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A review by fadingapple
The Book That Broke the World by Mark Lawrence
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.5
4.5/5 stars
How Mark Lawrence captures my attention and near every waking thought so fully I will never understand....while this second installment in the Library Trilogy suffers a bit from "middle book syndrome" (setting up for book 3 and not quite up to the excitement of book 1), it was still so phenomenal that I nearly gave it 5 stars anyway. But, The Book That Wouldn't Burn is just so good....the distinction was worth it, at least to me.
I am really struggling to write much of a review because I hate spoiling other people but so many of my thoughts are specific to spoilers. So I'll say this: I still adore Evar and Livira, but I also appreciated that they were still main characters but not the only main characters. I loved diving deeper into characters from book 1, but also the new cast that led much of this book's plot and provided the setup for book 3. Lawrence's characters and worldbuilding are nearly unmatched in my opinion, and that continued in this installment.
This series continues to be a new favorite and one that I compare all others to for what a 5 start adult fantasy should be. The writing is elegant, even when dense, with nothing that feels info dumping or overly indulgent. It's a masterclass in character work and worldbuilding, and the plot and theories live rent free in my brain always.
I love this series and am dying for book 3!
How Mark Lawrence captures my attention and near every waking thought so fully I will never understand....while this second installment in the Library Trilogy suffers a bit from "middle book syndrome" (setting up for book 3 and not quite up to the excitement of book 1), it was still so phenomenal that I nearly gave it 5 stars anyway. But, The Book That Wouldn't Burn is just so good....the distinction was worth it, at least to me.
I am really struggling to write much of a review because I hate spoiling other people but so many of my thoughts are specific to spoilers. So I'll say this: I still adore Evar and Livira, but I also appreciated that they were still main characters but not the only main characters. I loved diving deeper into characters from book 1, but also the new cast that led much of this book's plot and provided the setup for book 3. Lawrence's characters and worldbuilding are nearly unmatched in my opinion, and that continued in this installment.
This series continues to be a new favorite and one that I compare all others to for what a 5 start adult fantasy should be. The writing is elegant, even when dense, with nothing that feels info dumping or overly indulgent. It's a masterclass in character work and worldbuilding, and the plot and theories live rent free in my brain always.
I love this series and am dying for book 3!