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chrysanthemum17's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Death, Miscarriage, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Minor: Sexual content, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
imjustbooks's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Abandonment, War, and Classism
caitlinjohnson's review against another edition
- 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
the book did the impossible, it made me genuinely like rhen again which I didn't think was possible but thank you
grey, while I understood his motives and actions, still annoyed me greatly but the ending scenes
JAX, MY LOVE <3
callyn was incredible as soon as she got her head screwed back on straight and (princess) nora was a ray of sunshine
Graphic: Kidnapping
Moderate: Death of parent, Abandonment, and War
Minor: Child death
taryn_g's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and War
Minor: Vomit and Pregnancy
kori_dragon's review against another edition
- 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
I really enjoyed this story and the intrigue about it. Three people who don't know who is on which side, and the villagers who don't know which is the right side. Each chapter is a different viewpoint, so you get to see their opinions, viewpoints, and reasoning. The story starts slow but draws you in until you don't know what is happening. The last few chapters went fast and took a surprising turn which makes me eager for the next book in this series.
Jax became my favorite character and I think he evolved the most. Callyn comes across as stubborn at times and not willing to admit they are wrong.
Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, and Violence
Moderate: Alcoholism, Miscarriage, Kidnapping, and Death of parent
Minor: Animal death, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
sealbrecht's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Death, Violence, and Death of parent
Moderate: Rape and Kidnapping
Minor: Animal death
speddle's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Physical abuse, Violence, Death of parent, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Blood, Kidnapping, and Grief
Minor: Animal death
katvou's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Physical abuse, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death, Child death, Miscarriage, Sexual content, Blood, and Pregnancy
snowwhitehatesapples's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Forging Silver into Stars brings us back to the Cursebreakers ' world years after the conclusion of A Vow So Bold and Deadly . Though this time, we revisit this world through the perspectives of new characters and old supporting characters—something I greatly appreciate because although I would’ve loved to read the story in any of the original main cast’s POV again, I think this change provides an opportunity for the Cursebreakers ' world to be expanded beyond the limitations of those characters.
And, true to expectations, it did. Set mostly in Syhl Shallow, Forging Silver into Stars follows Callyn, an older sister and baker who’s in debt because of her deceased father’s actions, and Jax, a disabled blacksmith who’s also in debt due to his abusive father’s preference for drinking away their money. The story also follows Tycho, who is from the original trilogy and is now King’s Courier. Through these alternating POVs, not only did we get to learn more about the world beyond castle walls, but also witness different, realistic perspectives on the aftermath of ending a conflict between two kingdoms.
However, as the main characters aren’t the actual targets of the anti-magic faction’s schemes in Syhl Shallow, there were several instances that made the story feel convenient—all for the sake of providing those characters with more links to the main plot. Some of the events that happened between Callyn and Jax also felt ridiculous, especially since they are supposedly best friends. Honestly, I still can’t wrap my head around how (view spoiler). Like, is caring supposed to only be a one-way thing when it comes to best friends?
So yeah, you can probably tell by now that I really dislike Callyn. She’s selfish, easily manipulated and a piss-poor best friend, but she’s also undeniably human. Though, if she were real, she should thank her lucky stars that Kemmerer’s writing is too darn good for me to stay pissed off enough to DNF the book. Jax and Tycho, on the other hand, were sweethearts. I love their characters and their growth. Even so, I have to admit that none of these new main characters are as interesting as Grey and Rhen and their dynamic, or as compelling as Harper.
In fact, despite their delegation to side cast status, he few appearances Grey and Rhen made were brilliant reiterations of their core characteristics while providing more facets to who they are. I’ve seen some reviews mentioning that Grey was intentionally written in such a way so that readers would start disliking him, but I disagree. It made him a more complex character and gave him solid flaws that accompanied his strengths.
Overall, what made Forging Silver into Stars a strong read for me is undeniably the author’s enthralling writing (it’s either magic or a curse because even when I hate a character, I’m still hooked by the writing 😂). If you loved the Cursebreakers series and don’t mind any of the abovementioned negatives, give this spin-off a read.
Thank you so much Pansing for sending me a copy of this in exchange for an honest review! Forging Silver into Stars by Brigid Kemmerer is available at all good bookstores.
Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Ableism, Death, Sexual content, and Torture
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Miscarriage, Blood, Vomit, and Death of parent
lizgriffinwords's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content notes: parental abuse, past PTSD, past parental death, fantasy violence
Moderate: Physical abuse and Violence
Minor: Sexual content and Death of parent