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josisbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Gore, Domestic abuse, Drug use, and Eating disorder
feijoamuffin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
On a much lighter note; Noam and Dara are precious and must be protected at all costs.
Graphic: Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, Rape, Sexual assault, Drug abuse, Drug use, Torture, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Blood, and Child abuse
tkhenry99's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: War, Violence, Toxic relationship, Pedophilia, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, and Adult/minor relationship
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Confinement, Drug use, Incest, and Medical content
iridaceae's review
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, and War
Moderate: Confinement, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gore, Medical trauma, and Self harm
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Car accident, Colonisation, Homophobia, Vomit, and Torture
xoodlebooks'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
5.0
Graphic: Genocide, Xenophobia, Violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Rape, Pedophilia, Hate crime, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Death, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Mental illness, Medical content, Grief, Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Drug use, Drug abuse, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Child death, Forced institutionalization, Self harm, Racism, and Police brutality
Minor: Torture, Suicide attempt, Terminal illness, Antisemitism, Confinement, and Kidnapping
azrah786's review
4.25
**I was provided with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**
DISCLAIMER: Please be aware that since this is a sequel there are spoilers for the previous book.
Recommencing 6 months after the final events of The Fever King, The Electric Heir kicks off with Noam and Lehrer laying siege to a lab that has been developing a vaccine to the Magic virus. After their successful coup, Lehrer has become Chancellor of Carolinia and under his rule the Atlantian refugees now have the citizenship that Noam was so desperately fighting for.
The loss of Dara has left Noam in an ever present state of grief yet, it has also landed him in a much closer and more… twisted relationship with Lehrer. Together they have been working to jeopardise the State of Texas – the state with the biggest opposition to Witchings - in their efforts of developing and weaponising the cure to Magic. However, Noam has slowly broken free of Lehrer’s mind control, and all that he was forced to forget by and about Lehrer has resurfaced. So doing everything he can not to be found out, Noam ever the hero decides to use his position as a means to destroy Lehrer.
Meanwhile Dara is very much not dead. Cured from his Fevermadness and as a result no longer a Witching, Dara returns to Durham as part of a rebel group called The Black Magnolia also determined to bring down Lehrer for good. And with Dara back in the picture Noam is further determined to keep up his role as double agent, never mind the danger it puts him in.
The Electric Heir is as high stakes and captivating as its predecessor however, the overall action is dialled down and the story focuses much more on the characters and their self-reflections. The underlying theme for both books is one of survival. Where the first book essentially looks at this theme in a broader and societal sense, the sequel addresses it on a much more personal level.
If the content warnings haven’t cautioned you already this book is hard-hitting and it is dark, and I wholeheartedly applaud Lee for writing it. For not shying away from writing with such brutal honesty about uncomfortable topics that are still too often blindsided. From sharing a narrative that challenges the harmful assumptions that surround said topics. There were instances when I had to put the books down to take a breather and it’s safe to say my emotions were all over the place.
The characters are again very much the heart and soul of this story and their individual arcs make me feel as though I have known them for so much longer than a mere duology. All credit of course going to how skilfully Lee has voiced each of them.
Noam’s teenage naivety is still there but an evident layer of matureness has been added to his character too. It physically hurt to witness the situations he was undergoing and all his accompanying emotions and actions. His adamant tendency to throw himself into any situation with no self-preservation frustrated me just as much as it did Dara – I wanted to jump into the book myself and save him.
One of my favourite parts in particular was the fact that we got a dual perspective and were finally able to see the world through Dara’s eyes. His perspective was very much a journey of recovery both from his past and trauma, as well as the loss of his telepathic powers which were such an integral part of his life.
The parallels between the two protagonists was really interesting to see, though what was equally heart-breaking was Dara being torn apart on observing his past being reflected through Noam. Their relationship was much more complicated and angst ridden than before, riddled with anguish, longing, guilt and Lehrer.
Speaking of which, let us take a second to appreciate the villain in the room, and when I say appreciate I mean just how well written of a character he is. You know they’re a good villain when you love to hate them and my abhorrence for Lehrer grew with EVERY. SINGLE. PAGE. His masked nature that both intrigued and unnerved me in The Fever King was slowly etched away to give a very realistic portrayal of how people with power can so very easily get away with abusing it.
It was great to be exposed to more of Lee’s dystopian world as well as to see the secondary characters – in particular Ames, Bethany and Taye - having a much bigger involvement overall too. I outlined my fascination with the magic system of this series in my review for book one and I really appreciated that we were able to learn a little more about it.
The political side of the storyline was something I have also thoroughly enjoyed throughout this series. Though it was not as forefront as in The Fever King, it was all well integrated with the ploy to defeat Lehrer. I did feel that there were some elements of the plot that felt repetitive as at a point we were basically following Noam going forwards and backwards from one place to another however, there was a constant tension of not knowing who to trust that keep me on edge. Of not knowing if and where Lehrer’s influence was lurking. Honestly the storytelling is phenomenal and I look forward to reading Lee’s future works.
All in all I feel like my words can’t do justice to how powerful and important this duology is. So just like I have been doing over the last year I’m going to continue to recommend it whenever and to whoever I can. If you’ve made it this far and have yet to pick up this series, please do!
Final Rating - 4.25/5 Stars
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Ableism, Drug use, and Eating disorder