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pat17's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
mysterious
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
katieinca's review
5.0
I don't know whether the books got better, or it just takes me a thousand pages to get invested, but I was trying to read the 4th one of these while pushing the stroller yesterday. NOT a good idea, but worth a shot.
laumee's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
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? It's complicated
4.5
aliceboule's review
5.0
This installment in the Codex Alera series was OMG INCREDIBLE.
The other three were good. Tavi slowly grows into the man you want him to as he discovers that living means MORE than having furies. And the other characters grow with him.
Bernard becomes incredibly important and Amara as well (so does Isana). So the other books are (obviously) worth reading.
BUT THIS ONE IS JUST GREAT GREAT GREAT.
It has everything that I love: the incompetent that discovers hidden talent, swashbuckling romance, warfare, magic. I literally LIVE for books like this.
Whenever someone fakes it till they make it - and when they do its in epic proportions - thats when an author gets a spot on my love list.
Thank you Jim Butcher. For giving me the beautifulness that is Cursor’s Fury
The other three were good. Tavi slowly grows into the man you want him to as he discovers that living means MORE than having furies. And the other characters grow with him.
Bernard becomes incredibly important and Amara as well (so does Isana). So the other books are (obviously) worth reading.
BUT THIS ONE IS JUST GREAT GREAT GREAT.
It has everything that I love: the incompetent that discovers hidden talent, swashbuckling romance, warfare, magic. I literally LIVE for books like this.
Whenever someone fakes it till they make it - and when they do its in epic proportions - thats when an author gets a spot on my love list.
Thank you Jim Butcher. For giving me the beautifulness that is Cursor’s Fury
mlenore's review against another edition
adventurous
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? It's complicated
5.0
aggressive_nostalgia's review
4.0
So, so, so. I’m assigning this book a rating of four stars, which is a compromise between how I feel this book performs technically (three stars…possibly three and a half) and the emotional experience of reading it (solid five stars). This isn’t a disclaimer I usually have to put in front of reviews—because normally books with these kinds of flaws aren’t fun for me to read. But Cursor’s Fury is a surprising exception.
(Fair warning: it’s been less than a day since I finished this book, so the review might ramble a bit, bathed as it is in the sheen of triumph and joy that descends on someone upon finishing an especially enjoyable book.)
The big “twists” in this book will be patently obvious to any moderately experienced reader of high fantasy. I can’t speak to the realism of the First Aleran’s military structure and the decisions made within it (but I’m skeptical). Occasionally, Butcher tries a little to hard to be loquacious and ends up writing a few flat-out confusing sentences. Exposition was maybe a little (read: definitely a lot) overused at times, generally when characters were recapping events to each other and explaining every single twist and turn of their thought processes.
Yet as unsurprising and potentially implausible as this story was, I loved every minute of reading it. I did not care about its flaws while I was reading it, and I don’t care (much) after finishing it. It was awesome. Even though the major twists fall a little flat, all the little moments in between were gripping and suspenseful and emotional in all the right places. There were a few good laugh-out-loud-funny moments. I was immersed with no regrets. I love (or hate, as necessary) the characters—almost all of them (Amara still grates on me a little), which doesn’t happen to me very often in books with a character roster this big and diverse. Almost every protagonist and many supporting characters undergo some extent of development, which again, given the size of the cast, I find pretty impressive.
(Speaking of characters: major shout-out to Tavi for keeping his angst about not being able to furycraft to a minimum throughout this series. I can’t overstate how refreshing it is that we the readers know that Tavi feels that emptiness and is frustrated and saddened by it, but don’t have it shoved in our faces every ten pages. He has brief, occasional moments of acknowledging how much it sucks for him that he can’t craft, and then gets on with the business of being awesome in spite of it. Well done.)
I also liked that Butcher didn’t go the route of “Oh no! His secret identity has been discovered! Trouble! Panic! Super awkwardness! Instant distrust! Major character regression!” which I thought might happen from when Tavi first went undercover. Not that that’s never a valid plot, but I personally hate reading that kind of thing and it would have been much less interesting than what actually did happen.
I couldn’t put the book down throughout the whole battle at the Elinarch—and I usually don’t even like massive, extended battle sequences in literature. Butcher’s imagery was quite clear and easy to follow without being simplistic, as was the actual strategy used by the characters. I was pleased to find that, in my opinion, Tavi’s touted genius isn’t too lofty a label: his synthesis of old Romanic engineering with others’ crafting is actually pretty brilliant, as well as unique. Go big or go home—but, unlike many attempts at this trope, which end up feeling contrived or underwhelming, Butcher actually succeeds in making his likable and empathetic main character a total badass.
One more small thing:
I have the fourth Codex Alera book on hold at the library. Now that we have what I feel are the biggest/most obvious reveals out of the way, I have high hopes that the later installments in the series will be less predictable and more technically excellent, while being just as much fun to read. Huzzah!
(Fair warning: it’s been less than a day since I finished this book, so the review might ramble a bit, bathed as it is in the sheen of triumph and joy that descends on someone upon finishing an especially enjoyable book.)
The big “twists” in this book will be patently obvious to any moderately experienced reader of high fantasy. I can’t speak to the realism of the First Aleran’s military structure and the decisions made within it (but I’m skeptical). Occasionally, Butcher tries a little to hard to be loquacious and ends up writing a few flat-out confusing sentences. Exposition was maybe a little (read: definitely a lot) overused at times, generally when characters were recapping events to each other and explaining every single twist and turn of their thought processes.
Yet as unsurprising and potentially implausible as this story was, I loved every minute of reading it. I did not care about its flaws while I was reading it, and I don’t care (much) after finishing it. It was awesome. Even though the major twists fall a little flat, all the little moments in between were gripping and suspenseful and emotional in all the right places. There were a few good laugh-out-loud-funny moments. I was immersed with no regrets. I love (or hate, as necessary) the characters—almost all of them (Amara still grates on me a little), which doesn’t happen to me very often in books with a character roster this big and diverse. Almost every protagonist and many supporting characters undergo some extent of development, which again, given the size of the cast, I find pretty impressive.
(Speaking of characters: major shout-out to Tavi for keeping his angst about not being able to furycraft to a minimum throughout this series. I can’t overstate how refreshing it is that we the readers know that Tavi feels that emptiness and is frustrated and saddened by it, but don’t have it shoved in our faces every ten pages. He has brief, occasional moments of acknowledging how much it sucks for him that he can’t craft, and then gets on with the business of being awesome in spite of it. Well done.)
I also liked that Butcher didn’t go the route of “Oh no! His secret identity has been discovered! Trouble! Panic! Super awkwardness! Instant distrust! Major character regression!” which I thought might happen from when Tavi first went undercover. Not that that’s never a valid plot, but I personally hate reading that kind of thing and it would have been much less interesting than what actually did happen.
I couldn’t put the book down throughout the whole battle at the Elinarch—and I usually don’t even like massive, extended battle sequences in literature. Butcher’s imagery was quite clear and easy to follow without being simplistic, as was the actual strategy used by the characters. I was pleased to find that, in my opinion, Tavi’s touted genius isn’t too lofty a label: his synthesis of old Romanic engineering with others’ crafting is actually pretty brilliant, as well as unique. Go big or go home—but, unlike many attempts at this trope, which end up feeling contrived or underwhelming, Butcher actually succeeds in making his likable and empathetic main character a total badass.
One more small thing:
Spoiler
I have to say I really enjoyed that Tavi’s first use of furycrafting was some minor thing that nobody (who would have been impressed) even saw, rather than a gigantic, conveniently day-saving event witnessed by an awed assemblage of key characters (which kind of revelation is, as a writer, sorely tempting). It kept the focus squarely on the interaction between the characters in the scene rather than milking the moment for spectacle and plot advancement (which we had plenty of int he previous several chapters). (It was also pretty humorous. “Off! On! Off! On! Off! Did you see it, Kitai?”) Very nicely done.I have the fourth Codex Alera book on hold at the library. Now that we have what I feel are the biggest/most obvious reveals out of the way, I have high hopes that the later installments in the series will be less predictable and more technically excellent, while being just as much fun to read. Huzzah!
embereye's review
3.0
Continuing the Codex Alera chronicles, this is a pretty fun sword and sorcery military-esque addition. The politics and intrigue continues and I feel that Butcher pulls it off and keeps me interested.
jonell5425's review
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
yellauraya's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 of 5 stars
-----
I know I've said it a lot of times before but I'll say it again: Tavi is just so damn good and I loved him so much! He proved his skills, cleverness, resourcefulness and courage once more in this book. I can no longer picture the small teenage Tavi herding sheeps and gargants in his steadholt many years ago. All I can see is a young man, who managed to catch up with his delayed growth spurt, able to lead and commandeer an entire legion to manipulate and outwit their enemies. Though being furycrafted is obviously a serious matter for him and for everyone, it honestly didn't bother me anymore if he's furyless. I mean, furyless or not, his brain is his best asset and he's clearly more capable than anyone around him. I'll give anything just to see his trademark wide grin whenever a slyly clever idea comes to his mind. I can't trade a smart main character for anything else!
I've always wanted a very intense battle and I was able to achieved it once more! There were different battles to fight in this book and even as intense as the others but Tavi's battle was my favorite. Always. It always kept me on the edge of my seat! No. The whole book kept me on the edge of my seat the whole freaking time!
I think this series already proved its remarkable quality. The content, both plot and character building, continued its consistency to offer an intense build-up to the story. The ending and that spoiler-y twist?? OH! MY! GOD! It didn't cross my mind, even for just a second! And that epilogue part opened a lot of possible events to happen in the future! I'm already itching to read the next book!
-----
I know I've said it a lot of times before but I'll say it again: Tavi is just so damn good and I loved him so much! He proved his skills, cleverness, resourcefulness and courage once more in this book. I can no longer picture the small teenage Tavi herding sheeps and gargants in his steadholt many years ago. All I can see is a young man, who managed to catch up with his delayed growth spurt, able to lead and commandeer an entire legion to manipulate and outwit their enemies. Though being furycrafted is obviously a serious matter for him and for everyone, it honestly didn't bother me anymore if he's furyless. I mean, furyless or not, his brain is his best asset and he's clearly more capable than anyone around him. I'll give anything just to see his trademark wide grin whenever a slyly clever idea comes to his mind. I can't trade a smart main character for anything else!
I've always wanted a very intense battle and I was able to achieved it once more! There were different battles to fight in this book and even as intense as the others but Tavi's battle was my favorite. Always. It always kept me on the edge of my seat! No. The whole book kept me on the edge of my seat the whole freaking time!
I think this series already proved its remarkable quality. The content, both plot and character building, continued its consistency to offer an intense build-up to the story. The ending and that spoiler-y twist?? OH! MY! GOD! It didn't cross my mind, even for just a second! And that epilogue part opened a lot of possible events to happen in the future! I'm already itching to read the next book!
karinlib's review
4.0
Non-stop action, almost too much of a good thing. I am continuing to enjoy this series.