Reviews with content warning for Blood - Girl, Serpent, Thorn

Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust

67 reviews

briely's review

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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elwirax's review against another edition

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adventurous dark fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

"Stories always begin the same way: There was and there was not. There is possibility in those words, the chance for hope or despair."

"Very well, then. Be angry. Be violent. But not for his sake. Not to do as he commands. Be angry for yourself. Use that rage to fight him."

Well...this was a huge letdown.

The pacing was too fast for such a short book which made it seem like I was jumping from scene to scene without much transition or time to process. Due to its short nature it was too convenient and predictable for me to really feel invested. Although, I appreciated Soraya's struggles with ostracization, isolation and her somewhat growth, I didn't feel connected to her in any way and she often came off as naive and self pitying. In fact, I didn't like most of the characters except Parvaneh (who barely got any attention), their dialogues and actions seemed catoonish to me. Another thing was the minimal worldbuilding. Maybe it was due to how short the book was or how much focus was given to inner monologue that really blurred out anything beyond it, but ultimately it was unfulfilling. There was a general idea of power structures, conflicts and lore but nothing too substantial. Parvaneh and Soraya's romance could've been great but it just didn't develop in a believable manner (although, their tender moments were undeniably sweet).

One thing I did love about the book was its influences from Persian mythology/ lore with the author's note on how certain elements inspired the novel. I also loved the queer Rappaccini's daughter vibes. Unfortunately, that was about it.

Overall, a fantastic concept with an execution that deserved better. All I got from this book was resurfaced ACOTAR trauma (very similar concepts in both ). It's definitely not the worst thing I've ever read, just not my cup of tea.

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lotus440's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

4.0

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therainbowshelf's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I read this because it was one of the books picked for the September Rainbow Crate Book Box. It was a fun read. I absolutely loved the fairytale feel of this story about a girl cursed to be poisonous to the touch, and enjoyed all of the various twists and transformations throughout. It was also a ton of fun reading about the author's inspiration in the back of the book. I wish that had been at the front!

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kbairbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

A sleeping beauty retelling! With Persian influence?! Wow I really enjoyed this! I love how the romance was subtle but had a nice feel to it and that the parent wasn’t entirely useless and that a man wasn’t the one to step through and save the day.

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tyler_hmac's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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pastelkerstin's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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lauramcc7's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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nerdysread's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional informative tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

I started this book as a buddy read but finished it before everyone else. It was just captivating. The story, the characters. It was not what I imagined, but it was really really great. Don’t stop at the blurb. It’s much more than that.

Three people who have their fates tangled together. Victims or monster? You’ll discover more by reading it

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esme_may's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I wish I had liked this more! The last hundred or so pages are well-paced and gripping, but I don't think the previous 200 are worth it. I loved the concept but I found it difficult to get invested, especially since the relationship isn't given much room to develop. I think this book needed to be a bit longer to flesh it out.

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