okay i have a laptop now, i can give a better review. i feel like i need to preface this by saying i did enjoy the book. i read it in a day, i was hooked! the magic system was unlike anything i had read before and so was the world. i also enjoyed reading a setting that was queer normative, kind of awesome

that being said, i want to delve into things i did not enjoy about this book and honestly, i'm not sure if i'll be continuing. the first being, our main characters are both 35-ish? yet they act a lot like erratic teenagers, their feelings go back and forth so fast it's like whiplash. it's part of the reason i veer away from ya books, i need more mature characters but this wasn't it. second, i feel like the end was too quick, too much needed to be set up for the sequel so the second half of the book just threw piece of information after piece of information at you so everything was set for book 2. third, the

whole “you need to be married with kids to have good bonds” situation

. so the architects need to have good bonds in order to not

fall into ectstacy

which i understand to a certain degree. but why the focus on

children. they outright say a spouse isn't enough, but friends? family? brothers? sisters? parents? cousins? grandparents? none of that is strong enough??

for a book based in south asian culture, i would expect more of an emphasis on family as a whole. and also!

you're telling me they keep things hidden until a spouse is pregnant or an adoption is started but oh they can stop the adoption or abort the pregnancy once the secrets are shared?? thats really fucked, like i'm team your body your choice but you have to go that far to know everything your spouse could go through???

seriously??

anyways, idk if i'll read book 2 and 3, i may sometime down the line, but it won't be a read i seek out.

Rubicon by J.S. Dewes

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dark emotional inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

i loved this book up until the ending?? it just felt like everything a certain character went through was all for nothing?? if there was a sequel i’d feel better about the ending but this being a stand alone (for now) just made the end so blah.

A Time of Courage by John Gwynne

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dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

i feel like if you truly wanted to see an end end to the prophecy from the faithful and the fallen you should read this but most characters were eh to me. i hate to say it but the most exciting pov was in fact drem. this series has been very reminiscent to me of when you read the lost hero after the percy jackson books and your first reaction is “who tf is jason?!” the most exciting parts were whenever corban, coralen, storm, cywen, or literally anyone from tfatf was mentioned or whenever we saw byrne. it felt weirdly rushed (the trilogy as a whole not just this book) i would say because most of the buildup happened in tfatf. overall i’m glad more loose ends were tied up so i’m glad i read it because of that but otherwise, eh.

and i know john said he’s done with the banished lands for now but with that ending…we can all agree he’s coming back…right?

A Time of Blood by John Gwynne

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

i fear i’m reading this book/series for the folks at the order of the bright star (drem is included in this group) and the folks at the order of the bright star only

A Time of Dread by John Gwynne

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dark tense medium-paced