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theamyleblanc's review
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I'd love to read a story that's part Knives Out and part magic.
This is not that story. Sure, it's a mystery full of family drama and there are some magical elements but it's nowhere near the same vibe. I was pretty disappointed.
The world building and emotional life are completely lacking here. The pacing is quick but only because so much happens . . . while at the same time it feels like nothing happens. I had no sense of where this took place. A suburb? How much of a suburb? A city-leaning one or a rural-leaning one? It's so vague that when Tabatha referred to her clothes as "joggers", I almost thought this could be set in the UK.
The magic system is barely explained and we hardly see it. It was more for convenience than anything else. Magic keeps the story moving but doesn't add to it. It's poorly thought-out and I felt a bit cheated.
The story feels very one note. We don't see the characters emotional lives at all. Yes, this is told from Tabatha's PoV but surely she'd have feelings about what she saw, about her mentor being murdered? We get so much of her internal ramblings but it hardly ever touches on her reactions to the events. And Callum wouldn't be able to hide all his feelings, either. They're supposed to be teenagers! And the ending would've had more of an impact had the emotional groundwork been laid out. As it exists, the end felt preachy and cliche.
Finally, the sense of time is wonky. I often had no idea how much time had (or hadn't) passed from one chapter to the next. And is it summer break for Tabatha and Callum or are they also going to school while all this happens? It's very disorienting.
I won't be recommending this one, unfortunately.
I'd love to read a story that's part Knives Out and part magic.
This is not that story. Sure, it's a mystery full of family drama and there are some magical elements but it's nowhere near the same vibe. I was pretty disappointed.
The world building and emotional life are completely lacking here. The pacing is quick but only because so much happens . . . while at the same time it feels like nothing happens. I had no sense of where this took place. A suburb? How much of a suburb? A city-leaning one or a rural-leaning one? It's so vague that when Tabatha referred to her clothes as "joggers", I almost thought this could be set in the UK.
The magic system is barely explained and we hardly see it. It was more for convenience than anything else. Magic keeps the story moving but doesn't add to it. It's poorly thought-out and I felt a bit cheated.
The story feels very one note. We don't see the characters emotional lives at all. Yes, this is told from Tabatha's PoV but surely she'd have feelings about what she saw, about her mentor being murdered? We get so much of her internal ramblings but it hardly ever touches on her reactions to the events. And Callum wouldn't be able to hide all his feelings, either. They're supposed to be teenagers! And the ending would've had more of an impact had the emotional groundwork been laid out. As it exists, the end felt preachy and cliche.
Finally, the sense of time is wonky. I often had no idea how much time had (or hadn't) passed from one chapter to the next. And is it summer break for Tabatha and Callum or are they also going to school while all this happens? It's very disorienting.
I won't be recommending this one, unfortunately.
marzbars's review
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
sandsstrokes's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
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
4.0
I love the way Tang can incorporate real life problems into her story. She makes you feel for the characters and the individual problems they have. Very easy to relate to!
runaps's review
2.0
This book did not work for me, but hey, I finished it.
The dialogue in this felt very unnatural and as much as I tried to immerse myself in the fantasy aspect I couldn’t, as I was reminded every few phrases about how most of characters were “spoiled” “rich” “rich white guy”, too the point that I considered making a drinking game out of it.
It was overdone.
Also, the characters felt very one dimensional and the mystery… I won’t even touch that.
Overall this one wasn’t for me.
The dialogue in this felt very unnatural and as much as I tried to immerse myself in the fantasy aspect I couldn’t, as I was reminded every few phrases about how most of characters were “spoiled” “rich” “rich white guy”, too the point that I considered making a drinking game out of it.
It was overdone.
Also, the characters felt very one dimensional and the mystery… I won’t even touch that.
Overall this one wasn’t for me.
megan451128's review
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
loislane083's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
mandieroz's review
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.25
As a person who has absolutely read every Inheritance Games book, most of the time in 1 day and absolutely LOVED Knives Out, I want to say that this was nothing like either of those books. Unless you ONLY concentrate on the family dynamics and not the actual story or the content of the book .. which is boring, slow and insanely predictable..... (Which I am only pointing out because so many people comment about it being just like these two books ....and it very much so is not!!)
This book was so slow I stopped reading and then had to literally not read the last 45 pages....the plot was predictable the main character became very predictable it just wasn't good.
This book was so slow I stopped reading and then had to literally not read the last 45 pages....the plot was predictable the main character became very predictable it just wasn't good.
gmcguire's review
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5