marsh_mall0w's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse and Bullying
Moderate: Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Animal cruelty
Minor: Animal death
cgreenstein's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
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? Yes
I often enjoy one perspective a lot more than another when reading books with multiple narrators, but all 3 of these were good. They were also distinct from each other, which is another thing that I often do not find to be the case in books with multiple narrators. This is definitely a Juliet Marillier book, with the hallmarks of her work that you'd expect and want if you're picking up a novel of hers. She delivers so consistently, it's impressive!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying
Moderate: Child abuse, Animal cruelty, and Violence
clarabooksit's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Sexism, Misogyny, and Physical abuse
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
thoughtsstained's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-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? No
3.0
Likes:
Character growth. I was really pleasantly surprised by the character growth. I always liked Liobhan, but I really disliked Dau at the beginning. Yet, he ended up being one of my favorite characters as we got to learn more about him and as he was challenged and grew. I thought the character growth (for all three of our main characters, including Liobhan's brother, Brocc), was really, really well done.
Character growth. I was really pleasantly surprised by the character growth. I always liked Liobhan, but I really disliked Dau at the beginning. Yet, he ended up being one of my favorite characters as we got to learn more about him and as he was challenged and grew. I thought the character growth (for all three of our main characters, including Liobhan's brother, Brocc), was really, really well done.
Multi-POV structure. Similar to the vein above, I don't think this could have been told well without the multi-POV structure that it used. Getting to see the perspectives of all three characters was vital to me understanding them and growing to root for them.
Dislikes:
Pacing. I did find myself struggling at times to want to read this book, because it just felt like it took forever to really get the plot moving.
Dislikes:
Pacing. I did find myself struggling at times to want to read this book, because it just felt like it took forever to really get the plot moving.
Myself (again). Also, I pulled a me and didn't look into anything about this book, aside from, "Hey, book bloggers I know like it, so imma like it, too." I didn't realize it was YA until I started reading it and was like, "Um, wow, I know it can blend, but this really feels like a YA read to me...". Obviously confirmed my own suspicions when I actually looked at the book description. *facepalm* (Not that YA is bad! I just haven't been into YA as much in the past few years, so I think that's why I didn't enjoy this as much.)
Rating:
Again, another solid 3.5 gem read! Though I felt like it dragged in spots and I had to check my expectations after not doing any digging into the novel, I did generally enjoy it. Plus, it's the first book that made me cry in a LONG time--like, sitting in my office at work and having to pause to try and not cry harder, type crying. That was really unexpected, but when Dau becomes your favorite character and you learn more about him and a certain, unexpected childhood tragedy, you'll know why (please head content warnings above, though).
Rating:
Again, another solid 3.5 gem read! Though I felt like it dragged in spots and I had to check my expectations after not doing any digging into the novel, I did generally enjoy it. Plus, it's the first book that made me cry in a LONG time--like, sitting in my office at work and having to pause to try and not cry harder, type crying. That was really unexpected, but when Dau becomes your favorite character and you learn more about him and a certain, unexpected childhood tragedy, you'll know why (please head content warnings above, though).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Animal death, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Rape
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