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Series Review: The Brothers Sinister by Courtney Milan

Greetings and welcome to Reviews That Burn: Series Reviews, part of Books That Burn. Series Reviews discuss at least three books in a series and cover the overarching themes and development of the story across several books. This review is for The Brothers Sinister by Courtney Milan. Full Audio Here   The Governess Affair Miss Serena Barton intends to hold the petty, selfish duke who had her sacked responsible for his crimes. But the man who handles all the duke's dirty business has been ordered to get rid of her by fair means or foul. She’ll have to prove more than his match… The Duchess War The last time Minerva Lane was the center of attention, it ended badly—so badly that she changed her name to escape her scandalous past. So when a handsome duke comes to town, the last thing she wants is his attention. But that is precisely what she gets... A Kiss for Midwinter Miss Lydia Charingford does her best to forget the dark secret that nearly ruined her life, hiding it beneath her smi...

Pretties by Scott Westerfeld (Uglies, #2)

Pretties presents a Tally who is different the one we met in Uglies, her vocabulary transformed to make her feel like a new narrator while keeping her underlying personality. It’s a really good portrayal of memory loss and identity.‬

Her relationship with Shay is complex and dynamic, and I like the Crims as a group. This book explores more the world established in Uglies, especially in ways that show the underlying systems of control which are in place.

I appreciate the handling of the dynamics with Zane and David, especially the message that you can have had a good relationship with someone but not want to return to it later on because you’re different people. It’s dystopian, so the time horizon for this change is pretty extreme, but it’s still a good message. As a book for teens, taking the time to say this is really important, given that the series establishes multiple romantic interests in the first place.

Book CWs for discussion of eating disorders, self-harm.


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