tpalmi's review
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
shilo1364's review
5.0
This is one of McKillip's earlier novels, and one of her consistently darker ones - I especially love the swirling plot twists in the final few pages that are all McKillip. The characters are passionate and driven, and the motives that drive them and hidden sources of their power are revealed slowly throughout the book, layers peeling back revealing deeper layers. Even as you read the same story from the perspectives of several characters, there are others whose thoughts and motives are not revealed at all - only glimpses caught here and there, suspicions and glimmers, and in the end the characters whose eyes the reader sees - who the reader must trust - are left blinking and wondering. McKillip is the only author I have found to do this consistently well; and the beauty and sheer breathtaking swirl of building tension and anxiety and fear that drag you relentlessly through her novels throw you suddenly into a swirling maelstrom in the final pages, where realities shift and nothing is as it seemed. The best thing about her novels is that, no matter how many times I read them, they are new every time. The details, and passions, and tensions, and finely spun net of story grab you while you read, and then leave you at the end wondering what happened - and feeling the details slipping away. Fantasy, and magic, at its finest.
authrcatlabadie's review
4.0
I'm not sure how to feel about this book. I enjoyed it, but it was very vague. What was good was really good, and it gave me quite a lot of Dark Souls vibes...but it's a bit misty, truth be told.
johnyaya's review
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
sophiahelix's review
4.0
People for whom this is their first McKillip may be surprised to hear that it's actually one of the clearest and most-readable of her books -- I had a much better sense of place, time, and character than I often do (despite the POV changes and jumps through time and space, haha). I also really liked most of the characters more than usual, and felt that they had more purpose and growth than opaque fantasy archetypes. Conclusion doesn't make much sense, of course, since it's McKillip and she loves her abstract prettiness, but it's in smaller proportion here. This may sound like I'm damning the book with faint praise, but since I always want to love McKillip's books more than I end up doing, and this is the first one of hers I didn't have to reread the first five pages over again once I understood what the heck was happening, I really feel like she balanced the elements very well in this book.
singinglight's review
3.0
I liked this one the more I kept reading, but in the end I felt that the balance of dreaminess to reality was tipped a little too far in the dreaminess direction. Still, the imagery is very bright and vivid. [Feb. 2011]
More...