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chwinters's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
1.5
quick read.
i give it two stars for deryn and miller only and the first chapter and one scene near the end. the rest…. Nah.
also calvin when i catch you and your stupid little folie a deux act absolutely nothing will protect you from the full two-ton velocity of my citywide carshare EV hatchback
if you are like me and came in blind because you were like, “oh hey! cult deconstruction with a person who literally thought they could do magic! sounds cool. i would love to read some fiction about a person coming to terms with realizing they’re not special and they’ve been lied to!”
turn around. this book is not really focused on that part of the story. tbh, this probably qualifies as erotica? with a massivenonconsent kink.
i am not here for that, but like i said, i do fw the FBI lady and the nonplussed sidekick. i honestly wished i just dropped this book, but i skimmed the second half for them and read their chapters only in that part. and the second to last chapter, which has that once scene i really liked.
i… this was pulled in a lot of different places. didn’t help i knew nothing about the author, so i wasn’t expecting the warnings at the start to be forgraphic depictions of abuse laid out as sex scenes. whoops! everyone’s got their erotica choices, should’ve looked into it more, but uuuuhhh. 100% thought this book would be a breakdown of building a life after a cult, and not the weird wild goose chase this was.
also not a fan of the “is magic real or not”? it made things clunky. and also, glow sticks should have made more of an appearance.i wanted to see lark lose his mind over realizing it’s just a fuckin’ glow stick and i do in fact, feel robbed. of that, and the time i spent reading this book.
thescene at the end with the ritual and emotional catharsis was really good. and also what i thought this book would be about: people rebuilding their lives and reckoning with it all. instead it’s quite literally trauma porn/erotica. and one tugged in a bunch of directions, at that.
if you’ve got a noncon kink and want a quick, sexual read, go for it i guess.
but jesus h. christ, nowhere in the book description was i aware of what i was getting into. and if someone would write the breakdown of self and trauma and recreation of identity book i thought this was: fork it over, please and thanks.
book cover’s fantastic though! super misleading and should be changed! fantastic though!!
i give it two stars for deryn and miller only and the first chapter and one scene near the end. the rest…. Nah.
also calvin when i catch you and your stupid little folie a deux act absolutely nothing will protect you from the full two-ton velocity of my citywide carshare EV hatchback
if you are like me and came in blind because you were like, “oh hey! cult deconstruction with a person who literally thought they could do magic! sounds cool. i would love to read some fiction about a person coming to terms with realizing they’re not special and they’ve been lied to!”
turn around. this book is not really focused on that part of the story. tbh, this probably qualifies as erotica? with a massive
i am not here for that, but like i said, i do fw the FBI lady and the nonplussed sidekick. i honestly wished i just dropped this book, but i skimmed the second half for them and read their chapters only in that part. and the second to last chapter, which has that once scene i really liked.
i… this was pulled in a lot of different places. didn’t help i knew nothing about the author, so i wasn’t expecting the warnings at the start to be for
also not a fan of the “is magic real or not”? it made things clunky. and also, glow sticks should have made more of an appearance.
the
if you’ve got a noncon kink and want a quick, sexual read, go for it i guess.
but jesus h. christ, nowhere in the book description was i aware of what i was getting into. and if someone would write the breakdown of self and trauma and recreation of identity book i thought this was: fork it over, please and thanks.
book cover’s fantastic though! super misleading and should be changed! fantastic though!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, and Self harm
pagesofash's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Abandonment and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Gun violence
Lots of Harry Potter references. Coerced/forced consent/consent issuestheangrystackrat's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
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? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
tabbiecat's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
fast-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
1.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, and Blood
spaceoperatics's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A very fun take on magic, family, and clashing perspectives. Take the content warnings seriously. The ending comes on too suddenly and too cleanly, otherwise it might be a 5-star.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Injury/Injury detail
marstarr's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Hmm. I think this book almost does something, but it just fell short. There was such tonal whiplash in parts and it felt like it was handling really heavy and intense topics without sufficient care and without having it *mean* something. I just think if you’re going to do that much on-page rape and torture there has to be some sort of proper catharsis or narrative satisfaction at the end. I have to wonder who the intended audience is for this book, because I have to admit that it was not me
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Torture, and Violence
headlessphilosopher's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, and Sexual assault
blacksphinx's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Gun violence, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Police brutality and Medical content
teresa0623's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I loved this book and I couldn't wait to talk to my book club about it. There was so much to unpack with Lark's story. This book was very hard to read, the content made me uncomfortable but it was sooo worth it. Magical realism was woven into the story (and I am a sucker for magical realism). I will be thinking about this book for a long time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
femme4fleurs's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, and Abandonment