Reviews

✰ “But the only thing that can act on humans is time. We are not lovely and static. We are ever-changing, cast as seasons. We are meant to change.”

final thoughts
i absolutely adored that. just wow. i’m a major lover of flowery (some may say purple) prose so this writing was everything to me. it felt so whimsical, magical, beautiful and just special. azure and indigo felt so real. i’ll be thinking about these girls for a long time. even though bridegroom had the most narrative power in this, i wasn’t as attached to him as he felt like an accessory (and a bland one at that). i loved how atmospheric this felt. this did feel a little “all vibes no plot” like i understand there’s a strong mystery component we’re building up to, but most of this book was pure vibes (j’adore). & yes, i will be considering this a love story.

what i didn’t love so much is a frequent issue i have when it comes to magical realism- it can very quickly feel like a “fever dream” or have me wondering what is true or not, which i [personally] don’t love, but it worked well in this book by the end.

trigger warnings: parental abuse, pedophilia, death

✰ “… in the unknown of our marriage, I became known to myself and that was an incarnation of love too.”

amariew125's review

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.5

louisallama's review against another edition

Go to review page

mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

This was okay. I really liked the theme of fairy tales as allegories for real life horrors. Overall it was a bit too grounded in reality for me. Even though the writing is really lyrical and lovely, and Indigo and Azure are always talking about the fae and everything with the House of Dreams and the Otherworld, it's ultimately just a beautifully told contemporary story that uses fantasy kind of as a backdrop. I also liked the toxic friendship aspects and Azure's slowly growing awareness of the world outside of Indigo. The

plot twist with the bridegroom's wife actually being Azure and not Indigo I saw coming, but I still liked it, I think it made sense.

Ultimately wearing too many of the dressings of fantasy and not actually being fantasy is what lowered my enjoyment of this book I think.

cj_lovesbooks's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.25

This book goes in the collection of "books I think I liked better because I listened to it as an audiobook." I think listening goes really well with the flowery prose and oversaturation of descriptive language. The book is more about vibes than actual plot - so make sure you like that before reading.
But the vibes were spot on for a autumn read. I was left with a lot of questions but I think I would have liked the book less if it answered everything. The plot twist wasn't terribly surprising but I was morbidity curious as I could sense it approaching.

leiaariel's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

2.25

Everyone in this book was toxic. I don’t think there was a single healthy relationship the entire time. Even when you find out everything in the end, I still didn’t like any of the characters. Also, nothing really happens? I mean you get some story and plot from the flashbacks, but I had no investment when it was in the present. Overall, I was not a fan. There was no one I was rooting for, so it made getting through the book a bit rough. I predicted the plot twist about halfway through the book, so maybe that messed up the pacing for me.

More...