liya
the only other work of the author's i'd read was the Fence comics which i liked but i was still nervous going into Dark Rise. but this was so fast-paced, not a moment or scene was wasted. the first 40% or so is pretty cliche in terms of light vs. dark and a chosen one destined to save the world, but it was unique enough in its world building and characters that i was still very interested. but once it passed that mark, the story completely came into its own. i had various predictions that i was so sure were right, only for me to be completely surprised by multiple plot twists, character decisions, and reveals. the tension i felt during some of the discussions in here was so intense, i just kept rereading certain interactions bc of how excited yet anxious they made me feel. there were also some character arcs that i didn't originally see myself getting attached to but definitely did, which resulted in a number of characters being surprise favorites for me. i absolutely adored this.
3.75 or, probably, 4 stars. me taking a whole month to read this is not an indicator of the quality of the book because i actually rlly liked this, more than i thought i would. the pacing was so perfect for this story imo and i cared about all of the characters (except for like 1 and even them i still didn't want to die or anything). there‘s a relatively big cast, especially as the story goes on and more side characters get more page time. and the love triangle was actually pretty interesting! i was quite surprised by that dynamic appearing in this story, as well as the fact that i liked it so much. not 5 stars simply bc there were some chapters or scenes (and that one character) that i was not entirely invested in or that outright bugged (pun intended) me. i've been in a reading slump, unfortunately, but this was a very good time. and while i'm upset i only read one book this month, i'm glad it was this one.
2.75 // the art style matches the tone of the story very well and the use of color to distinguish between present and past is really great. there's definitely a lack in the storytelling itself, however. this is my only exposure to this story, but i'd imagine the book or movie would have more fulfilling characters, plot, and resolution.
at some point i am going to finally read the other volumes in this series rather than just reread this one every other year
3.5 stars / took me about 65% to really get into it but i quite liked it. i'm more of an adult fantasy reader so whenever i start a ya fantasy i have certain expectations of what i will or will not see and this is pretty much what i expected. excited to continue onto Vow of Thieves!
4.25 / the action/gore in this story is definitely some of the best i've ever read. i also really loved the interconnections of the characters and past vs. present that were explored the further and further the story went. i did predict a lot of the twists but i love being right so that doesn't rlly bother me. the reason it‘s not solid 5 stars from me is because i wasn't attached to that many characters. Tala and Nail's perspectives were the only ones i enjoyed every time they came up. and there's a couple POVs i could personally go without. but, overall, the world building, plot lines, and mysteries introduced in this first book are so good! i‘m very excited to continue in The Blackest Heart!
3.75 very conflicted because i liked this quite a bit more than book 1 when it came to action, plot points, the romance, the reveals throughout, side characters, etc. however, while i enjoyed all those things and my intrigue was a LOT higher in this one, there's one complaint that carried over from Nevernight and that's the main character. i couldn't care less about Mia in book 1 and that hasn't changed at all. i'm not even sure what it is about her that i'm not vibing with, unfortunately.
