squidsuit's review against another edition
5.0
Great stuff! Hurley really stepped up her game on this one. Great worldbuilding. Intriguing plot with secrets abound. Dark without being overly grim. Sometimes a few too many POVs that made it a little harder to get attached to some of the characters, but overall well done. I'm sure reading more of the series will help flesh out some of the characters that were given a little less attention.
kiiouex's review against another edition
2.0
It is a 600 page brick, part one of a fantasy saga, and does not attempt to tie up any of it's plot threads at this book's conclusion.
I didn't like any of the characters.
uhhgggg it's hard to review because I made it through the whole thing and there are some good ideas in here, the general plot and worldbuilding aren't bad, but I can't recommend it because it's such a drag.
There's, maybe eight viewpoint characters by the end? None of them are good people, and worse, none of them are interesting people. They all have the same detached, pragmatic sort of values which gives them all identical Protagonist mannerisms (except the Battered Husband who is very uncomfortable in a different way). None of them are sympathetic, which means I didn't care if they lived or died, which means the book failed.
There's a ton of gore and death which didn't matter because I didn't care. Swathes of named, minor characters wiped out - don't care! A perky, plucky youngster is introduced - assume he'll be dead by the chapter's end! A character falls off a cliff, and you finally feel a twinge of interest? The book changes PoV, throwing away whatever momentum it managed to build up to burden you with another horrible person. And - I am not making this up - when you eventually get back to the character who fell off the cliff, not only did they survive (it's not a spoiler if it's unsurprising), their next chapter ends with them falling into an icy lake. How could I possibly give a shit about any element in this gauntlet of misery?
And there are little bits that do work here and there, the idea of people being replaced with their 'shadow selves' from the alternate universe is great, some of the action reads well, I like the terrible hostile flora of their world. But oh it is not worth getting through the thinks-its-clever-yet-also-bland dialogue to get there.
That's without touching on any of the queer stuff because ??? I don't know how to feel about any of it except Uncomfortable. Poly and generally assumed bisexuality, multiple genders in all the fantasy societies, sure. Crude forms of sexism, but gender flipped? Uh. The vague implication that all these poly people are also incestuous? Er. Having a nonbinary character - great. Revealling that they're nonbinary because their body unwillingly and violently changes it's biological sex every now and then? No! Why!? I'm sure I picked this book up because it was on queer lists, and if that's the boat you're in, don't.
anyway I finished it because I don't DNF books I've physically bought, but that is the only reason why. uhg.
I didn't like any of the characters.
uhhgggg it's hard to review because I made it through the whole thing and there are some good ideas in here, the general plot and worldbuilding aren't bad, but I can't recommend it because it's such a drag.
There's, maybe eight viewpoint characters by the end? None of them are good people, and worse, none of them are interesting people. They all have the same detached, pragmatic sort of values which gives them all identical Protagonist mannerisms (except the Battered Husband who is very uncomfortable in a different way). None of them are sympathetic, which means I didn't care if they lived or died, which means the book failed.
There's a ton of gore and death which didn't matter because I didn't care. Swathes of named, minor characters wiped out - don't care! A perky, plucky youngster is introduced - assume he'll be dead by the chapter's end! A character falls off a cliff, and you finally feel a twinge of interest? The book changes PoV, throwing away whatever momentum it managed to build up to burden you with another horrible person. And - I am not making this up - when you eventually get back to the character who fell off the cliff, not only did they survive (it's not a spoiler if it's unsurprising), their next chapter ends with them falling into an icy lake. How could I possibly give a shit about any element in this gauntlet of misery?
And there are little bits that do work here and there, the idea of people being replaced with their 'shadow selves' from the alternate universe is great, some of the action reads well, I like the terrible hostile flora of their world. But oh it is not worth getting through the thinks-its-clever-yet-also-bland dialogue to get there.
That's without touching on any of the queer stuff because ??? I don't know how to feel about any of it except Uncomfortable. Poly and generally assumed bisexuality, multiple genders in all the fantasy societies, sure. Crude forms of sexism, but gender flipped? Uh. The vague implication that all these poly people are also incestuous? Er. Having a nonbinary character - great. Revealling that they're nonbinary because their body unwillingly and violently changes it's biological sex every now and then? No! Why!? I'm sure I picked this book up because it was on queer lists, and if that's the boat you're in, don't.
anyway I finished it because I don't DNF books I've physically bought, but that is the only reason why. uhg.
molly29's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
ljrinaldi's review against another edition
2.0
Wretched read
This gets two stars for a good effort and good ideas. They just were so long and jumbled that near the end I didn't care anymore.
Will not read the sequel
Liked the sentient trees and bears and dogs as beast of burden. Like the strong women.
This gets two stars for a good effort and good ideas. They just were so long and jumbled that near the end I didn't care anymore.
Will not read the sequel
Liked the sentient trees and bears and dogs as beast of burden. Like the strong women.
robynashbaugh's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
jimsfekas's review against another edition
2.0
I really wanted to like this book. I've very much enjoyed the author's non-fiction writing, including her Hugo-winning essay from 2013. Sadly, I gave up on the book halfway through out of sheer frustration with two of the core characters. First, there was the genocidal (or ethnic cleansing) general. I don't really care for ethnic cleansing in a main character, but the bigger problem was that it was written so casually that you could almost miss that several thousand people have been killed. There's literally no emotional weight to it.
Second, I got tired of reading about the character whose entire plot is driven by the fact that she's an idiot who makes stupid decisions. I gave up when she made yet one more stupid decision and accidentally got an innocent little girl killed. If I'd been reading a paper book, I would have thrown it away. As it was, I decided to move on to something less annoying.
I'm still deciding whether to pick it up again. Maybe it gets better in the second half and I'll change the rating. I'm not optimistic, though.
Second, I got tired of reading about the character whose entire plot is driven by the fact that she's an idiot who makes stupid decisions. I gave up when she made yet one more stupid decision and accidentally got an innocent little girl killed. If I'd been reading a paper book, I would have thrown it away. As it was, I decided to move on to something less annoying.
I'm still deciding whether to pick it up again. Maybe it gets better in the second half and I'll change the rating. I'm not optimistic, though.
rachelini's review against another edition
3.0
The concept was great, the writing was great, but I didn't love all of the story. Just didn't click for me. Partly I think it was too brutal, with not enough acknowledgement of the violence by the characters. Also the end felt like someone chopped the book after a random sentence. I will definitely read something else by this author, though.
abhrasach's review against another edition
5.0
Clearly, I enjoyed this book. You, too, might enjoy it if you like complex epic plotting, killer plants, ass-kicking people of unexpected genders, giant cats, interdimensional blood magic, and a distinct lack of black-and-white answers. Also, lots of people die, so be prepared. Highly readable, and likely to stand up well to rereading....oh, say, maybe when the sequel arrives?
milili's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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
majkia's review against another edition
An ambitious book, taking on lots of societal assumptions. Complex characters, most of whom are surviving as best they can, and not always doing the right thing as a result. The magical system is not clearly defined so the reader is left to feel her way through the book attempting to make sense of things. And not all of it ever manages to make sense.
It reminded me of Mieville's [The City & the City] in many ways, as worlds collide and bleed through into each other
It reminded me of Mieville's [The City & the City] in many ways, as worlds collide and bleed through into each other