story. But the detail about the family’s life was really strong. The ending was satisfying, and leaves you in a place to want to know how things will end up.