The design and UX isn't done, Rob and Abbie, okkurrrr! đ
black_cat_iiix's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Self harm, Emotional abuse, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Death, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Gore, Body horror, Child death, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Kidnapping
hannahcstocks'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? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Kidnapping, Suicide, Stalking, Blood, Mental illness, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Bullying, Classism, Colonisation, Death, Dysphoria, Infidelity, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence
yarisbooksandbevs's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I didnât find the plot twist super surprising but I like the way it was explained. I found Libby to oftentimes be annoying and I wasnât a huge fan of Tristanâs audiobook narrator. I liked Nico and Parisaâs characterizations. I also liked the rivalry between Nico and Libby.Â
All in all it was a bit confusing at times but I was able to catch up and get on the same page. Not a bad book
Graphic: Infidelity and Death
Moderate: Kidnapping, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Car accident, Classism, Cursing, and Gun violence
Minor: Child death, Chronic illness, Drug use, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
setsailforthestars's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Bullying, Gaslighting, and Sexual content
Moderate: Gun violence, Emotional abuse, Gore, Alcoholism, and Classism
crownoflaurel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Gaslighting
Moderate: Classism
Minor: Bullying, Stalking, and Drug abuse
yananhai's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I do understand why some people dislike the characters, there is almost zero development they go through (except maybe Tristan, but even that's a stretch). there is much more focus on building the plot and basis of the magic, and even that wasn't explained well.
this book did not do a good job in making me want to read the next one. so, I won't for now. maybe in the future, when I'm more in the mood.
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Classism, Drug use, Kidnapping, and Misogyny
aburbage's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Iâd heard mixed reviews prior to reading and I donât understand how you couldnât love this book unless the reader was confused.
There are multiple characters and points of view. You donât know if you love them or hate them. I canât wait to see whatâs next!
Minor: Classism
nikogatts's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
Likewise, there are interesting characters and arcs to be explored -- particularly in the case of Reina, who resents her immense magical power and sees it as a way for both nature and society to take advantage of her -- but these are sacrificed in favor of chapter after chapter of Callum, the Wish.com version of Patrick Bateman, toying with sad boy Tristan.
The most painful of this book's failures was the worldbuilding, which led me to create this non-comprehensive list of things that went un- or underexplained, in ascending order of how angry I get when I think about it:
-General story bits that weren't described well and/or weren't believable.
-How magic and magical people interact with and impact the rest of the world.
There is no information given on non-magical people, even though they're 99.9995 percent of the world. One of the book's (attempted) themes is the exclusivity of information and whether world-changing (albeit dangerous) knowledge should be kept siloed instead of available to populations who could benefit from it. This theme would have been much more powerful if there had been any perspective from the have-nots of this world. (I think it was a missed opportunity to not have Ezra, Libby's boyfriend, be non-magical, or to have a more prominent presence from the Forum, the magical-info-for-all organization.)
Oh, and magical creatures exist, but they're only mentioned in relation to one character, so they're barely relevant.
-How the magic system works.
I'm not even going to bother getting into Callum's empath powers, which often transcend sensing emotion and go straight into full mind-reading. Commander Deanna Troi >>>>>> this asshole, always and forever.
There are also overlaps in "rare" types of magic and casual magic that is done with little fanfare. One example is when two characters use physics magic to create a wormhole (for the first time ever, apparently) that can be used to teleport across physical space. But throughout the book, the characters travel internationally via magical portal, and the difference (if any) between this and the wormhole is never explained.
-Anything about the library.
And what do the readers get? About a paragraph and a half about a big room with some pneumatic tubes, and some scattered references to ancient texts. That's it. That's fucking it.
New rule I'm setting for myself: If a book sounds interesting but got a lot of hype on certain social media sites with consistently poor track records, I get it from the library.
Graphic: Suicide attempt and Suicide
Moderate: Blood and Murder
Minor: Colonisation, Terminal illness, Death, and Classism
beegster16's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Sexual content, Death, and Suicide
Moderate: Alcohol, Classism, Violence, Death, and Cursing
Minor: Chronic illness, Child death, Colonisation, and Grief
jaclynszick's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.5
Moderate: Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Alcohol, Body horror, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Classism, and Blood