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4.49 AVERAGE
4.49 AVERAGE
Good pace, interesting story, curious moral conundrums.
Some gaps in the magic system (how does it not run out of energy at this pace?). The ending is not exactly "happy" so it's not clear what exactly all the sacrifices achievd
Some gaps in the magic system (how does it not run out of energy at this pace?). The ending is not exactly "happy" so it's not clear what exactly all the sacrifices achievd
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
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
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Absolutely devastating
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A nearly immaculate read; in fact it is so effective at getting across to the reader what is going on in the mind of the main character that it made the book less enjoyable for the first half even as I was aware of the incredible and all-too-realistic character work being done. The fact that I was infuriated for half of this book at the POV character is precisely the reason it is so good. The magic is utterly fascinating from the get-go and only becomes all the more intriguing as the nature of the darkness behind it is slowly revealed.
My only real issues with this book are a few points that I'm still struggling to wrap my head around-- namely the odd structural POV stuff (explanation of POV distribution spoilered ig?) and the fact that the critique felt almost too on-the-nose at times. Regarding the latter, I am unable to conjure ways in which I would have preferred these instances to be played out, so it feels somewhat unfair to critique these points, but there were times that just felt a touch too clean-cut or simplistic to be a proper breakdown of systemic injustices.
Odd POV stuff:Thomil is the POV character for the first chapter, then we are in Sciona's head for 180 pages before his next chapter. I initially thought this would be a situation where his POVs would be distributed like the bread of a club sandwich--important beginning and end to the story ad well as a tether of sorts in the middle--but that was not the case. Instead, he gets a fair share of POV time, but beyond the first chapter, its pretty much all in the latter half. In my opinion this sets the reader up to be jarred by his second POV chap, as I had found myself in that long Sciona span mistakenly thinking the first chapter was a prologue because we weren't getting any of that dual-POV back-and-forth.
My only real issues with this book are a few points that I'm still struggling to wrap my head around-- namely the odd structural POV stuff (explanation of POV distribution spoilered ig?) and the fact that the critique felt almost too on-the-nose at times. Regarding the latter, I am unable to conjure ways in which I would have preferred these instances to be played out, so it feels somewhat unfair to critique these points, but there were times that just felt a touch too clean-cut or simplistic to be a proper breakdown of systemic injustices.
Odd POV stuff:
dark
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
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