Reviews - The River Has Roots

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5.71k reviews for:

The River Has Roots

Amal El-Mohtar

4.25 AVERAGE

kronqvist_reads's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious relaxing fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

The world-building was top-notch. I appreciated how Amal subtly gave this fantasy world a vibrant texture with unique turns of phrase. The author managed to bring the fantasy world to life without clunky exposition. In fantasy, introducing the lore can sometimes bog down the story, but not here. It felt light and natural. The magic in this world is described as grammar, which is an interesting concept. It makes me curious to see if there are clever Easter eggs in the written book. However, I listened to the audiobook, which was its own reward. Song is central to the plot. Song and other audio cues were woven in, making for a very satisfying aural experience. After listening to this book, I would seek out Gem Carmella's other work. At the end of the audiobook, there was a preview of Amal El-Mohtar book of short stories, which was just as fascinating and unique in its fantasy world as The River Has Roots. I will certainly read whatever I can get my hands on from Amal in the future.

I wouldn't call this YA, but I could see this being a fun read for teen readers, too. The sister dynamic in the book would make it a really sweet read for two sisters to tackle together. Growing up, I read to my siblings a lot and would have loved to read this to my youngest sibling.