A review by peytiebear
In the Serpent's Wake by Rachel Hartman

adventurous challenging tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I've now read all four of Rachel Hartman's books set in this world. I liked Seraphina best. All three of the following books gave me the same frustration of wanting to shake one or more protagonists by the shoulders because they were being so obtuse and slow to change and figure out what they needed to do. It was really frustrating to watch people keep making the same mistakes repeatedly. There's also a lot of people being angry at each other and hurting each other and not being able to forgive each other. 

I can't say I really *enjoyed* reading this book, yet I finished it, because I do really enjoy her world-building and character creation. I love the magic and imagination. But in terms of what's actually happening in the plot and how the characters are behaving, I found it frustrating and not very enjoyable. 

I also don't know how Indigenous/First Nations people might feel about this book (I'm white). It's very heavily about colonialism, and there are fantasy Indigenous nations featured throughout. I could see it going either way -- that an Indigenous person might think it was cool to see themselves "represented", fantasy-style, but I could also see Indigenous folks finding this fantasy portrayal insulting and possibly playing into negative tropes, and/or triggering. I am not the authority on that! But some things gave me pause and I wasn't sure what impact this book might have. And I don't know what Rachel Hartman's heritage is, either -- I feel like it matters whether or not she herself is Indigenous.
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