Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - Raybearer

Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko

109 reviews

stephdux's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

holy moly one hell of a cliffhanger

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stephbakerbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-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

This book was such a breath of fresh air! Just the right amount of world-building, characters to love and root for, a plot that constantly keeps you on your toes. The magic felt unique—and was really cool!

Tarisai is instantly likable, and the story follows her as an eleven-year-old to sixteen, so we see a lot of her growth. I loved her development, and her relationships with the other characters, particularly Dayo and Woo In. None of these characters are black and white, and I just love a book that explores those gray complexities. My one complaint was that there is a Council of 11 and we really only get to know four of them…but maybe the sequel will include the other seven more! (And it didn’t end up bothering me that much lol)

The setting was so vividly magical, and I just couldn’t put the book down. If you want a quick-read fantasy that explores themes of fate, identity, gender roles, with a side of found family, then this is the book for you! It’s also only a duology (and the second book is already out) so you don’t have to worry about a series commitment!

And how can you say no to that cover?? 😍😍😍

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meaghanelizabook's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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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jjeonghan's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious fast-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

4.0

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scatteredyarns's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful medium-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

4.25

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oliverreeds's review against another edition

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funny hopeful medium-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

5.0

i greatly enjoyed this book (note the five stars lol) mainly because i could tell the author listened to their story. everything made sense: the characters were logical and believable, the world-building was paced well and easy to understand, and the way that racial/religious tensions were discussed in the book was pretty great. sometimes, however, it felt like the author was rushing. like they knew what was going to happen next and wanted it to happen so much that it just did and the readers missed a lot in the cut scenes.

specifically after tarisai tries to kill dayo, sanjeet just like.. forgives her really fast. i feel like a lot more could have been explored there in ways that would have added some intensity to their relationship and things that could have ultimately strengthened it. i was also upset that there wasn't closure between tarisai and dayo. things kind of fell apart between them? there was a lot left unsaid and i feel like there was time for them to have a conversation and to explore more into their relationship after she yknow tried to kill him. he seemed to forgive her very quickly, but also, he didnt? it was weird and i understood what the author was going for, but there was time and space that could have been allotted to exploring that part of their relationship and how it changed/would change after the attempt. this also applies to tarisai and kirah. kirah just forgives her very fast and doesn't question a whole lot, when i felt like she should have.

my main critic is that there was a lot of complexity that could have been explored through dialogue, through description, through reactions that simply wasn't mentioned again. tensions resolved too quickly and too neatly. i wanted there to be dissent. i wanted something to rub the wrong way and i wanted every character to feel it. i think the author came close to this but didn't quite reach it. i didn't realize this book was a series initially, but i'm excited to read the next books as they come out.

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