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glowfish36's review against another edition
4.0
The more I read, the more I fell in love with this book. The story seemed like a legend slowly unraveling, as it had very little focus on 'ordinary' reactions, thoughts, and emotions.
Like others I : 1) skipped the sections titled 'the myth', 'the song', and 'the legend' and 2) I found the story ended too abruptly and quickly. It's a shame it hasn't been combined with the next few books.
I'm not sure if I am interested in reading the next few books, but I am pleasantly surprised by the first one and really ended up enjoying the creation of the dark sisters and the Hames communities.
Like others I : 1) skipped the sections titled 'the myth', 'the song', and 'the legend' and 2) I found the story ended too abruptly and quickly. It's a shame it hasn't been combined with the next few books.
I'm not sure if I am interested in reading the next few books, but I am pleasantly surprised by the first one and really ended up enjoying the creation of the dark sisters and the Hames communities.
miseraya's review against another edition
dark
inspiring
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
o_ambrogio's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
heathenpenguin's review against another edition
4.0
I finally found it! I kept on forgetting the title of this book. I initially thought the title was "White Jenna", but then I remembered that's what a character in the book calls the MC. Whew. And, turns out, the second book in the trilogy is entitled White Jenna. Oh well.
I was bummed that I couldn't find the sequel for this series in any of the bookstores that I've been to. I thought this was really good. I love reading about fantasy matriarchal societies. And I liked the idea of a "twin" that appears when there's a light source. Cool. I read this a long, long time ago, and I want to read it again. However, I lost it somewhere in my pile of books before we moved to our new house. Now I have to find this one plus find a copy of the sequels.
I was bummed that I couldn't find the sequel for this series in any of the bookstores that I've been to. I thought this was really good. I love reading about fantasy matriarchal societies. And I liked the idea of a "twin" that appears when there's a light source. Cool. I read this a long, long time ago, and I want to read it again. However, I lost it somewhere in my pile of books before we moved to our new house. Now I have to find this one plus find a copy of the sequels.
giannaba's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
jazminrose's review against another edition
5.0
I originally tried to read this book when I was around eight years old. It was recommended to me by a well-meaning adult who had never read it but saw a fantasy book with a seven year old protagonist. I don’t remember much other than the basic premise and that I found the writing dry and hard to get into. I didn’t finish it.
As an adult, I’d heard about it in passing several times and thought, “Oh yeah, that book.” In early 2023, it came recommended to me again, this time compared to His Dark Materials. As a serious and longtime HDM fan, my interest was piqued. Some light digging revealed that it’s somewhat of a YA book and I considered that my lack of interest the first time around might have been due to my age and not the book itself. I decided to give it another go.
Immediately, I was drawn in by the narrative structure. The combination of ‘true’ story, folklore, and anthropological review is excellent. This set-up allows for many an observation on how the passage of time skews history and the implications of unconscious bias in research (in this case, an all-women society studied through the lens of a patriarchal society).
As the story progressed, I was also deeply fascinated by the world-building. The dark sisters were a delicious concept to unravel. Culture and religion in the Hames is fully realized, and intriguing at that. Be prepared to find yourself completely immersed in Alta’s universe.
Highly recommend to fans of fantasy. My favourite book of 2023 so far.
As an adult, I’d heard about it in passing several times and thought, “Oh yeah, that book.” In early 2023, it came recommended to me again, this time compared to His Dark Materials. As a serious and longtime HDM fan, my interest was piqued. Some light digging revealed that it’s somewhat of a YA book and I considered that my lack of interest the first time around might have been due to my age and not the book itself. I decided to give it another go.
Immediately, I was drawn in by the narrative structure. The combination of ‘true’ story, folklore, and anthropological review is excellent. This set-up allows for many an observation on how the passage of time skews history and the implications of unconscious bias in research (in this case, an all-women society studied through the lens of a patriarchal society).
As the story progressed, I was also deeply fascinated by the world-building. The dark sisters were a delicious concept to unravel. Culture and religion in the Hames is fully realized, and intriguing at that. Be prepared to find yourself completely immersed in Alta’s universe.
Highly recommend to fans of fantasy. My favourite book of 2023 so far.
micahhortonhallett's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you HumbleBundle and your Women of SF bundle. This is the second author I have read from that particular collection that has been publishing for mulitple decades, with a slew of awards across multiple genres that I have never heard of. This is also number six in my ever growing list of female oriented YA fiction that is objectively better than the Hunger Games or Twilight. Given that none so far have fallen below that bar, I may have to set a new benchmark.
thecatconstellation's review against another edition
Reading too many other things; will revisit later
garnetofeden's review against another edition
4.0
I first read this book many years ago, but my local library did not have the sequel. I never forgot about it though because I thought the concept was so cool! I reread this book because it had been such a long time, but I am really looking forward to finally knowing what happens. Now that I'm older and more analytical, I must say I really like the style of this book. It isn't just a story, but also includes ballads and songs (with actual music in the back!) as well as historical analyses from the 'future' of that universe written in an authentic academic style.
Last finished 5/18/2011. Rating reviewed 7/7/2023.
Last finished 5/18/2011. Rating reviewed 7/7/2023.
imyra's review against another edition
2.0
Gostaria muito de ter gostado desse livro. Quando eu li a sinopse, fiquei bem interessada!
Nossa heroína, Jenna, é uma orfã que foi adotada por uma vila apenas de mulheres, seguidoras da deusa Alta. Nessa vila, cada mulher tem seu papel e quando chega a uma certa idade, cada garota escolhe qual papel vai cumprir na vila: guerreira, sacerdotisa, cozinheira, cuidadora das crianças, etc. Além disso, elas também vão chamar sua "irmã negra", no caso, uma outra parte dela, que aparece apenas sob a luz do luar ou sob a luz de velas. Jenna é especial por que por algumas razões ela pode ser a garota da lenda, a que vai trazer o fim e o começo para todas dessa comunidade.
Infelizmente, o livro não cumpriu as expectativas que eu tive dele. A autora realmente escreve bem e eu gostei de vários personagens, inclusive a sacerdotisa da deusa. Só que a história acaba de forma bem abrupta. O livro é bem pequeno e eu só descobri que ele era de uma série depois que eu comecei a ler (e fui colocar no goodreads). Comentários do outro volume também reclamam do tamanho e comentam ambos os livros deveriam ter sido colocados em um volume só. Eu, devo dizer que concordo. Não importando muito o tamanho do segundo volume, o primeiro é bem pequeno mesmo.
Demorei para ler o livro por outro motivo, que tem relação com o fato de ter dado apenas 2 estrelas para ele: o worldbuilding.
Ela faz um mundo interessante, fantástico, mas o que não funcionou comigo foi como esse mundo foi colocado para o leitor. Cada capítulo é dividido em partes como história, profecia, música etc., e isso fez com que a leitura não fosse bem fluída. Apesar dessas partes enriquecerem o mundo de Jenna, também deixavam os acontecimentos mais distantes. Se essas partes fossem pequenas (como por exemplo, no pêndulo de foucault, que tem um balanço fenomenal de tudo isso), talvez eu tivesse gostado mais. Ou se essas partes fossem melhor intercaladas na história. Do jeito que estava, eu terminava o capítulo (principalmente mais para o final do livro), dava um enorme suspiro e eu parava de ler ou me resignava a passar essa parte mais rápido...
Nossa heroína, Jenna, é uma orfã que foi adotada por uma vila apenas de mulheres, seguidoras da deusa Alta. Nessa vila, cada mulher tem seu papel e quando chega a uma certa idade, cada garota escolhe qual papel vai cumprir na vila: guerreira, sacerdotisa, cozinheira, cuidadora das crianças, etc. Além disso, elas também vão chamar sua "irmã negra", no caso, uma outra parte dela, que aparece apenas sob a luz do luar ou sob a luz de velas. Jenna é especial por que por algumas razões ela pode ser a garota da lenda, a que vai trazer o fim e o começo para todas dessa comunidade.
Infelizmente, o livro não cumpriu as expectativas que eu tive dele. A autora realmente escreve bem e eu gostei de vários personagens, inclusive a sacerdotisa da deusa. Só que a história acaba de forma bem abrupta. O livro é bem pequeno e eu só descobri que ele era de uma série depois que eu comecei a ler (e fui colocar no goodreads). Comentários do outro volume também reclamam do tamanho e comentam ambos os livros deveriam ter sido colocados em um volume só. Eu, devo dizer que concordo. Não importando muito o tamanho do segundo volume, o primeiro é bem pequeno mesmo.
Demorei para ler o livro por outro motivo, que tem relação com o fato de ter dado apenas 2 estrelas para ele: o worldbuilding.
Ela faz um mundo interessante, fantástico, mas o que não funcionou comigo foi como esse mundo foi colocado para o leitor. Cada capítulo é dividido em partes como história, profecia, música etc., e isso fez com que a leitura não fosse bem fluída. Apesar dessas partes enriquecerem o mundo de Jenna, também deixavam os acontecimentos mais distantes. Se essas partes fossem pequenas (como por exemplo, no pêndulo de foucault, que tem um balanço fenomenal de tudo isso), talvez eu tivesse gostado mais. Ou se essas partes fossem melhor intercaladas na história. Do jeito que estava, eu terminava o capítulo (principalmente mais para o final do livro), dava um enorme suspiro e eu parava de ler ou me resignava a passar essa parte mais rápido...