Reviews with content warning for Gaslighting - Wächter der Drachen

This book was mostly setup for these chronicles and was slow paced but still very enjoyable. Hobbs character work is of top quality as always and the slow build of this journey type story led to a bit of a thrilling cliffhanger. The only qualm I had with this first book of the series is the focus on the romantic relationships throughout. Two of the protagonists flits between attraction for one character to the other which I just did not care about. I wanted to experience more world building and plot rather than romantic interests. Having said that, with one of the protagonists written this way (a teenager), Hobb created a realistic, fickle teen which I could also appreciate.
There were a couple of scenes that were difficult to read at times (see trigger warnings)

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gracecrandall's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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ilereads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

3.5 stelline. Ormai qualsiasi cosa che scriva Robin Hobb è arte per me ma questo è stato sicuramente il libro che ho preferito meno tra i suoi, nonostante mi sia piaciuto comunque molto. Il principale difetto è che si tratta di un libro molto introduttivo in cui non succede molto, anzi si interrompe proprio quando la trama inizia a prendere forma. Robin Hobb si conferma comunque imbattibile nella creazione dei personaggi sia buoni che cattivi. Per quanto Hest sia una persona orribile e il ritratto perfetto del narcisista manipolatore, è un personaggio molto interessante e costruito alla perfezione, così come Alise, con cui si riesce ad empatizzare fin da subito. Ho apprezzato anche come sta gestendo la questione dei draghi e i loro custodi, anche se ho la sensazione che finirà tutto in tragedia. Tornare a Borgomago e rivedere i vecchi personaggi poi è stato molto emozionante.
P.S. Fitz spero ti stia godendo la tua vita di campagna ma manchi.

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mustnotblink's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Dragonkeeper feels very much like it’s missing half of its content. While the book does a great job introducing us to the world and its people, the plot seems to drag. The main characters have all come together by the end, but the end of the book feels arbitrarily picked - not plotted.

I normally do not have a problem reading story lines featuring abusive and manipulative men, but

Spoiler

I absolutely despise Hest.

He rubbed me so wrong that I was initially unsure if I wanted to read the next book. Ultimately I decided to continue the series because the setting is brilliant and I do want to see how the characters end up.

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tea_tamai's review against another edition

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adventurous slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Edit:
4*
On a reread, I still enjoyed the book as a continuation of the Elderling universe and a build up for this series, but I think it can't compare with the joy I got from (re)reading Fitz' stories and the liveship trader series.

4.5*
I am glad to continue in Hobbs' Realm of Elderlings Saga. I was hesitant at first due to the new cast of main characters, but I have to say I enjoyed it none the less. The small cameos of beloved characters from the older books made me really happy! Though it is sometimes slow and more of a build up to the next part of the series, I still found it really captivating.

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