I really enjoyed reading Essun’s current day pov, along with the pov of her as a child in the academy. The plot twist of all three women being the same person at different stages of life was phenomenal.
And how the girl from the academy was the woman following her as an adult. And I loved her interactions with the little boy, I love when a tired worn out adult character adopts a stray child and a found family is born.

The only downside was the mentor, and unfortunately he was a big downside. He just annoyed me because I didn’t like the way he treated the main character badly. And I already guessed the plot twist that he was the one who caused the end of the world destruction from the second he was introduced.

Thank god he died in this book or is about to die? I forgot since I am writing this review months later.
But I hope we are FREE of him in the second book, which hopefully will have a much higher rating than this book.

A perfect book for the sweltering sticky season of summer.

I enjoyed the story but most of all the evocative language used to depict the yearning the main character had for Susannah and vice versa. The use of filth and spit and commonly gross things being the objects of wonder and tools for yearning was immaculate (Lucy being obsessed with Susannah eating and chewing and spitting, and Susannah lusting over Lucy’s dirty fingernail and revealing it in a love letter). It just showed a pure desire at all costs that the characters had for each other.

However I do think some parts got repetitive, in particular the self-explanations Lucy gives for her actions- saying that she is a coward, selfish etc when we can already infer this on our own or can remember her telling us this the first time she told us.
I also feel like the conflict of the story could have been resolved if Lucy had just studied for her exams and made plans for college, it would
We saw Lucy go from using Martin as her shield plan to just agreeing with everything her mum wanted her to do with him. And maybe I missed out on something, but Lucy didn’t seem like the extreme people pleasing type like that. Wouldn’t it have been a decent solution to say she would want to focus on college before doing anything with Martin? And then Susannah could meet her wherever her college campus would be and they could be open with their love there and when Lucy would go home for the holidays she would be able to keep up the illusion and secrecy (which was not so secret in the end).

We don’t even know whether Lucy herself would ever be interested in college, only that her family doesn’t it even consider it an option for her or don’t take that prospect seriously. I feel like outside of Susannah what did Lucy have going for her? I wanted to see more of that, especially when she moved to Dublin.

I also wanted to see her life with Susannah after she posted that final letter and Susannah opened the door. I wanted to see if they stayed in the manor in Crossmore and whether Lucy saw her family and her ex friend group. I wanted to see her heal and maybe make friends with those in Crossmore that understood her.

Idk I just wanted a bit more after that ending, and I feel like we spent too much time with Lucy denying herself.

But overall this was such an easy summer read, and I really enjoyed the descriptions and the yearning. I’ll be checking out anything else the author puts out.

3.5

This has been on my TBR for centuries but I have finally amazed to pick it up, and I am so glad I did. I went into this knowing only that it was about sisters in different countries who find out about each other. So reading this, and learning about flight AA587 and then absorbing the grief the characters were going through and the themes of loss, betrayal and healing imbued into the text made it such a lush reading experience.

My only gripe is that I wish we had spent a longer time with the sisters being under the same roof. I wanted to read more about their dynamic, and with Yahaira’s mum added into the mix. And that those feelings of anger, wanting to get closer to the other but hating that they do, loving and competing and having emotions that you logically know you shouldn’t have any more but still do. I would have liked to read about any therapy sessions they did.

And I also think that reading this physically was a mistake of mine, and that listening to the audiobook narration would make me feel the story and it’s impact on a greater level.

I will hopefully re-read this book as an audiobook and I am sure I will bump up the rating as a result.

Overall this had phenomenal writing, beautiful narrative complexities and compelling characters.

2.5

I thought this book was about vampires (which it kind of was just not the classic kind) and it ended up being about the most sinister situationship ever.

The concept and premise was very intriguing but I found the execution a little lacking; I wanted more descriptions of the setting, particularly of the grounds outside which we didn’t follow the mc go out into until the very end of the story.
But the biggest obstacle to my enjoyment of the story was the main character’s questionable decisions.

I think a lot of the plot relied on the main character making the most outlandish choices. I understand that she was vulnerable and the ad deliberately sought out girls like her to exploit. But we were told she was an expert thief and so I expected her to have some street smarts about her.

Instead, upon finding out what Lisvet truly is, she proceeds to involve Iver in their escape plan, since the enemy of an enemy is useful. But she does so relying on only the words Lisvet gave to her about Iver disliking her and wanting to claim the House of Hunger. Beyond Lisvet’s words, how can we ascertain that Iver is even a relative of Lisvet’s? This is where interactions with the nobles and doing some sleuthing could have come in.

Instead she goes straight to Iver and it’s clear as day he is not ‘a man of his word’ but the main character seems to believe him to be so. If he clearly did not care or show any empathy to the fate of the bloodmaids when she told him what happens to them, why would you think he would in good faith help you procure tickets. If you know he had no meals the first thing you should be wary of is that 1) he might not even be Lisvet’s cousin and will snitch 2) if he is her cousin he might use the info you’ve given him to blackmail her into marriage in which case he’s snitching again. And when he doesn’t give you your money you’ve won in the game and delays it that’s the final warning bell.

And then when running away from Lisvet with a crossbow, and upon finding out that Thiago knew of the whole sinister scheme, the main character threatens him with a bad review/expose in the gazette and not with the cleaver in her hands???!!
It was beyond ridiculous that I chuckled

And then bending down and getting close to hear the words of your tormentor when you should be running AWAY when you are on 2 working red blood cells and a dream is beyond insannnee.

However for all my grievances I really did like the way the book ended with them boarding the night train, the way it ended was simple but the atmosphere of the book struck me at that ending.

I did enjoy it but I also sort of hate enjoyed it.
The main character drove me up the wall but I was rooting for her all the same.
And I kind of would like to see this adapted.

3.5- 3.75

The main character's anxieties and insecurities were written well and the communication of her insecurities within the relationship was done well. The concept is a bit out there but fun. It was too insta-lovey for my taste, and I know that the first chapter was initially a one-shot. But I kind of wish the first chapter was a one time thing and then we could build things back up again, or that emotional feelings would develop fully later rather than sooner. I'm just nit-picky since I don't like insta-love, but their dynamic in the relationship was very cute, him wanting and getting excited to do relationship things like having her leave her toothbrush and other stuff at his house.