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A review by bookstarbri
Belladonna by Adalyn Grace
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I thought I knew what was going on with this book. I really did. And then I learned I knew nothing at all. This book was so much fun. It was creepy and weird and everything I love in a book, but it was also emotional and a bit scary and had a powerful message.
I haven't read many books with Death personified, though I know it's a decently common thing to do? In any case, I thoroughly enjoyed Death personified in this. He was a brilliant character who I was so fascinated by from the very beginning. Death was so cool to meet at the beginning and how intrigued he was of Signa was evident. Their attraction to each other was like magnets and was kinda beautiful. From the prologue, I knew this story was going to be something special, but as it began to unwind, I was enthralled in everything it was. The characters in particular were remarkable. Signa is so cool and just the slightest bit unhinged at times. Her relationship with Blythe was really nice and felt natural. They were inexplicably drawn to each other, but it felt real.
Then there was the matter of the plot of this book, which is pretty much set up like a murder mystery, but there's so much attached to it that really raised the stakes. I will say that I easily guessed one major revelation by around chapter 4, however I don't think that revelation was meant to be as significant as the others. There were many plot twists that I thought I had guessed early on, but had been totally wrong and it was such a fun shock to be proven wrong. I felt like I was questioning everyone by the end and was still surprised when all the events unfolded.
I love the aesthetic of this book too. It was dark and mysterious, but also stunning. We get a masquerade ball and I just don't think I'll ever tire of reading those. I'm so in love with this book and I truly can't wait for the next. I just know it'll be soooo good after THAT ENDING!!!
Thank you so much to Little Brown and NetGalley for providing an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!
I haven't read many books with Death personified, though I know it's a decently common thing to do? In any case, I thoroughly enjoyed Death personified in this. He was a brilliant character who I was so fascinated by from the very beginning. Death was so cool to meet at the beginning and how intrigued he was of Signa was evident. Their attraction to each other was like magnets and was kinda beautiful. From the prologue, I knew this story was going to be something special, but as it began to unwind, I was enthralled in everything it was. The characters in particular were remarkable. Signa is so cool and just the slightest bit unhinged at times. Her relationship with Blythe was really nice and felt natural. They were inexplicably drawn to each other, but it felt real.
Then there was the matter of the plot of this book, which is pretty much set up like a murder mystery, but there's so much attached to it that really raised the stakes. I will say that I easily guessed one major revelation by around chapter 4, however I don't think that revelation was meant to be as significant as the others. There were many plot twists that I thought I had guessed early on, but had been totally wrong and it was such a fun shock to be proven wrong. I felt like I was questioning everyone by the end and was still surprised when all the events unfolded.
I love the aesthetic of this book too. It was dark and mysterious, but also stunning. We get a masquerade ball and I just don't think I'll ever tire of reading those. I'm so in love with this book and I truly can't wait for the next. I just know it'll be soooo good after THAT ENDING!!!
Thank you so much to Little Brown and NetGalley for providing an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness
Moderate: Death and Death of parent
Minor: Physical abuse