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finishorforget's review against another edition
Decided to remove from TBR. Was a gift and not my jam.
noorandbooks's review against another edition
5.0
"You know, Rafal, ever since we've been teenagers, you've become very moody."
"We've been teenagers for a hundred years," Rafal replies.
"Precisely," said Rhian.
OH THIS BOOK. Jaw? Dropped. Heart? Stopped. Tea? Spilled.
This was my most anticipated read of the year and it delivered. It has everything you'd want from it - action, drama, magic, BETRAYALS OUUUU MY POOR HEART...
We learned a lot of important things from this book:
1) Seers age ten years whenever they tell a truth (Evelyn really was lucky)
2) Evers were allies (what happened that made them homophobic??? this is important)
3) Rhian (and Rafal too, but more lowkey) is gay (the rep we need and deserve <3 he's such a mess and I'm definitely not in love with him or anything)
4) How the Readers came to be (angst)
5) Aladdin was an idiot (it's okay man, me too)
6) The lines between Good and Evil are extremely thin (we already knew this from the tale of Sophie and Agatha but this book just solidified it)
7)
Spoiler
The school you're sent to is not because of any greater forces, but by how you act - it's why so many Nevers act evil. They've been trained to see themselves that way (and that's why so many of them are queer and POC coded; they're trained to be seen as evil).8) The School for Good and Evil exists because of gay drama
This book just. Completely shatters everything I know about the School for Good and Evil universe.
“I can love you and still think I’m better.”
Spoiler
OKAY SO. When I saw the cover, I remember thinking "huh, they're on the wrong sides" and I panicked for a bit and then I just shrugged and moved on. I did not make the connection. That Sophie thought she was Good and was on Evil's side. And Agatha thought she was Evil and was on Good's side. CHAINANI!!! You cruel mastermind!!!I have so many questions from that ending... Like, when is the next book coming out??? Is this another case of the Snake and the Lion, where Rhian takes Rafal's place in order to stay the School Master? Or does Rafal just go 'eh, I'm pretty good at this Evil thing'? Is this all just supposed to be a spin on Sophie and Agatha's tale??? What would happen if they betrayed their love??? UGHHH!!!
And this just completely puts a spin on Good and Evil. The lines are so thin between them... Is it really 'love' that keeps Good good and Evil evil? Or is it desire? Desire and the intent to harm? The intent to save? Rhian loves (in his own restless way). Rafal loves. They love(d) each other. They can love. Rhian thought he was Good. Rafal thought he was Evil. How much is there that's just the Storian putting labels??? How much of Good is truly good and how much of Evil is truly evil???
QUESTIONS AFTER QUESTIONS AFTER QUESTIONS!!! I adored this book, if you couldn't tell.
Rhian: be gay do crimes
Rafal: stop being gay do your job
Rhian: fuck you i'll do more crime now
The pacing is amazing, the dialogue is witty, and I fell in love with this world all over again... Just to be left at a cliff to fall.
How thoughtful of his brother, Rhian mused; if it was him, he'd have locked Rafal out for a bit of fun.
anbeasley91's review against another edition
3.75
This one was odd for me because it was an Aladdin and Hook mash up which I feel is an odd pair but also more about the school masters than the students. It was good and had a decent plot twist but it was just ok for me.
areth_09's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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? Yes
4.0
ek4therin4h's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
4.5
ksophialydia's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-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
5.0
heyitsmeg777's review against another edition
5.0
Fun fact about my history with the School for Good and Evil series: This series practically owns my entire life. Book 1 started when I was in fifth or sixth grade and it ended when I was graduating high school in the pandemic year of 2020. And now, halfway through college, I get to read how this chaotic rolercoaster TRULY began.
And let's just say IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT.
It starts off with the cryptic riddles we absolutely love getting frustrated about but we still love them anyway and while the real mystery lies in why the brothers Rhian and Rafal get chosen, we don't get time to figure that out... so we go on to where the chaos begins.
CUE... Aladdin.
He gets sent to the school for good when all he does is evil things, but this is how the stoy goes, right?
Wrong.
Because then he steals the lamp that reverses his wish and he ends up conjuring a love spell on the guy who hasa crush on the girl he wanted. And that was a great arc while it lasted, reminding us that love is love and the acceptance of Hephaestus boldly declaring love for Aladdin and for it to be applauded and approved of... this is what helps LGBTQ+ kids feel seen. This book never fails to shine with queer characters that aren't afraid to be who they are and I'm here for it. It's Chainani's trademark after all, but in the prequel, we see a more accepting society rather than in the original SGE series which was a lot less accepting of differences which makes me wonder why it all went downhill.
Now... the SGE series focuses on Agatha and Sophie fighting for a guy.
And well, RISE focuses on two brothers... fighting for a guy.
Which is ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS.
I still am not entirely sure if I found the parallels between Rhian and Sophie who both fell for the wrong people or Rafal for letting all of this happening all while falling into the trap himself funny. Both were equally worth laughing about because it was literally just disastrously gay brothers trying to figure out where their hearts truly lied and basically forgot about caring for their students because their hearts went first. Which I guess makes sense since they're also immortal and lonely and all the stuff we usually believe about immortals being selfish and whatnot.
Now, in the SGE series, Tedros was the resident himbo who I wanted to murder half of the time.
In this prequel, James Hook is the guy that I legitimatlely wish would teach a couple of lessons to Tedros because he is SMART AS HELL. And charming. And a good liar. And a great hypocrite that fooled me in the end.
Which goes back to the ending and what the hell happened.
For people who have read the series, the ending was more like a DUH WE KNOW answer.
For those who haven't read the SGE series, the ending must have been an amazing cliffhanger.
Unfortunately, I'm in the former, so to me the ending was a bit meh, but the overall book caused me a lot of laughs, a lot of OOOO and a lot of double takes because there were many plot twists and a lot of times where I predicted stuff and clearly got it all wrong.
The highlights: Rhian and Rafal and their tumultous relationship. Jame Hook flirting with both of them and successfully SPOILER ALERT kissing both of them. Marialena Sader who spooked me and annoyed me too, but couldn't help but enjoy. The Pen being good and evil. The Night crawlers and escaping from them and the Circus of Talents from the Nevers end because it was amazing to see their stunt. Rhian's horrible luck in getting toxic men to take away things from him.
The lows: Where does Rafal truly stand with James Hook and why could they take away their part of their souls from him without risking the fact that James could practically steal their immortality? The Fala brother arc was heartbreaking for me. The betrayal between the brothers was tough to deal with. NO ONE CARES ABOUT KYMA AND HER GOODY TWO SHOE NATURE. I hated her all the way through. Also, I wanted Hephaestus and Aladdin to end together becaue I thought the story would be like that. Alas, it was not.
It got me out of a reading slump and I loved it enough to know that I need book 2 in my hands and that I will re-read it again and recommend it to everyone I know and continue gushing about why Rafal is the better brother (Because Rhian can go ahead and rot in a graveyard or whatever).
*DEEP BREATH*
Let the rollercoaster trip be the reason you pick up this book.
And let's just say IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT.
It starts off with the cryptic riddles we absolutely love getting frustrated about but we still love them anyway and while the real mystery lies in why the brothers Rhian and Rafal get chosen, we don't get time to figure that out... so we go on to where the chaos begins.
CUE... Aladdin.
He gets sent to the school for good when all he does is evil things, but this is how the stoy goes, right?
Wrong.
Because then he steals the lamp that reverses his wish and he ends up conjuring a love spell on the guy who hasa crush on the girl he wanted. And that was a great arc while it lasted, reminding us that love is love and the acceptance of Hephaestus boldly declaring love for Aladdin and for it to be applauded and approved of... this is what helps LGBTQ+ kids feel seen. This book never fails to shine with queer characters that aren't afraid to be who they are and I'm here for it. It's Chainani's trademark after all, but in the prequel, we see a more accepting society rather than in the original SGE series which was a lot less accepting of differences which makes me wonder why it all went downhill.
Now... the SGE series focuses on Agatha and Sophie fighting for a guy.
And well, RISE focuses on two brothers... fighting for a guy.
Which is ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS.
I still am not entirely sure if I found the parallels between Rhian and Sophie who both fell for the wrong people or Rafal for letting all of this happening all while falling into the trap himself funny. Both were equally worth laughing about because it was literally just disastrously gay brothers trying to figure out where their hearts truly lied and basically forgot about caring for their students because their hearts went first. Which I guess makes sense since they're also immortal and lonely and all the stuff we usually believe about immortals being selfish and whatnot.
Now, in the SGE series, Tedros was the resident himbo who I wanted to murder half of the time.
In this prequel, James Hook is the guy that I legitimatlely wish would teach a couple of lessons to Tedros because he is SMART AS HELL. And charming. And a good liar. And a great hypocrite that fooled me in the end.
Which goes back to the ending and what the hell happened.
For people who have read the series, the ending was more like a DUH WE KNOW answer.
For those who haven't read the SGE series, the ending must have been an amazing cliffhanger.
Unfortunately, I'm in the former, so to me the ending was a bit meh, but the overall book caused me a lot of laughs, a lot of OOOO and a lot of double takes because there were many plot twists and a lot of times where I predicted stuff and clearly got it all wrong.
The highlights: Rhian and Rafal and their tumultous relationship. Jame Hook flirting with both of them and successfully SPOILER ALERT kissing both of them. Marialena Sader who spooked me and annoyed me too, but couldn't help but enjoy. The Pen being good and evil. The Night crawlers and escaping from them and the Circus of Talents from the Nevers end because it was amazing to see their stunt. Rhian's horrible luck in getting toxic men to take away things from him.
The lows: Where does Rafal truly stand with James Hook and why could they take away their part of their souls from him without risking the fact that James could practically steal their immortality? The Fala brother arc was heartbreaking for me. The betrayal between the brothers was tough to deal with. NO ONE CARES ABOUT KYMA AND HER GOODY TWO SHOE NATURE. I hated her all the way through. Also, I wanted Hephaestus and Aladdin to end together becaue I thought the story would be like that. Alas, it was not.
It got me out of a reading slump and I loved it enough to know that I need book 2 in my hands and that I will re-read it again and recommend it to everyone I know and continue gushing about why Rafal is the better brother (Because Rhian can go ahead and rot in a graveyard or whatever).
*DEEP BREATH*
Let the rollercoaster trip be the reason you pick up this book.
abby_readsalot's review against another edition
4.0
Excellent. I listened and read this book on paper! The narrator (Kit Young) was amazing, and it was so cool to see the forming of some of the parts I loved best about the SGE. Highly recommend, I will be starting the next one soon. :)