A review by spellvexit7
The Splinter in the Sky by Kemi Ashing-Giwa

adventurous emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

While the setup and the world-building for this story were fine, I found myself baffled by the main character.  Despite her insignificance from the outset, she is almost immediately recruited by every faction involved.  She shows little aptitude for what she is called upon doing as the story progresses, and it gets increasingly unbelievable.  She somehow has an amazing charisma capable of automatically seducing various heads of state, yet I found her to be a strangely irascible and mildly arrogant character.  Despite numerous reminders of her mortal peril in the Splinter amidst religious fanatics who view the Korikese as inferior beings, she continually mouths off to absolute strangers, speaks in a far too familiar way when introduced to the god-emperor, and even moves to slap some random aristocrat who bumps into them during one of the many soirees she attends.  I don't understand how this prickly character, snorting in derision at nearly everyone she meets, becomes the linchpin for a fundamental change in rule -- I understand even less how she made it alive to next Tuesday with her recklessness.