angelkisses's reviews
195 reviews

going to respect my boundaries and stop here. thought it would be more of an examination of the class system re sex and bodies but it's just a lot of explicit rape scenes with dark romance elements. Elisha was cute -- I might've read the entire thing if it was from his perspective. Explicit self harm isnt something I can handle especially in conjunction with the rest of the triggering material at hand so it's time to put it down.

my god ellie you bisexual witch you've done it again!

G is the best!

Disclaimer: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

To keep it simple, I liked a lot about this book. (Count how many times I say “I love” in this review haha). The author hits it out of the park with their illustrious descriptive voice and the whirlwind of drama, lust and betrayal that is at the heart of the plot is highly engaging.

The sex scenes are immaculately crafted. The way Darius surrenders to his desires? Super hot. Also, clear communication between intimate partners about boundaries and consent? Mega hot. Also, it is super affirming to see different sex acts other than penetration be represented as valid expressions of sexuality.

I love seeing sex positive representation, with Laila embodying her desires and embracing her sensuality. It’s also interesting as a worldbuilding tidbit, building on the cultural landscape of this fantasy land. The scene where Laila and Lyra are dancing together is another example of this and I love how it mirrors a later scene between the two.

Laila is absolutely my favourite character of the bunch, although Lyra is a formidable second place. She’s just so interesting as a gothic heroine because of the myriad of ways she conforms to and subverts gothic expectations. I particularly appreciate how we are shown that while Laila still has more to learn, she is no stranger to conflict. I love that she has powerful and dangerous magic she isn’t afraid to unleash on those who wish to harm her. But I also love how she expresses emotional vulnerability and has a softness about her that is super endearing. I also relate to her relationship with her mother, which is important because reading survivor stories is a part of my healing journey.

The lore is great. The worldbuilding is expansive, with fascinating fantastical creatures and complex social and cultural systems. The monstrous and supernatural depictions of the occassi and solarites are also A+, especially when combined with their animalistic (e.g. wolfish) features. Laila being the literal embodiment of a star plays out in really interesting ways (the bit about animals looking up at the sky was so cute) and the symbolism works well in contrast to Darius – specifically the light and dark imagery.

My only real issue is with pacing. I found the first 15% or so of the book the hardest to get through, with the rest honestly being a breeze. I thought the last few pages skipped past some potentially interesting interpersonal conflict with the ending feeling abrupt. Still, I’ll admit part of my struggle with the beginning of the book was because I am not an experienced high/hard fantasy reader and generally read books much shorter than this.

Overall a wonderful addition to the gothic fantasy canon 

stuck between thinking this is a genius critique of white upperclass sensibilities (satirised to the extreme) OR just a dark romance being masked as a "feminist" slasher book (feminist... maeve is... feminist? she's literally an NLOG internalised misogyny rapist). derivative and overtly referential and so ... SO repetitive. we get it, you're a wolf. kate snapping at maeve reminded me of the scene in ruby sparks where the MC runs into his ex at a party and is confronted with his behaviour, which I liked. maeve is an unreliable narrator for sure -- from the end we can see that her own thoughts can even completely overshadow reality.

also what happened to the girl who she saw near the dolls? just a red herring that never gets resolved...

the hype did fool me. i liked american psycho (the film adaptation -- apologies but i'm not going to read any bret easton ellis lol) and loved spree, a film which has been called "american psycho for the digital age" and I think it captures that essence really well WITHOUT literally being like "omg I'm just like bateman." like yawn. the scenes are already reminiscent of the film (like the scenes where maeve and gideon have sex with others

specifically the rape

or just her general love of Halloween music) without you stating in capital bold font "I AM BEING INSPIRED BY AMERICAN PSYCHO." we get it. 

the narrators absolutely sold this delightful little gem of a novel. great for people who love messy characters and a little gossip.