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gmilano43's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
beastee's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
sisimka's review against another edition
4.0
Like the 10,000 Doors of January, I quite enjoyed this, but always felt a little too detached from the main character(s) to experience full emotional engagement. Still, a lovely story, beautifully told.
emptzuu's review
After reading "Ninth House," no dark academia, gothic, or fantasy book has measured up. Starling House feels overwritten. There are pages and pages of similes describing mundane things, an excessive focus on irrelevant details, and so many words. In the first two chapters alone, I cringed at phrases like "ding-dong-ditched" and "the human equivalent of unsalted butter."
The plot is one I've seen over and over again, with extremely unoriginal characters. The tough, trauma-ridden girl who refuses to get close to anyone is too stubborn for her own good and hides her feelings from everyone. The book was too afraid to embrace the atmosphere and elements and would have worked better as YA. It often seems like genres like dark academia and gothic are added to a book just to appear trendy or edgy. The cover is gorgeous and the title is beautiful. Clearly, the marketing for these books is effective, but it seems like all you need are vibes and aesthetics to gain popularity nowadays. I have no trust in Goodreads ratings anymore.
The plot is one I've seen over and over again, with extremely unoriginal characters. The tough, trauma-ridden girl who refuses to get close to anyone is too stubborn for her own good and hides her feelings from everyone. The book was too afraid to embrace the atmosphere and elements and would have worked better as YA. It often seems like genres like dark academia and gothic are added to a book just to appear trendy or edgy. The cover is gorgeous and the title is beautiful. Clearly, the marketing for these books is effective, but it seems like all you need are vibes and aesthetics to gain popularity nowadays. I have no trust in Goodreads ratings anymore.
dreameradri's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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
4.5
siakou's review
2.0
1.5/5 stars.
I’m not the target audience for this book but every once in a while I try getting out of my comfort zone.
This time I was not successful.
I can’t say I liked much about this.
The only obvious positive is the cover, other than that nothing truly drew me in.
It was too long and not spooky enough.
The pacing was all over the place and I personally think the first 3/4 of the whole book could have been 2-5 chapters total instead of having so many unnecessary repetitive content.
Then, I don’t like books that stir you purposefully in the wrong direction because to me it feels like a shitty way to fill pages and this one does it multiple times.
None of the characters are particularly likable, meaning I was not rooting for any of them but they’re also not dark enough at the same time. The author even went out of her way on multiple occasions to describe how disgusting and ugly everyone in that town really was.
I could go on and on with similar issues but you get the point, I didn’t really like it so..
I’m not the target audience for this book but every once in a while I try getting out of my comfort zone.
This time I was not successful.
I can’t say I liked much about this.
The only obvious positive is the cover, other than that nothing truly drew me in.
It was too long and not spooky enough.
The pacing was all over the place and I personally think the first 3/4 of the whole book could have been 2-5 chapters total instead of having so many unnecessary repetitive content.
Then, I don’t like books that stir you purposefully in the wrong direction because to me it feels like a shitty way to fill pages and this one does it multiple times.
None of the characters are particularly likable, meaning I was not rooting for any of them but they’re also not dark enough at the same time. The author even went out of her way on multiple occasions to describe how disgusting and ugly everyone in that town really was.
I could go on and on with similar issues but you get the point, I didn’t really like it so..
stellarreads's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
ivorymusic82's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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
5.0
kittydouglas's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0