Reviews with content warning for Violence - Written In Red

Just as compelling on the re-read! What I lived about this book the first time was how well the author plops you down in a world with so much you don't know and keeps the mystery alive the entire time. As you figure out who Meg and the Others are, you discover knew unknowns to puzzle over along with the characters. And the characters are so great.

The only thing I did not love was the prologue. The language really makes it sound like we're talking about our own Earth under slightly different names and comparing Native Americans to the terra indigene. And while the terra indigene are incredibly powerful and I don't think it ends up actually being problematic, that prologue really seems like Native Americans are being paralleled as beasts and predators, which is obviously not cool.

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mimicry's review

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Overall it’s simplistic and cutesy, despite some darker themes. There’s a lot of repetition, and the worldbuilding is lazy. Characterization can get lazy also. For example, POV characters in the series all describe the ponies with the same words: grumpy faces, barrel chests, clompy dinner-plate sized hooves. No matter who they are or where they’re from they all eat dinner on a plate the size of an elemental pony’s foot, apparently.

I wouldn’t consider this book to have a diverse cast, unless you count the many types of Others as diversity. Among the humans it’s almost exclusively cishet white.

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bookcaptivated's review against another edition

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dark lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

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? No

3.75

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destinyperry01's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

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andireadthis's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-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? No

5.0

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syllareads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Written in Red is both the first book in The Others' series by Anne Bishop and the first book I finished by this author (because I'm not counting the first book in the Black Jewels Trilogy since it's in a bindup, okay? shush) and I had a blast.

The book is, very simplified, about a human woman who stumbles into a territory ruled by The Others, a bunch of supernatural creatures that are actually fucking terrifying if they want to be thank god, and finds a home there. Found family, healing, overcoming trauma and the like are all very prevalent themes in this book and I liked that a lot. The writing was at times a bit too simple for my taste usually but the dialogues were goddamn hilarious most of the time, and I really enjoyed getting to know all the characters!

The story itself has a lot of foreseeable twists and turns here and there, but it doesn't detract from the enjoyment factor because ultimately, the book is not about unexpected twists in the narrative. Rather, Bishop uses outward motivation like a (pretty standard) villain attacking the town to explore inner themes and self-realization (or at least the start of one, given that this is only book one in a series). If you are not too plot-driven of a reader, I highly suggest you give this series a try for the characters alone!

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greymalkin's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark funny informative inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Wow! I really enjoyed this. I loved the world and the fresh take on supernatural creatures. It reminds me of Robin McKinley's Sunshine, where the predatory nature of supernatural creatures is much more believable and darker.

I thought that Anne Bishop did a great job capturing Meg's subtle character traits. She's kind and innocent but not a doormat. She's petite and fragile and not very strong but doesn't assume she should be treated as such. I absolutely bought how the other characters grew to like her. The relationship between her and Simon evolved very naturally, and the stuff with Sam is heartbreaking but so emotionally believable. I finished the book and immediately bought and started reading the next one. There aren't too many books where that's the case.

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