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Thank you to Netgalley (I guess) and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
TW: Non-consensual sex that is very much pretended to be consensual and fine. No, really. Mostly in the first book, but I have some issues in the second book with this as well.
This book made me really think about this specific tweet, and I think we should all look at this tweet before continuing to read my review:
https://twitter.com/rhysandism/status/1362635802656739332?s=20
I do not recommend this book for anyone. I absolutely do not recommend it for teenagers. This mentality can become downright dangerous for teenagers to read about, and the relationships are not healthy. Not a single relationship is healthy, and there is not one time that it is addressed. This is not okay.
My full review will be posted on my blog on April 16th, which will include some of the finer details like the unrealistic history and how it's written. Yes, I know this is fantasy. I digress.
Cassandra is 22, but she does not read as 22. She reads to be 16 at most times, and sometimes 14 at others. Even after her escape from the prisons in Londinium, she still throws tantrums like a child. Quite literally stamping her feet when she doesn’t get her way, which, if I ever saw a 22-year-old do that I’m not sure I would know what to do. Devyn is angry and moody, and rarely ever has anything likable about himself. He posed as a 12-year-old when he was 16, so I would imagine that I would be grumpy in those circumstances too. If you’re wondering, yes, it is weird that Cassandra and Devyn’s age difference is 4 years- not when they’re in their 20’s, but since he’s been following her around since she was 12. It’s weird. Marcus was the only likable character of the trio, and O’Connor decided that was not acceptable, either.
My issue with this book, however, is not directly with any of these things. It’s the way O’Connor chose to write about consent and women. In the first book, Cassandra is given bridal tea. This is a drug. She is drugged to feel more sexually aroused to feel more inclined towards her betrothed (Marcus). This is the first time she and Devyn become physically intimate, and they both are aware she is drugged. Despite Devyn playing chivalrous every other moment, he does not when she is drugged. In the first 25% or so of this sequel, Devyn is then drugged with the same tea. The same thing occurs, and no one acts like this is a particularly terrible thing for either of them to have participated in. I’m sorry, but I wouldn’t want my partner to have relations with me when we both know I’m under a drug I did not consent to take.
Cassandra is used as a pawn for marriage, repeatedly. No matter who ends up with her, they are trying to marry her off to someone for power. This book is set in the future of some kind, and honestly, this trope is tired. The handfasting cuffs that Marcus and Cassandra both have cause them to feel aroused when one or the other is experiencing it. Marcus does this to intentionally cause Cassandra to feel out of control around Devyn. While this is not marked as okay, Cassandra forgives Marcus because he didn’t ask to be put in this situation. I mean, neither did Cassandra, but fuck it when it comes to her ability to consent, I guess.
This next bit is going to spoil the ending, but I want to further explore how terrible of a job O’Connor does of addressing consent, sex, and women. Especially because this is supposed to be a YA.
Thank you to Netgalley (I guess) and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
TW: Non-consensual sex that is very much pretended to be consensual and fine. No, really. Mostly in the first book, but I have some issues in the second book with this as well.
This book made me really think about this specific tweet, and I think we should all look at this tweet before continuing to read my review:
https://twitter.com/rhysandism/status/1362635802656739332?s=20
I do not recommend this book for anyone. I absolutely do not recommend it for teenagers. This mentality can become downright dangerous for teenagers to read about, and the relationships are not healthy. Not a single relationship is healthy, and there is not one time that it is addressed. This is not okay.
My full review will be posted on my blog on April 16th, which will include some of the finer details like the unrealistic history and how it's written. Yes, I know this is fantasy. I digress.
Cassandra is 22, but she does not read as 22. She reads to be 16 at most times, and sometimes 14 at others. Even after her escape from the prisons in Londinium, she still throws tantrums like a child. Quite literally stamping her feet when she doesn’t get her way, which, if I ever saw a 22-year-old do that I’m not sure I would know what to do. Devyn is angry and moody, and rarely ever has anything likable about himself. He posed as a 12-year-old when he was 16, so I would imagine that I would be grumpy in those circumstances too. If you’re wondering, yes, it is weird that Cassandra and Devyn’s age difference is 4 years- not when they’re in their 20’s, but since he’s been following her around since she was 12. It’s weird. Marcus was the only likable character of the trio, and O’Connor decided that was not acceptable, either.
My issue with this book, however, is not directly with any of these things. It’s the way O’Connor chose to write about consent and women. In the first book, Cassandra is given bridal tea. This is a drug. She is drugged to feel more sexually aroused to feel more inclined towards her betrothed (Marcus). This is the first time she and Devyn become physically intimate, and they both are aware she is drugged. Despite Devyn playing chivalrous every other moment, he does not when she is drugged. In the first 25% or so of this sequel, Devyn is then drugged with the same tea. The same thing occurs, and no one acts like this is a particularly terrible thing for either of them to have participated in. I’m sorry, but I wouldn’t want my partner to have relations with me when we both know I’m under a drug I did not consent to take.
Cassandra is used as a pawn for marriage, repeatedly. No matter who ends up with her, they are trying to marry her off to someone for power. This book is set in the future of some kind, and honestly, this trope is tired. The handfasting cuffs that Marcus and Cassandra both have cause them to feel aroused when one or the other is experiencing it. Marcus does this to intentionally cause Cassandra to feel out of control around Devyn. While this is not marked as okay, Cassandra forgives Marcus because he didn’t ask to be put in this situation. I mean, neither did Cassandra, but fuck it when it comes to her ability to consent, I guess.
This next bit is going to spoil the ending, but I want to further explore how terrible of a job O’Connor does of addressing consent, sex, and women. Especially because this is supposed to be a YA.
Spoiler
Marcus betrays them all. He sails away and is unaffected by the handfasting cuff. Devyn is murdered. Cassandra is pregnant with Devyn’s child. Knowing that all Cassandra must do is marry someone to get the cuff off, she marries Gideon. She has hated Gideon almost the entire book. However, once the vows are completed, the cuff does not come off. She is going to die in pain- unless she consummates the marriage. Cassandra must sleep with someone she does not like, minutes after her beloved dies and her friend betrays her. Or else she dies. Because this is what we have reduced our female main character to – a pawn. Cassandra is supposed to be from one of the most powerful magical lines in all of history. She has shown her ability to be strong and powerful with her magic. Instead of using that to write Cassandra out of her predicament, she is put in a place where she either dies or she has sex that she does not consent to. That’s it. That’s your big fucking twist at the end of the book.
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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I was very excited to get my hands on this once I saw the reviews for it in its original language. Let me tell you, this book does not disappoint. Hirka is likeable, from the way she hates the system was a raised in, to her emotional turmoil of finding out that everything you knew about yourself is a lie. I found the romance between Hirka and Rime interesting, and realistic. They’re strong characters on their own, which really builds for a fantastic relationship. There were moments that this book felt confusing, or slow and that took away some of my love for it. In the translation, there are still some terms that I wasn’t sure if they were apart of this new world, or apart of the Norwegian language. Additionally, I feel as though Urd’s part of the story was somewhat confusing. However, knowing this is a trilogy means that I may get those answers when the next books are translated.
I found the plot of this and the world building fascinating. It felt entirely new, despite it not being too new of a concept to the fantasy world. The way things were written and woven into one another was great, and Pettersen has really done an amazing thing introducing this into the world of epic fantasies. I am incredibly excited for the next two books to be translated into English and get my hands on them.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I was very excited to get my hands on this once I saw the reviews for it in its original language. Let me tell you, this book does not disappoint. Hirka is likeable, from the way she hates the system was a raised in, to her emotional turmoil of finding out that everything you knew about yourself is a lie. I found the romance between Hirka and Rime interesting, and realistic. They’re strong characters on their own, which really builds for a fantastic relationship. There were moments that this book felt confusing, or slow and that took away some of my love for it. In the translation, there are still some terms that I wasn’t sure if they were apart of this new world, or apart of the Norwegian language. Additionally, I feel as though Urd’s part of the story was somewhat confusing. However, knowing this is a trilogy means that I may get those answers when the next books are translated.
I found the plot of this and the world building fascinating. It felt entirely new, despite it not being too new of a concept to the fantasy world. The way things were written and woven into one another was great, and Pettersen has really done an amazing thing introducing this into the world of epic fantasies. I am incredibly excited for the next two books to be translated into English and get my hands on them.
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Thank you to the author for contacting me regarding his book in exchange for an honest review.
I’d like two address a couple of things that really affect my review here. Firstly, this book is marketed like a YA. It reads more similarly to a middle grade. If this had been marketed as a MG and I had the expectations of a MG, I think it would have done well for the book. Secondly, the pacing of this book is really confusing. So much happens in the book that it feels like this first book is a trilogy in of itself. This causes a lot of important factors and character development to not be extremely fleshed out, an as mentioned above, we get a lot of “talk don’t show” from everyone involved.
With that being said, I did enjoy this book. I found the magic in it interesting, and I appreciated that it was explained early on as to what each house of magic was. While the pacing was, at times, detrimental to the plot, it also served as a benefit to allow this book to be a quick and exciting read. There wasn’t a moment where things weren’t happening, which is fantastic if you have focus issues. The twist at the end really surprised me as well, and I’ll be interested to see what happens next in the series!
Thank you to the author for contacting me regarding his book in exchange for an honest review.
I’d like two address a couple of things that really affect my review here. Firstly, this book is marketed like a YA. It reads more similarly to a middle grade. If this had been marketed as a MG and I had the expectations of a MG, I think it would have done well for the book. Secondly, the pacing of this book is really confusing. So much happens in the book that it feels like this first book is a trilogy in of itself. This causes a lot of important factors and character development to not be extremely fleshed out, an as mentioned above, we get a lot of “talk don’t show” from everyone involved.
With that being said, I did enjoy this book. I found the magic in it interesting, and I appreciated that it was explained early on as to what each house of magic was. While the pacing was, at times, detrimental to the plot, it also served as a benefit to allow this book to be a quick and exciting read. There wasn’t a moment where things weren’t happening, which is fantastic if you have focus issues. The twist at the end really surprised me as well, and I’ll be interested to see what happens next in the series!
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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Full review will be posted on my blog on April 5th.
To call this a retelling of Cruella is a bit of a stretch if I’m being honest. This is fully a historical fiction novel, with the concept of Cruella as an afterthought. This is very clearly a setup to be directly connected with the new Cruella movie, which is fine. The pacing of the book was strange, and while I’ve often liked Johnson’s writing for being cut and dry, this missed the mark. None of the characters in this book are particularly likable. I really wanted to like this book. The cover alone was beautiful. However, I kept waiting for the story to reveal itself as the beginning of Cruella’s story. I never got that satisfaction. If this had been marketed as just historical fiction, about a girl who tries to make it in the ranks of the elite while balancing a life of crime- it would have a higher rating from me. Unfortunately, this story allowed itself to pretend to be one thing when it really was something entirely different. This is a huge pet peeve of mine and took away from my enjoyment.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Full review will be posted on my blog on April 5th.
To call this a retelling of Cruella is a bit of a stretch if I’m being honest. This is fully a historical fiction novel, with the concept of Cruella as an afterthought. This is very clearly a setup to be directly connected with the new Cruella movie, which is fine. The pacing of the book was strange, and while I’ve often liked Johnson’s writing for being cut and dry, this missed the mark. None of the characters in this book are particularly likable. I really wanted to like this book. The cover alone was beautiful. However, I kept waiting for the story to reveal itself as the beginning of Cruella’s story. I never got that satisfaction. If this had been marketed as just historical fiction, about a girl who tries to make it in the ranks of the elite while balancing a life of crime- it would have a higher rating from me. Unfortunately, this story allowed itself to pretend to be one thing when it really was something entirely different. This is a huge pet peeve of mine and took away from my enjoyment.
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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Kim Neville has created a magical concept within the world we already know and live in. This story weaves different real life issues- anxiety, obsessiveness, and even hoarder. It addresses them within their magical context, and gives life to something you didn’t know needed it. The characters in this book are so incredibly different from one another, and unique. These individual characters were very realistic, which added to the depth of this story. Discussing the plot without spoiling everything is tricky. There is the inherent mystery of Ev and Noemi’s parents, and what actually happened to them. This gave the book an aspect of a dark and thriller feel at times, and I think it’s what made the book so fantastic for me.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Kim Neville has created a magical concept within the world we already know and live in. This story weaves different real life issues- anxiety, obsessiveness, and even hoarder. It addresses them within their magical context, and gives life to something you didn’t know needed it. The characters in this book are so incredibly different from one another, and unique. These individual characters were very realistic, which added to the depth of this story. Discussing the plot without spoiling everything is tricky. There is the inherent mystery of Ev and Noemi’s parents, and what actually happened to them. This gave the book an aspect of a dark and thriller feel at times, and I think it’s what made the book so fantastic for me.
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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
A full review will be on my blog on April 23rd.
ST Gibson’s writing is fantastic and had me highlighting quotes on every other page. The way the words seemed to flow together, and express love, pain, and abuse were tangible. Gibson does not try to necessarily sugarcoat the abuse that Constanta and her counterparts experience. As this story travels through time, it’s unique in explaining the history, the buildings, and the ongoing wars around it. If you’ve read any of my tweets or seen my vlogs: you know I don’t like smut. However, this is the first book I have ever highlighted smut in. The way it was written was gorgeous and sexy, terms I generally wouldn’t use for this situation. We aren’t given tons of character development aside from Constanta herself. For most, their characters degrade under the abuse. This is common, and it was interesting to see it in a fantasy and horror concept.
The gore in this was still written in a lush way, but there is quite a lot of blood lust in this. If that’s not your thing, be wary of picking it up. This truly could be the Interview with a Vampire for this generation.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
A full review will be on my blog on April 23rd.
ST Gibson’s writing is fantastic and had me highlighting quotes on every other page. The way the words seemed to flow together, and express love, pain, and abuse were tangible. Gibson does not try to necessarily sugarcoat the abuse that Constanta and her counterparts experience. As this story travels through time, it’s unique in explaining the history, the buildings, and the ongoing wars around it. If you’ve read any of my tweets or seen my vlogs: you know I don’t like smut. However, this is the first book I have ever highlighted smut in. The way it was written was gorgeous and sexy, terms I generally wouldn’t use for this situation. We aren’t given tons of character development aside from Constanta herself. For most, their characters degrade under the abuse. This is common, and it was interesting to see it in a fantasy and horror concept.
The gore in this was still written in a lush way, but there is quite a lot of blood lust in this. If that’s not your thing, be wary of picking it up. This truly could be the Interview with a Vampire for this generation.
BLOG|INSTAGRAM|TWITTER|YOUTUBE
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Full review blog review on April 30th.
Winterborne is a fast-paced continuation of the series Ally Carter is writing. As April must explain to her friends the foster system, she’s also having to try and find her missing guardian. She openly laments the amount of stress, and trauma this is. I really appreciated the realism of that and the lack of sugar coating. Children do go through these things (maybe not the murder) and pay for them mentally. I enjoyed each of the characters in the book. However, I felt the boys could have had a little more fleshing out. Despite that, I still adored them all and their relationships with one another.
The plot itself was interesting. There was never a dull moment, and the pacing was consistent. I wasn’t aware this was the second book initially but was able to grasp the plot quickly. I think this is important in middle grades, as often, kids are just picking them up at random. While it still felt like a bridge to the next book in the series, it translated well.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Full review blog review on April 30th.
Winterborne is a fast-paced continuation of the series Ally Carter is writing. As April must explain to her friends the foster system, she’s also having to try and find her missing guardian. She openly laments the amount of stress, and trauma this is. I really appreciated the realism of that and the lack of sugar coating. Children do go through these things (maybe not the murder) and pay for them mentally. I enjoyed each of the characters in the book. However, I felt the boys could have had a little more fleshing out. Despite that, I still adored them all and their relationships with one another.
The plot itself was interesting. There was never a dull moment, and the pacing was consistent. I wasn’t aware this was the second book initially but was able to grasp the plot quickly. I think this is important in middle grades, as often, kids are just picking them up at random. While it still felt like a bridge to the next book in the series, it translated well.