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katerinovaaa's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
After years of training, Sirscha wants to be acknowledged for her hard work to prove to everyone (including herself) that she is worthy of becoming the Queen's Shadow. However, as she tries to beat her competitors, she starts to uncover her origins and realizes that her true journey leads through deadly forests and poisonous politics. Is she going to discover who stands behind the slow decay of the empire and the truth behind her power? Read and find out!
๐ท๏ธ high fantasy with glossary
๐ท๏ธ badass warrior FMC trained to be a royal spy
๐ท๏ธ different types and subtypes of magic โ not everyone has powers
๐ท๏ธ beasts, spirits, and souls
๐ท๏ธ self-discovery, personal growth
๐ท๏ธ close friendships, bullies, cute friends, and snarky allies
The world-building is very complex, but I didn't get lost, and usually knew what was going on. There is a long glossary at the beginning, which helps a lot. I wish there were a map as well, though. I feel like there's gonna be loads more information in the sequels. ๐ฎโ๐จ
I loved Sirscha and her determination and confidence. She is extremely skillful; however, I love that she got injured frequently and acknowledged the pain (even for a few days). It made it much more realistic without being annoying.
โจ Dual swords, knives, climbing walls, and merciless bone-breaking are definitely my cup of tea. โจ
โRomance/spice:
โCliff-hanger:
Trigger warnings: spiders, death of a loved one, blood/gore/violence, terminal illness
"Children are meant to obey those who raise them, but how can respect be born of abuse?"
Graphic: Death, Terminal illness, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Gore and Blood
Minor: Child abuse
adancewithbooks's review
3.0
Graphic: Gore, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Torture
bookishmillennial's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I thought this was an intriguing start to this series! It's clearly very much introducing us to this world (a lot of exposition, which I don't always mind when getting to know a new world lol), and I love when the main character is basically re-discovering themselves like Sirscha did in this book. She has to contend with the new reality of who she is and what she's capable of, and more importantly, what that means for the world / society as she knows it! I will definitely be continuing the series <3
Graphic: Death, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, and Medical content
thewildmageslibrary's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Bullying
spiderstinysierra's review
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
- spiders and spiderwebs
- dark creepy forest with faces and souls
- Nice worldbuilding
- A badass blind side character
- threats of war between kingdoms, political intrigue
- strong main character who knows how to fight, who turns out to have the rarest magical powers
- a focus on friendships
- Asian coded characters
I like that the +600 year old Spider King was not a mysterious sexy love interest preying on a teenager. There is no romance plot. The story focuses on the main character trying to figure out her powers and how to stop a war.
This book was decent but it didnโt really โwowโ me. I liked the pieces of lore that we got, and I thought the characters were nice but they didnโt amaze me. I didnโt really feel the bond between Saengo and Sirscha. It was described that they cared for each other and they were clearly close but I wish we got to see more of their friendship on page before the start of the book.
I enjoyed Theyen and Sirschaโs sassy banter. They could have turned into a kind of rivals to lovers type romance but I liked that they stayed friends/allies.
I think this is a good book for anyone looking for a fantasy book with magic and politics but without the romance.
I may be mistaken, but I thought I saw this book in a recommendation list for Aro or Ace rep. However, unless I missed something, there are no explicitly stated asexual or aromantic characters. I donโt believe Sirscha states a sexual or romantic preference. But, if you are aro or ace, youโll probably enjoy the lack of romance whether the characters themselves are aro / ace or not.
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Violence, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Terminal illness, and War
queer_bookwyrm's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Forest of Souls by Lori M. Lee is book one in the Shamanborn series. This is something I picked specifically because it's my friend Kaitee's favorite book, so I have some complicated feelings. This was a fascinating and great fantasy read; however, it was chock full of spider descriptions. One thing you need to know about me is my intense (and probably irrational) fear of spiders, so this was a tough read for me. *Shudders*
We follow Sirscha Ashwyn, a lowborn orphan in the Queen's Company who is training to become the Queen's Shadow (spymaster). Sirscha has been no one her entire life, constantly being bullied by her cohorts while her instructors look the other way. The only person who doesn't treat Sirscha like dirt is her best friend Saengo. When Sirscha and Saengo try to sabotage Sirscha's rival, Saengo dies, and Sirscha learns she's a Shamanborn (a person born with elemental abilities). The problem with this is that in Evewyn, Shamanborn are oppressed and locked away, because of the Queen's prejudice.
This puts Sirscha and Saengo on a journey to Spinner's End to meet Ronin the Spider King. But as usual, things don't go according to plan, and Sirscha needs to fight to save her friend's life while also figuring out what to do about the Dead Wood. I really loved how much of a survivor Sirscha is. She's pragmatic and can outfight almost anyone. Her friendship with Saengo was my favorite. Instead of focusing on romance, this story focuses on the intensity of friendship. The magic system was fascinating, I love the idea of lightwenders.
We get some themes on prejudice, oppression, and genocide; along with a message about finding your worth and value from yourself instead of others. I did not like how prominent spiders were in this book (why is it always giant spiders?!), and I definitely yelled at Kaitee about it the whole time. The Dead Wood was creepy af and I loved the Drakes. I want my own Drake to ride around. That cliffhanger though. Here's hoping for fewer spider descriptions next book!
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Bullying and Blood
Minor: Child abuse
mali33102's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Murder
ice_creamery's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Death and Blood
Moderate: Torture
whatellisreadnext's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
After years of training to become the queen's next spy, Sirscha's plans are derailed when shamans attack, and kill her best friend. When she wakes, she has somehow restored Saengo back to life.
I really really enjoyed Forest of Souls, it was such a unique take on a magic system. I loved how sinister everything was, especially the Dead Wood. Which is basically a sentient forest, that murders everyone, and traps their souls in trees ๐๐ปโโ๏ธ
What I enjoyed the most about this narrative, was that it's centred around a friendship. Me and romance in fantasy books don't often gel, and I'd much rather read a story that focuses on a platonic relationship. I just loved that what propelled Sirscha forward, was Saengo.
If you love fantasy with a badass female lead, political intrigue, and lots of creepy crawlies, you need this book! The second installment Broken Web comes out the day after my birthday, and you bet I am grabbing a copy! I need more of Sirscha in my life ๐
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, and Blood
sophieink's review
4.0
"Only dead men fight fair."
Forest of Souls is a captivating YA fantasy that starts with our main character Sirscha who discovers her powers which are not only feared where she lived but she also has the magic that no one has seen for years. so..... PERFECT.
Instead of being captured like she thought she would, she is sent to the ominous Spider King who maintains the peace over the lands with the dead wood, the haunted wood that everyone is afraid of, which is sliced across the them all.
I really liked the set up as it involved so much political unrest and fear. There were many players in the game all balanced precariously and we get to see our main character thrust into it. It brings a lot of tension and uncovering of secrets straight away which I always find interesting.
The political aspect continued to be involved throughout the book so it keeps you captivated and it is very easy to follow.
"Signing a contract agreeing not to act on standing hatreds is not a promise to stop hating."
I thought Sirscha was an interesting main character being an underdog in the world and fighting for her place. It was interesting to see how she would react when it was all taken away from her as everything shifted. Her determination and desire to bend the rules/uncover the truth also made her a great character to follow as she learnt new things and kept getting herself into situations.
I also really liked that there was a female friendship at the front of the book . Sirscha and Saengo has a lot of past and you could feel for their relationship. It was bond over time so I loved seeing that.
The development of the side characters was always really good. I found them entertaining as they always had something to offer in terms of personality or there position in the political 'games'.
I really liked the writing. It was able to build up a haunting atmosphere at times and some of the descriptions with the way it built up people and scenes were really lush. It was easy to follow. Plus I thought the pacing was well delivered throughout. We were always heading towards something and things were uncovered in due time.
I would say that the way that some of the mystery were solved didn't feel as smooth as I would have liked and seemed to jump to conclusions in a way.
The ending was really intense and captivating though as things went down . IT. WAS. ALL. HAPPENING. I think book 2 will be even stronger so I'll be excited to see what happens.
โ โ โ โ
Overall, a really captivating start to the series which many strong elements. I thought the mystery could have developed a little stronger and I would have liked to connect a little more to the connect but still a good start which left me excited for the sequel.
Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Physical abuse, and Violence
Minor: Slavery, Blood, and Medical content