Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - A Strange Hymn

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A Strange Hymn by Laura Thalassa

17 reviews

caitsreadingcorner's review

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

I will continue reading this series to find out what happened but this book was a bit underwhelming. Maybe I just really enjoyed the flashbacks in the first book, it gave more insight into Des and Callie and their dynamics and how they have grown and changed over the years. I almost feel like their personalities are too similar?? Nothing against two darker, more sinful and villain driven characters but it almost makes their relationship feel more flat. Also, I found some of Callie’s internal dialogue in this book to be a bit cringe. She’s supposed to be 23? 24?? I honestly think she could have been older in the first book and be in her later twenties by now but I guess that’s why she’s still a bit immature in her thinking. I feel like the plot of this one is a bit messier but I’m still hopeful those holes will be filled in the remaining books. Felt like there were a lot of random turns and characters brought into the mystery piece of this book. I just need for it to all lead somewhere and not feel like an afterthought. I think the pace between building out the thief of souls storyline and the spicier scenes could be a bit better….maybe that’s because most of the world building has already been done but they have circled around some of the same problems and questions from the first book so I expected more development. At the very least, at least we’re learning more about Des. Conflicted on this one but was compelling enough to finish.

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char_gadling's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

3.5

I was stuck on how to rate this book, but genuinely, seriously enjoying this series, amazing if you want to get out of a reading slump and I really do enjoy Callie's narration, I could listen to her talk about the most bizarre things and be entertained.

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cbayen's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

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katiecoconut21's review

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

A Strange Hymn was a vast improvement on Rhapsodic. This book had the elements I was missing from Rhapsodic, a true romantic development on the relationship between Des and Callie, and an intricate fantasy world that I could get swept away in.

Where A Strange Hymn felt like a unique world, with a romance I could root for, and an intriguing plot, Rhapsodic was the set-up of a "soul-mate" scenario to make this book flow better.

Honestly, my experience with A Strange Hymn is lessened due to the first book, Rhapsodic. I personally would have loved to see a more drawn-out, slow-burn romance, one where Callie truly admits her feelings for Des when she sees his world, one where the Bargainer would have kept the huge secret of "we're soulmates" a secret for a little while longer.

Having said that, this book elaborates on what Rhapsodic was missing, particularly in terms of plot. The plot of the Thief of Souls is incredibly interesting, and I am glad we got to focus more on that in this book.

Overall, I enjoyed A Strange Hymn, and am glad I stuck with the series long enough to get over where Rhapsodic fell short.

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topi_nopi's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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cdmkylo's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Really struggled to get through this book for some reason. It wasn't until about 70% through when I felt it picked up and then completely devoured it. Lots of build up and mystery leading to the end with mild cliffhanger.

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