Reviews

The Ninth Rain by Jen Williams

bgil789's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • 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

4.5

pinup_and_pages's review against another edition

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adventurous dark hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced
  • 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

5.0

ronelia's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced
  • 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

5.0

A brilliantly crafted story set in a fantastical world. A sinister magic system. Vampires, witches and Indiana Jones? I'm hooked. 

The writing was beautiful which is a sure fire way for me to give any book a high rating, but moreso the characters were well developed and the world felt very real. I love the little bits of worldbuilding woven into the story. 

I really loved this but it did have some flaws. For one there was a bit of a lull at the 50% mark but I knew if I pushed through I would absolutely love the rest and I wasn't wrong. I'm still giving this 5 stars because despite that, it was a brilliant book. 

It's simultaneously a throwback to epic fantasies of old whilst also being totally refreshing and new. 

I bought the entire trilogy in one so I'm very glad I loved it. Looking forward to book 2! 

niamh_elizabeth_books's review against another edition

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medium-paced

3.5

echoslitteraires's review against another edition

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  • 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

5.0

cedrisc's review against another edition

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4.0

A solid 4-star read for me.

I enjoyed the backstory and the world-building a lot. It was so interesting that I found myself telling family and friends about the tree god, vampires and maggots. Although nothing was really 'unique' it was a unique blend.

That said, nothing that happened at the end surprised me. The hints were enough that I suspected most of the plot.

I wish there were a stronger romance in it. That is why I am not in a rush to go straight to book 2. I think I will continue, but I will have a break.

margyyy06's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

alyssasaurus's review against another edition

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adventurous dark hopeful mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

phersace's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

sketchydoodle's review against another edition

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5.0

I was excited to read another Jen Williams series - I absolutely love the way she writes her characters, and for me, characters are the #1 thing I look for in writing.

Her characters are always a little dysfunctional, very human (or, er, other species... you know what I mean. Relatable) and have their own clear voices. By far the most outstanding one in the Ninth Rain is Vintage. Yes, hello, an older, POC, lgbt female lead? All I needed. Vintage is a scholar, a researcher, bold and unabashed, no nonsense and canny. I love her to pieces.

While the Copper Cat series was more of a 'traditional' fantasy made modern in terms of swashbuckling adventure themes, the Ninth Rain brings some interesting new worldbuilding with an alien threat (or is it? I don't know - where do they come from?! Plot twists expected in future books, perhaps. Brandon Sanderson has done a number on my plot expectations), a mysterious kind of magic in Winnowfire and a God-tree with strange power. Because of the wars that ravaged the world, a lot of knowledge has been lost, and I hope dearly that I can follow Vintage and her party in a quest to explain it!

Definitely looking forward to the next in the series :D