Quick Stats
Age Rating: 13+
Over All: 4 stars
Plot: 4.5/5
Characters: 3.5/5
Setting: 4/5
Pacing: 3.5/5
Writing: 4/5
Special thanks to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for an eARC of this book! All thoughts and opinions reflected in this review are my own.
From the start, this book felt like it had so much potential, but it also seemed like it would be very easy for it to fall flat. There was so much going on. The plot, world, characters, a murder mystery and a magic system. There was a lot of potential for a high payoff, but also a lot of opportunities for some threads (haha) to get lost in the chaos. There was a very particular balance that needed to be struck and maintained throughout the book. As I read, I went back an forth often on whether the author was successful in doing so.
The book kicks off to a strong start. It is a little bit info dump heavy, however with such a unique and complicated world and magic system, that can be necessary. It was fleshed out with enough action that, for me, it never became too much. I was engaged, and I could feel myself being drawn in to the story. However, at around the 40% mark, I started to lose that engagement. It was at that point that I started to realize that amid all the worldbuilding and action, the character development had gotten left behind. I remained interested in the plot, and I wanted to know what happened and how it all played out, but as the action slowed down a little in the middle, the lack of character depth meant that there was nothing to pick up the slack and keep me actively engaged. I was not connected to Io, so I found myself losing engagement in the story. Even though I was curious as to how the mystery would play out, it wasn’t enough when the action wasn’t rushing forward at a mile a minute. I genuinely considered DNFing for a moment at around the 60% mark.
Ultimately, I’m glad I didn’t The pace picked back up at about the 75% mark, and the action was once again able to make up for my inability to connect with Io. I really, really enjoyed the ending. The plot was always the strongest aspect of this book, and it really shone in the final act. I was completely engrossed, unable to put it down. There were even some instances of Io’s growth and reflection that I enjoyed during this part. They fell a little flat, since I didn’t already feel connected to her, but I did, during those scenes, feel something where I hadn’t before.
I ended up giving the book four stars because of that ending. In the middle, I was really thinking it would be a 3 star read, but the ending was strong enough to override that. I look forward to the sequel, because I can’t wait to see what happens next.
Age Rating: 13+
Over All: 4 stars
Plot: 4.5/5
Characters: 3.5/5
Setting: 4/5
Pacing: 3.5/5
Writing: 4/5
Special thanks to Penguin Teen and NetGalley for an eARC of this book! All thoughts and opinions reflected in this review are my own.
From the start, this book felt like it had so much potential, but it also seemed like it would be very easy for it to fall flat. There was so much going on. The plot, world, characters, a murder mystery and a magic system. There was a lot of potential for a high payoff, but also a lot of opportunities for some threads (haha) to get lost in the chaos. There was a very particular balance that needed to be struck and maintained throughout the book. As I read, I went back an forth often on whether the author was successful in doing so.
The book kicks off to a strong start. It is a little bit info dump heavy, however with such a unique and complicated world and magic system, that can be necessary. It was fleshed out with enough action that, for me, it never became too much. I was engaged, and I could feel myself being drawn in to the story. However, at around the 40% mark, I started to lose that engagement. It was at that point that I started to realize that amid all the worldbuilding and action, the character development had gotten left behind. I remained interested in the plot, and I wanted to know what happened and how it all played out, but as the action slowed down a little in the middle, the lack of character depth meant that there was nothing to pick up the slack and keep me actively engaged. I was not connected to Io, so I found myself losing engagement in the story. Even though I was curious as to how the mystery would play out, it wasn’t enough when the action wasn’t rushing forward at a mile a minute. I genuinely considered DNFing for a moment at around the 60% mark.
Ultimately, I’m glad I didn’t The pace picked back up at about the 75% mark, and the action was once again able to make up for my inability to connect with Io. I really, really enjoyed the ending. The plot was always the strongest aspect of this book, and it really shone in the final act. I was completely engrossed, unable to put it down. There were even some instances of Io’s growth and reflection that I enjoyed during this part. They fell a little flat, since I didn’t already feel connected to her, but I did, during those scenes, feel something where I hadn’t before.
I ended up giving the book four stars because of that ending. In the middle, I was really thinking it would be a 3 star read, but the ending was strong enough to override that. I look forward to the sequel, because I can’t wait to see what happens next.