Daria

Начало было интересным, описание города, живых домов, случайного знакомого, с которым каждый день пересекаешься на улице - эти маленькие детали я помню до сих пор, хотя с прочтения книги прошло больше 10 лет. Прочитала первую половину от лица мужского персонажа и дропнула на второй от лица девушки - книга скатилась, как и все книги Достоевского.

I was intrigued by the reviews on the TikTok about this book.
That these contained politics, vampires, poly, battles, deep lore.
None of that is really in this book.
The main problem is MC - he is weak, unwit, sulked in his problems and the book is mostly his POV.
So when you have an MC that not smart enough - plot is very predictable. What eludes you is lore and motives and other stuff that might fill the hole of not having an interest in plot development.
It's not bad. But still - nothing there is at good rate.
Politics? No. Weak, shown through perspective of a uninterested MC that carried more of him being unworthy of anything. So you'll only get a glympse of it. Not really diving in.
Vampires? Kinda, there is some species that have fangs and bloodsucking. But not some deeply explanation made of how it came here, how it works or any of the insides of their living.
Poly?Also, kinda. Because when there is a polylove you want to see the triumvirant, the equal three. There is none of that. Maybe it will be better in an announced second book. But in the first one it is more of the woman possesing two men that trying to like each other to stay with her.
Battles? Maybe the strongest part of this book, all things considered. But also POV of the MC that is a human in vampire battles. All he sees is blurs and dead bodies. And all he does is spinning his chains.
Deep lore? No, deffinetly no. A lot of things've been put in hanging and not explained. A lot of things are just put in there for plot and never ever brought up again.
Characters? A few second roles good enough, but the main ones are just as flat as a pancake. I was ready to agree that MC can't go inside other heads and see their motives and agreed with the character reveal through characters telling the MC their motives just in his face. Okay, but why MC is just so inconsistent. One time he is just all muscle and no brain, followng orders undoubtantly and than out of nowhere he is preaching sences into others, when there is nothing that leads for him to develope such insights. One moment some information for him is just blabbering , then he is into that information and can hold up a conversation, and then back to his ignorant self.
Conclusion: not worth reading.

Первые главы, пронизанные идеей, её формированием и то как главный герой решается на поступок , чтобы доказать себе самому своё место в обществе - потрясающе. А все, что начинается после недельного нытья в кровати - полный бред. Дропнула, ибо не согласна с автором. Если принял решение и совершил поступок - встречай последствия в свою пользу, а не будь соплежуем.

DNF at 30%
The FMC made me FURIOUS with hers idiocy.
All her life her named father - very powerful vampire - trained her for the trials. She was sparring him as equal. Going out at nights cockily killing vampires. Sounds like she is bold, trained, controlling herself. Yet she is just dumb. ALL her moves in the most valuable event in all her life, for which she prepared all her life - MADE NO F SENSE. She is constantly bleeding, putting herslef in danger out of impulsive unreasonable motives. And two - only author know for what reasons - allmighty vampires saving her and putting theirs trusts in her. I agreed with some of her deeds for some time. But saving a child ( cause she saw resemblence to her in it) in a to-death trials amongst vampires, being in disadvantage - it's not nobility, heroism or humanity, or whatever, it's just dumb thing to do. The FMC didn't worth Victor's efforts, and not worth any effort from Raihn.
Disappointed, didn't worth the hype.

This is just bad.
DNF it nearly at the end - couldnt make myself even to read the ending, cause everything is good in this book - is setting.
Characters are bad, storytelling is bad, plot is bad, relationships are bad.
I've peaked to the spoilers of next books - it gets worse.

Scarlet is flat, she gets a little character growth, but the outcome of th situations she is in - i'd just told my sister and Julian and everyone else to go f themselves and tried to build my life forgetting all that horror and never ever knowing them again.
Cause what Donatella did is actually great, if it hadn't been made to her own sister - she should've been the main morally gray MC, but instead we are following steps of Scarlett.
Main problem of book is not even characters - they kinda okay, they look like people.
But plot, storytelling and meaning of all of the situations - it's all just a mess. Not the mess you wanna find yourself like in a sinister, tension, thrilling way. It's just a rollercoaster of nonconnected situations that grew from alice in wonderland to some freak fay-ish fantasy.
The settimg is good. Dark misterious circus and villian magicians - this is good, but author did the worst they could do.