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A review by anniedo
Valiant by Holly Black
4.0
4.5!
Okay, to be honest, I was not really looking forward to reading this because there's no Kaye/Roiben, and also because it has mostly mortals and takes place in the mortal world. Which was stupid and judgmental of me, because I REALLY LIKED THIS BOOK! Even more so than Tithe, actually!
I wasn't too keen on the mostly human aspect of Valiant at first, but I actually came to appreciate its relatability and reality.
I'm a sucker for anything Beauty and the Beast inspired, and I was not let down with the romance in this book :) However I wish there was more build up and subtle hints before the romance took off. I definitely loved it, but it could've done with some more developing and pining.
The action was great as well!!! I got pretty invested in the story, even though the beginning was a little slow. I didn't mind it, but I can imagine that lots of other readers will.
I also want to note how much I love that Val and Ravus are NOT the typical conventionally beautiful leads that we see in fiction. Ravus is straight up ugly, and Val has a shaved head and dark circles. But they're still badass. They still triumph. It barely even affects the plot. I fucking love that about them.
And besides that, they're also just so likable. It's such a shame that Holly Black never wrote anything more for them. I genuinely love Val--she's a fantastic heroine, and I identify with her the most out of all of Holly's ladies.
Okay, to be honest, I was not really looking forward to reading this because there's no Kaye/Roiben, and also because it has mostly mortals and takes place in the mortal world. Which was stupid and judgmental of me, because I REALLY LIKED THIS BOOK! Even more so than Tithe, actually!
I wasn't too keen on the mostly human aspect of Valiant at first, but I actually came to appreciate its relatability and reality.
Spoiler
In particular, I loved reading about the ugliness of addiction. I'm so used to reading about magical and political conflicts in YA fantasy, that its refreshing to see a main character deal with something so utterly scary, personal, and human.I'm a sucker for anything Beauty and the Beast inspired, and I was not let down with the romance in this book :) However I wish there was more build up and subtle hints before the romance took off. I definitely loved it, but it could've done with some more developing and pining.
The action was great as well!!! I got pretty invested in the story, even though the beginning was a little slow. I didn't mind it, but I can imagine that lots of other readers will.
I also want to note how much I love that Val and Ravus are NOT the typical conventionally beautiful leads that we see in fiction. Ravus is straight up ugly, and Val has a shaved head and dark circles. But they're still badass. They still triumph. It barely even affects the plot. I fucking love that about them.
And besides that, they're also just so likable. It's such a shame that Holly Black never wrote anything more for them. I genuinely love Val--she's a fantastic heroine, and I identify with her the most out of all of Holly's ladies.