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A review by misssophiereads
Ravensong by TJ Klune
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I had a pretty good time with the first half of the book, but at some point it just went downhill for me. I'm pretty sure some of my problems with the book are me-problems and might not bother others as much, but here goes:
<b>- the fated mates aspect</b>
To be fair, only slightly less creepy than in book one, with the "imprinting" werewolf love interest only three years older than the mc, but as mc is 11 at the time... still not great. BUT my main issue with it is that the love interest has ZERO PERSONALITY. Like. None. Whatsoever. He exists. That is it. I can't tell you a single thing about him, not what he does for a job, what his hobbies are, what he does all day when not standing around stoically or frolicking around as a wolf. So it is a bit difficult to root for these guys to get over their years long pining for each other when I don't even know what we are pining for.
<b>- weirdly invasive banter about people's sex lives</b>
There are so many scenes in this book featuring side characters dropping hints or also very explicitly talking about the main character or other side characters getting together with their love interests, sometimes in graphic detail (only to then also continue to say "Oh no, now that image is in my head, why did I say that"), in order to get them to make a move. It is uncomfortable. It feels weird. I know these people are all really close, but it just feels so awkward imagining ten or more people standing around (and werewolves in this world have incredibly sensitive hearing, so they just have to be in the same house to hear this) and openly talking about how two people WHO ARE ALSO PRESENT should just get over themselves and be together. Also, sometimes these people are related and they themselves comment on how weird it is to be talking about their uncle's sex life, but it also doesn't stop them from talking about it.
<b>- the magic</b>
It's just so vague. The mc is a witch, so I would have liked to learn more about the process of wielding magic, the limitations, the scope, anything. This made it really hard to be intrigued by some plot points involving magic, as it was impossible to speculate how certain problems might be overcome, as we the readers have no idea of what is possible.
<b>-the plot</b>
Not all bad, I enjoyed aspects of it. I liked the emphasis on healing from bad experiences and giving second chances to people, but I felt the execution lacking in some places. Some conflicts felt very contrived without strong enough motivation for the characters involved to make sense. Also, the amount of plot armor at the end was just astounding.
Also, I feel like this book is way too long for the honestly small amount of things that actually happen. I'm all for slow burns and building up tension, but nothing burned here (see point 1) and there wasn't enough substance to keep up the tension.
So, I kinda feel like I'm in the same spot as I was after reading book one (with the difference that Ox really pulled me through that book), with this feeling that the next sequel will be better due to the characters it will focus on. At least that main character and his love interest have some personality, despite just being side characters in the first two books. And yes, there is one plot element introduced in Ravensong that hasn't been resolved and I'm kinda curious to see how it will go down.
But I also don't want to keep writing salty reviews.
<b>- the fated mates aspect</b>
To be fair, only slightly less creepy than in book one, with the "imprinting" werewolf love interest only three years older than the mc, but as mc is 11 at the time... still not great. BUT my main issue with it is that the love interest has ZERO PERSONALITY. Like. None. Whatsoever. He exists. That is it. I can't tell you a single thing about him, not what he does for a job, what his hobbies are, what he does all day when not standing around stoically or frolicking around as a wolf. So it is a bit difficult to root for these guys to get over their years long pining for each other when I don't even know what we are pining for.
<b>- weirdly invasive banter about people's sex lives</b>
There are so many scenes in this book featuring side characters dropping hints or also very explicitly talking about the main character or other side characters getting together with their love interests, sometimes in graphic detail (only to then also continue to say "Oh no, now that image is in my head, why did I say that"), in order to get them to make a move. It is uncomfortable. It feels weird. I know these people are all really close, but it just feels so awkward imagining ten or more people standing around (and werewolves in this world have incredibly sensitive hearing, so they just have to be in the same house to hear this) and openly talking about how two people WHO ARE ALSO PRESENT should just get over themselves and be together. Also, sometimes these people are related and they themselves comment on how weird it is to be talking about their uncle's sex life, but it also doesn't stop them from talking about it.
<b>- the magic</b>
It's just so vague. The mc is a witch, so I would have liked to learn more about the process of wielding magic, the limitations, the scope, anything. This made it really hard to be intrigued by some plot points involving magic, as it was impossible to speculate how certain problems might be overcome, as we the readers have no idea of what is possible.
<b>-the plot</b>
Not all bad, I enjoyed aspects of it. I liked the emphasis on healing from bad experiences and giving second chances to people, but I felt the execution lacking in some places. Some conflicts felt very contrived without strong enough motivation for the characters involved to make sense. Also, the amount of plot armor at the end was just astounding.
Also, I feel like this book is way too long for the honestly small amount of things that actually happen. I'm all for slow burns and building up tension, but nothing burned here (see point 1) and there wasn't enough substance to keep up the tension.
So, I kinda feel like I'm in the same spot as I was after reading book one (with the difference that Ox really pulled me through that book), with this feeling that the next sequel will be better due to the characters it will focus on. At least that main character and his love interest have some personality, despite just being side characters in the first two books. And yes, there is one plot element introduced in Ravensong that hasn't been resolved and I'm kinda curious to see how it will go down.
But I also don't want to keep writing salty reviews.