Reviews with content warning for Death - Příslib krve

This was a pretty epic read. I really enjoyed the worldbuilding with all of its different magic systems and the gradually unveiled secrets. Also, I found the overall concept of the story super interesting. There are lots of stories where overthrowing a king who's been harming the kingdom is the goal; here, it's an inciting incident. The story is about what happens after that one big change, and all the small changes that needs to be done, and the not-so-nice-and-shiny decisions that need to be made, and the payoff of the risks that had been taken, and all sorts of previously unknown information coming to light a little too late for contingency plans. I drew a lot of parallels with the real world events as I read, both from the faraway past and the recent history, and generally found this portrayal of a changing country compelling.

For the most part, I liked how the multiple POVs worked here, though sometimes I felt the need for some extra points of view. In particular, I'm sad that we never got into Ka-poel's head; I loved her so much. There were also times I wished the narration lingered more in a particular POV before the imminent switch to another one, or simply went deeper. That is mostly like a case of "it's not you, and me"; while objectively the characterization in general is pretty good here and the depth of character building is 100% appropriate for a more setting and plot focused story like this, subjectively I enjoy a slightly more character-driven approach.

Content Warnings

embee007's review against another edition

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dark tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No

2.5

Not for me for the reasons described below; but I will still suggest it to others.

Who I would suggest this for: anyone who's interested in reading about a Revolution, from the beginning, if the idea of "Flintlock Fantasy" piques your interest, Manly Men Fighting & Stuff.

I was bamboozled by a pretty special edition...This is on me - trusting the pretty book, & not looking at reviews beforehand.

(I am ending this after just testing positive for Covid tonight, but I wasn't sick when I started the book & I had the same complaints then...)

Firstly: Representation of female characters. I've read books without any female characters that were done well, & I didn't have any issues. But when there is representation of female characters I want them to be done well, I want them well-developed (not just their chests), & I don't want them all treated horribly (unless everyone is being treated horribly - all is fair in grimdark). If the book is starting to look like a Misogyny Manifesto, then it'll quickly turn into a hate read for me. This book did not tick off any of the good boxes for me. All the women are seen as weak, even the powerful sorcerer, they're bitches, they're stupid. The one woman who is probably more powerful than 90% of the characters, is constantly dismissed because she's mute & in one scene she's ogled then immediately dismissed because, "she was a servant, an uneducated savage." There's one female POV that's thrown in at random, & cleaning & taking care of a kid (not hers) are repeatedly said to be more important than her own life. Slight spoiler:

She toys with the idea of revenge, but she's not into it.

Secondly: I still don't entirely understand the magic system, even though I would love to. I tried explaining it to a friend last night, or what I understood of it, & he just kept repeating, "What?!" In disbelief.

Thirdly: I followed along in the text with the audio, & I'm giving the audio 2 1/2 stars as well. The narrator used wildly different voices for a lot of the side characters, but almost all of the main characters had very similar voices, & the narration would often switch midchapter, sometimes multiple times per chapter. Towards the end, I was more listening than reading bc I cared about how the book ended, but not about how the rest of the series goes on, & I had repeated issues of having to go back in the narration, or looking back at the text to figure out wtf was happening, who was speaking, which narrator we were following & when did we suddenly switch.

Content Warnings

iono's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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