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readswithcat's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation and Murder
Moderate: Violence, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Gun violence, Death, Xenophobia, Death of parent, Alcoholism, War, and Colonisation
megs1328's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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? It's complicated
3.5
Inez learns of her parents deaths and decides to travel alone to Egypt to meet with her uncle and determine what really happened. She finds a friend and ally in her uncle’s employee Whit, though can’t fully give him her trust either. She is impulsive and it often gets her into problems she can’t get herself out of. Lies and betrayal plague her journey, and she still has much to learn.
Nothing really happens for the first 25% except character intros. The middle 50% was interesting learning how the magic worked and exploring down the Nile, as well as exposing colonialism. I did really enjoy the story development, though I began to anticipate what was coming, and didn’t think Whit’s POV was necessary. The last 25% was one twist after another and began to feel contrived, especially withElvira thrown in and promptly discarded .
The climax was rushed and not resolved at all, leading to a huge cliffhanger. I don’t want to remove stars just because it has a cliffhanger, but this did not feel like an ending, every plot point was left wide open as though the author ran out of time and just slapped an epilogue on. Of course I want to read the second to see what happens next, but am mad about it.
I was going to give it 4 stars, though the writing was subpar and leaned heavy on dialogue, and made me wonder if the final copy will be better edited. I settled on 3.5 stars, but may round it higher or lower in a few days depending on how strongly I still feel about the ending.
Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for providing this eARC for my honest opinion.
Nothing really happens for the first 25% except character intros. The middle 50% was interesting learning how the magic worked and exploring down the Nile, as well as exposing colonialism. I did really enjoy the story development, though I began to anticipate what was coming, and didn’t think Whit’s POV was necessary. The last 25% was one twist after another and began to feel contrived, especially with
The climax was rushed and not resolved at all, leading to a huge cliffhanger. I don’t want to remove stars just because it has a cliffhanger, but this did not feel like an ending, every plot point was left wide open as though the author ran out of time and just slapped an epilogue on. Of course I want to read the second to see what happens next, but am mad about it.
I was going to give it 4 stars, though the writing was subpar and leaned heavy on dialogue, and made me wonder if the final copy will be better edited. I settled on 3.5 stars, but may round it higher or lower in a few days depending on how strongly I still feel about the ending.
Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for providing this eARC for my honest opinion.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Blood, Classism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Death, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Racism, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Infidelity
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