talle's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Excrement, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Vomit, War, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Body horror, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Medical content, Murder, Rape, Gore, Incest, Sexism, Misogyny, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
julierl's review
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
The ending itself - actually going to the Core - is quite fun and I liked the conclusion. But sadly books 2 to 5 have not lived up to the premise of the first one. There are some very interesting and cool female characters in this series, but also they all have to be pregnant to set up sequels. If these were 3 books, snappier and with fewer characters - I did not read Briar's Gold so focusing heavily on one side-character from that was not very interesting to me - they would have been better. I don't know why fantasy can't just be edited down into great story and character building.
There are some great themes, characters and plots in this series, I just wish it didn't try so hard to be Game of Thrones with all the politics, and instead narrowed the plot down to the core characters and events. I really wanted to like this, but it was difficult to finish the series. My advice if you're like me, just skip to the second half of the book and read the parts in the core.
Spoiler
I get that the mind demon was torturing Abban, but does it have to be so long and graphic? It is simultaneously horrible and boring to read.There are some great themes, characters and plots in this series, I just wish it didn't try so hard to be Game of Thrones with all the politics, and instead narrowed the plot down to the core characters and events. I really wanted to like this, but it was difficult to finish the series. My advice if you're like me, just skip to the second half of the book and read the parts in the core.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture and Rape
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