Rosh’s review of Skysong > Likes and Comments

Wonderful review!

great review rosh! i havent read much of nightingale retelling but my prev encounters havent been great. this sounds promising & almost intriguing for me to pick but then, YA hasnt been my forte these days so it might not win me as much. glad that ure still enjoying this tho! xx

I don't know why publishers try and hook readers with a genre/subject matter that isn't true. It does a disservice to the author. Lovely review, Rosh. 🤗💕

Very nice review, Rosh! ;)

Glad that you liked this retelling so much. Reading the original does make for an interesting comparison. And I’m glad it delivered enough glimpses of the original, while being able to stand on its own. Interesting reading choice to reveal the secret to the readers, though I’m not surprised as it works wonders in the Traitors.

Good point about a book needing to be careful with what it promises, especially when it doesn’t deliver on said promise. Can disappoint some readers for sure. And glad the UK accent enhanced the listening experience. Great review, Rosh.

I'm always scared to read retelling if I really love story. Love how honest you are. I might give this one a go in the future.

Sounds like it was still pretty well done and entertaining. Nice review Rosh 🤗

I loved your notes on this retelling dearest Rosh! A mixed bag but sounds like it will find its audience. I almost would've been drawn to its premise but the fact it might skew YA is a slight turnoff for me, (besides a few trusted authors). A very helpful review 🥰❤️

A retelling of "The Nightingale" is an interesting idea. It sounds like too much YA for my taste, I think. I am glad it was an entertaining read for you, despite the flaws. Excellent review, dear Rosh 🥰

👀 interesting

A magnificent review, sweet Rosh!! 🥰❤️😘 I'm so glad you still enjoyed it!! 💗💗

It sounds like this book is having an identity crisis! Marketing it as an adult sapphic fantasy when it reads like a YA fable is a confusing move by the publisher. It seems like the concept was 5 stars but the execution was a bit more 'debut novel' than 'masterpiece'. Great review, Rosh!!<3

Fantastic review Rosh, glad you mostly enjoyed this retelling 💞

You got a sweet retelling with this one Rosh :)

Great review Rosh. I love that you give us all we need to know before making a decision to read or not. ☺️

Lovely cover indeed! I like the yays. Why add a sapphic tag when it is not used properly? Sigh!
With similar-sounding names, no way I can try an audio (with my almost-nil experience). It's hard enough to track when reading.
Terrific review, Rosh. 💙💖

Lyrical writing? Yes. *grabby hands* Meh characters? No. Definitely not for me.
I like the premise of the story. As for the book being promoted as LGBTQIA+ and not delivering, that is very weird to me. I don't want to accuse their author of queerbaiting, but I don't know what else to call it. I don't think I've ever heard of the original tale. I love the way you constructed this review, Rosh.

Amazing review! So glad you enjoyed it!!🖤💗

Great review, Rosh! I honestly would have been so pissed off if I picked up a book labelled as ‘lgbtq’ but doesn’t actually have any romance. But I’m glad you still enjoyed despite it all❤️

Oh seems like a pretty decent fantasy read! I enjoyed reading your review Rosh. I hope this author will continue his writing to even better books !

Amazing review, Rosh! An adult fantasy feeling like YA wouldn't have bothered me a few months ago, but my tastes have changed since then and I feel your disappointment. It's always interesting to see retellings of less popular fairytales, and I'm glad you enjoyed!

An insightful and helpful review, Rosh. Thank you for once again giving us such a comprehensive look at a read we might be considering.

Your reviews never disappoint, Rosh! Enjoyed this one a lot! xxx

Super review. It's not my style, but I'm glad you enoyed it! I actually don't know of The Nightingale and would have to read up on it, too.

Great review Rosh, so glad you enjoyed it 💕💕💕

Jayme C (Brunetteslikebookstoo) wrote: "Wonderful review!"

Thank you!

aly wrote: "great review rosh! i havent read much of nightingale retelling but my prev encounters havent been great. this sounds promising & almost intriguing for me to pick but then, YA hasnt been my forte th..."

Thanks much, Aly! 🤍 To be clear, the official label isn't YA but adult fantasy. But the writing and general tone felt more YA to me. It's really sad because it could have made a great dark story for adults.

Shelley's Book Nook wrote: "I don't know why publishers try and hook readers with a genre/subject matter that isn't true. It does a disservice to the author. Lovely review, Rosh. 🤗💕"

Totally agree with that, Shelley. Mislabelling isn't fair to authors as well as readers.
Thank you! 💖

Diane (IF U'RE PRIVATE, PLEASE SKIP ME!!!) wrote: "Very nice review, Rosh! ;)"

Thank you, Diane! 🤗

Thibault wrote: "Glad that you liked this retelling so much. Reading the original does make for an interesting comparison. And I’m glad it delivered enough glimpses of the original, while being able to stand on its..."

It's always good when a retelling delivers original storytelling even while resting on its source material. This book is quite good like that.
I think that method is used in some other books as well, usually in thrillers. Good authors can really use it well.
It will definitely disappoint those who pick this up as a romance. Thankfully I'm never in that category. 😅
Thanks, Thibault.

Kealyn wrote: "I'm always scared to read retelling if I really love story. Love how honest you are. I might give this one a go in the future."

Oh yes, the same for me, Kealyn! I rarely touch the retellings of my favourite stories, not unless I know that the author is good. It's such a risky endeavour!
I think you'll like this one if you go in with the right expectations.

Tina (Off to Spring Training!) wrote: "Sounds like it was still pretty well done and entertaining. Nice review Rosh 🤗"

Yes indeed, not at all bad. Thanks, Tina! 🤗

Esta wrote: "I loved your notes on this retelling dearest Rosh! A mixed bag but sounds like it will find its audience. I almost would've been drawn to its premise but the fact it might skew YA is a slight turno..."

Thanks so much, dear Esta! 💖 The YA tilt was a disappointment to me as well because I was prepared for a darker adult fantasy. Thankfully, the story wasn't too bad.

Alexandra wrote: "A retelling of "The Nightingale" is an interesting idea. It sounds like too much YA for my taste, I think. I am glad it was an entertaining read for you, despite the flaws. Excellent review, dear R..."

It's definitely a good idea. If only it was actually as adult as it was supposed to be! Thank you, dear Alexandra! 💖

G_occasionally_reads (hiatus cause work) wrote: "👀 interesting"

It could be fun for YA lovers. 😉

Sarah wrote: "A magnificent review, sweet Rosh!! 🥰❤️😘 I'm so glad you still enjoyed it!! 💗💗"

Thanks much, Sarah! 💖

Saranya ⋆☕︎ ˖ wrote: "It sounds like this book is having an identity crisis! Marketing it as an adult sapphic fantasy when it reads like a YA fable is a confusing move by the publisher. It seems like the concept was 5 s..."

Haha, I like that description. It's sad that publishers do such things. They need to realise that aiming at the right target audience is beneficial to everyone.
Thanks much, Saranya! 💖

Maureen wrote: "Fantastic review Rosh, glad you mostly enjoyed this retelling 💞"

Thank you so much, Maureen! 💖

Baba wrote: "You got a sweet retelling with this one Rosh :)"

I sure did, Baba. 😊

Karen wrote: "Great review Rosh. I love that you give us all we need to know before making a decision to read or not. ☺️"

Thanks much, Karen! I'm glad you find my reviews useful. 😊

Srivalli wrote: "Lovely cover indeed! I like the yays. Why add a sapphic tag when it is not used properly? Sigh!
With similar-sounding names, no way I can try an audio (with my almost-nil experience). It's hard en..."

The cover is perfect for the story!
I know right! Luckily I wasn't reading it for the romance.
Haha, I struggle even after all these years, so I can imagine how you would feel. This definitely isn't one for you on audio.
Thank you, Sri! 💖

Persephone's Pomegranate wrote: "Lyrical writing? Yes. *grabby hands* Meh characters? No. Definitely not for me.
I like the premise of the story. As for the book being promoted as LGBTQIA+ and not delivering, that is very weird to..."

I think the blame would be more at the publisher's doorstep, Perse. I doubt smaller authors have a great role to play in the marketing efforts. It's sad because the book could have been really good for a YA readar.
Thank you so much.

V.D. wrote: "Amazing review! So glad you enjoyed it!!🖤💗"

Thank you, Vasilii! 🤍

Nat wrote: "Great review, Rosh! I honestly would have been so pissed off if I picked up a book labelled as ‘lgbtq’ but doesn’t actually have any romance. But I’m glad you still enjoyed despite it all❤️"

Thanks much, Nat! 💖 Honestly, I would have been very annoyed had the same happened to any of my favourite subgenres. Luckily for the book, I wasn't reading it for the romance, Sapphic or not. I read it only for the retelling and that worked really well. Romance readers won't be as forgiving, I'm sure.

Jenny wrote: "Oh seems like a pretty decent fantasy read! I enjoyed reading your review Rosh. I hope this author will continue his writing to even better books !"

Thanks much, Jenny! I sure hope she continues writing. I'd love to see what she writes next.

AG wrote: "Amazing review, Rosh! An adult fantasy feeling like YA wouldn't have bothered me a few months ago, but my tastes have changed since then and I feel your disappointment. It's always interesting to s..."

Thanks much, AG! I understand where you are coming from. This wouldn't have bothered me as well a few years ago. But I prefer more mature reads (and leads) these days. I do appreciate it for the uncommon source material.

Darla wrote: "An insightful and helpful review, Rosh. Thank you for once again giving us such a comprehensive look at a read we might be considering."

Thank you so much, Darla.

Mary-Lisa wrote: "Your reviews never disappoint, Rosh! Enjoyed this one a lot! xxx"

Thanks much, Mary-Lisa! 💖

Jenny wrote: "Super review. It's not my style, but I'm glad you enoyed it! I actually don't know of The Nightingale and would have to read up on it, too."

Thank you, Jenny! I think you'll like The Nightingale more than this novel. It's a good story though not perfect.

Jennifer (Jaye) wrote: "Great review Rosh, so glad you enjoyed it 💕💕💕"

Thanks much, Jennifer! 💖