Reviews with content warning for Murder - The Atlas Six

Interesting magical system. Wish it had more day-to-day interactions and their magical education more. Good twist ending though. Excited for the next book

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carolinejane's review against another edition

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dark slow-paced

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

2.5

The book is written well and I did enjoy it… However, in terms of pace, it was very slow and I found having the relationships as the focus instead of the plot immensely boring. It was rather like a magical version of Bridgerton but with an actual plot line, although thin. Character development was small and actual action minimal. The relationships were average and quite stereotypical. I appreciated the different ethnicities and representation, on the other hand, I feel it certainly could have been done better as there was a feeling of it not quite hitting the mark. There was a lot of world building but since it is set in familiar places, I feel this was unnecessary. Overall, I think it was fun to read and I do want to finish the series, albeit due to my inner gossip girl curiosity. This is also in spite of the title and concept being more exciting than the execution. I am in no rush to buy the next book. You would not be missing out if you skipped this one but it is an easy read to pass the time.

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aino_maria23's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

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? It's complicated

4.5

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saretta02's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark medium-paced

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

4.0

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arkonrad's review against another edition

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The characters are mean and arrogant. The characters have spent the first half of the book judging each other. I didn’t even feel the intensity of the fight they had because of all the judgmental internal dialogue.

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brekaboujie's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.5

This was SO GOOD. It's quite a chunky book and so I took some points as it was quite leisurely pace wise at points, but overall gripped me very quickly. Another excellent example of how to do multiple perspectives well, I really enjoyed the characterisation throughout.
The exploration of magic felt so unique and interesting, I was impressed by how the author was able to balance so many specific types without it all becoming a muddled mess. I like how all the characters are flawed, they felt realistic (though very dramatic, but that's allowed as this is a book and not real life).
The twists were really good! Clues were artfully placed and the plot was very interesting, there were so many aspects that grew slowly in the background and then cropped up fully formed unexpectedly. I really loved the tone of the writing too, super easy to read and a satisfying and clever narration. Really good!!!! Finding a good uniqu fantasy series can be so difficult, I'm excited to make my way through these.

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loop_laurens's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-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? It's complicated

2.5

Intriguing concept and characters, but a little anticlimactic - mostly just setting the stage for the next book in the series. Well paced, an engaging cast, and overall enjoyable.

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paperbacksandsnacks's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

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

3.0

Usually when I read a book my thoughts on it are pretty clear. But with this one I had to really sit and think on it for a couple of days to decide where I stood. I think the answer is somewhere in the middle of I loved it and I wish I’d never wasted my time.

This was my second attempt at reading this which I think is important to note. The first attempt I had to do a soft DNF because I just really couldn’t get into the story at all. So at least this time was better. But I do still think this took a while to really get my teeth into, and even then I felt like I was a bit bored until maybe the last 25%.

Tbh it’s a very confusing book. I don’t read a lot of dark academia so maybe that’s just the genre as a whole but for me I was just like what is actually going on for a solid 40% of the book (although not necessarily all the first 40%). It was both vague and far too detailed. And you’d start to like a character or a part of the storyline and then it would just change and be from someone else’s perspective or that subplot would be forgotten. Idk. Also, I was never sure of the chronological order because it all felt a bit chaotic. That did add more mystery I guess but I’m not super convinced.

I think the series as a whole has potential. With the way this book ended I’m thinking the second book will be far more interesting. That’s not to say this one wasn’t, I just think it was a lot of build up for the series as a whole. I am super intrigued about the connection between Nico and Libby, and also Tristan. I think the characters were written well because I did have a lot of read and vivid feelings towards them like the rage I felt at Callum if I’m being very honest.

Overall, I think this book was an okay part of a potentially promising whole. It wasn’t the best book I’ve ever read and tbh I’m not going to rush to read the second book. But it was an interesting and different read for me. If you like dark academia with magical elements then you’ll probably be super in your comfort zone with this one.

I’d sum it up by saying this is a seductive novel that challenges your thoughts and ideals. Would you betray all your morals for a chance at true power and almost infinite knowledge?

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