Reviews with content warning for Rape - A Strange and Stubborn Endurance

It's the two leads that made this work: their emotional connection, handling each other gently, and some of the very important relationships and friends too (I LOVE both Markel and Liran). I appreciated that Vel and Cae communicated and that the plot did NOT revolve around them hurting each other needlessly (despite plenty of opportunity to hide or misunderstand). Mostly external enemies, and when it's their own fears that hold them back, they talk about it. Refreshing. It made the romance sweet and delicious and easy to love.

So clearly I had a lot of fun reading this, but the plot was fairly repetitive. An awkward mix of unexplained deaths and palace pageantry, where it seems like the same things keep happening over and over again? I toughed it out and the plot aspects got tighter in the last quarter, the finale worthwhile. The writing overall is a bit plodding and sometimes drags on, leaving me wondering why the scene hadn't already ended, and the magic was... thin. Sometimes I don't mind that but in this case it was a bit draining.

Better to focus on the romance aspects than the plot/fantasy elements. The romance was very good.

Content Warnings

calvinjosephyork's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous inspiring mysterious fast-paced

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

3.75

this was my first exploration of the fantasy genre in a really long time and i really enjoyed it.

i was engrossed the whole time. it definitely reads better when you’re binging it versus taking breaks. i will say i think it could’ve been about 50 pages shorter and been stronger for it.

regarding the central mystery,

i was craving a bit more action and less just wandering around and then discovering the sister did it and getting a pretty intense “stroking kitten in lap” monologue. i wanted it to feel like we had some more legitimate suspects.

when it came to the romantic connection,

i was super invested in our two leads and thought the dual POVs were great. the first versus third person threw me off a bit. however, i don’t think the 🍇 was necessary. i think the story could’ve found a way to function without it. the couple was giving trauma bond for sure and i think that there was some insta love happening as well. i was so relieved when vel didn’t also say i love you too. a dash of realism lol.

it’s clear meadows cared a lot about this fictional world and wanted to build it strongly. i respect that, but unfortunately, it was overdone in some areas especially when it was just a real world explanation for something with this fictional language or random magic thrown in as an explanation. i didn’t need 2 pages explaining transitioning, testosterone and estrogen, and all that jazz. like just say it’s body magic and leave it at that. the target audience for this book already knows how that works.

overall, i loved it though! it has definitely left me intrigued to try more fantasy. i found the political aspects very intriguing.

Content Warnings

scarlett_oloan's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Content Warnings

esageser19's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional mysterious 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

5.0

Content Warnings

More...