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altoid967's review against another edition
slow-paced
2.0
A lot of talking about who should stay dead or be dead or not be dead followed by an abrupt transition into underworld myth.
thebog's review against another edition
5.0
Started out “meh” then the plot kicks in at 13% and picks up the pace at about 25%. From there on it’s page-turning status. If I wanted to be petty, this book is a 4.5-4.8 LOL but I ain’t petty! Well, not today at least. This book is a 5.
The book is very dialogue driven, so it’s a quick read. The descriptions are just enough to get you imagining but not so detailed where you’re thinking, “ok, was this worth sacrificing plot time for?”
What I LOVE about this book are the numerous short stories within the story, as the MC is a storyteller. Literally it’s the biggest part of her job—storytelling.
The entire book is written from the MC’s perspective and she does not always do the right thing, so you are forced to take on her perspective that you will find yourself wanting to run away from at times, cos she can be so fucking wrong.
But you’re on that journey with her and for a while I kept thinking “Gods, I wanna rate this book so low cos I feel so forced to be one with this desperate woman who only thinks of herself.” But that’s really incredible writing to make me feel that way. So it’s still a 5.
This is a YA novel and I can see why; there are a lot of lessons in it. But as a middle-aged adult reading a story told from the perspective of a middle-aged MC, truly this feels very suitable and relevant for adults to read. I would imagine we have more use for books on death than young adults. Also, this might be way too intense for a young adult who is dealing with death… speaking of which…
I will say, if you’re going through bereavement grief, this could be a tough read. It was for me as I just lost someone very VERY close, like family, a couple of months ago and my mom is aging and often talks about her death, so yeah… the book summary mentions death and make no mistake that this entire book is about death. At some point, I feel like everyone is just f-ing dying and yeah… big warning there if your wounds are still tender.
The book is very dialogue driven, so it’s a quick read. The descriptions are just enough to get you imagining but not so detailed where you’re thinking, “ok, was this worth sacrificing plot time for?”
What I LOVE about this book are the numerous short stories within the story, as the MC is a storyteller. Literally it’s the biggest part of her job—storytelling.
The entire book is written from the MC’s perspective and she does not always do the right thing, so you are forced to take on her perspective that you will find yourself wanting to run away from at times, cos she can be so fucking wrong.
But you’re on that journey with her and for a while I kept thinking “Gods, I wanna rate this book so low cos I feel so forced to be one with this desperate woman who only thinks of herself.” But that’s really incredible writing to make me feel that way. So it’s still a 5.
This is a YA novel and I can see why; there are a lot of lessons in it. But as a middle-aged adult reading a story told from the perspective of a middle-aged MC, truly this feels very suitable and relevant for adults to read. I would imagine we have more use for books on death than young adults. Also, this might be way too intense for a young adult who is dealing with death… speaking of which…
I will say, if you’re going through bereavement grief, this could be a tough read. It was for me as I just lost someone very VERY close, like family, a couple of months ago and my mom is aging and often talks about her death, so yeah… the book summary mentions death and make no mistake that this entire book is about death. At some point, I feel like everyone is just f-ing dying and yeah… big warning there if your wounds are still tender.
bellthebiscuit's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
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
3.5
kfarnocchia3's review against another edition
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
lottie1803's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.25
apple_cider's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
jrayereads's review against another edition
2.5
I think this just wasn’t for me, unfortunately. Full disclosure, I skimmed the last 10% or so because I wanted this to be OVER. Even though this book is short, there were moments that dragged and felt quite repetitive.
I really liked the premise of this one and the writing was lyrical and beautiful, but the magic system and plot felt too muddled for me. I appreciated that Nadine was imperfect and sometimes unlikable due to her desperation to keep her daughter safe, but I didn’t feel like she grew from this and because of that Layala always felt like a plot device instead of a fully fleshed out character who had an arc throughout the story.
I wanted more development of the world and the nature of the jinns’ magic. Just a bit too underbaked for me, but I think this author’s strong prose points to her having some real potential for future novels.
I really liked the premise of this one and the writing was lyrical and beautiful, but the magic system and plot felt too muddled for me. I appreciated that Nadine was imperfect and sometimes unlikable due to her desperation to keep her daughter safe, but I didn’t feel like she grew from this and because of that Layala always felt like a plot device instead of a fully fleshed out character who had an arc throughout the story.
I wanted more development of the world and the nature of the jinns’ magic. Just a bit too underbaked for me, but I think this author’s strong prose points to her having some real potential for future novels.
readingtheend's review against another edition
3.5
a jinn navigates a world hostile to her (even though she's necessary to escort the souls of the dead to their final rest), trying to keep her daughter safe and out of the hands of Death. lyrical and heartbreaking.
tracyrose10's review against another edition
4.0
A Jinn woman collects the pomegranate seeds of the dead every morning to tell their story. She has a young daughter. The daughter's dad took his life to get her back from his father who wanted to "protect" the daughter from the Jinn.
Much more to it than that but it's hard to summarize! Enjoyable though and I met the author.
Much more to it than that but it's hard to summarize! Enjoyable though and I met the author.
zainub_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0