annieb123's review against another edition
4.0
Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.
The Heart of the Circle is a new adult SF/magical realism novel set in modern Tel-Aviv by Keren Landsman. Originally published in 2018, this English translation was published 13 Aug 2019 by Angry Robot. It's 400 pages and available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats.
The central themes of isolation, acceptance, love, diversity, racism, and betrayal are all present and accounted for. The world building was more or less nonexistent, it's Tel Aviv, and it's quite believable. The magic system is very well done and also believable. Empaths, seers, and other mages/psychics are shunned and discriminated against openly. People fear them, they're literally made to stand in the back of the bus. Against this background, protagonist Reed (an empath) and his friends become politically active to push back against the prejudice and violence.
There's a great deal of angst, a lot of rough language, violence, and a fair bit of sex. It's a compelling read, though I can't put my finger on why it was so compelling for me. I was very interested in the psychosocial changes which accompanied the magic world-building. The fact that the psychic connections are strengthened by physical touch puts a whole new spin on handshakes and hugs, and the author explores that subtly but well. There was also a subplot involving Reed's ex who had moved on to another relationship with a woman. The exploration of the subtle but present bias against bi-sexual people, even (especially?) from people who identify as gay was refreshing to see.
The translation work is good, but not seamless. There are several places in the book where I noticed the prose was off, slightly mechanical or plodding. All in all though it was a very well written book and a good read. The mystery subplot wasn't the main attraction for me about this book, and I wouldn't really recommend it for mystery fans looking for something a little speculative/SF. This is a solid choice for NA/possibly mature YA (language, sex, violent content would make this iffy for YA). It could be a good choice for speculative fiction buddy read or book club selection.
Four stars. Looking forward to seeing more from this author. I've read and reviewed several books recently besides this one which were written by physicians, and they were all good. Maybe we need more ridiculously well trained academically inclined authors writing SF!
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
The Heart of the Circle is a new adult SF/magical realism novel set in modern Tel-Aviv by Keren Landsman. Originally published in 2018, this English translation was published 13 Aug 2019 by Angry Robot. It's 400 pages and available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats.
The central themes of isolation, acceptance, love, diversity, racism, and betrayal are all present and accounted for. The world building was more or less nonexistent, it's Tel Aviv, and it's quite believable. The magic system is very well done and also believable. Empaths, seers, and other mages/psychics are shunned and discriminated against openly. People fear them, they're literally made to stand in the back of the bus. Against this background, protagonist Reed (an empath) and his friends become politically active to push back against the prejudice and violence.
There's a great deal of angst, a lot of rough language, violence, and a fair bit of sex. It's a compelling read, though I can't put my finger on why it was so compelling for me. I was very interested in the psychosocial changes which accompanied the magic world-building. The fact that the psychic connections are strengthened by physical touch puts a whole new spin on handshakes and hugs, and the author explores that subtly but well. There was also a subplot involving Reed's ex who had moved on to another relationship with a woman. The exploration of the subtle but present bias against bi-sexual people, even (especially?) from people who identify as gay was refreshing to see.
The translation work is good, but not seamless. There are several places in the book where I noticed the prose was off, slightly mechanical or plodding. All in all though it was a very well written book and a good read. The mystery subplot wasn't the main attraction for me about this book, and I wouldn't really recommend it for mystery fans looking for something a little speculative/SF. This is a solid choice for NA/possibly mature YA (language, sex, violent content would make this iffy for YA). It could be a good choice for speculative fiction buddy read or book club selection.
Four stars. Looking forward to seeing more from this author. I've read and reviewed several books recently besides this one which were written by physicians, and they were all good. Maybe we need more ridiculously well trained academically inclined authors writing SF!
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
mdpenguin's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
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
This was excellent in pretty much every regard except, perhaps, for the names. I understand that they changed the names for the translation to make it more accessible to anglophones, but it made it kind of drift out of its setting for me. I really liked how there were hints about how history was different for the existence of the sorcerers, e.g. the radioactive craters of Europe or the Confederacy. I thought that the general social issues affecting the sorcerers were well conceived and the social turmoil they were going through very believable. The personal drama of the protagonist and his friends along with the romance that developed were so well drawn and it was very easy to get lost in their social relationships and care about the well-being of each character and understand the tension between what needs to happen and what everyone would really want to happen. Really, everything about this we exactly what I'd want out of it...except the names.
blynbetweenpages's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
witcherie's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
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? It's complicated
4.25
pam_sartain's review against another edition
4.0
My review:⭐⭐⭐
The Heart of the Circle by Keren Landsman is an urban fantasy set in Israel.
This book looks at one group being persecuted by another. I found the idea of the book to be good, but I did find the story to be slow, and not always compelling.
It was interesting to read a book that was has been translated from Israeli, and to get an idea of what fantasy fiction is like in Israel.
I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Angry Robot.
The Heart of the Circle by Keren Landsman is an urban fantasy set in Israel.
This book looks at one group being persecuted by another. I found the idea of the book to be good, but I did find the story to be slow, and not always compelling.
It was interesting to read a book that was has been translated from Israeli, and to get an idea of what fantasy fiction is like in Israel.
I was given this book in exchange for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Angry Robot.
pandapjays's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
4.0
mical45's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
tronella's review against another edition
4.0
Psychics and people with elemental superpowers fight against discrimination and terrorists in Tel Aviv, plus a gay romance. A few too many sex scenes for my taste, but I suppose not an unrealistic quantity given all the peril of imminent death.
thewoollygeek's review against another edition
1.0
Unfortunately this book was for me, I found it quite dull and the world building seemed to be lacking, the characters were the only redeeming feature, but unfortunately not enough for me to enjoy this.
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion
kf21's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
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
3.0