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lilly_white's review against another edition
4.0
I'm still digesting the entirety of the book and am at a loss of words when thinking about rating it.
Charlie Hall is probably one of my most difficult female MCs to rate this year - She's an absolute mess of a woman, always at the brink of making bad life altering decisions, wholly whacked upbringing and childhood and overall a character that seems the least put together and always a breath away of loosing control of her life. Do I like her? Not really. Was she incredibly well written to pluck at my distaste buds? Definitely!
I've come to appreciate FMC that are not easily connected with more with time, because it shows the class of an author to pull something like that off.
Now, the story in itself was very interesting.
The shadow magic system with its benefits and limits was very intriguing, especially combined with a mess of a woman who happens to be a thief especialized in stealing relics of shadow magic. I got hooked between trying hard not to watch this woman's life fall apart, a heist she has to do in the midst of it, the mysterious side characters and her own strange but fulfilling development as a character.
Charlie Hall is probably one of my most difficult female MCs to rate this year - She's an absolute mess of a woman, always at the brink of making bad life altering decisions, wholly whacked upbringing and childhood and overall a character that seems the least put together and always a breath away of loosing control of her life. Do I like her? Not really. Was she incredibly well written to pluck at my distaste buds? Definitely!
I've come to appreciate FMC that are not easily connected with more with time, because it shows the class of an author to pull something like that off.
Now, the story in itself was very interesting.
The shadow magic system with its benefits and limits was very intriguing, especially combined with a mess of a woman who happens to be a thief especialized in stealing relics of shadow magic. I got hooked between trying hard not to watch this woman's life fall apart, a heist she has to do in the midst of it, the mysterious side characters and her own strange but fulfilling development as a character.
sabroyster's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
morethanmylupus's review against another edition
2.0
I didn't particularly love Holly Black's Cruel Prince series, but the premise of this one sounded too good to pass up. Unfortunately, it just wasn't for me. It dragged and dragged and dragged. Basically nothing happened for the first 50% of the book, and then we got a ton of new characters that don't seem to be hugely relevant to the story. More frustratingly, there was no clear explanation for why we have these shadows etc etc. All this world-building without basis lacked impact. Not my favorite and I don't think I'll pick up the second half of this duology.
cobycoyle's review against another edition
2.0
I found some of it confusing and hard to follow, like she gave some context and background to shadows and such but…I don’t know, maybe it’s just me.
Also before she found out Vince wasn’t human and before he killed that person she never thought or said she loved him and then she finds out he’s a shadow or Blight or whatever and loves him now? Hm.
I wasn’t exactly a fan and was skimming because some of it was boring, but do I plan on reading the next one? Yes
Also before she found out Vince wasn’t human and before he killed that person she never thought or said she loved him and then she finds out he’s a shadow or Blight or whatever and loves him now? Hm.
I wasn’t exactly a fan and was skimming because some of it was boring, but do I plan on reading the next one? Yes
_starless's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 ⭐️
started off pretty slow, and tbh confused me at quite a few points in the book. but the premise was hella intriguing and kept me hooked. very interested to see what happens in the second book.
started off pretty slow, and tbh confused me at quite a few points in the book. but the premise was hella intriguing and kept me hooked. very interested to see what happens in the second book.
kmr20275's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
4.25
There were definitely a few times where I felt like I knew what witless happen and it did, but there were also definitely twists that I did not get until they happened. Overall good read.
cookewitch's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
4.0
Really enjoyed this!
I got a bit confused in places and not totally sure how I feel about the end, but some great characters!
📖👥📖
I got a bit confused in places and not totally sure how I feel about the end, but some great characters!
📖👥📖