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itsjustbethg's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Colonisation
Moderate: War, Blood, Genocide, Violence, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
poetsofsweetpea's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Violence, War, Emotional abuse, Blood, Child death, Colonisation, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Racism
linde13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Unfortunately, while I like Arthie, she suffers from a "show don't tell" problem. When I think of other teen masterminds, like Artemis Fowl, Princess Azula, and Kaz Brekker, they're all given opportunities to prove that they're ruthless, manipulative, and brilliant before the story exposes their vulnerabilities. Arthie, unfortunately, never gets that opportunity: most, if not all, of her schemes result in failure or a close call, and she joins the heist in the first place because she's backed into a corner. She's by no means unintelligent, and she'd work if she were a smaller-scale criminal still working her way up the food chain, but for a character who's introduced as as a crime lord powerful enough to threaten the crown itself, she unfortunately falls short.
Arthie isn't my real issue with this book, though.
The book starts with some very awkward and forced flirting/"Admit it, you like him" nonsense between two people who have never spoken to each other before, and unfortunately, the romance didn't particularly improve from there. If any of the romances in this book had anything going for them other than "he's hot, she's hot, it's Just Meant To Be," then I was far too put off by all the awkward flirting, gushing over characters' appearances, and love-triangle-fueled immature sniping to appreciate it.
Which leads me to my next point: there are so many interesting relationships in this book, but other than Jin and Arthie they all feel underdeveloped--not just the romances, but
It took me two weeks to slog through the setup for the heist, and I was so, so close to dropping this book altogether. Thankfully, once it wraps up the heist and focuses on the vampire intrigue, the story becomes much, much more interesting. Or at the very least, it got me emotionally invested enough to want to read the sequel once it comes out.
Graphic: Colonisation, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, Violence, Death of parent, Grief, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Death, War, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Body horror, and Trafficking
Minor: Misogyny, Sexism, Cultural appropriation, and Police brutality
To be clear, the trafficking is non-sexual. I'm not certain which category it would fall under, but there's a toxic parent-child relationship where the parent isn't outright abusive, but certainly manipulative and neglectful.elesapphicbooks's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Blood and Murder
Moderate: War and Colonisation
noxa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Colonisation, Death, Blood, Grief, Gun violence, Child death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Racism, Trafficking, and War
kuporeads's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: War, Violence, and Blood
this does end in a cliffhanger so keep that in mind if you start reading it!soniajoy98's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Violence, Blood, Classism, Racism, Grief, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Child death, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Torture, Cursing, Genocide, and Sexual content
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, War, Slavery, Stalking, and Hate crime
tmholsman_1994's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Graphic: Colonisation, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, and War
lesliehirgelt's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, Grief, Blood, Death of parent, Colonisation, and Classism
Moderate: Death
Minor: War
vj_thompson's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Arthie is an awesome character. She is strong and a perfect leader. She is like an onion meaning throughout the book we get a little more of her background/story until the very end where we finally know what she has been hiding. The little love triangle was a nice side plot, which I really liked in this story.
Jin has my whole heart. He had everything until it was taken away from him, which is when he found Arthie 💕 The tea shop they created sounds so wonderful and magical. I liked that his perspective was included.
Overall, I’m dying to read the next and see what happens. The way the book ended leaves the reader with a lot of questions. I hope to see more perspectives in the next book. I was dying to read from Mateo’s POV because who wouldn’t want to hear the thoughts of a lonely vampire?!? Such a beautiful debut.
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Colonisation, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death of parent, and Violence
Moderate: War, Racism, Classism, and Grief
Minor: Kidnapping, Stalking, Trafficking, and Panic attacks/disorders