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★★★★☆ It was basically if the Essen Tasch had blood-bending and I liked it Buy the book here: Amazon Book Depository Barnes & Noble

★★★★★ !!!!! I suppose it doesn't matter how they get out. All that matters is they do. And when they do, they must be found. They must go back. The Writing and the Worldbuilding So I'm low-key freaking out a little because my current WIP has some parallels to this (afterlife, dead younger brother the female Mc wants to bring back to life somehow, and mystical access to memories through touch) and I know I can never top the Schwab, so wish me luck 🤞 The first few chapters of this really didn't do it for me, I must admit. They were slow and, frankly, a little boring, and I really didn't like the narration style very much at first. BUT! Once it grew on me, I ADORED EVERYTHING!! It really kinda gave me Cruel Beauty vibes with a specific ghostly character and also some The Mortal Instruments vibes as well. I could almost taste the shapes of what would become her later books, like A Darker Shade of Magic and This Savage Song . The framewo...

★★☆☆☆ Good grief I'm finally done with this. I'm disappointed. I'm underwhelmed. I'm frankly a little pissed off. I went into this book with the excitement of a giddy child and came out a crone hardened by sheer boredom and anger (the worst kind). I was happy with the story, so very happy, but once Marcella (a new addition AKA the lady on the cover) mutinied and became the star of the show, around the 50% mark, I found myself dreading reading this. I don't want this to be a long review so I'm going to be more brief than I usually am, especially when I have so many feelings. Here are my general feelings about the characters, the plot, and the themes of the book: I found that all the veteran characters were cardboard cutouts of their former selves. They weren't really there long enough, their feelings and thoughts weren't touched on enough, to really warrant any feelings on my part. Victor was reduced to a hand flicking, wall leaning, t...

★★★★★ There was a strange place, between knowing and not knowing. A place where things could live in the back of your head without weighing down on your heart. Why do you do this to me, Victoria Schwab? The Writing and Worldbuilding I loved that we got to see outside of Verity, and I hope that if we ever get more in this world—P L E A S E—that we'll get to see even more. The plot was awesome, almost better than This Savage Song , and I was totally invested throughout. Unfortunately, the emotional parts just didn't hit me nearly as hard as they did in the first book, though not for lack of trying. I absolutely loved the addition of the Chaos Eater. It really upped the stakes and expanded the world. I also loved the little poetic interludes in the perspective of the Chaos Eater. Those were super cool and unique. The Characters August: It's no surprise that I love August and will always love August. I really appreciated how his ...

★★★★★ "It hurts," he whispered. "What does?" asked Kate. "Being. Not being. Giving in. Holding out. No matter what I do, it hurts." Kate tipped her head back against the tub. "That's life, August," she said. "You wanted to feel alive, right? It doesn't matter if you're monster or human. Living hurts." 😦👌❤ The Writing and Worldbuilding It's really no surprise I loved this, given that it's written by my Queen, Victoria Schwab. Reading the blurb, I wasn't totally sure how this book was going to play out, what kind of a world this was set it, but reading the book, I understood everything about it perfectly. It honestly reminded me of another favorite book of mine, Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion with its tough, hardcore heroine and not-really-human-but-trying male protagonist. But whereas Warm Bodies was a romance, this was a fantastic friendship, and that was awfully refreshing (though...

[WARNING: This review contains spoilers] ★★★★★ MAY 23RD UPDATE: After a lot of thought, I have decided to drop my rating from 5 stars to 4 stars because of the issues I had with the ending. Most of the book was 5 stars, but the ending felt like 3.5 stars, with some parts closer to 2 stars. "As Illumae." #LiterallyConjuringLight #RollCredits The Worldbuilding and Writing As usual, Schwab utterly impressed me with her ability to weave an intoxicating and intriguing tale in an equally amazing world. The sleeping curse had a strong Sleeping Beauty feel to it that I really liked, and the whole Black curse itself reminded me of Neil Gaiman's The Sleeper and the Spindle . There were more actual consequences, and character deaths that actually meant something, in this book, and I appreciated that. I hate it when a character dies but it means nothing because they either weren't well developed or important, or there wasn't a thematic me...

★★★★★ 😮 I have no words, but I'll try. The Writing and Worldbuilding Plenty of humans were monstrous, and plenty of monsters knew how to play at being human. As usual, Queen Victoria's writing and world building were superb 👌. She crafted such a believable concept that I can't help but want to try it myself and become an EO (but I won't; don't worry). I especially loved the story structure, how the chapters alternated between the past and present and different characters' perspectives, revealing little tidbits as it went along. It wasn't necessarily unique—I've seen it done a million times—but it was well done and not something I've read recently by any means, so it was refreshing and intriguing. The book itself read like a noir or even a heist movie tbh, but with the cheese replaced by thought-provoking insight into the psychology of superpowers and those who have them, and of who and what is the greater evil, and if that...

★★★★☆ The Writing While I found many a typo (at least in my copy, idk about all of them), I was still very pulled in by Schwab's writing style, and she has definitely solidified a permanent place in my favorite authors list. The plot was slower, a lot slower than A Darker Shade of Magic was, and that was kind of disappointing and annoying at times, because the scenes I wanted weren't always the scenes I got, and the scenes I got likewise weren't always the scenes I wanted. However, the last part—and that cliffhanger !!!!!!!!!—really saved this book, as it brought together all the plot threads and reinvigorated me, definitely insuring I will be continuing this series. The Characters Kell: As usual, he was my favorite character. His alterego as Kamerov was exciting and explored a whole new side of his character. The injustices against him by the king and queen, as well as Arnesian society as a whole, were very upsetting and I really empathize...

★★★★★ This is an amazing book. Wow. Just wow. The Writing and Worldbuilding V.E. Schwab is the master of exposition that doesn't feel like exposition. She has somehow managed to introduce complex worlds and systems without talking at the reader. Her dialogue is just as seemingly effortless. The banter between Kell and Lila was so fantastic, and when she formally meets Rhy, all three of them are just so great together. The imagery was fantastic and vivid. The plot was consistently intriguing and exciting. I was never bored reading this. I even read some pages out loud to my brother in a fancy British narrator voice and it sounded so great! There weren't any awkward lines or anything. The magic system was so amazing and unique, coupled with the historical setting, this felt like a classic adventure story. The back blurb by io9 is so true: it truly does "[feel] like a priceless object, brought from another, better world of fantasy books." T...