A review by blyndwolf
A Dark and Hollow Star by Ashley Shuttleworth

adventurous dark lighthearted mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

Here is my review based off the journal entries I wrote whilst reading this book!
 
Positives:
  • I really, really enjoyed the main characters and their interactions, and loved the chemistry and banter when they were all together. 
  • The dialogue was done really well.  
  • The story as a whole was pretty fun! Nothing too special but definitely always exciting and always left me eager to find out what happened next. 
  • URBAN FANTASY! The setting and world-building was super cool. 
  • Good queer representation. 

 
Negatives:
  • I don’t know much about faeries so I drowned in lore at the beginning and found myself having to Google things often (e.g. the different courts, seelie vs unseelie, creatures such as redcaps). 
  • THE SENTENCES ARE SO LONG. Sometimes it seemed much more like a ramble than anything cohesive. Trying to read some parts of this book was akin to reading a passage without punctuation. A sentence was sometimes as long as a paragraph, and it hurt my brain. I wish it was more polished and concise, because this book has so much potential!

Overall, I definitely look back on this book fondly and I can't wait for the next one to come out! 

Side note: I drew fanart of Aurelian Bessel and the author saw it and loved it!