krayreads's reviews
1217 reviews

HAYAN IS A FUCKING ICON. on me knees for every character in this goddamn series. wow.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

Actually, this was an insane read and I don't even know where to start.

I agree with other reviewers that this was basically like an episode of black mirror. Oh my GOD.

This is the story of two friends, Enka and Mathilde, who meet as promising and talented students at a prestigious art university. Upon their years at school, they are taken down two different paths, their chosen mediums of art driving them apart in the beginning of their careers but is essentially what brings them back together. What results is an absolute chaotic and unpredictable sequence of events that had my jaw literally on the floor. Neither of these two - or any of the characters for that matter - are likeable, but their flaws are truly what made this story all the more captivating.

I don't want to go into more of the events that occur because you should go into this completely blind, like I did. At no point did I have any idea where this story was going. The twists and turns turned me completely upside down. This book also went to incredibly dark places as well, and was at times, very disturbing, borderline horrifying, especially with how close to reality this is.

The writing was exceptional. Miss Huang was able to capture the potent art world with its brutal nuances perfectly, while also explaining how it intertwines with the complicated tech world in a digestible manner. This book explored the ethics behind technology, its effects on art and humanity, and the terrifying places ones ego will take technological advancement to. Each of the characters' own stories offered sobering yet opposing perspectives on bodily autonomy and morality. There was no room to take a breath in this book. This is one of those stories that grips you and doesn't let go until the very end.

If you are having an existential crisis, stay clear from this book as you will sit in silence staring at the wall for at least twenty minutes simply processing what you've just read (i am obviously speaking from experience lol). This was incredible. Thought-provoking. Mind numbing. Horrifying. Perfect.

thank you to netgalley and macmillan audio for providing an ALC in exchange for an honest review!

**i didn't enjoy the audiobook to this. i felt like the narrator's voice was too mature for a YA novel! and her voice was flat and sounded just as bored as i was reading this book lol.**

no one is more devastated than me by this book or this rating. take into account that part of my rating/experience may be because i generally don't read ya anymore. but i had really high hopes for this one because of the premise and cover.

first off, this read like a ya fanfiction of the secret history. it tried hard to grasp the same dark academia and philosophical nature of that book but it failed spectacularly. the characters were pretentious and one dimensional, the main character, marin, was beyond annoying. she was incredible arrogant and useless, yet of course every male character in here was obsessed with her (yawn). i was tired of her repetitive inner monologue. she faked her way into an expensive private academy (which i had to extend my suspension of disbelief to fathom that an institution that highly regarded would allow a student to stay after a check for their tuition bounced lol), to get revenge for the death of her cousin. disregarding the fact that her suspicions of three specific students caused his death were based on very little evidence, she was also the worst person who could have possibly gone undercover for this. she would try to get close to them and found herself falling for them but in her head she kept telling herself that she hated them, that they were all murderers. i couldn't stand it.

the beginning had me intrigued but once i got about 30% into this book, the pacing was soooooo slow. the timespan covers around a month at this school but it felt like an entire academic year. that's how slow it was. and it was just boring! you hardly even meet other students in this school. it's almost as if they're the only students on campus. nothing important or significant happened until the last third of the book. things started to pick up and suddenly, shit is happening everywhere yet none of it was making any real sense. the reveal comes and to me, PERSONALLY, it was absolutely ridiculous and predictable! i found the paranormal aspects to be more annoying than shocking. don't even get me started with the ending. all that work for no payoff.

disappointed in this. towards the end, it almost felt like i was just hate reading it lol.

reread this 5 years (eek!) after my initial read and it still hits. zaf and dani's relationship is literally everything to me. the way they are there for each other through their own personal issues was something to aspire to. their patience and encouragement for each other made me want to actually vomit. ZAF IS SO FUCKING PERFECT IT HURTS. dani is such a bad bitch and she knows it. ugh. this gave me LIFE.

i also forgot how fucking hilarious this was. the humor was TOP TIER!!!

okay actually this was a WILD and twisted time. i genuinely didn't see anything coming. every twist and turn had my jaw on the damn FLOOR. this ate!

OH! okay. so that's what we're doing???? got it....got it. well, i'm not okay in the slightest after that ending lol.

this was haunting, tragic, powerful, and took my breath away. wowowowow.

**for the first time ever, i actually didn't enjoy the audiobook. i didn't think the narrator added any emotion to the story. their voice fell flat throughout the entire story and made no emphasis to anything, which made it feel like there was no sense of urgency in a story with such high stakes. i think i might have had a better experience had i read this physically instead of listening!**

i can definitely see this being the YA hit for this year - it has so many aspects to it that everyone loves. two fated souls destined to kill each other in every lifetime? such a good premise. honestly i wish it was adult because there was a lot about the book i wanted it to expand on! 

we were told over and over that evelyn and arden love each other in a deep way that only soulmates can but...we're never shown it. they have such a palpable connection that draws them together in every lifetime yet i never felt truly felt that. we follow their past lives and how their momentous deaths unfolded in those years but there wasn't enough developed within each timeline to really portray how their love grew over the centuries. in the present day, their story felt overshadowed by their determination to save evelyn's dying sister. 

the pacing was too slow for me. there were moments where i lost interest, especially with the flashbacks because it felt repetitive just listening about them loving each other and killing each other over and over and over again with no real progress. the writing was great, though at times it leaned a bit towards a more flowery and lyrical prose that i didn't think truly fit the overall ambiance of the story. that was a more of a me thing.

and finally the reveal. when the truth about their curse finally came out i was...underwhelmed? it felt anticlimactic considering it didn't come until about 82% into the book. all of this slow set up for....that??? idk. i wasn't impressed.

overall, i think this will resonate with a lot of people as i said, it has plenty of elements that a mass majority of ya readers will enjoy. wasn't for me, but i think it was a fun and interesting read! certainly different than a lot of "romantasy" books i've read recently.

this was such a sweet romance! i loved the friendship that violette and rowan had, and their relationship when they were young was cute. their banter was better than the banter from the first book! they were the perfect amount of playful and flirty with a simmering tension. i adored the second chance romance they had once violette moved back to their hometown (although i think her holding onto a grudge for something that happened in high school was a bit much lol). and rowan was so sweet with her daughter hollie! i definitely think this dragggged on a bit in the middle, there wasn't anything really happening plot wise, but i appreciated emotional growth these two had by the end of the book. a fun addition to this series!

this had everything i wanted in a standalone fantasy and then some. a revenge plot, a badass heroine, a simp of a hero, mythology, romance, and war. from the very get go, the story had me hooked and i simply couldn't put the book down for days. the main character, xishi, was such a dynamic character to follow! in my opinion, i thought that the pacing was perfect - there was enough action and suspense to keep the plot going, while the slow burn romance held such tension that honestly made me feral. 

the ENDING?!?!?!? sobbed. legit shed tears over these characters. i'm in love and obsessed with ann liang's writing. this definitely won't be my last read from this author!