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vagaybond's review against another edition
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Slavery, Vomit, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
bellagothh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Abandonment
evelynyle_88's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Racism, Sexism, and Kidnapping
Minor: Homophobia, Vomit, and Death of parent
ree_the_owlgirl's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, Grief, and Death of parent
lilly_anne's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Cursing, Misogyny, Sexism, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Vomit and Stalking
freddybingsu's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Kidnapping, Stalking, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Gun violence, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
gemstonejasper's review
- 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
Was this book well written? No. Did it have good worldbuilding? No. Did I feel like I was in the early 1900s? No. Was it 100 pages too long? Yes. Could I predict the entire plot? Yes. But could I put it down? No.
I read this in three days (and it's around 500 pages). That's saying something because I have dyslexia and am a really slow reader. The story follows the love story of Jack and Wilhelm, the assistants to two rival magicians performing at the same fair in 1909. I personally think that's all you should go in knowing.
If I were a critic and rating this book solely on technical aspects, I would give it a 2.5-3 star rating. The writing is nothing special. It seemed like the characters repeated the same thing too many times. Therefore it could have probably been 100 pages shorter. I got immensely frustrated with every major character. It didn't even come close to making me feel like it took place in 1909 Seattle. I could predict the entire plot from a mile away (except for how exactly they defeated the villian).
That being said, I'm not a critic. I'm a general reader who picked up this book to be entertained. So I chose to rate it based on my enjoyment level. 4.5 stars. I can't pinpoint exactly why, but I really did enjoy this book and would read it again. I literally couldn't rip myself away. Maybe it was the two adorable queer romances. Maybe it was the magical feel of the world. Maybe I was genuinely terrified of the villian. Maybe I even grew attached to the two main characters and wanted to see them succeed.
There is one reason I'm not giving this a 5 star and that is because of a conscious choice the author made. The story takes place in 1909, meaning no person of color would have been treated as mildly as Ruth was treated by the white characters. There is also no way that the two queer couples (one of which is interracial) could have been out in the open without severe consequences. The author's note at the back of the book explains his reasoning behind this. He wanted to write a happy queer story. While I respect the decision he made, I also would not have chosen that direction myself. Because of this, I had a hard time immersing myself in the story. I had to take half a star for that decision.
2nd Reading Edit
I think I was too harsh in my first review. I don't think I was quite fair. During my first read-through, I read the physical book. It felt long and sluggish and like it was repeating things over and over. This time around, I listened to the audiobook and I think that's the way to go. The audio felt so much smoother and worked much better for me. That being said, the guy who voiced Wilhelm's chapters didn't feel right. He just didn't seem to match his personality. He was a good voice actor, just not quite right for Wilhelm in my opinion. The guy who read Jack's chapters matched pretty well
Graphic: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Medical content, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, and Sexual harassment
monniebiloney's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I loved the setting alot, and William and Jack were cute together. I loved how even though the "romance" was the main motivator for the main characters actions (it's because Jack liked William that he decided that he had to help William away from his' abusive "family", and it's because William was in love with Jack that he was willing to brave against his abusive "Father" ).
The best part of this book was definitely the climax,
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racism, Self harm, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, and Lesbophobia
johnnyharker's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Murder, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Body horror, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Kidnapping, Stalking, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death of parent
archcon's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Racism, Sexism, Kidnapping, Murder, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Homophobia, Misogyny, Lesbophobia, and Fire/Fire injury