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lanid'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? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Rape
Moderate: Body horror, Death, Gore, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Suicidal thoughts and Sexual harassment
ayuming_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
The info dumping could have been handled better, and the book’s magic system explained more.
There was too much action and I think it held the book back. The scenes where the characters are just having genuine dialogue with one another were the best parts of the book. There was little life elsewhere to be found.
Rune didn’t feel like a fully fleshed out character and neither did his companion Brand. They were very bland.
The rape scene felt out of nowhere and I’m not sure how I feel about how it was handled.
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment
abelh's review
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
frostfeather's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Murder, and Classism
Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Sexual harassment, and War
exlibriskai's review
- 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? No
4.0
Graphic: Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Blood
Minor: War
montyalmoro's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Kidnapping, and Sexual harassment
usually_sleep_deprived's review
- 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? No
5.0
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Sexual harassment
blynecessity's review
- 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? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Bullying, Violence, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual content, Torture, Kidnapping, and Sexual harassment
readundancies's review
- 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
4.25
Basically, there’s a lot to like.
I liked the characters, I liked Brand’s effervescent snark and impatience, Rune’s sass and never-ending walls that he’d built to protect himself. Their friendship was volatile but also so strong and endearing. Max and Quinn were sweethearts, Addam was a snack, the Tower was very domineering in this untouchable sort of way and I was into it. I dug it. I dug it hard. All of the characters had this depth to them, but it wasn’t not explored to any great degree, and yet it was enough to know that the potential was there.
The world building did not build in a conventional sense because the Tarot and Arcana are not so much the heart of this fantasy world, but rather the framework. There were no info dumps, no sweeping descriptions of setting, no deep dives into culture or history or customs. The reader has no one to hold their hand to introduce them to the world they’ve entered; there is simply plot and the barest amount of context from a world building perspective. Things just simply are as they are and plot ensues whether or not you comprehend what is happening or even how. This works for such a plot driven narrative but it also means that exposition is at a bare minimum and that the pacing is beyond fast. It wasn’t rushed but it did feel like I was unintentionally not getting the whole picture.
The world building is also rather choppy. Which is to say, it was very vast in what it aimed to encompass and because of that, there were entirely too many aspects of the world that could be referenced back to. But because there was so much potentially to cover, the callbacks that were chosen felt disjointed and lacked fluidity. They were just not as tightly structured as they could’ve been. Nothing was reinforced in a manner that felt natural, almost as if key aspects of the world were forgotten about and then all of the sudden were remembered and inserted back into the plot in a seemingly haphazard and inadvertent fashion. They were not actually forgotten about though, but rather as if they’d been set aside for later use except when they were reinstated it was not where they were initially intended to be and thus it felt off. A perfect example of this was whenever the Companion bond between Rune and Brand was mentioned. It didn’t natural to frame it in the way the writing did, but it wasn’t ineffective at progressing the plot either. It’s a strange writing choice from the author and it takes some getting used to. By the end of the novel I felt more acclimated towards it but I was also just so aware of when it occurred. It was not inherently wrong, but it also just didn’t feel wholly right either.
The writing style itself was very blunt, which lent itself well to the urban fantasy genre. There were no minced words or flowery language to lull you into a false sense of security before truth bombs obliterated the plot with a twist. It was all very upfront and non-apologetic and I enjoyed it immensely.
I liked this, and I enjoyed my time with it in spite of my mixed feelings on the world building and how it affected the pace of the novel.
And you know, for the majority of this book, like we’re talking the first 75% of the thing, my heart was sitting in this well of indecision about what I was going to rate this thing. I was initially going to settle on 3.75 stars but then that last 25% set some really interesting plot threads that I can’t wait to follow up on and see where they lead.
If you’re looking for a fast paced urban fantasy romp with found family vibes and queer romance, you can’t go wrong with this one.
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, and Sexual harassment