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jnan333's review
dark
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
jems_'s review against another edition
4.0
I went into this book blind and I honestly didn’t expect to like it as much as I did. I‘m usually somewhat picky and a lot of things can throw me off of books rather quickly, but that didn’t seem to be the case here. Sure, some things still earned a frown or a sigh, but not to the degree that it would lessen my enjoyment of this too much.
+ I found the characters interesting, though I didn’t develop any big connections to any of them (I love Spassov though, but that’s my classic me-liking-the-side-character-that-doesn’t-even-appear-that-much-thing)
+ this book had me a little confused at times. That sounds like a negative, but it isn’t, because it felt more like the characters, their motives, the politics etc. just made it purposefully harder to tell who to trust and how everything was connected and I quite enjoyed it
+ it had more than enough plot to keep me engaged, didn’t feel slow or dragging at all in my opinion
+ English is my second language, but for a fantasy book with this much terminology and names, I think it was still fairly comfortable to read
+ did I mention Spassov yet?
+ Alice.
- I found the „relationship“ between Kasia and Alexei to be a bit lacking. I know that’s not at all the main point of this book, but it still bothered me a little. This is the part I‘m usually the most picky about in books
- some other scenes also earned an eye-roll from me but it was minor
- while I did say I found the characters interesting, I also did say I didn’t develop any big connections to any of them, which can make it hard to root for them overall if you don’t care all that much
• a neutral point because, as a German, I‘m not sure how I feel about Kvengard with their clear German inspiration and lesser development compared to other regions. You can bet I did a double take when I read „Guten Tag“ in an English book. The written German accents were sort of funny, though I still felt a bit iffy about the whole thing. I can only assume „Das Internet ist für uns alle Neuland.“ has made it’s rounds by now.
Overall, still an enjoyable read and not something I expected. Will probably continue this in the future!
+ I found the characters interesting, though I didn’t develop any big connections to any of them (I love Spassov though, but that’s my classic me-liking-the-side-character-that-doesn’t-even-appear-that-much-thing)
+ this book had me a little confused at times. That sounds like a negative, but it isn’t, because it felt more like the characters, their motives, the politics etc. just made it purposefully harder to tell who to trust and how everything was connected and I quite enjoyed it
+ it had more than enough plot to keep me engaged, didn’t feel slow or dragging at all in my opinion
+ English is my second language, but for a fantasy book with this much terminology and names, I think it was still fairly comfortable to read
+ did I mention Spassov yet?
+ Alice.
- I found the „relationship“ between Kasia and Alexei to be a bit lacking. I know that’s not at all the main point of this book, but it still bothered me a little. This is the part I‘m usually the most picky about in books
- some other scenes also earned an eye-roll from me but it was minor
- while I did say I found the characters interesting, I also did say I didn’t develop any big connections to any of them, which can make it hard to root for them overall if you don’t care all that much
• a neutral point because, as a German, I‘m not sure how I feel about Kvengard with their clear German inspiration and lesser development compared to other regions. You can bet I did a double take when I read „Guten Tag“ in an English book. The written German accents were sort of funny, though I still felt a bit iffy about the whole thing. I can only assume „Das Internet ist für uns alle Neuland.“ has made it’s rounds by now.
Overall, still an enjoyable read and not something I expected. Will probably continue this in the future!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Death, Incest, Blood, and War
Minor: Miscarriage
ortneram's review
4.0
To be honest, I thought I was going to DNF this book. The beginning has a lot of info dumping and is fairly confusing. Each character has multiple names in which they're referred to, the world building doesn't entirely make sense to me, and I couldn't really understand the magic system at first.
I decided to persevere a little while longer, and by about the 40% mark, the book actually got quite good. The magic started to become more clear, the world started to make more sense (though I still have a hard time being able to visualize the setting which is unusual for me), and the characters rolls got more clarity as well. Based on what I can gather, the world is in the future, but has reverted in certain ways to a more mideaval time in response to the previous war. I don't know, that's one of the elements that's kind of confusing. However, I'm moving forward based on my previously stated assumption.
Anywho, I wasn't sure if I'd continue on with the series, but now I'm more invested in figuring out what happens. I'm grateful that the story and flow picked up when it did. I'm torn between giving a 3.5 or 4 star rating.
I decided to persevere a little while longer, and by about the 40% mark, the book actually got quite good. The magic started to become more clear, the world started to make more sense (though I still have a hard time being able to visualize the setting which is unusual for me), and the characters rolls got more clarity as well. Based on what I can gather, the world is in the future, but has reverted in certain ways to a more mideaval time in response to the previous war. I don't know, that's one of the elements that's kind of confusing. However, I'm moving forward based on my previously stated assumption.
Anywho, I wasn't sure if I'd continue on with the series, but now I'm more invested in figuring out what happens. I'm grateful that the story and flow picked up when it did. I'm torn between giving a 3.5 or 4 star rating.
apostir's review
4.0
I really liked this but can’t see myself reading the other books. I enjoyed the story and the characters—especially the protagonist—were pleasant. The start was a lot of information but it quickly got better, I didn’t find the book overwhelming but at the beginning it seemed that way. The names were something to get used to but that also worked itself out quickly.
oviartt's review
4.0
A different read, quite confused at first but it then gets better towards the end
ingrid_hennig's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-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
iceboundreader's review
3.0
I received a complimentary copy of the book from the author via Voracious Readers Only.
I found this book hard to follow. It felt like it started in the middle of a story and never fully went back to explain things.
The characters relationships almost felt forced except Kasia and Alexei. It all felt rushed and disjointed.
I did think the general idea of the book was a good one just not 100%sure of the execution.
I found this book hard to follow. It felt like it started in the middle of a story and never fully went back to explain things.
The characters relationships almost felt forced except Kasia and Alexei. It all felt rushed and disjointed.
I did think the general idea of the book was a good one just not 100%sure of the execution.
emmaepicreads's review
5.0
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
City of Storms, the first installment in the Nightmarked series by Kat Ross. It is a captivating adventure that drew me into a richly crafted world. I thoroughly enjoyed City of Storms, despite an initial learning curve delving into its intricate world and characters. Once immersed, the plot unfolded seamlessly, keeping me eagerly turning pages. The characters, brilliantly crafted, added depth to the narrative, making each adventure all the more compelling. This book offers a captivating blend of plot and world-building, leaving me excited to explore the upcoming chapters in the series. Highly recommended!
City of Storms, the first installment in the Nightmarked series by Kat Ross. It is a captivating adventure that drew me into a richly crafted world. I thoroughly enjoyed City of Storms, despite an initial learning curve delving into its intricate world and characters. Once immersed, the plot unfolded seamlessly, keeping me eagerly turning pages. The characters, brilliantly crafted, added depth to the narrative, making each adventure all the more compelling. This book offers a captivating blend of plot and world-building, leaving me excited to explore the upcoming chapters in the series. Highly recommended!
brii_brii's review
5.0
I can't express how much I loved this book. I am terrified of the fact that it's a series as I have no clue how this one could be followed up at the same caliber.
I won't lie, I was mighty confused for the first little bit of this book. I couldn't understand what was going on with the levels of ley or all of the levels of priests, or with all of the different locations, but I think the author did an amazing job at wearing it all together so it became so much clearer as the book went on.
The magic system is fantastic. The levels of the ley, the marks (and the marked/unmarked) the void. The lucifers. I feel like this is one of those books I could gush about all day.
This story goes through a great bug handful of different povs, some more prevalent than others, and some that just kind of pop up here and there for a little bit of insight. The chapters are a great length, and gave me the ability to get to know all of the characters (and love all of the characters, probably even those I'm not supposed to) without getting bored of anyone.
All of the threads that are spun come together so beautifully. I couldn't put it down and stayed up way too late for 3 straight nights to get through it.
Honorable mention to Malach and Spassov ♥︎
If you're willing to put in a little bit of effort into understanding this magic system, I can not recommend this book enough.
I won't lie, I was mighty confused for the first little bit of this book. I couldn't understand what was going on with the levels of ley or all of the levels of priests, or with all of the different locations, but I think the author did an amazing job at wearing it all together so it became so much clearer as the book went on.
The magic system is fantastic. The levels of the ley, the marks (and the marked/unmarked) the void. The lucifers. I feel like this is one of those books I could gush about all day.
This story goes through a great bug handful of different povs, some more prevalent than others, and some that just kind of pop up here and there for a little bit of insight. The chapters are a great length, and gave me the ability to get to know all of the characters (and love all of the characters, probably even those I'm not supposed to) without getting bored of anyone.
All of the threads that are spun come together so beautifully. I couldn't put it down and stayed up way too late for 3 straight nights to get through it.
Honorable mention to Malach and Spassov ♥︎
If you're willing to put in a little bit of effort into understanding this magic system, I can not recommend this book enough.