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4.25 AVERAGE
4.25 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Again, Erikson awes me with his pure narrative power.
If you are a fan of majestic fantasy plots and cogent prose in tandem, then read Erikson.
I have nothing else to say.
If you are a fan of majestic fantasy plots and cogent prose in tandem, then read Erikson.
I have nothing else to say.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Although this took me FOREVER, I loved every step of the way. This was better than the last and gave me a better understanding of the characters and their personalities/motivations. I still have so many questions but I'm assuming they will be answered in the upcoming books. Can't wait for Memories of Ice!
Great world (still), great writing, great characters. The only reason I don't 5 star this is it takes a while to get going. On that note, I love how each of the first two books have a different feel in many ways, though there is clear connectivity between them. The world is huge and interesting. The magic system is fascinating. Everything is top notch. I have a feeling that I'm going to love this whole series, but it's such an undertaking that I'll spend a whole lot of time on it. Looking forward to some faster lighter reads.
Wow. Excellent book. Not light.
One of the most unpredictable books I've read in a long time, which is rare for me. Compelling characters you want to love (and hate), and one of the few books successful in not really having a singular protagonist or side you're rooting for. It's rare to find a book where you want multiple characters from multiple sides to "win."
Be aware, however, that it's... descriptive of a very bitter war. There's some dark stuff in here. And Erikson is more than happy to kill off characters we've come to know and love without either warning or great import (though he's not like some who seem to deliberately make you fall in love with a character SO they can kill them). It's part of what makes the book realistic and compelling, you NEED to read the book to find out who survives, but it's also a little painful when you think you've found someone who's going to make it and suddenly they don't. And when they don't, sometimes it's in a grand stand to save thousands... and other times it's a stray bolt or a sudden act that is almost random.
Really good, really really good.
I also have to say I *love* the world. The magic system feels like it has rules, and the world *feels* old, even before any year numbers are mentioned (and when they're mentioned, woooboy). Old (non-Jordanstyle-cyclic) worlds are much harder
One of the most unpredictable books I've read in a long time, which is rare for me. Compelling characters you want to love (and hate), and one of the few books successful in not really having a singular protagonist or side you're rooting for. It's rare to find a book where you want multiple characters from multiple sides to "win."
Be aware, however, that it's... descriptive of a very bitter war. There's some dark stuff in here. And Erikson is more than happy to kill off characters we've come to know and love without either warning or great import (though he's not like some who seem to deliberately make you fall in love with a character SO they can kill them). It's part of what makes the book realistic and compelling, you NEED to read the book to find out who survives, but it's also a little painful when you think you've found someone who's going to make it and suddenly they don't. And when they don't, sometimes it's in a grand stand to save thousands... and other times it's a stray bolt or a sudden act that is almost random.
Really good, really really good.
I also have to say I *love* the world. The magic system feels like it has rules, and the world *feels* old, even before any year numbers are mentioned (and when they're mentioned, woooboy). Old (non-Jordanstyle-cyclic) worlds are much harder
Characters you don't care about talking about things you don't care about while traveling to places you don't care about followed by crazy magic or battles. Repeat for 600 hard cover pages.
That's the best way I could sum up this book, and it's the reason it took me two attempts to even finish it. This book is a complete slog for 20 of the 24 chapters. It sneaked it's way to a low 3/5 on the strength of the final 4 chapters. Still I didn't have enough connection to the characters to even make those events have the impact that they should.
That is by and large the biggest problem with this book and series. It's not that it's confusing as in it's hard to tell what is going on. It's that so much context is purposefully concealed from the reader that I find it hard to relate to any of the characters or events. There is crazy epic stuff that happens, but often I know I'm supposed to feel emotional or pained about what I just read, particularly in this book, but often I just don't care.
Honestly, there was really only one group of characters I cared about at all in this book, and that would be the Fiddler, Crokus, Apsalar, Mappo/Icarium bunch. What they were doing was always interesting, but when the pov shifted to a Felisin or especially a Duiker chapter I couldn't have been less interested. The Duiker stuff was some of the most dry stuff I've read in fantasy and it felt like a large majority of the book. It also doesn't help that the dialogue often does not in any way feel like real people talking or having a conversation. I'm ok with characters in fantasy not speaking in modern language since a lot of times that can be just as bad (see Sanderson and Lift), but I also don't buy characters constantly spouting off philosophical mumbo jumbo like it's every day speech. It comes off as a little pretentious, and takes me out of the story.
For that reason this book was definitely a 2/5 for the first 20 out of 24 chapters. It pained me to read most of it, and it felt more like a grind than some sort of entertainment. That being said the conclusion to the book is quite good as the plot lines converge and some reveals are made. Kalam finally ended up doing some really cool stuff after spending way too long doing nothing except traveling and being forever stuck in that boring boat side plot. It was interesting enough to bump it up to a 3, but I wish I wouldn't have had to read 20 other chapters to feel that way first.
Editing this because as I think about it the ending was much better than the rest, but as time has passed the book hasn't gotten better but worse. It really feels like a book that didn't deserve the 1 star bump I gave it so I'm moving it back.
That's the best way I could sum up this book, and it's the reason it took me two attempts to even finish it. This book is a complete slog for 20 of the 24 chapters. It sneaked it's way to a low 3/5 on the strength of the final 4 chapters. Still I didn't have enough connection to the characters to even make those events have the impact that they should.
That is by and large the biggest problem with this book and series. It's not that it's confusing as in it's hard to tell what is going on. It's that so much context is purposefully concealed from the reader that I find it hard to relate to any of the characters or events. There is crazy epic stuff that happens, but often I know I'm supposed to feel emotional or pained about what I just read, particularly in this book, but often I just don't care.
Honestly, there was really only one group of characters I cared about at all in this book, and that would be the Fiddler, Crokus, Apsalar, Mappo/Icarium bunch. What they were doing was always interesting, but when the pov shifted to a Felisin or especially a Duiker chapter I couldn't have been less interested. The Duiker stuff was some of the most dry stuff I've read in fantasy and it felt like a large majority of the book. It also doesn't help that the dialogue often does not in any way feel like real people talking or having a conversation. I'm ok with characters in fantasy not speaking in modern language since a lot of times that can be just as bad (see Sanderson and Lift), but I also don't buy characters constantly spouting off philosophical mumbo jumbo like it's every day speech. It comes off as a little pretentious, and takes me out of the story.
For that reason this book was definitely a 2/5 for the first 20 out of 24 chapters. It pained me to read most of it, and it felt more like a grind than some sort of entertainment. That being said the conclusion to the book is quite good as the plot lines converge and some reveals are made. Kalam finally ended up doing some really cool stuff after spending way too long doing nothing except traveling and being forever stuck in that boring boat side plot. It was interesting enough to bump it up to a 3, but I wish I wouldn't have had to read 20 other chapters to feel that way first.
Editing this because as I think about it the ending was much better than the rest, but as time has passed the book hasn't gotten better but worse. It really feels like a book that didn't deserve the 1 star bump I gave it so I'm moving it back.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
The ending of this book.....
I've finished reading it, but I don't know what to say.
I need a few days.
I've finished reading it, but I don't know what to say.
I need a few days.