lexi17d's review against another edition
adventurous
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? No
3.0
lilopalu's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
This was my second novel by N.K. Jeminsin (plus a short story) and I can already confidently call her a favourite author. I love her writing style and the world of this book is so intriguing. I very much hope, we get to explore more of it in the other two books of the trilogy. I liked the introduction to the world through the main character. Yeine is interesting, complex and well fleshed-out. The protrayal of how overwhelmed she was was really realistic. Most of the characters in this book are morally grey and I like how the impression of them changes (or solidifies) when learning more about them, their backstories and motivations. I
wontstopreading's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
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
erintby's review against another edition
3.0
I’m still processing this. There are some strong statements in this book on gender, race and human nature, but parts of the story were just too disturbing for my taste. I understand that the depravity of the Arameri is important to the context, but if I want something depressing, I read nonfiction, so it just wasn't for me.
However, I enjoyed the writing style, and I was continually surprised by turns in the plot. I definitely wasn’t expecting Yeine to become a goddess at the end of this book, so that threw me off. I figured it’d take the whole series to free the Enefadeh. Also, it’s still not entirely clear to me why Itempas had Kinneth killed?
However, I enjoyed the writing style, and I was continually surprised by turns in the plot. I definitely wasn’t expecting Yeine to become a goddess at the end of this book, so that threw me off. I figured it’d take the whole series to free the Enefadeh. Also, it’s still not entirely clear to me why Itempas had Kinneth killed?
jmross10's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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
4.5
I picked this up for a readathon prompt and was pleasantly surprised by it.
The world building was great and I enjoyed how it all came together in the end. It made me super curious to pick up the next book in the series.
Jemisin created an interesting and distinct cast of characters (which isn’t always the case) that were really well thought out. All of them served a purpose of some kind, instead of just being there to be there, and it never got confusing about who was who.
Most of the characters existed somewhere on the morally grey spectrum which, in my opinion, makes for more complex stories. Only one of the villains (that I recall) rigidly fit that mold, but even that character was nuanced. It was someone you were meant to hate and not someone you hated simply because they were annoying.
I wasn’t entirely sure what the ending hoped to accomplish and that’s for two reasons. Firstly, I didn’t know much about the series. And secondly, because Jemisin created a mystery around it that wasn’t predictable and didn’t get tedious. What the story was working too felt worthy of the journey.
I might not have picked this up if not for the readathon and that’s disappointing to think about. I really enjoyed this!
The world building was great and I enjoyed how it all came together in the end. It made me super curious to pick up the next book in the series.
Jemisin created an interesting and distinct cast of characters (which isn’t always the case) that were really well thought out. All of them served a purpose of some kind, instead of just being there to be there, and it never got confusing about who was who.
Most of the characters existed somewhere on the morally grey spectrum which, in my opinion, makes for more complex stories. Only one of the villains (that I recall) rigidly fit that mold, but even that character was nuanced. It was someone you were meant to hate and not someone you hated simply because they were annoying.
I wasn’t entirely sure what the ending hoped to accomplish and that’s for two reasons. Firstly, I didn’t know much about the series. And secondly, because Jemisin created a mystery around it that wasn’t predictable and didn’t get tedious. What the story was working too felt worthy of the journey.
I might not have picked this up if not for the readathon and that’s disappointing to think about. I really enjoyed this!
jenbianca's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
megapolisomancy's review against another edition
3.0
A rather middle-of-the-road epic fantasy that starts out strong but then kind of coasts along to an ending that I think wasn't as epic or surprising as the author thought it was.
1. There was a lot of talking in this book. Like... that's basically all there was, except for the climax.
2. I mean, you know how in Steven Erikson novels the "plot" doesn't really hold up to close inspection and is clearly just there to justify the adventures and weird encounters and historical blah blah whatever? Well in this book the "plot" is the same, but instead it's just used to motivate endless, endless conversations (and I don't want to give too much away here about the climax that's supposed to explain the plot, but it was a real headscratcher).
3. For a book whose title suggests a vast (and, well, epic) scope, the entire narrative (other than two scenes) takes place within a single half-mile-ish area. There wasn't a lot of depth to it-the narrative or the worldbuilding.
4. I also think the author ran as far as possible from the "show, don't tell" rule. We are constantly told how decadent and twisted the inhabitants of the castle Sky are, but we see very little evidence of that. We are also told constantly how mind-explodingly powerful and ALIEN the gods are compared to humanity, but in the actual showing, they seem to be just as dramatic and pissy as the human characters.
4a. I got really sick of being told how beautiful and mysterious and dark and intriguing and dangerous and beautiful the main god of darkness was... and when the main character finally sleeps with him, well... it's creepy, and problematic, and completely ridiculous, and frankly kind of embarrassing.
5. I did really love, though, that the main character was a woman of color.
6. I also loved that there wasn't a super slow introductory sequence and that Jemisin got right down to the action (such as it was).
This all seems entirely critical, but I did really enjoy the first 200 pages or so, and the whole thing was a quick and overall enjoyable read. Definitely didn't live up to the hype, though.
1. There was a lot of talking in this book. Like... that's basically all there was, except for the climax.
2. I mean, you know how in Steven Erikson novels the "plot" doesn't really hold up to close inspection and is clearly just there to justify the adventures and weird encounters and historical blah blah whatever? Well in this book the "plot" is the same, but instead it's just used to motivate endless, endless conversations (and I don't want to give too much away here about the climax that's supposed to explain the plot, but it was a real headscratcher).
3. For a book whose title suggests a vast (and, well, epic) scope, the entire narrative (other than two scenes) takes place within a single half-mile-ish area. There wasn't a lot of depth to it-the narrative or the worldbuilding.
4. I also think the author ran as far as possible from the "show, don't tell" rule. We are constantly told how decadent and twisted the inhabitants of the castle Sky are, but we see very little evidence of that. We are also told constantly how mind-explodingly powerful and ALIEN the gods are compared to humanity, but in the actual showing, they seem to be just as dramatic and pissy as the human characters.
4a. I got really sick of being told how beautiful and mysterious and dark and intriguing and dangerous and beautiful the main god of darkness was... and when the main character finally sleeps with him, well... it's creepy, and problematic, and completely ridiculous, and frankly kind of embarrassing.
5. I did really love, though, that the main character was a woman of color.
6. I also loved that there wasn't a super slow introductory sequence and that Jemisin got right down to the action (such as it was).
This all seems entirely critical, but I did really enjoy the first 200 pages or so, and the whole thing was a quick and overall enjoyable read. Definitely didn't live up to the hype, though.
inesscm's review against another edition
5.0
This was my first Jemisin book, and I know many people consider this trilogy her weakest work, but I must say - I loved this book! I had no idea what the story was about other than it involved gods. Even though I will read anything god-related, not knowing anything else plot-wise really upped my enjoyment while unfolding all the layers of this novel.
The writing style was the first thing that drew me in - after a couple of chapters, I was hooked. Jemisin's writing has a unique twist I can't quite put my finger on, but I couldn't stop reading this book.
The world-building is nicely done - there is a complex network of background history that the author starts unveiling in this first novel, but everything is clearly explained and easy to follow. The action centres around a handful of main characters that you immediately feel for - be it love or hate - and the mythology that was created is believable and explained to the right extent. I particularly loved reading about Yeine's interactions with the gods and the fact that there was a romance sub-plot besides the political intrigue that is the main driver of the story. There is also some social commentary about slavery and power dynamics weaved into the narrative that I appreciated. The ending chapters were EPIC, and I'm looking forward to reading the next two instalments!
The writing style was the first thing that drew me in - after a couple of chapters, I was hooked. Jemisin's writing has a unique twist I can't quite put my finger on, but I couldn't stop reading this book.
The world-building is nicely done - there is a complex network of background history that the author starts unveiling in this first novel, but everything is clearly explained and easy to follow. The action centres around a handful of main characters that you immediately feel for - be it love or hate - and the mythology that was created is believable and explained to the right extent. I particularly loved reading about Yeine's interactions with the gods and the fact that there was a romance sub-plot besides the political intrigue that is the main driver of the story. There is also some social commentary about slavery and power dynamics weaved into the narrative that I appreciated. The ending chapters were EPIC, and I'm looking forward to reading the next two instalments!
caeliniscreepy's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Perfectly good, but wasn’t in the right mood for this one.