Iya P.

Well done, brutal and socially entangled story

Revisado: 01-27-25

I did NOT expect a sports story to go this hard. Expect college student dynamics but with mafia/gangs, drugs, violence, sexual assault (2nd book), cults, homophobia. I found myself very invested in all the character dynamics by the end of the first book so I am now onto the third. I have a ship I'm rooting for and everything! No one in these books is a good person and I love it. Ultimately, I think this is about found family which I love. The writing feels stiff at times or gets caught up in details that sometimes break my immersion, but on the other hand I don't think it's necessarily a waste or uninteresting to set scenes in such a way. The narrator did their best to create mostly-distinct voices for a very large cast (multiple sports teams, after all) and has a good voice for the type of characters in the story. Overall, excellent work, really hope they publish some physical special editions or something! Also, very amused by the idea that the author invented a sport because they didn't want to learn an existing one LOL.

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DNF, lost interest

Revisado: 01-07-25

At the start I was curious about the worldbuilding, magic system and such, and how the characters would develop. It's not badly written or read, it's actually easy to follow for a long fantasy title. But I am 8 hours in and this does NOT pass the Bechdel-Wallace test... I can easily ignore that for a very good story, but this just wasn't good enough. After the third time a female character, surrounded by boys and men, was introduced as, "She was pretty, blah blah her hair, blah blah her clothes, and the boys stared at her," it became too annoying to ignore. The supposed female lead can't have a single scene without thinking about how she misses MC. I know it's a single-aspect gripe but I got tired of it and wasn't pulled into the story enough unfortunately.

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Excellent sequel, mysterious and hopeful

Revisado: 12-23-24

Wow, I blew through this in 2 days. I think it's fair to say if you liked the first book, I think you'll like this one too. It has a similar balance of romance, fear, intrigue, mystery, and sentiment. The author's writing is easy to read but witty, and the mysteries are well-woven. I'm usually hesitant to follow a ship all the way through parenthood, but I ended up loving all the characters even more. The reader does an excellent job with differentiating voices, maybe a little accent slipping when he has to switch back and forth, but impressive. Both books are among my favorites now.

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DNF, but it's YA

Revisado: 11-08-24

DNF: This book could be 1/5th the length if it had a little faith in the reader to remember basic information or to infer how a character would be feeling, instead of repeating and rehashing it every other page. Like, yes, deceiving someone makes you feel guilty, I get it. The main character's plan is pretty unreasonable and drastic, and the overwrought doubts make me question his motivation level. The characters' attraction to each other is cute, but their constant teen-ish horniness over even totally nonsexual things and extremely awkward dialogue was just too much for me. I don't want to say it's bad, but I was hoping for a little more nuance. I think I'm just a bit too old for this one.

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Short, intriguing, entertaining to the end!

Revisado: 10-20-24

The whole format and premise of this story is clever and fun, and it keeps you wondering the whole time. The character growth from extreme archetype to something of substance is captivating for me. Moira Quirk is an excellent narrator (and actor, I'd say) who really captures the characters and the wit of the narration itself. I just adore Tamsyn Muir's writing honestly. I had fun listening to this one!

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Charming, digestible, cool worldbuilding

Revisado: 12-20-23

It's YA but I can't help it, I loved this one! The main characters were cute, I like the supporting cast, the worldbuilding and conception of magic were interesting, and James Fouhey did an excellent job providing different voices and adding emotion and character into the narration as it switched POVs. I feel like this could have been a much deeper and darker, complex, multi-layered sandwich of a story, but it's more like a nice easy-to-eat crust-trimmed PB&J sandwich and I am happy with that, some might not like it. The romance had to move at a quick jog for the length of the story, but it was charming. Plus, we love a lil queer rep. Shoutout to Oi, I loved him. I'd love to see more works in this world, especially if the story could take more time and dig deeper, burn the romance slower, and have more threads to resolve.

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Bleak yet bright emotional journey

Revisado: 11-03-23

(no spoilers) My heart went through a lot listening to this one! I will say that once things got mysterious I could hardly put it down. It took a bit to get used to the narrator's voice, but it sounded right for the characters once I settled in. I say this as a casual sci-fi reader at best, but I think this could get tough for those who struggle with the existential--it got a bit scary in that regard in the middle when I started wondering what I would do in that situation. The things I got teary-eyed about sorta surprised me (moss!!). Also, I'm weak for pining lol. The writing isn't fanciful or incredibly unique, but simple in a way that I think works for this story with the first person narration. I found the plot twists unexpected and compelling, overall I enjoyed it!
For content warnings: death, some blood/minor body horror, existential stuff, politics, mention of sexism, sexual content (not explicit but definitely the forefront of multiple scenes/dialogue).

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Great reader, literally insane story in a cool way

Revisado: 09-30-23

(Spoiler-avoidant review.) Those who say the book was bad because it was confusing or crazy...THAT'S THE POINT. And none of it is nonsense.
When you tackle this book, try to pay attention to tense/perspective changes in the narration. That's the key to help you keep the various threads in order, aside from context cues.

I agree with other reviewers that you are going to miss Gideon because she's a really good character. People who thought Gideon was a YA novel should be reconsidering that when they get into Harrow. I find the characters fun and the larger mysteries compelling. Lots of revelations to be had by the end of the book. Highly worth re-listening after you gain new information.

CW: This series contains several moments of intense gore/body horror. Some sexual/crude humor. Lots of death.
There are queer characters but not really any standard romance. I was very invested in what romance there was to be had though!

Also, I would recommend bringing a basic understanding of the fact that something existing in a story doesn't mean the story condones or glorifies it. Let's grow a brain and try thinking critically!

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Incredible voice acting, complex & building story

Revisado: 09-29-23

(Spoiler free review.)
First off, I'm honestly so glad that I listened to Moira Quirk's reading instead of getting a physical book, because her performance of the whole varied cast of characters and her delivery are excellent, my mind-voice couldn't possibly do better. Some of her deliveries had such impact that I always imagine her voice when I read a quote. There are many characters with names that will take you a while to learn, so voice acting helps with that.

This book starts off in a grungy post-apocalypse sci-fi Sunday school setting, moves into a bit of a necromancer Hunger Games plus murder mystery vibe, and hints at a larger perplexing mystery. Now that I've listened to the other two books currently out, I'm completely hooked. The main character Gideon's extraordinary attitude and wit made her a really beloved character to me by the end of the first book. Buff, wlw, sarcastic swordswoman, you can't go wrong. You will end up with a lot of questions, but like in any perplexing and mysterious story, most things will loop back around eventually, especially if you re-listen.

Also if you came here for gay stuff, there are undeniably queer characters but it's going to be mostly subtle--no standard romance here. Definitely plenty of cool shippable characters though.

CW: The whole series has several moments of intense gore/body horror. Some sexual or crude humor.

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Comfort book full of the warmth of coffee!

Revisado: 12-19-22

I never wanted this book to end, it was incredibly comforting and charming. Cute, funny, relatable, heartbreaking and heartwarming, a daydream and a fantasy. Like a perfect date! I love the cast and the author's unique performances of each character. Please read it (or listen)! I'm a very casual reader, but it doesn't disappoint.

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