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talonsontypewriters's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I had to start this over from the beginning about halfway in because I realized I hadn't understood anything that had happened in the previous 5 chapters, but even paying closer attention, this is a difficult novel to follow. Despite how much is happening, it also turned out to be quite underwhelming -- even boring -- for me.
The prose itself is fine, doesn't stand out as uniquely good or bad. There's a little too much telling over showing, though, particularly when it comes to characters' feelings and opinions -- and yet too little information when it comes to general exposition. This world has a lot of cool, complex elements to it -- seemingly traditional Tolkien/D&D-inspired cultures, some sci-fi elements, various systems of magic and religion -- but little work is put into earnestly fleshing them out or truly explaining them. I think some writers hear people complain about exposition dumps and just assume all consolidated blocks of exposition are unwanted, so never actually bother to list out how their world works, which I assume to be happening here.
The magic/religious aspects are probably the only things described in detail, and even then I don't think I understand the basics of the magic. Incorporating traveling between worlds could also be interesting, but the mechanics and terminology are vague; I was never able to figure out how the gates/Maze work, or even whether the "worlds" are meant to be on different planets in some solar system/universe, or even in different parallel timelines, or just locations within the same planet you can... warp to, or something to that effect? Weirdly, the one thing that this world does have in common with ours are other animals, which I feel like is another area of missed potential, though I might just be too into fantasy biology/ecology.
The different groups (unclear, again, whether they should be treated as nationalities, ethnicities, or entire species) are probably meant to be classic fantasy species -- I say "probably" because the most done to establish this is mentioning characteristics like tusks and ear types. Only a handful of descriptions even hint at values, traditions, cuisine, and so on that exist within these cultures, let alone differ between them. I assume from character names that the Qarsazhi use the name order of last followed by first and the Oshaaru don't use surnames, but this seems to not ever be directly stated at all, so it ends up just feeling like random flavor. Having some worldbuilding elements be there just to be there/"for fun" would be fine... if there were enough other well-developed descriptions to back them up. It feels almost as if Larkwood wanted to subvert overdone sword and sorcery tropes (villainous orcs vs heroic humans and elves, for instance), but then also figured the standard reader would fill in the blanks.
I picked "a mix" for whether this is plot-/character-driven, but somehow it doesn't actually feel like it's either? There's kind of a central plot, but it's pursued in a series of weirdly paced (alternately meandering and breakneck, neither with much real sense of urgency or risk) mini-quests. Most characters don't have much agency or personality of their own, carried along by the needs of either the current or overarching plot or other, equally flat characters. A lot of important development, like Csorwe's training and changing relationships with Sethennai and Tal, happens almost completely off-page.
The character voices are not very distinct either, which especially stands out in this setting, with everyone coming from completely different social classes, locations, languages, general upbringings and worldviews, etc -- surely there could have been at least a little more variation with regards to, say, senses of humor and sentence structure. Instead, multiple times, a POV would switch and I would have lost track of who was narrating within four paragraphs.
I did think the themes of personal and systematic exploitation and manipulation were interesting, and if the characters had been stronger, Csorwe's sort of "cycle" where she does for someone else what Sethennai did for her would have been super satisfying. The main romance, as well as some other dynamics, also could have been compelling, but its development is a bit too fast and, again, the individual characters felt shallowly written.
Had so much potential, but unfortunately my expectations were far from met.
The prose itself is fine, doesn't stand out as uniquely good or bad. There's a little too much telling over showing, though, particularly when it comes to characters' feelings and opinions -- and yet too little information when it comes to general exposition. This world has a lot of cool, complex elements to it -- seemingly traditional Tolkien/D&D-inspired cultures, some sci-fi elements, various systems of magic and religion -- but little work is put into earnestly fleshing them out or truly explaining them. I think some writers hear people complain about exposition dumps and just assume all consolidated blocks of exposition are unwanted, so never actually bother to list out how their world works, which I assume to be happening here.
The magic/religious aspects are probably the only things described in detail, and even then I don't think I understand the basics of the magic. Incorporating traveling between worlds could also be interesting, but the mechanics and terminology are vague; I was never able to figure out how the gates/Maze work, or even whether the "worlds" are meant to be on different planets in some solar system/universe, or even in different parallel timelines, or just locations within the same planet you can... warp to, or something to that effect? Weirdly, the one thing that this world does have in common with ours are other animals, which I feel like is another area of missed potential, though I might just be too into fantasy biology/ecology.
The different groups (unclear, again, whether they should be treated as nationalities, ethnicities, or entire species) are probably meant to be classic fantasy species -- I say "probably" because the most done to establish this is mentioning characteristics like tusks and ear types. Only a handful of descriptions even hint at values, traditions, cuisine, and so on that exist within these cultures, let alone differ between them. I assume from character names that the Qarsazhi use the name order of last followed by first and the Oshaaru don't use surnames, but this seems to not ever be directly stated at all, so it ends up just feeling like random flavor. Having some worldbuilding elements be there just to be there/"for fun" would be fine... if there were enough other well-developed descriptions to back them up. It feels almost as if Larkwood wanted to subvert overdone sword and sorcery tropes (villainous orcs vs heroic humans and elves, for instance), but then also figured the standard reader would fill in the blanks.
I picked "a mix" for whether this is plot-/character-driven, but somehow it doesn't actually feel like it's either? There's kind of a central plot, but it's pursued in a series of weirdly paced (alternately meandering and breakneck, neither with much real sense of urgency or risk) mini-quests. Most characters don't have much agency or personality of their own, carried along by the needs of either the current or overarching plot or other, equally flat characters. A lot of important development, like Csorwe's training and changing relationships with Sethennai and Tal, happens almost completely off-page.
The character voices are not very distinct either, which especially stands out in this setting, with everyone coming from completely different social classes, locations, languages, general upbringings and worldviews, etc -- surely there could have been at least a little more variation with regards to, say, senses of humor and sentence structure. Instead, multiple times, a POV would switch and I would have lost track of who was narrating within four paragraphs.
I did think the themes of personal and systematic exploitation and manipulation were interesting, and if the characters had been stronger, Csorwe's sort of "cycle" where she does for someone else what Sethennai did for her would have been super satisfying. The main romance, as well as some other dynamics, also could have been compelling, but its development is a bit too fast and, again, the individual characters felt shallowly written.
Had so much potential, but unfortunately my expectations were far from met.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Religious bigotry, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Sexual content, Vomit, and Alcohol
rory_o_rama's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
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
5.0
“She had never seriously believed in the daydream, never actually fed it and given it room to sleep”
The poeticism laced within the margins of this book made my heart ache for each of the characters. There was a delightful amount of humour interwoven through petty feuds, and just when you think a Csorwe has endured all that she can, she perseveres.
The poeticism laced within the margins of this book made my heart ache for each of the characters. There was a delightful amount of humour interwoven through petty feuds, and just when you think a Csorwe has endured all that she can, she perseveres.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Self harm, Torture, and Blood
Moderate: Animal death and Child death
starccato's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Self harm, and Vomit
anxiousnachos's review against another edition
5.0
Does this still hold up on reread? FUCK YEAH IT DOES. I love it so much. It feels like if Dragon Age and Mass Effect had a baby but with orcs.
Content warnings: torture, blood and gore, death, murder, ritual sacrifice, self harm (for magic), amputation, animal cruelty, snakes, tooth injury, violence, animal death
——
Hello to another incredible fantasy of 2020. I absolutely loved this debut! It set itself up to be a pretty incredible sounding fantasy: sacrifice, necromancy, terrifying gods, a deal with a wizard, portal travel, f/f slow burn romance, TUSKS. And I definitely thought it delivered! It’s one of those “it’s definitely not for everyone” fantasies. It’s quite slow in places, and has extensive (and I mean extensive) worldbuilding with all of these cool flying ships, portals, the Maze and the different worlds to explain and explore. But if you like a long, detailed, super queer fantasy, then this is for you!
The story begins with Csorwe, a young woman destined to be sacrificed on her fourteenth birthday to her god. But, when it comes her time to die, she instead runs away with a wizard, Sethennai, who offers to take her on and train her to be his sword and right hand person. We follow Csorwe on her journey to help the wizard find an ancient artifact, the Reliquary of Pentravesse, an object that claims to hold incredible magical knowledge developed by the legendary Pentravesse himself.
First of all, I had no idea this had portal travel going in, and it was so much fun! This novel really blends sci fi with fantasy, combining the best parts of magic with technological advances to create this incredible world. At the start, it can be difficult to get your head around – I wasn’t quite sure how The Maze worked for a while. But as Csorwe expands her knowledge of the world and discovers what living is really like, so do you! Larkwood has created such a huge, expansive world, full of imagination and wonderfully describes it. Each different world we enter is fully realised and created such a perfectly clear picture in my head, from the Shrine where Csorwe grew up, to the city of Tlaanthothe, to the dying world within the Maze (the inbetween space of the portals). It reminded me rather of Dragon Age actually, with the same type of expansive world, these gates that lead to an inbetween space, so full of different peoples and of course, magic. I think if you love the Dragon Age games, this book is definitely for you. Like DragonAge, religion is a huge element of this book which is something I always love in fantasies because I find them so creative and unique in every book I read. In The Unspoken Name we are introduced to several gods and the people who follow them, from Csorwe and the Shrine of the Unspoken orc priestesses to Shuthmilli’s nine gods, one of the nine fallen to evil who attempts to re-enter the world through mages (of which Shuthmilli is one). I loved exploring each of these and I expect we’ll see more of these religious theories play a part in the next book.
As much as I loved the worldbuilding (and given this is perhaps one of my favourite world’s I’ve ever read about, I love it a lot), my favourite thing about The Unspoken Name were the characters. There is something about a character who is just a total mess that makes you love them (and we have several!!)
Csorwe: our main character, so devoted to Sethennai, the wizard who rescued her and determined to pay him back for what she sees as giving her life. Her growth over the book is so brilliant, from the quiet sacrificial bride, to the fiersome, but blunt, sword of Sethennai, to a woman who must toy with betrayal to do the right thing.
Tal: the much needed lightness and humour of the book! God he has had a rough ticket in life. He’s so full of anger and resentment that he is never noticed by Sethennai and thus spends the entire book attempting to undermine Csorwe so for once he will be centre of Sethennai’s attention.
Shuthmili: probably my favourite because there’s nothing I love more than the most powerful, in control woman in the room completely losing it. I LOVE HER. She’s able to wield incredibly powerful magic, and is due to be bound into a group of magic soldiers with one mind. But then she meets Csorwe, and well, things go a bit off course.
Oranna: our wonderful necromancer. She dances in and out of our gaze and we’re never really quite sure if she’s the villain we should be looking at. Searching for immortality, she is always two steps ahead of Sethennai and his crew.
And then there’s Sethennai himself: the wizard controlling all the strings and so secure in the faith and loyalty of his crew. Well, see for yourself what that gets him….
I really just adored this fantasy. It kept me so immersed and distracted from the real world. Csorwe and Shuthmili’s relationship is of course a delight. My heart was bursting, there’s one particular scene which killed me (see above comment about a very in control woman losing all sense of control). I was so invested in all of these characters, I understood all of them so much (even if I wasn’t the best fan of them at first – sorry Tal. But then he ended up being one of my favourites!!) I really liked that we got to see short insights into the minds of each of these characters, breaking away from Csorwe at times to see what the rest of them are up to. I think that really helped get me so invested in all of them, rather than just our main character.
Is there probably a few problems with this book? Sure. I’m never the biggest fan of time hopping in books, and there were some scenes were things fell into place a bit too easily. But I still adored this book. My issues with it didn’t detract at all from my love of these characters and my desire to see more of them!! I cannot wait for this sequel.
Content warnings: torture, blood and gore, death, murder, ritual sacrifice, self harm (for magic), amputation, animal cruelty, snakes, tooth injury, violence, animal death
——
Hello to another incredible fantasy of 2020. I absolutely loved this debut! It set itself up to be a pretty incredible sounding fantasy: sacrifice, necromancy, terrifying gods, a deal with a wizard, portal travel, f/f slow burn romance, TUSKS. And I definitely thought it delivered! It’s one of those “it’s definitely not for everyone” fantasies. It’s quite slow in places, and has extensive (and I mean extensive) worldbuilding with all of these cool flying ships, portals, the Maze and the different worlds to explain and explore. But if you like a long, detailed, super queer fantasy, then this is for you!
The story begins with Csorwe, a young woman destined to be sacrificed on her fourteenth birthday to her god. But, when it comes her time to die, she instead runs away with a wizard, Sethennai, who offers to take her on and train her to be his sword and right hand person. We follow Csorwe on her journey to help the wizard find an ancient artifact, the Reliquary of Pentravesse, an object that claims to hold incredible magical knowledge developed by the legendary Pentravesse himself.
First of all, I had no idea this had portal travel going in, and it was so much fun! This novel really blends sci fi with fantasy, combining the best parts of magic with technological advances to create this incredible world. At the start, it can be difficult to get your head around – I wasn’t quite sure how The Maze worked for a while. But as Csorwe expands her knowledge of the world and discovers what living is really like, so do you! Larkwood has created such a huge, expansive world, full of imagination and wonderfully describes it. Each different world we enter is fully realised and created such a perfectly clear picture in my head, from the Shrine where Csorwe grew up, to the city of Tlaanthothe, to the dying world within the Maze (the inbetween space of the portals). It reminded me rather of Dragon Age actually, with the same type of expansive world, these gates that lead to an inbetween space, so full of different peoples and of course, magic. I think if you love the Dragon Age games, this book is definitely for you. Like DragonAge, religion is a huge element of this book which is something I always love in fantasies because I find them so creative and unique in every book I read. In The Unspoken Name we are introduced to several gods and the people who follow them, from Csorwe and the Shrine of the Unspoken orc priestesses to Shuthmilli’s nine gods, one of the nine fallen to evil who attempts to re-enter the world through mages (of which Shuthmilli is one). I loved exploring each of these and I expect we’ll see more of these religious theories play a part in the next book.
As much as I loved the worldbuilding (and given this is perhaps one of my favourite world’s I’ve ever read about, I love it a lot), my favourite thing about The Unspoken Name were the characters. There is something about a character who is just a total mess that makes you love them (and we have several!!)
Csorwe: our main character, so devoted to Sethennai, the wizard who rescued her and determined to pay him back for what she sees as giving her life. Her growth over the book is so brilliant, from the quiet sacrificial bride, to the fiersome, but blunt, sword of Sethennai, to a woman who must toy with betrayal to do the right thing.
Tal: the much needed lightness and humour of the book! God he has had a rough ticket in life. He’s so full of anger and resentment that he is never noticed by Sethennai and thus spends the entire book attempting to undermine Csorwe so for once he will be centre of Sethennai’s attention.
Shuthmili: probably my favourite because there’s nothing I love more than the most powerful, in control woman in the room completely losing it. I LOVE HER. She’s able to wield incredibly powerful magic, and is due to be bound into a group of magic soldiers with one mind. But then she meets Csorwe, and well, things go a bit off course.
Oranna: our wonderful necromancer. She dances in and out of our gaze and we’re never really quite sure if she’s the villain we should be looking at. Searching for immortality, she is always two steps ahead of Sethennai and his crew.
And then there’s Sethennai himself: the wizard controlling all the strings and so secure in the faith and loyalty of his crew. Well, see for yourself what that gets him….
I really just adored this fantasy. It kept me so immersed and distracted from the real world. Csorwe and Shuthmili’s relationship is of course a delight. My heart was bursting, there’s one particular scene which killed me (see above comment about a very in control woman losing all sense of control). I was so invested in all of these characters, I understood all of them so much (even if I wasn’t the best fan of them at first – sorry Tal. But then he ended up being one of my favourites!!) I really liked that we got to see short insights into the minds of each of these characters, breaking away from Csorwe at times to see what the rest of them are up to. I think that really helped get me so invested in all of them, rather than just our main character.
Is there probably a few problems with this book? Sure. I’m never the biggest fan of time hopping in books, and there were some scenes were things fell into place a bit too easily. But I still adored this book. My issues with it didn’t detract at all from my love of these characters and my desire to see more of them!! I cannot wait for this sequel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gore, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty
beforeviolets's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
The only reason it's not a 5 star is because it took me a little while to get into - though that might be because of a reading slump - but I have a feeling the second book will be a 5 star! (fingers crossed!)
For the rest of my life I will be desperately craving a queer fantasy book set in the world of LOTR and though this is most definitely NOT that (it can't exist until 2050 :/ ), it helped to temporarily fill that void as best it could and for that, I am grateful.
My thoughts on this book aren't particularly deep or poetic but let's get into it anyways. I loved the world that this was set in; it was like a society made up of fantasy religious cults - tell me you don't love that! - and there always seemed to be more to learn and understand about the corruption that is woven deeply into the foundation of each of those groups and the people in charge. All the information and action that was given to the reader felt well-earned, though I think the stakes took a bit of a hit in favor of the discovery and slow unraveling of the secrets of this world by our more innocent and curious narrators.
I absolutely adored Csorwe and found her to be such a strong, and easy-to-connect-with narrator. Even though I couldn't personally relate to her disposition or her personal experiences, I found her to be a reliable touchstone, and was easily able to understand and sympathize with her thoughts and feelings and actions. I loved Shuthmili (!!) and her strength and confidence and hunger for knowledge. Frankly, she's just so cool. Tal just might be my favorite character though. His dialogue was so funny and witty and snarky and I found myself laughing at his one-liners more than once. His narration is addictively charming and I couldn't help but want to spend more time in his mind. I hope we get to see more of his story along with Csorwe's and Shuthmili's in the next one. Thank goodness I only need to wait a month or two.
P.S. Dear Authors: please write more queer adult high fantasy because there is NOT enough and it's all my queer nerd heart craves.
For the rest of my life I will be desperately craving a queer fantasy book set in the world of LOTR and though this is most definitely NOT that (it can't exist until 2050 :/ ), it helped to temporarily fill that void as best it could and for that, I am grateful.
My thoughts on this book aren't particularly deep or poetic but let's get into it anyways. I loved the world that this was set in; it was like a society made up of fantasy religious cults - tell me you don't love that! - and there always seemed to be more to learn and understand about the corruption that is woven deeply into the foundation of each of those groups and the people in charge. All the information and action that was given to the reader felt well-earned, though I think the stakes took a bit of a hit in favor of the discovery and slow unraveling of the secrets of this world by our more innocent and curious narrators.
I absolutely adored Csorwe and found her to be such a strong, and easy-to-connect-with narrator. Even though I couldn't personally relate to her disposition or her personal experiences, I found her to be a reliable touchstone, and was easily able to understand and sympathize with her thoughts and feelings and actions. I loved Shuthmili (!!) and her strength and confidence and hunger for knowledge. Frankly, she's just so cool. Tal just might be my favorite character though. His dialogue was so funny and witty and snarky and I found myself laughing at his one-liners more than once. His narration is addictively charming and I couldn't help but want to spend more time in his mind. I hope we get to see more of his story along with Csorwe's and Shuthmili's in the next one. Thank goodness I only need to wait a month or two.
P.S. Dear Authors: please write more queer adult high fantasy because there is NOT enough and it's all my queer nerd heart craves.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Torture
candidceillie's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
slow-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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, and Murder
laurajones's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Cursing
Minor: Alcoholism, Body horror, Confinement, and Vomit