This is a YA fantasy unlike almost anything I've read. This also feels both dystopian and historical and yet is set in a fantasy world, so is truly neither of those things.
It's about strong women and daring stakes. It's about learning to trust when no one has ever given you reason to. It's about sacrificing your own chance at a happily every after for the benefit of others. It's a whole lot of things. It's also diverse, a little queer, and is all sorts of magical; though not in ways I expected.
Despite my obvious enjoyment, there is still something holding me back a bit on this one. And I don't even know really know why. This was unique and brutal with characters both tough as nails and hella vulnerable with plenty of issues mirrored in this unusual world that are also present in our own. It's a scary possible reality that makes you, as a reader, and a human, and, in my case a woman, want to fight back.
And yet again, I don't know why I just didn't love it. I wasn't bored by anything, necessarily, though I did find sometimes that I would skim a passage or two. I didn't always love Aster, our main POV, and yet could also totally understand why she wasn't always likeable. And.. yeah, I don't know. This one is just a bit of a mystery for me, I think.
But I would definitely recommend it if anyone was already interested in picking it up!
It's about strong women and daring stakes. It's about learning to trust when no one has ever given you reason to. It's about sacrificing your own chance at a happily every after for the benefit of others. It's a whole lot of things. It's also diverse, a little queer, and is all sorts of magical; though not in ways I expected.
Despite my obvious enjoyment, there is still something holding me back a bit on this one. And I don't even know really know why. This was unique and brutal with characters both tough as nails and hella vulnerable with plenty of issues mirrored in this unusual world that are also present in our own. It's a scary possible reality that makes you, as a reader, and a human, and, in my case a woman, want to fight back.
And yet again, I don't know why I just didn't love it. I wasn't bored by anything, necessarily, though I did find sometimes that I would skim a passage or two. I didn't always love Aster, our main POV, and yet could also totally understand why she wasn't always likeable. And.. yeah, I don't know. This one is just a bit of a mystery for me, I think.
But I would definitely recommend it if anyone was already interested in picking it up!