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badbadwolf's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, War, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
steph_sosa's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
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
There are books that hit, and then there are books that HITTTT. This book in particular smacked me in my face when I wasn’t looking, and I totally wasn’t prepared for it.
I just finished it and I’m honestly having a hard time organizing my thoughts, so forgive me for the mess this is about to be.
Most important thing to note: if you aren’t into a lot, and I mean a lot, of fight scenes, then you might struggle to read this book. It is very action heavy, and though some might love it, others might not.
Tau, a commoner, experiences massive trials and tribulations from start to finish as both a political battle and a war rage on. This story is about violence and revenge, and it easily perfects those two ideas within the plot. I feel like I’m ready to go to war after listening to the audiobook. I feel like I could battle a whole army and win (I would die within the first ten seconds let’s be for real).
The magic system, which I won’t go into detail over, was very well done. Evan Winter did not want to skip anything, and though I had questions about what the hell was going on, he came in with the answers at one point or another. The most important thing was that it felt original, which is always a sight for sore eyes when reading new books nowadays.
Tau’s character felt real, and through my listening to the audiobook I felt as if his emotions were mine own. Writing wise I found the book never sounded over-convulsed, yet kept that higher fantasy style of setting and story. There were a lot of topics brought up in conversation that leaned into oppression and high arch’s, etc etc, but revenge was the main plot of the story. I found this fine personally because the story was focused on Tau and his life, and though these topics were important and had effect on Tau, he was overall focused on revenge for his father. Hopefully in the second book these topics are discussed more in detail, and I would love to see other characters delve into these as well, but for now I thought it was okay.
Tau’s approach to his training and his wild efforts to overcome every trial and tribulation in his path adds to the story, building Tau up from a commoner to a blood thirsty wacko in a satisfying way. The revenge story line was done more than well, and I enjoyed going through Tau’s rise to his end of book peak-self.
I will say that at times Zuri, the female love interest, felt more like a insert as an excuse to further Tau’s story and provide information about the magic system more then be a love interest and actual person. BUT, I still enjoyed her character and thought she was more then well written, and had depth to her own story when given the chance to show it.
The abundance of side characters also added a sense of realism to the world-building, and it kept the events from feeling too centered on Tau and his own story. Though we never get background info into the other characters besides tidbits here and there, their personalities felt splayed out in a nice way that kept them feeling real.
I am interested to see where the second book leads!!
I just finished it and I’m honestly having a hard time organizing my thoughts, so forgive me for the mess this is about to be.
Most important thing to note: if you aren’t into a lot, and I mean a lot, of fight scenes, then you might struggle to read this book. It is very action heavy, and though some might love it, others might not.
Tau, a commoner, experiences massive trials and tribulations from start to finish as both a political battle and a war rage on. This story is about violence and revenge, and it easily perfects those two ideas within the plot. I feel like I’m ready to go to war after listening to the audiobook. I feel like I could battle a whole army and win (I would die within the first ten seconds let’s be for real).
The magic system, which I won’t go into detail over, was very well done. Evan Winter did not want to skip anything, and though I had questions about what the hell was going on, he came in with the answers at one point or another. The most important thing was that it felt original, which is always a sight for sore eyes when reading new books nowadays.
Tau’s character felt real, and through my listening to the audiobook I felt as if his emotions were mine own. Writing wise I found the book never sounded over-convulsed, yet kept that higher fantasy style of setting and story. There were a lot of topics brought up in conversation that leaned into oppression and high arch’s, etc etc, but revenge was the main plot of the story. I found this fine personally because the story was focused on Tau and his life, and though these topics were important and had effect on Tau, he was overall focused on revenge for his father. Hopefully in the second book these topics are discussed more in detail, and I would love to see other characters delve into these as well, but for now I thought it was okay.
Tau’s approach to his training and his wild efforts to overcome every trial and tribulation in his path adds to the story, building Tau up from a commoner to a blood thirsty wacko in a satisfying way. The revenge story line was done more than well, and I enjoyed going through Tau’s rise to his end of book peak-self.
I will say that at times Zuri, the female love interest, felt more like a insert as an excuse to further Tau’s story and provide information about the magic system more then be a love interest and actual person. BUT, I still enjoyed her character and thought she was more then well written, and had depth to her own story when given the chance to show it.
The abundance of side characters also added a sense of realism to the world-building, and it kept the events from feeling too centered on Tau and his own story. Though we never get background info into the other characters besides tidbits here and there, their personalities felt splayed out in a nice way that kept them feeling real.
I am interested to see where the second book leads!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, and War
missmali's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual content
litagentsaritza's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-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
5.0
I was not ready. This is truly a masterful story with an ending I could not have guessed when while knowing how it was likely to end. I am a mess and will need some time to recover.
“Where we fight! The world burns!”
“Where we fight! The world burns!”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, and War
wsteen's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
tense
fast-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, and War
Minor: Rape and Torture
tsuharesu's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
At first I didn't agree with the writing style, but the pace and the story got me going. By the end of it, I was entranced by the story, by Tau's story, by everything happening in Xiddeea. What a magnificent book! If you like fantasy books and want to read something rooted in Africanisms, go for it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, and War
Minor: Rape
rheagoveas's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, and War
kirstym25's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-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? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Colonisation, and War
sierrah_2101's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I have no words for how stunningly good this book was. Where do I begin?
Evan Winter's writing is gripping and real, the characters were all so pristinely human despite this being in a fantasy world. In a refreshing setting - based on Brozen Age Africa - and with a rare (at least nowadays) focus on pure revenge, The Rage of Dragons is an absolute epic. Not only is Winter's characterization haunting and gorgeous, but the social and political commentary and intrigue are just as frustrating in all the right ways. At first, most of the views Winter presents about war, power, class, and peace may seem simple, but they were stuck incredibly deep in my skin and Winter's writing allows these ideas to seep into every word of his work. My perspective has been totally changed and humbled and opened within 523 pages.
I want to say more, but frankly, I'm at a loss. Winter is simply a paramount writer, and after reading this I immediately went to put the second book on hold at the library, if that's any proof of just how much of a grip this book had on my psyche.
Also dragons? Did I mention dragons? God, I love dragons.
Please read this book.
Evan Winter's writing is gripping and real, the characters were all so pristinely human despite this being in a fantasy world. In a refreshing setting - based on Brozen Age Africa - and with a rare (at least nowadays) focus on pure revenge, The Rage of Dragons is an absolute epic. Not only is Winter's characterization haunting and gorgeous, but the social and political commentary and intrigue are just as frustrating in all the right ways. At first, most of the views Winter presents about war, power, class, and peace may seem simple, but they were stuck incredibly deep in my skin and Winter's writing allows these ideas to seep into every word of his work. My perspective has been totally changed and humbled and opened within 523 pages.
I want to say more, but frankly, I'm at a loss. Winter is simply a paramount writer, and after reading this I immediately went to put the second book on hold at the library, if that's any proof of just how much of a grip this book had on my psyche.
Also dragons? Did I mention dragons? God, I love dragons.
Please read this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, War, and Classism
Moderate: Child death, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
forget_full's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, and War
Moderate: Rape