lamusadelils's review against another edition
3.0
Recibí este ARC (Advance Reader Copy) como regalo gracias a Goodreads First Reads. Le pongo entre 3 y 3.5 estrellas.
Me sorprendió favorablemente y es mucho mas interesante de lo que me había parecido al ver la reseña. Es una historia de aventura que involucra elementos de culturas prehispánicas y leyendas que me son familiares, por lo que fue extraño para mi leerlas en inglés y con un filtro cultural completamente distinto. A lo largo del libro hay comentarios como tamale head que se me hicieron graciosos.
A su favor, debo reconocer que la cultura y sociedad que la autora nos presenta se describen de manera excelente y permite sumergirse completamente en la historia. Los personajes son desesperante a veces pero su actitud y conducta se justifican bien por la moralidad de la sociedad de la que son parte. Las representaciones de algunas deidades y personajes legendarios me parecieron muy interesantes. Es común ver adapataciones de mitos griegos o nórdicos en historias de todo tipo de géneros y estilos, pero las historias prehispánicas son más raras y casi nunca abarcadas a fondo.
La historia es compleja y hay muchos personajes, por lo que a veces las cosas pueden parecer confusas. Hay un uso indiscriminado de los nombres en náhuatl y sus traducciones al inglés, lo que en puntos me pareció incómodo e innecesario. Fuera de esos detalles, es bastante recomendable si les llaman la atención el género y la premisa. ¿
Me sorprendió favorablemente y es mucho mas interesante de lo que me había parecido al ver la reseña. Es una historia de aventura que involucra elementos de culturas prehispánicas y leyendas que me son familiares, por lo que fue extraño para mi leerlas en inglés y con un filtro cultural completamente distinto. A lo largo del libro hay comentarios como tamale head que se me hicieron graciosos.
A su favor, debo reconocer que la cultura y sociedad que la autora nos presenta se describen de manera excelente y permite sumergirse completamente en la historia. Los personajes son desesperante a veces pero su actitud y conducta se justifican bien por la moralidad de la sociedad de la que son parte. Las representaciones de algunas deidades y personajes legendarios me parecieron muy interesantes. Es común ver adapataciones de mitos griegos o nórdicos en historias de todo tipo de géneros y estilos, pero las historias prehispánicas son más raras y casi nunca abarcadas a fondo.
La historia es compleja y hay muchos personajes, por lo que a veces las cosas pueden parecer confusas. Hay un uso indiscriminado de los nombres en náhuatl y sus traducciones al inglés, lo que en puntos me pareció incómodo e innecesario. Fuera de esos detalles, es bastante recomendable si les llaman la atención el género y la premisa. ¿
lenamjohnson's review
5.0
This is one of those books you stay up late to finish. Everytime I felt my eyelids falling, something would happen in the book and I'd have to power through my weariness to see how everything was resolved. I had this book on my shelf for far too long and I can't believe it took me this long to finish it.
The research and attention to detail of the Mexica (Aztec) culture is amazing. With just enough names and terms thrown in to pay tribute to the culture but not so much that I was left confused, I loved the story and the characters.
Absolutely cannot wait to get my hands on the second book.
The research and attention to detail of the Mexica (Aztec) culture is amazing. With just enough names and terms thrown in to pay tribute to the culture but not so much that I was left confused, I loved the story and the characters.
Absolutely cannot wait to get my hands on the second book.
chantaal's review against another edition
3.0
More of a 2.5, rounded up.
What a strange read this was.
Quetzalpetlatl is an exiled princess tasked with not only helping raise her younger brother, Topiltzin (who happens to also be the son of a god), but also with working with her brother to end human sacrifice in their kingdom. That's about as straightforward a summary as I can write for the plot of this book, because it read like a bit of an ancient soap opera. So many twists and turns, betrayal, double crossing, over the top evil dudes, death - and, to top it all off, incest.
Yep, Quetzalpetlatl and Topiltzin fall in love. Topiltzin, being all special, ages very quickly. That still doesn't change my initial reaction to it, which was mostly...ick. Like yeah, I get that their closeness and their shared destinies would bring them together, but still.
Where the book really thrives is in the world building. I don't know much (or anything) about tenth century Mexico, other than the stereotypical Aztec/Maya/Incan things we all learn as kids. Reading about it felt like stepping into a completely alien landscape, one that was populated with what felt like authentic* people and events. Even certain things that I scoffed at turned out to be true to the time once I did some cursory research myself.
Did you know rubber actually existed in tenth century Mexico? And natural rubber comes from trees? I sure didn't. The more you learn.
The Bone Flower Throne isn't exactly the sort of book I'd recommend to everyone, but it is an interesting read if you're up for something different.
*Authentic as far as fitting in with the world the author has created. I don't know much (or anything, really) about historical Mexico to say otherwise.
What a strange read this was.
Quetzalpetlatl is an exiled princess tasked with not only helping raise her younger brother, Topiltzin (who happens to also be the son of a god), but also with working with her brother to end human sacrifice in their kingdom. That's about as straightforward a summary as I can write for the plot of this book, because it read like a bit of an ancient soap opera. So many twists and turns, betrayal, double crossing, over the top evil dudes, death - and, to top it all off, incest.
Yep, Quetzalpetlatl and Topiltzin fall in love. Topiltzin, being all special, ages very quickly. That still doesn't change my initial reaction to it, which was mostly...ick. Like yeah, I get that their closeness and their shared destinies would bring them together, but still.
Where the book really thrives is in the world building. I don't know much (or anything) about tenth century Mexico, other than the stereotypical Aztec/Maya/Incan things we all learn as kids. Reading about it felt like stepping into a completely alien landscape, one that was populated with what felt like authentic* people and events. Even certain things that I scoffed at turned out to be true to the time once I did some cursory research myself.
Did you know rubber actually existed in tenth century Mexico? And natural rubber comes from trees? I sure didn't. The more you learn.
The Bone Flower Throne isn't exactly the sort of book I'd recommend to everyone, but it is an interesting read if you're up for something different.
*Authentic as far as fitting in with the world the author has created. I don't know much (or anything, really) about historical Mexico to say otherwise.
mmarques's review against another edition
5.0
This book is an engrossing epic tale set during Aztec times. It follows the story of a young woman, starting as a 7-year-old princess through young adulthood. Right from the start, this story gripped me. The characters are deep. The book made me feel like I had traveled to another place and time.
book_grinch's review
2.0
DNF at 30%
TW: INCEST, RAPE, VICTIM BLAMING
Arc provided by netgalley
Unfortunately this wasn't able to convince me...
The narrator's voice, that starts out as a seven year old, Quetzalpetltl, sounded very inconsistent. One minute she would be very childish, and then completely grown up.
This story strongest point would be it's setting: Tenth century aztec culture (of which i'm completely clueless about).
The thing is, this is a very "diluted" aztec environment, with language more appropriate to our days, and a somewhat soap "opera" tone.
In fact, it seems the author was more focused on the the names used in those times and culture, and a few (gorish) rituals.
The read became boring, since i just couldn't connect with Quetzalpetatl voice.
The political intrigue part...well that's a little too far fetched for this. That would imply some ...finesse.
What we get instead are assassinations.
That's not political intrigue.
That's warfare. (prefered methods: hearts ripped out of chests, cutted heads, and poisons!)
So our main character, is forced to marry her cousin when they're both kids. Then her husband's father (and uncle) decide to kill her father, the king. She and very much pregnant mother (she swallowed a magic rock) escape, but her mother ends up dying giving birth to Little Reed, who will also be known as Topiltzin.
Then all of a sudden, ten years have passed. Q. and Little Reed have both grown up. She's now seventeen, and he's actually ten...but since he's the son of a God, he has the appearance of a seventeen year old.
Who his sister desires.
That's right, incest alert.
Look, like i said i'm completely clueless about this world. And yes, we all know that morality is a subjective to culture. So, if the brothers had to be forced to marriage (or not) in the case of that being part of their traditions , that would be more easy to understand. This?? Not really!!
She raised her brother, so it's just double....yuck...maybe if the fantasy/ the folklore part had been strongly built, maybe it wouldn't feel so...difficult to read.
Her words brought images of him “soothing those desires” with me on the altar in Quetzalcoatl’s temple.
I just think that if the story had an actual political plot, and other characters with relevant roles, maybe this....direction wouldn't be required.
And then i got into the rape scene, and the victim blaming. You can say: this has happened throughout time itself.
Yes, it has. But that doesn't mean i have to read it, especially when it follows a long descriptive segment of "cheap thrills".
Bottom Line: Interesting idea, less than great execution....maybe it gets better, but i just can't force myself to continue reading this.
isalavinia's review
4.0
arc provided by Panverse Publishing LLC through netgalley
trigger warnings: self-harm, rape, incest, violence
Quetzalpetlatl is the king's only legitimate daughter - his queen having become barren giving birth to their daughter. In need of a male heir, the king and his brother decide to marry their children, Quetzalpetlatl and Black Otter, while they are still children. But the feathered serpent god Quetzalcoatl visits the queen in a dream and tells her that, if she'll swallow a jade pebble, she'll conceive the long awaited heir.
This is how the book starts, and to be honest, it lulled me into a false sense of security, it seemed so much like standard YA that I even forgot it was most definitely not YA. This is soon apparent with all the violence, incest, rape and gore that follows.
I had to struggle with myself, as I imagine many readers will, when it comes to the incest in this book. It wasn't a taboo in that particular culture, but it's a very ingrained one in mine, so even when I wanted to root for some things I couldn't help but feel repulsed by them, at the same time. This is a failure of mine as a reader and as a person, I should be more open minded, but I'd be lying if I didn't mention how that may have affected my reading of this book - logically I can't even think of a way for the author to write about these characters without including incest and that, I can tell for sure, would make me lower the rating because it would be a cowardly cop-out.
As it is, I just want to make it clear, it was not an easy book for me.
I also feel like my lack of knowledge on this particular culture will hinder me when it comes to properly praising it in this review. But make not mistake, the book is amazing - I couldn't even put it down, I had to read it all in one go.
Weirdly, it reminded me a lot of Marion Zimmer Bradley's work - not because of the incest bits! - there's that overarching religious battle occurring throughout the whole plot, and while it's a completely different mythology from the one in Mists of Avalon (or maybe not, I'm certainly no expert on comparative mythology, though that's an intriguing idea which I shall have to research later), the feelings I experienced, as a reader, were much the same for both works. There's the whole religious conflict seeming to take more importance among mortals than the Gods, there are all the political intrigues and plots, the forbidden (and not so forbidden but it feels like they should be forbidden) romances, there's loss and tragedy, the character's lives being destroyed and rebuilt again - the constant hope.
I guess, given who the characters are, it would be a fairer comparison to the works of Christian Jacq, who also weaves historical fact with myth, and those two with storytelling.
But T.L. Morganfield, is a much more skilled storyteller than Jacq, so we're back to Zimmer Bradley...
Comparisons aside, Morganfield is an author that managed to deeply impress me (no small feat, I'm notoriously stingy with my ratings), she managed to introduce me to a whole new culture (as I said, I'm very uninformed about the subject matter) without a single instance of info-dump, and yet I never felt lost in the story. And the plot is immensely addictive, as I mentioned above, I read this in one sitting.
I think the book may suffer, unjustly, because of the themes it approaches, though they were a vital inclusion when discussing the time period. But I hope it will manage to rise above that, because this showed some extremely skilful writing, worthy of being noticed and praised.
That being said, I can't wait for the sequel!
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