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abicaro17's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
fannehsm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Graphic: Blood and Murder
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Violence
2blueshoes's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Somewhere along the recent journey of reading fantasy romances about “morally ambiguous shadow zaddies…” I have come to the conclusion that I do in fact require SOME morality to be present in order to root for characters.
In so many ways this book aligns with very typical fantasy tropes:
1. A “feminist for her time” heroine is thrust into a situation where she is competing for power, and finds love along the way.
2. A psychologically tortured hero in a position of political power finds himself captivated by the heroine who originally wont give him the time of day.
3. They are both attractive. Various plot points keep them apart. Lots of longing glances occur. They slowly reveal their true selves to each other. Meanwhile, larger forces threaten their lives and happiness. Happy ending.
Yes, great, sign me up. 👍🏻
Here’s where the tropes end: these characters do not abide by (traditional western) morality. They do not root for the underdogs. They do not seek fairness. They actively pursue injustice to benefit themselves. They are unrepentant in murder and celebrate their success in silencing anyone who questions the monarchy. There is a “Robin Hood” type character who is trying to help poor people, and they happily
I mean, at least they are aligned in their shared values… I guess?
There are a few things to love about this book.
- The author has chosen to write a heroine who is liberated in her body and sexuality, and who knows her own worth, which I applaud. (Side note: despite this, this book is fully fade-to-black when it comes to intimacy scenes.)
- While being an absolute dick to everyone else, the heroine does champion her two closest friends (while also kind of making fun of them in her head).
- There is only a very small element of magic in the story, but it’s a new take. There is some interesting fashion stuff if you are into that, and I only saw half of the surprise twist ending in advance.
If you love stories about really unusual characters, perhaps you’ll love this.
For me, this love story was believable - but I simply didn’t want to believe in it.
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Death of parent and Classism
Minor: Violence and Sexual harassment
allisonsmith120's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Sexual content, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder
kate_arts's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
In the dedication of the book the author says this is a Slytherin Romance. Because of this I kept envisioning Kallias as a dark Harry Potter. Which was at best funny and at worst distracting. Honestly if you read fan fiction you’ll be able to stomach this book. It’s definitely an ok romantasy book. I’ve definitely read worse. I think my biggest gripe is that the author repeatedly addresses the sexism in the fantasy world but actively portrays the classism and xenophobic in the book as a good thing. And like yeah these people are running a kingdom that has conquered a lot of the surrounding kingdoms so like if the shoe fits, but sometimes it was hard to stomach.
Graphic: Sexism, Xenophobia, Sexual harassment, and Classism
Moderate: Violence and Injury/Injury detail
saoreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Alcohol
bubbabook's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Violence and Murder
mengzhenreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
The characters’ motivations were completely half-baked, there was no tension in the story, and the vaugely problematic white-woman feminism added nothing to the story. The ‘fantasy’ part of the book is non-existent and the romance in theory would’ve been intriguing if the story had an ounce of conflict or tension.
Graphic: Death and Murder
Moderate: Violence and Death of parent
Minor: Blood
baksaydora's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Misogyny, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse
vjlp22_reader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Death, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Grief and Death of parent