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4.27 AVERAGE
4.27 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
funny
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:
Yes
dark
funny
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:
Yes
I was immediately captured by the tagline “lesbian necromancers in space”. I didn’t need to know anything else before diving in. I was pleasantly surprised by what I discovered: lovable, interesting, cantankerous characters that I could not get enough of; scathing banter and so much sass; a gruesome, gothic setting and a matching complex magic system; and a riveting, gripping story line.
I did need to reread some parts a couple of times. The world-building is intricate and there are so many characters I had to keep straight. I was grateful for the list of characters and the glossary provided by the author. I referred to both quite a few times.
I did need to reread some parts a couple of times. The world-building is intricate and there are so many characters I had to keep straight. I was grateful for the list of characters and the glossary provided by the author. I referred to both quite a few times.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
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
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
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:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
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
Around 2.5 stars on this one. It's hard to know what I think about it because I spent most of it wondering what the hell was going on. For some people, this enhances the ultimate clarity, but for me, it clouds it. I like knowing the stakes and feeling grounded in the narrative, not being confused by the workings of this world and being led around bony dark locations in a disjointed sort of way. Something will happen before it's introduced, someone will say something presumably important but won't explain anything, and it's not intriguing but frustrating. Even the characters who supposedly know what's going on don't ask the important questions . And how do these trials and mystery locations really determine anything? There are ways to conceal information from the reader without leaving them groping in the dark.
The swordfighting is enough to get by but for me, most of the cavaliers and especially Gideon came off as amateur fighters because of the mistakes they made. When Gideon had to adjust to a new weapon, the discussion of her training made it sound as though she lacked fundamentals for any kind of swordfighting, and the author also seemed to conflate historical fighting with pop culture "swordfighting" which is essentially fencing. Sometimes it seemed like she didn't know what to write besides parrying, so she made them play dirty and throw hands.
Speaking of Gideon, her mix of modern slang into whatever atmosphere the book tried to achieve didn't appeal to me, but it effectively made her sound like a teenager.
There are other teenage characters, but with the exception of the characters specifically referred to as teenagers, they all came off as adults.
Gideon is also so willing to escape her prior life that she unflinchingly goes along with everything (as a loyal cavalier should), which maintains reader confusion but works out pretty well in her favor because.
A few more small things:
-the big plot twist is the so I think it works okay.
-there are some contrived elements, like
-Necromancers be like *create skeletons that fight for them* and I think that's kinda epic
Spoiler
like the necromancers' late realization that there are a limited number of keysThe swordfighting is enough to get by but for me, most of the cavaliers and especially Gideon came off as amateur fighters because of the mistakes they made. When Gideon had to adjust to a new weapon, the discussion of her training made it sound as though she lacked fundamentals for any kind of swordfighting, and the author also seemed to conflate historical fighting with pop culture "swordfighting" which is essentially fencing. Sometimes it seemed like she didn't know what to write besides parrying, so she made them play dirty and throw hands.
Speaking of Gideon, her mix of modern slang into whatever atmosphere the book tried to achieve didn't appeal to me, but it effectively made her sound like a teenager.
There are other teenage characters, but with the exception of the characters specifically referred to as teenagers, they all came off as adults.
Gideon is also so willing to escape her prior life that she unflinchingly goes along with everything (as a loyal cavalier should), which maintains reader confusion but works out pretty well in her favor because
Spoiler
Harrow is completely undone by itA few more small things:
-the big plot twist is the
Spoiler
classic "sick/weak character that no one suspects could possibly be guilty," but the way she's an imposter is pretty cool-there are some contrived elements, like
Spoiler
needing to be submerged in salt water, but I don't blame the author for wanting to write a pool scene and it turned out well so I can't really complain-Necromancers be like *create skeletons that fight for them* and I think that's kinda epic
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-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:
Yes
I read this about 2 years ago and HATED it. I came away feeling like I was too dumb to understand what I had just read. But this time I enjoyed it. The plot mostly made sense to me. There are just sometimes where I think it is way too wordy.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced