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A review by bory
The Last Stand of Mary Good Crow by Rachel Aaron
5.0
I love everything about this book. I've been struggling with a fantasy reading slump ever since I read Legacy of Steel earlier this year, and The Last Stand of Mary Good Crow has put back a little "oomph" back into my reading mojo.
The magic system is weird, and unique-ish. In some ways, it reminded me of Sanderson's mist born, in that ingesting crystal gives you powers, though what they are and how they work is not nearly as well-defined as in Mistborn. A drawback of the soft magic system approach.
The Western Frontier setting is not my favorite, honestly, but it works here. In what other context would a rush to mine crystal work?
The characters are well-written, compelling, and relatable. Mary and Josie, in particular, are great both for their strengths and their weaknesses. Even Rel, whom I think is the most unlikable of the three principle protagonists, I found myself understanding and sympathizing with, even if in her circumstances I would have taken different actions.
If there's one thing I take issue with is that the book ends, kind of, not on one but on multiple cliffhangers. Talk about your metaphorical blue balls. I can't wait for the next installment.
The magic system is weird, and unique-ish. In some ways, it reminded me of Sanderson's mist born, in that ingesting crystal gives you powers, though what they are and how they work is not nearly as well-defined as in Mistborn. A drawback of the soft magic system approach.
The Western Frontier setting is not my favorite, honestly, but it works here. In what other context would a rush to mine crystal work?
The characters are well-written, compelling, and relatable. Mary and Josie, in particular, are great both for their strengths and their weaknesses. Even Rel, whom I think is the most unlikable of the three principle protagonists, I found myself understanding and sympathizing with, even if in her circumstances I would have taken different actions.
If there's one thing I take issue with is that the book ends, kind of, not on one but on multiple cliffhangers. Talk about your metaphorical blue balls. I can't wait for the next installment.