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achingallover'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: Genocide, Racism, Xenophobia, and Slavery
ijustreallyliketrees'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: Xenophobia
Moderate: Death, Hate crime, and Racism
Minor: Emotional abuse and Gore
clarabooksit's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I haven’t read any of those books so my reading experience lacked a lot of important background information, especially about Draconeans and the world this book takes place in. And unfortunately the epistolary style didn’t lend itself to great world-building. Perhaps the first book has amazing world-building, in which case book six need not have much but it was marketed as a standalone. It does not stand alone.
Anyway, outside of that, this was just an okay read for me. I went into it with high hopes—historical fantasy, dragons, mystery, the protagonist is a translator!—but it didn’t meet those hopes. The choice to write the story in letters didn’t work for me here. There were so many things that didn’t make sense that someone would write in a letter or a diary but were obviously included because the reader needed to know the information. Likewise, the inclusion of the translations the characters are working on didn’t add anything to the story for me. Just so much telling and very little showing. The mc made a lot of stupid decisions, too. The biggest disappointment, though? No actual dragons.
This review is a bit negative but I did actually like the world, I just didn’t fully understand it. And overall it was engaging. I think if I had known I shouldn’t start with this book, it would’ve been a better experience.
Graphic: Xenophobia and Racism
Moderate: Classism and Violence
cskye's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Fire/Fire injury, and Hate crime
Minor: Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Murder, Misogyny, Police brutality, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Blood, Chronic illness, Classism, Death, and Toxic relationship
tericarol21's review
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia, and Violence
Minor: Car accident, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, and Hate crime