A review by bookwisp
Malice by John Gwynne

adventurous medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

This is a difficult review to write. On the one hand, this was a so-so read, despite Corban's coming-of-age story (I'm a sucker for those types of arcs). On the other, I've been left with the distinct sense that this first book in the quartet is very much intended to introduce the reader to the chessboard and for both sides to make their opening moves. I don't think it's supposed to have knocked my socks off, if that makes sense.

There are a lot of names and places to keep track of. I was extremely glad of the Kindle search and X-ray functions which helped me to keep track of characters and alliances. Even so, it was a bit of a struggle. Also, I do have some gripes about the overall lack of female characters (and some about the handling of the female characters we did get), but as I believe Cywen might play a bigger role in the second book, I'll (mostly) hold my peace on this one.

If I'm honest, I was mostly reading for Corban's POV. And yet?? I did get through all ~640 pages, so Gwynne's done something right. Overall, I can't say I was blown away, but there's something about the pacing and the plotting that has left me wanting to read on. 
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