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A review by miyaosamu
Song of Silver, Flame Like Night by Amélie Wen Zhao
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
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
Thank you to Random House/Delacorte Press for providing an arc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
song of silver, flame like night was absolutely brilliant, well paced and impressive in lore and worldbuilding for being the first in its series. with the depth of the kingdom’s decades of history and intricate magic system of qì energy cannot express how immediately captivated i was into this book. in addition to once the story’s action and pace hit early on, it never slowed down for too long before picking right back up. to be honest though, i might be a bit biased as this book truly got me out of a long reading slump as this was a fantasy i very much enjoyed and had me on the edge of my seat to see where it would all go. like sure there's some of the usual young adult fantasy archetypes, but on personal preferences and being a mood reader it can be easily still entertaining for what i needed at this moment.
this had everything i love in a fantasy for the most part with such an interesting world of the last kingdom with its detailed history and current colonial conflicts, the magic system wielders being called practitioners with a hidden school for young students and secrets to uncover on small journeys that keeps readers attention and the pace consistent. mysterious empathizing backstories for our two mains lan and zen and their dynamic was so amusing with the contrast they had of not just personalities but in their qì energy as well. you can sense that sort of yin and yang between them, of opposite forces yet a shared pull of a bond to another. their emotions and attachment to one another is a bit quick of a whirlwind but keep in mind romance a very small subplot to the bigger plot as i personally think their emotions provided well to their trust in each other and furthering development each other's complex character development and hard decisions to make for the sake of their lives or saving the nation. lan our main character, she is one with goals to figure out her past she vaguely remembers and the legacy left to her, her actions are rather rash but it was compelling to see what of her experiences would affect her belief system and the tough choices ahead of her. along with zen, he's a usual mysterious brooding but fiercely protective though quite literally fighting demons of his past and present, as he seems to be more morally grey struggling with the choices he's given versus what has been taught to him.
but importantly other than our mains and their connections, it well covers themes of effects of colonialism on a nation and figuring out how to fight back without breaking one's ideals along with how history affects the generation to this day seeing things devastatingly repeat. a few other characters like shà’jūn and tài were charming side characters and a bit of affection and angst between them i can't wait to see more of, and there's dilaya who is frustrating to our mains at first but readers come to understand her hostility and see her development as well. there's more particular dynamics that hit my heart, a sort of adoptive father/kid found family and blood relation revelations. subjectively, especially the last 20 percent had me go through such a rollercoaster of emotions of shock and devastation that it emotionally is a 5 star read for me, but as a whole leaning towards a 4.5 star read. consequence of reading and getting invested in a first book of a series as an advanced copy, going to have to wait ages til the sequel. this was a strong, solid start and i have such high hopes and anticipations for the continuation of this series and following how these characters will grow in resolve to face what is next.
song of silver, flame like night was absolutely brilliant, well paced and impressive in lore and worldbuilding for being the first in its series. with the depth of the kingdom’s decades of history and intricate magic system of qì energy cannot express how immediately captivated i was into this book. in addition to once the story’s action and pace hit early on, it never slowed down for too long before picking right back up. to be honest though, i might be a bit biased as this book truly got me out of a long reading slump as this was a fantasy i very much enjoyed and had me on the edge of my seat to see where it would all go. like sure there's some of the usual young adult fantasy archetypes, but on personal preferences and being a mood reader it can be easily still entertaining for what i needed at this moment.
this had everything i love in a fantasy for the most part with such an interesting world of the last kingdom with its detailed history and current colonial conflicts, the magic system wielders being called practitioners with a hidden school for young students and secrets to uncover on small journeys that keeps readers attention and the pace consistent. mysterious empathizing backstories for our two mains lan and zen and their dynamic was so amusing with the contrast they had of not just personalities but in their qì energy as well. you can sense that sort of yin and yang between them, of opposite forces yet a shared pull of a bond to another. their emotions and attachment to one another is a bit quick of a whirlwind but keep in mind romance a very small subplot to the bigger plot as i personally think their emotions provided well to their trust in each other and furthering development each other's complex character development and hard decisions to make for the sake of their lives or saving the nation. lan our main character, she is one with goals to figure out her past she vaguely remembers and the legacy left to her, her actions are rather rash but it was compelling to see what of her experiences would affect her belief system and the tough choices ahead of her. along with zen, he's a usual mysterious brooding but fiercely protective though quite literally fighting demons of his past and present, as he seems to be more morally grey struggling with the choices he's given versus what has been taught to him.
but importantly other than our mains and their connections, it well covers themes of effects of colonialism on a nation and figuring out how to fight back without breaking one's ideals along with how history affects the generation to this day seeing things devastatingly repeat. a few other characters like shà’jūn and tài were charming side characters and a bit of affection and angst between them i can't wait to see more of, and there's dilaya who is frustrating to our mains at first but readers come to understand her hostility and see her development as well. there's more particular dynamics that hit my heart, a sort of adoptive father/kid found family and blood relation revelations. subjectively, especially the last 20 percent had me go through such a rollercoaster of emotions of shock and devastation that it emotionally is a 5 star read for me, but as a whole leaning towards a 4.5 star read. consequence of reading and getting invested in a first book of a series as an advanced copy, going to have to wait ages til the sequel. this was a strong, solid start and i have such high hopes and anticipations for the continuation of this series and following how these characters will grow in resolve to face what is next.