A review by ghostlydreamer
The Sandman, Vol. 7: Brief Lives, by Neil Gaiman
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I was genuinely worried that I would not like this volume, given how I felt about the previous one. But Dream is back and I am so happy with this volume. First 5 stars of the year. There were a lot of things I liked.
Allow me to break it down for you:
1. Death. As briefly as she appeared in this book, Death gives me so much life (pun intended). I love looking at her, I love reading about her, and I absolutely adore the way she interacts with all the other characters.
2. Delirium. I didn't know what to think of her at first. She's...a trip. Literally. She's delirium incarnate. Which means it's hard to follow along with her sometimes. But that didn't stop me from liking her. She's bizarre, she's outlandish, she's a little bit dramatic. But she's sweet, deep down. All she wants is to find her brother.
3. The talking dog, whose name I forgot. I loved that dog.
4. Dream. He seems to be getting a little bit unhinged, if you ask me. But I can't help but love him despite that. I almost feel like I see a lot of myself in him, and I'm not sure what to make of that. But I love that he eventually rights his wrongs with Delirium and helps her in her task. That's what a good older brother does.
5. The artwork. It's not ALWAYS my favorite, but it works so well. Especially now that we have our core cast of characters back from the previous volumes.
6. Their realms are so interesting to look at. I love that we got to see a bit of Despair's, Destiny's, and so on and so forth. I feel like it helped me learn more about them and their purpose amongst humans and their lives.
Overall, this was a solid addition to the series. I admittedly had forgotten much of what had been discussed in the previous volumes, but being back amongst these characters was so refreshing, and it makes me excited to continue reading about them again. My goal this year is to finish this series, so we'll see how that goes.
Allow me to break it down for you:
1. Death. As briefly as she appeared in this book, Death gives me so much life (pun intended). I love looking at her, I love reading about her, and I absolutely adore the way she interacts with all the other characters.
2. Delirium. I didn't know what to think of her at first. She's...a trip. Literally. She's delirium incarnate. Which means it's hard to follow along with her sometimes. But that didn't stop me from liking her. She's bizarre, she's outlandish, she's a little bit dramatic. But she's sweet, deep down. All she wants is to find her brother.
3. The talking dog, whose name I forgot. I loved that dog.
4. Dream. He seems to be getting a little bit unhinged, if you ask me. But I can't help but love him despite that. I almost feel like I see a lot of myself in him, and I'm not sure what to make of that. But I love that he eventually rights his wrongs with Delirium and helps her in her task. That's what a good older brother does.
5. The artwork. It's not ALWAYS my favorite, but it works so well. Especially now that we have our core cast of characters back from the previous volumes.
6. Their realms are so interesting to look at. I love that we got to see a bit of Despair's, Destiny's, and so on and so forth. I feel like it helped me learn more about them and their purpose amongst humans and their lives.
Overall, this was a solid addition to the series. I admittedly had forgotten much of what had been discussed in the previous volumes, but being back amongst these characters was so refreshing, and it makes me excited to continue reading about them again. My goal this year is to finish this series, so we'll see how that goes.