Maggie LeMmon

I didn't hate this, but I didn't love this either.

The timeline was confusing and all over the place. It was hard to figure out what timeframe each chapter was in as it was constantly switching around.

Sadie and Sam's relationship is very complex and frustrating. During their childhood, the immaturity makes sense but as they get older, it doesn't and it's incredibly frustrating and annoying as they both refuse to grow and self-reflect. They both hide behind parts of themselves they didn't like and used it as an excuse to be horrible to each other. Again, I get it in childhood but not adulthood.

I enjoyed the videogame references as I have played many mentioned in the book. The first game they created, Ichigo, is one that I'd definitely play if it were real. However, some of the games they created were incredibly unrealistic and unfortunately it really took away from the story for me.

Also, I absolutely hated Dov as a character, which is fine as he isn't really supposed to be a likeable character but all of the parts he was in were incredibly cringe, unneeded, and made me nauseous.

All in all, I get what the author was trying to convey and the message but I feel that it was poorly executed.

I absolutely loved and adored this book. I will admit, I was intimidated by the size of it, but I don't think there's a single part of this book that should be removed, if anything - I want more.

The world building was fantastic. I was enamored by the size of the world and details in this book.

This book has everything I could ask for! •Fantastic characters that you will love, hate, root, cry and mourn for.
•Representation through LGBTQ+ relationships that are supported.
•Feminism through Queendoms and Women-lead organizations.
•Pirates, Dragons, and Magic.

The way that the author wrote this is beautiful. The imagery she creates from the smallest details to the largest was probably my favorite thing about this book. The entire thing played like a movie in my head with smooth transitions from one set of characters to the other.

All in all, I loved this book. My only negative would be that the ending was wrapped up very quickly. However, I honestly cant think of a way to make it any better either.

Read this book, it's intimidating as is the world building but persevere, because it's so worth it and an absolute treat.