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birbpal's review
- 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
Reading 𝘙𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦, another book by Grace Draven, I was surprised at how dark the tone was for this story. Nevertheless, I enjoyed it immensely and finished it in a day.💖
✅️The Good:
• The stakes were high and yet personal for both characters. Gilene needs to get home back to her village in order to continue her role as a Flower of the Spring to spare her village. Azarion must return to his clan where he will take his rightful place as chieftain. But in order to do that, he must bring Gilene.
• A lot of moral dilemmas that came up in the book made me question what I would do if I were in any of the character's shoes. Would I continue to sacrifice myself for a village that doesn't care for me? Would I steal, murder, and lie my way to return to my clan, even if I might die doing so? These questions made me appreciate Gilene and Azarion as the main characters all the more. It made them fleshed-out and interesting.
• The battles/fighting were well written. Oftentimes, I have a hard time imagining battles in books, but Grace did a wonderful job making me feel as if I was witnessing the fights with my own eyes. It was very exciting!
🚫The Bad:
• This was an enemies to reluctant allies to lovers story. The enemy/ally part of the book was written pretty strongly. The romance part of the book, however, felt lacking. One moment, Gilene barely tolerates Azarion's existence. In the next, he is suddenly the hottest man she has ever laid eyes on, and she loves him. Their love story just didn't feel natural to me. Logically, I understand they spent a lot of time constantly together, but I wish the author had shown more of this along with their progression of falling in love. We didn't get a lot of tender moments between them where the barriers keeping them from forming a bond were beginning to fall.
I noticed this similarly happening in 𝘙𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 but unlike in this book, the romance was more believable due to the fact the main character became very good friends before lovers. With Gilene greatly disliking Azarion for the majority of the book, I can't suspend my disbelief.🤷♀️
My final thoughts? I enjoyed this book more as a fantasy read than a romance. I will be reading the next book in the series, and hopefully the romance will be written a little bit better. Otherwise, I enjoyed every other aspect of this book. 🐥💕
Graphic: War, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
Moderate: Rape, Physical abuse, Torture, Death, Sexual content, and Sexual assault
Minor: Blood, Gore, and Kidnapping
september_red'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
5.0
Graphic: Rape, Violence, Torture, War, Trafficking, Injury/Injury detail, Slavery, Kidnapping, and Fire/Fire injury
speasyspice's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Blood, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Torture, Slavery, Injury/Injury detail, and Cursing
bookcaptivated's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Graphic: Sexism, Murder, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Rape, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual violence, Torture, War, Violence, and Slavery
Moderate: Animal death, Infertility, Genocide, and Vomit
Minor: Grief
apierlessbridge's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Rape, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
deesquared's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, and War
Moderate: Animal death, Blood, Colonisation, Confinement, and Slavery
Minor: Death of parent