A review by chloehey
Spellslinger, by Sebastien de Castell
dark
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
I wanted to like this, but it disappointed me to so much. I saw a grand story full of intrigue and interesting plot points and character dynamics. But sadly I dreamed to big, and I got.... not what I wanted. And it pains me to give this 2 stars, it really was written well! But- it wasn't planned well. The question the back of the book asks (who and why is Ferius Parfax) isn't answered- or even focused on. Kellen is a nice character, but he, and everyone else is underwritten. This is a personal thing, and since it is a thing prominent in other cultures I understand why it happens. But names written with apostrophes (i.e.Ke'Heops, Jan'Tep Sha'Tep,) bug me, my eyes snag on them and it pulls me out of reading. There are many, and they bugged me everytime.
So intro to Kellen, bravely stomping onto the dueling ground to fight this "big bad" while all his "buddies" tell him to stop. Interesting. Okay, so he tricks Tennat into hurting himself, nice, Shalla does her bit of Drama, Kellen is dying. And he stays fully conscious-yet dying- for quite a while while we get a little peek into how the magic is done. Someone mutters about linking hearts- oh- but they are too weak. ENTER Ferius Parfax! The random cow-boy-woman(yes- I think she'd like that description. She's not your regular cowgirl) And she does uhhh.... CPR! with some magic powder thrown in. Hilarious, yet I thought she was going to link her heart to his and he'd have to be her sidekick. Much more interesting than her flitting in and out of the story at random moments, only there for a funny joke (and they were okay funny- but not the best, they were slightly sexist and of course very arrogant.)
The talking beasts Kellen made friends with were interesting, I liked how they were written. The magic was intriguing, but in the end nothing was tied together in a satisfying way.
Spoiler
So intro to Kellen, bravely stomping onto the dueling ground to fight this "big bad" while all his "buddies" tell him to stop. Interesting. Okay, so he tricks Tennat into hurting himself, nice, Shalla does her bit of Drama, Kellen is dying. And he stays fully conscious-yet dying- for quite a while while we get a little peek into how the magic is done. Someone mutters about linking hearts- oh- but they are too weak. ENTER Ferius Parfax! The random cow-boy-woman(yes- I think she'd like that description. She's not your regular cowgirl) And she does uhhh.... CPR! with some magic powder thrown in. Hilarious, yet I thought she was going to link her heart to his and he'd have to be her sidekick. Much more interesting than her flitting in and out of the story at random moments, only there for a funny joke (and they were okay funny- but not the best, they were slightly sexist and of course very arrogant.)
The talking beasts Kellen made friends with were interesting, I liked how they were written. The magic was intriguing, but in the end nothing was tied together in a satisfying way.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Sexism and Vomit