From the Bookshelf of Drop Everything And Read…

Wicked Saints (Something Dark and Holy, #1)

Emily A. Duncan

Start date: October 1, 2019

Finish date: October 31, 2019

Why we're reading this: It won the BOTM poll.
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Mar 16, 2019 Madge rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult, netgalley-books, three-and-a-half-stars, gothic

Full review on my blog.

If you love the Grisha-verse, and especially the dynamics between Alina and the Darkling, this book is for you! (Trigger/content warnings for: self-harm; blood; parental abuse.)

Nadya was a character I wanted so much to love, but I only kind of liked her. Things started off great, with me fully invested in her and where her story was going with her, but somewhere along the way she started getting on my nerves. Some things at the end saved me from actually disliking her, and Full review on my blog.

If you love the Grisha-verse, and especially the dynamics between Alina and the Darkling, this book is for you! (Trigger/content warnings for: self-harm; blood; parental abuse.)

Nadya was a character I wanted so much to love, but I only kind of liked her. Things started off great, with me fully invested in her and where her story was going with her, but somewhere along the way she started getting on my nerves. Some things at the end saved me from actually disliking her, and I can't wait to see what's next for her.

I loved Malachiasz, and oh my gosh, even if I didn’t like any of the other characters, I would pick up the next book just to find out what happens next with him. That! Ending! I am so excited to find out where this series is going.

Serefin was the guy I wanted to hate, but just couldn’t. While I didn’t love him as a character, I thought he was interesting enough, especially close to the end, and I’m really curious about what will happen next with his story.

I enjoyed the side characters, in general, but my favorite was Pelageya. She was a minor character in this book, but I'm really hoping she has a bigger role in future books.

Where this book fell short for me was in certain aspects of the plot. There were times when I was just so confused, or wanted more information (like, a lot more) to better explain what was going on. It almost felt like there were parts missing or something. I really want more information about the magic systems, because I loved it, but I need to know more about how it works and the history, and I hope that's going to be a part of the next book.

There were some points we were kind of beaten over the head with, which was annoying after a while.

Something about the pacing was weird at times, too, especially with relationships (platonic and romantic). Some things seemed to happen a little too fast.

I thought this was a good book, but not quite as good as I'd hoped. I'm really looking forward to continuing the series, though, and I think it could become a favorite. I'm torn between 3 and 4 stars, so I'm giving it 3.5, rounded down to 3. I might raise it after I think about it more.

This was one of my most-anticipated 2019 releases, and I'm so glad I was able to read an advanced copy from NetGalley <3 (I can't wait to have the finished copy in my hands, because this book is gorgeous!) ...more

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Apr 28, 2020 J. Lynn Else rated it really liked it · review of another edition

3.5 stars actually

This gothic fantasy is hard to put down. Its an emotionally-rich character-driven story full of twisty-turny relationships and power. I felt a few pivotal moments weren't well described by the author, but overall, a captivating story with a lot of depth and moving parts...and blood. Woah, a lot of blood. ...more

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