I have heard that this is the book that kind of starts the second half of the series and I can tell that this is setting up what’s probably now an oveI have heard that this is the book that kind of starts the second half of the series and I can tell that this is setting up what’s probably now an overarching plot across the remaining books and the books will begin to stop being so self-contained.
I liked the pacing of having three distinct plot lines and am excited to see how they eventually converge, however it was a lot to keep track of and I’m not sure I got every single little detail.
This is definitely the book in the series I’ve enjoyed the most so far....more
I was a little bored for most of this, but the last third really sucked me in and I feel like is teeing up the rest of the series and if that3.5 stars
I was a little bored for most of this, but the last third really sucked me in and I feel like is teeing up the rest of the series and if that's the case I'm back on board.
However, SO grateful to have read The Assassins Blade already, because if I read this ending and then had to go read a 400 page novella prequel it would have really tanked the momentum....more
My favorite books in the series are the ones that take place in the worlds of the children, but as far as the books that take place at the school thisMy favorite books in the series are the ones that take place in the worlds of the children, but as far as the books that take place at the school this one is high up on my list.
I’m grateful that I reread #8 right before this one to set the scene and it felt like a natural continuation of Antsy’s journey.
I also am glad that during my reread of the entire series last year I took notes on every child mentioned, their worlds, and their major plot points because I was referring back to that often during this book as we see some minor characters join the cast. ...more
Probably would have been ground breaking if I read it back in 2012. Certainly not mad that I read it, but 10 years later and reading it as a 3.5 stars
Probably would have been ground breaking if I read it back in 2012. Certainly not mad that I read it, but 10 years later and reading it as a woman in her 30s it’s not blowing my mind. I am excited to see how her writing and the characters evolve over the series.
I do plan to continue on both for curiosity sake to see for myself what the hype is about and also because I bought all the audiobooks in an Audible sale, so gotta get my money’s worth lol.
Also - they might have unique spellings on the page but why do all the characters basically have the same name??? As an audio girlie it was driving me absolutely bonkers that everyone had the same consonants (Kaltain, Chaol, Kane/Cain) and don’t even get me started on Celaena and Elena....more
I feel like this book deserves a reread. I was in a life and reading slump when I was trudging through this and I think I should have cut my 3.5 stars
I feel like this book deserves a reread. I was in a life and reading slump when I was trudging through this and I think I should have cut my losses, put it down, and come back to it when I was more in a fantasy mood.
The trilogy is overall a 5 star series for me and this book didn't do anything wrong that I can point to to explain why I had so much of a harder time concentrating than I did in the books that came before it, so I can only assume my 3 star feelings are more of a wrong place wrong time.
There was something about this that I did not connect with. I think it might have been the writing style? It felt very hard for me to follow and it reThere was something about this that I did not connect with. I think it might have been the writing style? It felt very hard for me to follow and it reminded me a lot of Divine Rivals except I didn't like it as much.
I'm willing to give Ava Reid another try though, because she has a Lady MacBeth retelling coming out, and I'm wondering if the writing will work better for me if I'm familiar with the source material....more
For some reason this one just didn’t hit like Divine Rivals did. I had a harder time staying connected to the story and while it had a few moments 3.5
For some reason this one just didn’t hit like Divine Rivals did. I had a harder time staying connected to the story and while it had a few moments that I was invested in, overall I was a bit let down. ...more
Apollo is unhinged lmao. I low key loved reading from him perspective though, my messy messy king.
This book was for sure a wild ride and while it 3.5
Apollo is unhinged lmao. I low key loved reading from him perspective though, my messy messy king.
This book was for sure a wild ride and while it was certainly fun if you didn't think about it too hard, I feel like it also had so many little details related to the magic that you almost did have to think about it more than the others? I found the explanation of the lore of the Valor Arch and the original Northern families a bit hard to follow.
I did feel like this is the funniest of the three? Between Apollo's batshit inner monologue, the changing books, and the overall chaos it was a fun time.
I don't feel like this trilogy was as all encompassing as Caraval was. Like this one was a spin-off of Caraval, but also Caraval still fully stood on its own and had a clear finale. For this one, there are a ton of characters we met early in the triology who we just never saw again. I assume that means a new spin-off series is coming, but it also feels like we truncated those story lines so much more abruptly compared to Jacks' story in Caraval which felt more like it naturally tapered off and had a sufficient resolution at the end of that trilogy. It made Caraval feel more complete to me, so when Once Upon a Broken Heart picked it up it did feel somewhat of a fully separate work. If we get a new series following those characters I think it will be. a much closer continuation.
Also I know this is a young adult series but having 17 year olds declare their one true loves is just so silly to me. But also I know I'm a 31 year old reading YA so I'm not the target demo. If she was just like 3 years older I could have gotten behind her feelings being more legitimate and not just the result of naivety and teenage hormones. I think it's also because it's unclear the length of time these books span, but I don't think it's really that much? Maybe it just feels faster because I binged them....more
The way the ending was written for this was super creative. I kind of spoiled it for myself by checking my progress, but if I had been truly truly surThe way the ending was written for this was super creative. I kind of spoiled it for myself by checking my progress, but if I had been truly truly surprised, DAMN.
I liked that we got to meet more of the Fates in this book. It gave it almost a Mount Olympus feel. Lala is probably my fave....more
I decided to start this series in chronological order rather than publication order. Not sure if that was the right move although I am excited to see I decided to start this series in chronological order rather than publication order. Not sure if that was the right move although I am excited to see how many of the characters we met in the novellas pop back up in the regular series.
I don’t know how I feel about the bind up of novellas necessarily, it did feel a bit disjointed but also - that’s technically the point so I can’t fault it for that.
I’ll hold off judging the series until I actually get to the meat of it, but I’m making the choice to continue mostly based on the series’ reputation and not this book specifically.
Celaena also seems cocky as hell but I guess that’s what you get from a 16 year old “chosen one” assassin MC lol...more
I was only so-so on Spells for Forgetting but this one positively surprised me. I found some of the speculative elements to be a bit confusing at timeI was only so-so on Spells for Forgetting but this one positively surprised me. I found some of the speculative elements to be a bit confusing at times, but overall I really enjoyed the twists and turns of the story and the overall resolution....more
This was a fun conclusion. I don't know if I'm the most critical fantasy reader so I'm probably easy to please, but I really enjoyed this series and iThis was a fun conclusion. I don't know if I'm the most critical fantasy reader so I'm probably easy to please, but I really enjoyed this series and it made me feel like fantasy can be fun and accessible (outside of my historical witchy woman comfort zone)....more
Reading this back to back with Caraval it felt a bit repetitive, but I think if I had had to wait a full year for the sequel to come out it would haveReading this back to back with Caraval it felt a bit repetitive, but I think if I had had to wait a full year for the sequel to come out it would have been comforting and a nice treat to have been back in such a familiar setting.
I also didn't love Donatella's perspective as much as I liked Scarlett's. Still really fun and good overall, I just prefer Caraval to this one....more
I liked the ambience on this one in terms of like the remote northern island feel. Overall I was hoping to love it more than I did. I just kind of tooI liked the ambience on this one in terms of like the remote northern island feel. Overall I was hoping to love it more than I did. I just kind of took the set up at face value and turned my brain off, but I think that was partially because there was a "reveal" later that I just thought was canon from the beginning. (view spoiler)[Four teenagers (two boys and two girls) are at the beach? Like isn't it implied it's two couples? (hide spoiler)]
I found the beginning to be quite slow, but atmospheric so I was down to just enjoy the vibes. I did enjoy when the ending picked up though, so I think overall the pacing could have been a bit more balanced and I would have enjoyed it more....more
I didn't love this one as much as One Dark Window but I seem to be very much in the minority there. The way we leave ODW sets us up to spend virtuallyI didn't love this one as much as One Dark Window but I seem to be very much in the minority there. The way we leave ODW sets us up to spend virtually no time with our original MC. That led to the introduction of some new perspectives which other people seemed to love, but for me I sort of just missed Elspeth.
There's a second romantic plot line that was introduced and a lot of people loved it but I was just whatever about it. It was also incredibly spicy and maybe I just wasn't paying attention in the first one and I missed it, but I feel like this was way smuttier than the first one and I just wasn't prepared for the tone switch.
I also had some trouble connecting to the writing on this one and felt like I was just skimming at first and since this was a highly anticipate read for me I didn't want to just go through the motions so I actually restarted it from the ~30% mark. Rereading the beginning definitely helped, but I just wanted to love this one more than I did....more
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