heartbrekker's Reviews (797)

"Did the soul grow weary for the body? Did the body grow too weary for the soul? Was it betrayal of organs and tissues, sinews and cells? Or was the betrayal that I did not care for my body the way I should have? That when I knew my body was screaming for aid, I ignored it, in service of what the soul wanted, which was the comfort of routine and familiarity. Who was the traitor, truly? The body? Or the soul?"

I'm so overwhelmed with emotions. I can't even begin to unpack them. Beyond moving, powerful, eloquent, miraculous, loving, etc. etc. etc.

"If we are lost, God is like water, finding the unknowable path when we cannot."

Sabaa Tahir made a masterpiece, and without a doubt, I believe it will become a classic someday. I swear with my entire heart and soul on my grace. It is a masterpiece. She placed everything within her into this book, and it shows 110%. Every emotion flew through me like every color in the rainbow, and it's simply just a very powerful book in the YA genre.

"Great passions grow into monsters in the dark of the mind; but if you share them with loving friends they remain human, they can be endured."

I'm so honored to have reviewed it early. I'm usually not a big contemporary fan anymore, so I was unsure at the beginning how I'd feel at the end. Obviously, it's incredible, so no need to worry there. I cannot wait to hold a finished copy in my hands and recommend it until the ends of time. Get ready to find tear stains on any and all copies because it's going to be a pandemic of sobs.

"People love talking about the greatness of the human heart. No bigger than a fist, pumps two thousand gallons of blood a day. Et cetera. But the human heart is also stupid. At least mine is."

Thank you Penguin Teen and NetGalley for an eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own

Akata Woman surprised me in the best possible way. I've grown to love my favorite Oha Coven with my entire heart, so it was terrifying to find them in their worst situation yet. Even with that fear, their trials and tribulations were perfectly executed. I found the pacing lagging in the first two books in the series right around the mid-point of the novel, so you can imagine my joy at not finding that issue here. I was hooked to my seat the entire time, and I finished it in a little over three days because I just HAD TO know what happened at the end. Also, I love that each of the members within the Oha Coven got to shine more in their own unique way. Everyone but Sunny gets to move up into the second tier of Leopard Society via magic, and it was interesting to have their journeys just as valid as Sunny's because occasionally novels can focus only on the main character. Ultimately, it's genius because I love each of the members of this friendship dearly.

My favorite part is still the love and friendship between Sunny, Chichi, Orlu, and Sasha. Yes, there's romance between these kids, but at the end of the day, it's so pure and teenager-ish that I cannot help but think of myself at that time. It's realistic and powerful to see these bonds. Oftentimes, romance gets the center stage in books, but the friendships at the end of the day are what matter in the Nsibidi Scripts. I'll always cherish it.

Oddly enough, the main characters may be fifteen years old, but in this installment, the themes, attitudes of characters, and tone of this installment felt very mature. Obviously, it's not adult, but I felt this weight to the story that hasn't really been around since. Sunny is growing up in these books, and I'd compare it to Percy Jackson's growth as the consequences sky rocket in severity or any other magic school book for young adults. Sunny must learn and grow into who she is becoming, and it's downright wondrous to witness. I cannot wait for the fourth book, and hopefully, it comes very soon!

"Tears are fine every now and then, but it's never a good thing to waste water."

While reading this magical fairytale turned grim reality, I was completely enchanted by the prose of this author. I was in love with her ability to describe the waves of the ocean or the suffocating feeling in Mina's chest underneath the sea. I loved how engrossing this writing is, and I will without a doubt claim it is its strongest element. She's a poet with this sort of lyrical writing.

I think one of my first issues is that I did not fully comprehend how much this story wouldn't actually revolve around the Sea God (although with spoilers it does haha— the reader doesn't know it). What I mean by this is the reader spends hardly any time in the palace with hardly any answers until the last 30%. And even then it is not that much. I was expecting court life and politics of that, and honestly, I didn't expect the city or how central it would become in this realm under the sea, overflowing with spirits and previous brides. It was interesting at first, but I don't think we focused on the elements I was interested in. Moreover, I grew a bit agitated waiting for crumbs of information, so it took me some time to like Shin even because my mind was going "SEA GOD SEA GOD SEA GOD." Personally, this is my own issue with the text, so I think this critique should be taken lightly by others. It did affect my rating because this is my own experience, but I think upon reread my rating would increase.

"Humans tell myths to explain what they cannot understand."

The only other issue I found was that the pacing was very disruptive in a lot of scenes. It would move slow like molasses for an extended period of time, and then suddenly, everyone broke lose into chaos, which I'm usually a fan of. It just felt wrong (idk how to describe it) here. This issue was the biggest problem for me because I'd find myself anxiously waiting for that moment to sink back into the pages, and it wouldn't hardly come after the third time because it kept happening.

Overall, this is definitely a book that I want to read again in a year or so because I'm also going through a lot in my personal life. I loved the fairytale warm hug at the beginning (which is funny because the beginning is so scary) with the writing, and I truly cannot wait to read more from Axie Oh.