Reviews

Darker by Four by June CL Tan

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bobosaur's review

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adventurous challenging dark slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

jess7040's review

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5.0

I really wasn't expecting to love this, but I did! The pacing was great, the development of the characters and their relationships i LOVED, i really enjoyed the plot and where it led to and it set the 2nd book up so well !!

5 🌟

yve_ma's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

3.75

almalifsteina's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

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

periwinkleprose's review

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.75

It took me a while to get into this book and I initially found it a bit boring but once it picked up it really picked up. Rui was my favourite of the two perspectives as I preferred her determination and ambition more than I did Yiran. I didn’t think he was badly written but I also found him whiny and entitled which makes sense considering his upbringing but boiled my blood when he

blamed Rui for her powers being taken from him at the end. Like I just wanted to shake him and tell him to find some self worth and respect.

However, I admit that I am probably biased since I tend to be a harsher judge of male characters than female ones (alas as a lesbian I am just predisposed to give women passes). So I know that Yiran is the way he is due to his upbringing and insecurities.

On the downside I found that the pace picking up was a bit of a negative when it came to the last third of the book.

I can see Yiran and his love interest being an interesting couple but the love interest was introduced so late in the game that I failed to really feel invested in him. I felt he could have been introduced earlier to build up the tension that is the ‘forbidden romance’ he seems to have going on with Yiran.

Lastly, I found Nikai to kind of just be there. His perspectives were useful for introducing Ten and the high stakes of the series but I didn’t really feel like he existed as a character so much as a vehicle for the reader to learn about the world.

I would love to have his relationship with Four expanded upon. He obviously feels like he owes Four for the way his life has turned out and I’d like to see more of their relationship dynamic. Currently it is only known how he viewed Four and what he thought their relationship was but not how Four viewed him.

Overall I am intrigued how the story will play out and will be reading the next book.