lady_mel's review against another edition
5.0
A true page-turner. Once I started it, I read half of it before I could put it down.
verinvaldez's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I adored all of our POV characters, Allegra, Lex and Stanton were all amazing and felt well rounded. Some great humour in this too and chemistry between our leads, strong themes of loyalty and it was a wonderful surprise that one of our POV characters is trans.
I think the characterisations for some of our side characters, including Dodd, were weaker and it is impossible to see a certain character as anything but purely evil at this point in the story.
Ball draws parallels between the plight of mages/elementals in her story and those of a trans person, there is a great deal of empathy shown by our main characters and that ultimately is what made me love this book.
We get the classic idea of enslaved mages rebelling contrasted by having a gay married pope and trans soldier be perfectly acceptable in the same world, Ball makes it all work together.
There is a slowburn romance in this book as a secondary plot to the issue of the mage rebellions, I think the two characters are great together, but I did get frustrated at them for not getting together sooner than they did. Be assured that they do eventually talk about their feelings though and there are a couple short sex scenes.
I think the characterisations for some of our side characters, including Dodd, were weaker and it is impossible to see a certain character
Spoiler
the GeneralBall draws parallels between the plight of mages/elementals in her story and those of a trans person, there is a great deal of empathy shown by our main characters and that ultimately is what made me love this book.
We get the classic idea of enslaved mages rebelling contrasted by having a gay married pope and trans soldier be perfectly acceptable in the same world, Ball makes it all work together.
There is a slowburn romance in this book as a secondary plot to the issue of the mage rebellions, I think the two characters are great together, but I did get frustrated at them for not getting together sooner than they did. Be assured that they do eventually talk about their feelings though and there are a couple short sex scenes.
The Negatives:
If you are reading this book hoping for a clearly laid out magic system, this is not for you. Ball lays out the basics, but we never learn about the specifics of the powers of mages/elementals or exactly how they do magic.
The book slowed down too much for me about halfway through, but the final act of the story is easily the best part of the book.
The phrase "witch bitch" as a slur seemed somewhat unbelievable to me and I had a hard time taking it seriously.
My final note is that although there is a cliffhanger at the end of the book, I don't think it is as bad as others have said. However if you are invested in the romance and the greater plot of the mage war then you will want to pick up the next book by the end.
The book slowed down too much for me about halfway through, but the final act of the story is easily the best part of the book.
The phrase "witch bitch" as a slur seemed somewhat unbelievable to me and I had a hard time taking it seriously.
My final note is that although there is a cliffhanger at the end of the book, I don't think it is as bad as others have said. However if you are invested in the romance and the greater plot of the mage war then you will want to pick up the next book by the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Sexual content, War, Sexism, Cursing, Violence, and Slavery
Minor: Abortion
scholarly_pigeon's review
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Slavery, and Violence
Moderate: Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and War
Minor: Death of parent, Sexual content, and Sexism
smartflutist661's review
3.5
I vaguely recall Traitor having a significantly higher quality of writing. Still, an interesting story, if a bit unsubtle in its commentary.
saraishelafs's review against another edition
5.0
Exciting story of the conflict between those who enslave and kill mages and those who want to see mages given the rights of normal citizens in a midiaeval society.
triftwizened's review against another edition
3.0
A political-ish drama about the subjugation (and the eventual uprising) of mages. I liked it - albeit the need for some more editing and the fact that I don’t particularly care for political dramas. I’ll be interested to see how this series continues.
snazel's review against another edition
3.0
Allegra's entire country is a powder keg. This is particularly problematic because she can summon fire.
This book is really interested in the social necessity and the social cost of revolution, and it does it well. WHAT HAPPENS NEXT.
This book is really interested in the social necessity and the social cost of revolution, and it does it well. WHAT HAPPENS NEXT.
lorus's review
5.0
The Demons We See is a well-crafted, thoroughly entertaining fantasy political drama. While the first few chapters are enjoyable, the book really sucked me in once I got past the start. The characters are the heart of the novel, which is also filled with politics, several fighting scenes, and the occasional (rather intriguing) tangent about food or clothing.
Recommended for: People who love character-driven fantasy with humor, politics, romance, and lovable characters that try and improve their world
Not recommended for: People who need an action-packed plot or dark, amoral protagonists or who hate cliff-hanger endings
Plot: The Demons We See is set in a world where mages are feared, oppressed, and starting to revolt. Allegra, the main character, is a mage and noble woman who wants to alleviate the conditions of other mages and prevent full -scale war from breaking out when she gets more involved than she was planning on. The plot is fast-paced, but is light on the action, with character development taking precedence.
Characters: Allegra is a well-developed and complex character. I fell in love with her snarky attitude pretty quickly, but then you get to see underneath that exterior to her very justified rage at how she and her fellow mages are treated and she utilizes that anger to serve her ends very well. Allegra is also allowed to be scared and sad sometimes, and she’s a very easy character to sympathize with and root for. She’s clever and witty and means well, even if she doesn’t always succeed.
Rainier is an experienced guard captain who cares about his crew and the people under his charge. Unlike Allegra, his religious beliefs are very important to him, though he isn’t too conservative. It took me a while to warm up to Lex and Dodd’s antics, but by the end of the book they were up there with other great buddy duos, such as Merry and Pippin and Sergeant Colon and Nobby. I would have loved to have seen more of Rahna or Seraphina to get a bit of a different perspective, but hopefully they will get their turn in the spotlight in one of the sequels.
There’s a romance and I loved it, despite being really picky when it comes to romances. It moves neither too fast nor too slow, they occasionally argue, but it’s generally reasonable and they are mature about it, the one thing that Allegra holds back from him makes total sense, and you really just wish the best for them and their relationship. They are a great team and truly care about each other.
World-building: The world-building is great and I enjoyed it, despite not-quite-Europe fantasy settings not being my favorite. There are no info-dumps and little tidbits about the world are revealed as you read along. I would like to know more about how magic develops and the differences between regular mages (can they only enchant things?) and elementals, but I suspect that is coming in the sequels.
Writing style: The writing is light and while the prose is solid, it takes a back seat to the characters and plot. The dialogue is the strongest aspect of the writing and really brings the characters and their relationships to life.
This is my first Krista D. Ball book and one of the major reasons that I picked up The Demons We See, besides its irresistibly gorgeous cover, was that it sparked my interest as a Dragon Age fan, because of how it takes a different look at the oppression of mages. Ball did indeed handle this topic in a way that was far more satisfying to me. There are a lot of complicated moral questions that are posed with no simple answers, but the book doesn’t let us forget that some things (like slavery) are just flat out wrong.
Overall, this was a great pick and I’m excitedly waiting for the release of the second book.
Recommended for: People who love character-driven fantasy with humor, politics, romance, and lovable characters that try and improve their world
Not recommended for: People who need an action-packed plot or dark, amoral protagonists or who hate cliff-hanger endings
Plot: The Demons We See is set in a world where mages are feared, oppressed, and starting to revolt. Allegra, the main character, is a mage and noble woman who wants to alleviate the conditions of other mages and prevent full -scale war from breaking out when she gets more involved than she was planning on. The plot is fast-paced, but is light on the action, with character development taking precedence.
Characters: Allegra is a well-developed and complex character. I fell in love with her snarky attitude pretty quickly, but then you get to see underneath that exterior to her very justified rage at how she and her fellow mages are treated and she utilizes that anger to serve her ends very well. Allegra is also allowed to be scared and sad sometimes, and she’s a very easy character to sympathize with and root for. She’s clever and witty and means well, even if she doesn’t always succeed.
Rainier is an experienced guard captain who cares about his crew and the people under his charge. Unlike Allegra, his religious beliefs are very important to him, though he isn’t too conservative. It took me a while to warm up to Lex and Dodd’s antics, but by the end of the book they were up there with other great buddy duos, such as Merry and Pippin and Sergeant Colon and Nobby. I would have loved to have seen more of Rahna or Seraphina to get a bit of a different perspective, but hopefully they will get their turn in the spotlight in one of the sequels.
There’s a romance and I loved it, despite being really picky when it comes to romances. It moves neither too fast nor too slow, they occasionally argue, but it’s generally reasonable and they are mature about it, the one thing that Allegra holds back from him makes total sense, and you really just wish the best for them and their relationship. They are a great team and truly care about each other.
World-building: The world-building is great and I enjoyed it, despite not-quite-Europe fantasy settings not being my favorite. There are no info-dumps and little tidbits about the world are revealed as you read along. I would like to know more about how magic develops and the differences between regular mages (can they only enchant things?) and elementals, but I suspect that is coming in the sequels.
Writing style: The writing is light and while the prose is solid, it takes a back seat to the characters and plot. The dialogue is the strongest aspect of the writing and really brings the characters and their relationships to life.
This is my first Krista D. Ball book and one of the major reasons that I picked up The Demons We See, besides its irresistibly gorgeous cover, was that it sparked my interest as a Dragon Age fan, because of how it takes a different look at the oppression of mages. Ball did indeed handle this topic in a way that was far more satisfying to me. There are a lot of complicated moral questions that are posed with no simple answers, but the book doesn’t let us forget that some things (like slavery) are just flat out wrong.
Overall, this was a great pick and I’m excitedly waiting for the release of the second book.