Reviews

Rand by Silvia Shaw

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agott's review

3.0

How can someone write "From the breastplate, it was obvious the soldier was a woman.", and "It’s only another instance of objectifying the female figure. It infers, even though they fought in battles, that these women were there for men to look at." in the same book? How little self awareness must you have? Why do people think a woman's armour would be any different from a man's?

snowangel526's review

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I question rating from Amazon and Goodreads at time, but this book did set up an interesting premise at first for me. A successful and driven woman get transported into a matriarchal world where women are tall, strong and domineering? Hell yea!
Unfortunately, it quickly lost it shine for me because I find the world setting lackluster and the characters surrounding the MC somewhat dull. There are several decisions the MC made that made me sigh loudly and called her a dumb beaver. The author portrayed her as a quick witted and intelligent. Somehow she connected the dots around the secrecy of the world so well, but then I see her make very very impulsive decisions that ended up putting her in danger for the sake of the plot.
Other than that the fight between her and the boss was very anticlimactic. If you read it you'll know what I mean...I can't believe they equipped her companion with such skill.

The final fight was basically Queen Valeria saying a line of "I cast the Queen judgement on you" and then 200 something witches die instantly leaving the main boss and 10 lackies left for the MC to fight off using the medallion. It was so silly and that spell has no actual repercussion at all. Apparently it was that easy as long as she was in their presence and say it. The reason that she don't use it a lot (1 time only) was because the death was too gruesome and violent so it causes distress 🙃. Unbelievable, she's a goddamn Queen, yet she lacks any strength that was allegedly revered by many people. Her portrayal to me was that of a quick to anger and emotional monarch.

chocolatemilo9's review

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious medium-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? Yes

3.75

hardrich's review

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adventurous slow-paced

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? Yes

3.5

marshmallowpirate's review

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful mysterious medium-paced

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

5.0

This is a sapphic romantic fantasy that I adore. The character is brand new to this world, and it isn't just ~erased~ after three chapters. This book really shows us her growth and she isn't just "the chosen one" who gets everything she needs training wise. She WORKS.

Content Warnings

jamietherebelliousreader's review

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3.0

3 stars. I can tell this is a series that is going to be better as you go along. I liked the writing, the world and fantasy is rich, and I liked the characters. However, this felt like a set up book with lots of info dumps and world building. I was honestly bored for half of it until things started happening and I got a bit invested. The ending was great and definitely makes me want to continue on but as it is this was just fine. It was well written but the pacing really made it a slog to get through.

gracerichards11's review

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted tense medium-paced

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

thinde's review

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2.0

DNF 42%

This is not a bad book but it lacks the polish of an experienced author. The situations rarely unfold naturally. The dialogue is stilted. The prose is short and choppy.

This book should be categorized as "Young Adult." With the emphasis on "young." Almost nobody solves their interpersonal issues in an adult fashion... with words. This is not helped by a lack of individualized voices.

I get why some readers enjoy this type of wish fulfillment story, but I've read much better.

zefrien's review

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adventurous medium-paced

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

4.0

wordwilderness's review

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adventurous tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Content Warnings

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