emiann2023's review against another edition
5.0
Anything to do with the Garth Nix's Abhorsen series is on my auto-buy list. But then I realized he'd written other works that were entirely different, and I wanted to try them out.
I an so glad that I picked this one. It is entirely and completely different from his usual style, but I adored it just as much. I am actually quite sad that it's a standalone. I'd love a prequel with Haddad or even a look into the future of the Empire, maybe even Khem's.
Bits of this were technical and confusing, but it never got to be overwhelming or annoying and in many places I enjoyed the wry humor.
I an so glad that I picked this one. It is entirely and completely different from his usual style, but I adored it just as much. I am actually quite sad that it's a standalone. I'd love a prequel with Haddad or even a look into the future of the Empire, maybe even Khem's.
Bits of this were technical and confusing, but it never got to be overwhelming or annoying and in many places I enjoyed the wry humor.
composed's review against another edition
3.0
The author's fantasy works were highly recommended by multiple people, but this was the first one digitally available from the library that wasn't in the middle of a series. I enjoyed the elements that I enjoyed quite a bit. I did drift away a couple times and have to re-read. Not the most character-driven, but the world was enjoyable. Cool political system, even though it would totally fall apart with all those untested narcissists vying for control! Worth a read if you want a different and not at all taxing take on space politics.
lyrrael's review against another edition
4.0
Wow. This one was unique.
Nowhere near as powerful as some of Nix's earlier works (The Abhorsen Trilogy, Shade's Children), but Nix has always been the epitome of the epic world builder for me. He creates an amazing, unique world, and manages to fit some incredibly unique characters within it who have compelling story lines, which always appeals. I've not been as much a fan of the Keys to the Kingdom series, which always felt like they were aimed at younger readers, but I remain highly respectful of him.
The missing star represents the fact that I just didn't like this as much as some of those previous books. It does not mean it wasn't a good book. Very cool.
Nowhere near as powerful as some of Nix's earlier works (The Abhorsen Trilogy, Shade's Children), but Nix has always been the epitome of the epic world builder for me. He creates an amazing, unique world, and manages to fit some incredibly unique characters within it who have compelling story lines, which always appeals. I've not been as much a fan of the Keys to the Kingdom series, which always felt like they were aimed at younger readers, but I remain highly respectful of him.
The missing star represents the fact that I just didn't like this as much as some of those previous books. It does not mean it wasn't a good book. Very cool.
zanosgood's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
madtapa's review against another edition
3.0
3.25/5
Somehow fluffier than I was expecting. I guess I've read too much stuff lately that took similar starting points - where you're watching a character be smart and clever and work their way through the world - that ultimately had a darker spin than this. (Red Rising and The Poppy War come to mind.) So my mind thought it knew what kind of book this was and it wasn't exactly that. Which is good and fine, but meant that it didn't pack as much of a punch for me as it might have otherwise.
So think a bit more "coming of age" but also getting to watch someone be clever (which I pretty much always enjoy), and less Hunger Games-y than it sounds. I'd recommend this to younger readers - pre-teen, perhaps?
Somehow fluffier than I was expecting. I guess I've read too much stuff lately that took similar starting points - where you're watching a character be smart and clever and work their way through the world - that ultimately had a darker spin than this. (Red Rising and The Poppy War come to mind.) So my mind thought it knew what kind of book this was and it wasn't exactly that. Which is good and fine, but meant that it didn't pack as much of a punch for me as it might have otherwise.
So think a bit more "coming of age" but also getting to watch someone be clever (which I pretty much always enjoy), and less Hunger Games-y than it sounds. I'd recommend this to younger readers - pre-teen, perhaps?
katleap's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 Stars
Garth Nix is kinda of a go to author for me. I adore his Aborsen series, [b:Sabriel|518848|Sabriel (Abhorsen, #1)|Garth Nix|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1293655399s/518848.jpg|3312237] is my favorite. I don't do a lot of Scifi. there is just too much information throw way too fast and unclear, and I get really sick of having to wade through it. This book had be captivated from the first page. Everything was clearly explained in a logical manner, the info dump at the beginning wasn't huge and I totally bonded to Khemri right away.
Khemri is one of a million princes in the empire. He has been raised to believe that he is the top of the food chain and is about to get a very rude awaking. Thrust into the middle of a very dangerous game with very deadly consequences, he has to grow up fast, change the way he thinks and his views of the world around him and learn to think on his feet.
Sometimes idiot/rude/naive characters take to too long to change/figure it out and I don't care if they survive or get sawed in half with a rusty blade. Khemri gave me hope from the beginning and didn't disappoint. I enjoyed this book a lot and if another story in this universe appeared I'd read it.
Garth Nix is kinda of a go to author for me. I adore his Aborsen series, [b:Sabriel|518848|Sabriel (Abhorsen, #1)|Garth Nix|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1293655399s/518848.jpg|3312237] is my favorite. I don't do a lot of Scifi. there is just too much information throw way too fast and unclear, and I get really sick of having to wade through it. This book had be captivated from the first page. Everything was clearly explained in a logical manner, the info dump at the beginning wasn't huge and I totally bonded to Khemri right away.
Khemri is one of a million princes in the empire. He has been raised to believe that he is the top of the food chain and is about to get a very rude awaking. Thrust into the middle of a very dangerous game with very deadly consequences, he has to grow up fast, change the way he thinks and his views of the world around him and learn to think on his feet.
Sometimes idiot/rude/naive characters take to too long to change/figure it out and I don't care if they survive or get sawed in half with a rusty blade. Khemri gave me hope from the beginning and didn't disappoint. I enjoyed this book a lot and if another story in this universe appeared I'd read it.
aamccartan's review against another edition
2.0
Too much focus on tech and worldbuilding, and way not enough on characters. It took until the last 50-100 pages for me to feel even remotely interested in Khemri, and even then, the interesting character moments were too far and few between. There were some true Nix moments, but this was low for him. I wanted a lot more on Khemri and Raine, but instead, too much got lost in his investment in making Princes "not human." He was so successful in making them "not human" that I didn't care about them at all.
thymeslyp's review against another edition
4.5
Garth Nix has the such a fantastic range. . This sci fi book should have been a series but Is completely fascinating.
kizza's review against another edition
4.0
I devoured this in a matter of days and I have to say I enjoyed it. Khemri starts off as an entitled jerkass who has been given power, position, and privilege by the Empire he lives in but as the story continues he begins to question his place within that Empire. This isn't book where one man sets out to save the galaxy but the lives and deaths of one man who is a cog in a very big machine. Khemri himself could have been insufferable but the characters lamentations as he recalls his own stupidity and general likability stop him from becoming too annoying.
The world Khemri is a fascinating sort of sci-fi dystopia. The Imperial Mind controls everything and examples of censorship, misinformation and pro-Imperial bias litter the novel but are never really examined closely. They're called out, sure, but the character never seems to dwell too much on it and so Khemri's ideological transformation felt a little hollow.
The book does drag in the middle and I did at one point find myself wondering why I was continuing to read. The romance also happens too quickly, it was the driving force behind Kemri's later actions and it really should have been more developed. The novel goes from 'I don't know what love is and have never really seen an ongoing sexual relationship between two equal people' to 'we had sex and now I am totally in love forever' in a matter of PAGES. It's like the writer couldn't think of any other way to get Khemri to sympathise with the non-Imperials so we got a fairly shallow romance. Weren't the ethical and moral implication of the Empires actions enough?
The moral and ethical dilemmas raised by the way the Empire operates weren't ever even really explored to the extent I was both wanting and expecting. Guys, the Empire mind-programs people to what boils down to living dolls in training programs. Can we at least TALK about that?
I did enjoy this and do hope Garth Nix decides to write more books in this universe as there's still so much potential left.
The world Khemri is a fascinating sort of sci-fi dystopia. The Imperial Mind controls everything and examples of censorship, misinformation and pro-Imperial bias litter the novel but are never really examined closely. They're called out, sure, but the character never seems to dwell too much on it and so Khemri's ideological transformation felt a little hollow.
The book does drag in the middle and I did at one point find myself wondering why I was continuing to read. The romance also happens too quickly, it was the driving force behind Kemri's later actions and it really should have been more developed. The novel goes from 'I don't know what love is and have never really seen an ongoing sexual relationship between two equal people' to 'we had sex and now I am totally in love forever' in a matter of PAGES. It's like the writer couldn't think of any other way to get Khemri to sympathise with the non-Imperials so we got a fairly shallow romance. Weren't the ethical and moral implication of the Empires actions enough?
The moral and ethical dilemmas raised by the way the Empire operates weren't ever even really explored to the extent I was both wanting and expecting. Guys, the Empire mind-programs people to what boils down to living dolls in training programs. Can we at least TALK about that?
I did enjoy this and do hope Garth Nix decides to write more books in this universe as there's still so much potential left.