Quick Stats
Age Rating: 13+
Over All: 2.75 stars
Plot: 2/5
Characters: 3/5
Setting: 3/5
Writing: 3/5
Special thanks to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for an eARC of this book! All thoughts and opinions reflected in this review are my own.
The first 35 pages of this book were strong and promising. I thought I was really going to enjoy this book. Similarly, the last 35 pages of this book were fast paced and engaging, they had me wanting to know what happens next.
Everything in between…
Boring.
It was so slow, no plot. I would’ve DNFed multiple times over if not for the fact that this was an ARC.
This book is very world and politic heavy. There are a lot of complex details in the setting, but the actual worldbuilding never goes past the superficial. Nothing is ever explained, we get no details. I had so many unanswered questions about the geography, lore, political systems of this world—leaving me confused and noticing plot hole after plot hole. This left me unconnected and unconvinced.
The characters were similarly underconstructed. There was nothing unique in any of them, nothing compelling. The romance had no chemistry, no build up. It’s instalove at its finest, and it never goes past that.
Throughout the book, the authors “hint” at the big reveals. But these hints were about as subtle as being hit over the head with a frying pan, and then you have to pretend you don’t know.
Despite that—and I did guess every single reveal anywhere from 100 to 300 pages in advance (and I’m not exaggerating)—when these things actually come to light in the climax, I began to become invested. Finally, things are happening! Suddenly, there was tension! The pacing picked up! I actually wanted to keep reading! Yes, everything that happened was excruciatingly predictable, but the writing was skilled, tension-filled, and engaging. It showed that these authors have the ability to write compelling prose… they just fail to do so for 90% of the book.
I also want to touch on the disability representation in this book because I have thoughts. Darling, the FMC, grew up in the lowlight of the sewers. This caused irreparable damage to her eyes. A film grew over them, and she can’t see in regular light unless she wears fancy sunglasses-like goggles. When I realized this, I was excited to see surprise disability rep! But I learned pretty quickly it’s not great rep.
This book heavily leans into the disability is actually a superpower trope, because Darling’s magic powers turned her eye damage into giving her supernatural vision in the dark. She’s like a cat. Talon, the MMC and Darling’s love interest, constantly makes weird, almost fetishy comments about Darling’s eyes and the film that covers them because of the damage. He calls them mesmerizing and mysterious and just… other similar comments that made me uncomfortable. I don’t think it’s the worst rep, but it’s definitely not good, either. I also have a bad feeling that all of her disability may be cured in book 2. I plan to read far enough to know if that’s the case, but I have no interest in actually reading the sequel.
Age Rating: 13+
Over All: 2.75 stars
Plot: 2/5
Characters: 3/5
Setting: 3/5
Writing: 3/5
Special thanks to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for an eARC of this book! All thoughts and opinions reflected in this review are my own.
The first 35 pages of this book were strong and promising. I thought I was really going to enjoy this book. Similarly, the last 35 pages of this book were fast paced and engaging, they had me wanting to know what happens next.
Everything in between…
Boring.
It was so slow, no plot. I would’ve DNFed multiple times over if not for the fact that this was an ARC.
This book is very world and politic heavy. There are a lot of complex details in the setting, but the actual worldbuilding never goes past the superficial. Nothing is ever explained, we get no details. I had so many unanswered questions about the geography, lore, political systems of this world—leaving me confused and noticing plot hole after plot hole. This left me unconnected and unconvinced.
The characters were similarly underconstructed. There was nothing unique in any of them, nothing compelling. The romance had no chemistry, no build up. It’s instalove at its finest, and it never goes past that.
Throughout the book, the authors “hint” at the big reveals. But these hints were about as subtle as being hit over the head with a frying pan, and then you have to pretend you don’t know.
Despite that—and I did guess every single reveal anywhere from 100 to 300 pages in advance (and I’m not exaggerating)—when these things actually come to light in the climax, I began to become invested. Finally, things are happening! Suddenly, there was tension! The pacing picked up! I actually wanted to keep reading! Yes, everything that happened was excruciatingly predictable, but the writing was skilled, tension-filled, and engaging. It showed that these authors have the ability to write compelling prose… they just fail to do so for 90% of the book.
I also want to touch on the disability representation in this book because I have thoughts. Darling, the FMC, grew up in the lowlight of the sewers. This caused irreparable damage to her eyes. A film grew over them, and she can’t see in regular light unless she wears fancy sunglasses-like goggles. When I realized this, I was excited to see surprise disability rep! But I learned pretty quickly it’s not great rep.
This book heavily leans into the disability is actually a superpower trope, because Darling’s magic powers turned her eye damage into giving her supernatural vision in the dark. She’s like a cat. Talon, the MMC and Darling’s love interest, constantly makes weird, almost fetishy comments about Darling’s eyes and the film that covers them because of the damage. He calls them mesmerizing and mysterious and just… other similar comments that made me uncomfortable. I don’t think it’s the worst rep, but it’s definitely not good, either. I also have a bad feeling that all of her disability may be cured in book 2. I plan to read far enough to know if that’s the case, but I have no interest in actually reading the sequel.