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bookishcharlotte's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
jaycube26's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
ultramarine316's review against another edition
5.0
Loved it! This is just the kind of BOFN (Big Ol Fantasy Novel) I've always needed in my life.
It's got some of the best things about Game of Thrones: a big cast of characters who all have there own morality, ideology, motivations, and ever shifting loyalties, it has great world building, and it introduces some really cool and intriguing fantasy elements. And as an added bonus, I am assured that the series is complete, at three books!
The book also takes place in a world where gender equality is just a thing and always has been, and everyone seems to assume people are bi until stated otherwise. And it is done so well! There aren't any characters giving speeches about gender equality; it's simply baked into the world building. Like, throughout the book, I kept thinking "another writer would have had that guy call that female character a bitch or a whore, just as a matter of course without thinking about it"...but this author actually, like...thought about it...and decided not to be a lazy hack.
Not that things are sunshine and bunnies in this fantasy world; like I said, there's characters with all different levels of moral deficiency and there's plenty of conflict and strife...the author just exercised the freedom that comes with writing fantasy to cut out the boring shit that people expect. My standards have been raised!
If I had one quibble, it's that the writing style took a little getting used to. It was kind of too chatty; a bit reminiscent of a Buzzfeed listicle. A lot of "And then ____ did ____, because of course he did!" and stuff like that. Like, I don't want my fantasy to be written in Sindarin or anything, but going too far in the opposite direction can be distracting too. I feel like the author was going for an informal, modern voice that wouldn't slow readers down but overshot it and went a bit into Buffy-speak? But like I said, a small quibble and totally worth the getting used to; can not recommend highly enough!
It's got some of the best things about Game of Thrones: a big cast of characters who all have there own morality, ideology, motivations, and ever shifting loyalties, it has great world building, and it introduces some really cool and intriguing fantasy elements. And as an added bonus, I am assured that the series is complete, at three books!
The book also takes place in a world where gender equality is just a thing and always has been, and everyone seems to assume people are bi until stated otherwise. And it is done so well! There aren't any characters giving speeches about gender equality; it's simply baked into the world building. Like, throughout the book, I kept thinking "another writer would have had that guy call that female character a bitch or a whore, just as a matter of course without thinking about it"...but this author actually, like...thought about it...and decided not to be a lazy hack.
Not that things are sunshine and bunnies in this fantasy world; like I said, there's characters with all different levels of moral deficiency and there's plenty of conflict and strife...the author just exercised the freedom that comes with writing fantasy to cut out the boring shit that people expect. My standards have been raised!
If I had one quibble, it's that the writing style took a little getting used to. It was kind of too chatty; a bit reminiscent of a Buzzfeed listicle. A lot of "And then ____ did ____, because of course he did!" and stuff like that. Like, I don't want my fantasy to be written in Sindarin or anything, but going too far in the opposite direction can be distracting too. I feel like the author was going for an informal, modern voice that wouldn't slow readers down but overshot it and went a bit into Buffy-speak? But like I said, a small quibble and totally worth the getting used to; can not recommend highly enough!
littlelopeep's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
inspiring
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? It's complicated
4.0
read_cindy_read's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
jnb_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Gore, Violence, and War
kat_sanford's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-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
3.25
aidanjo8's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
crimsoncor's review against another edition
5.0
This was probably the fantasy trilogy that was on the most "best trilogy" lists that I hadn't read, so I had high expectations heading in (but also was a little worried it wouldn't live up). Absolutely loved the first book. Very grimdark, but all the characters (while being kinda terrible) are delightful. It makes such a huge difference to have points of attachment in a dark story (looking at you Sam Sykes and shaking my head sadly). Absolutely loved Purna. Wasn't ready for so many feels so quickly. Very excited for the next book.
Spoiler
Was completely devastated when she got killed. Absolute gut punch that wasn't expected at all. And then. AND THEN, for Diggleby to actually have a demon (and wonderful foreshadowing with this from both the Horned Wolf hunt and the giant battle scene, and the rampant drug use with no consequence, I guess) and to sacrifice it, so she can come back as part demon-dog (or something). Yowza.emilyrandolph_epstein's review against another edition
5.0
I haven't enjoyed a book this much in a very long time. I've read some reviews that complain about the way the author takes traditional fantasy tropes and completely subverts them. These reviewers seem to feel that this is someway disrespectful to the genre. They're entitled to that opinion, but I personally feel that this book is brilliant. It reads easily. The characters are dastardly villains you almost hate to love. The dialogue is fun and funny. It's grimdark with a good sense of humor that doesn't completely beat your soul into the ground by killing off all your favorite characters in one fell swoop.I laughed out loud on more than one occasion. For all it's humor and subversion, though, A Crown for Cold Silver is an excellent fantasy book. I think it's probably going to be one of the more important books of the year and I hope to read more books like it in the years to come.
I got the feeling, reading this book that the writer was having a blast and because of that I had a blast too. I almost wish I hadn't heard of this book yet, because now I have to wait for the next one.
I got the feeling, reading this book that the writer was having a blast and because of that I had a blast too. I almost wish I hadn't heard of this book yet, because now I have to wait for the next one.