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rilester's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
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? No
4.0
kek513's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
jaelynq's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
gracebirdly's review against another edition
4.5
This whole book was wild, it was disturbing, I never knew where the plot would go and yet I loved it. The characters were memorable and the story is so unexpected. It was disturbing though. I feel the need to say it again. It was disturbing.
saegelsomino's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is one of the most unique books I’ve ever read and I’m still wrapping my brain around it.
It’s fantasy, but feels really genre-bending in some ways. At times it feels sci-fi like, the gratuitous violence often feels like a horror, there’s a murderous crime at the centre that feels like a mystery, and somehow with all this going on there’s also a decent amount of humour and wit. It’s one of those stories that you wonder how it’s possible someone actually came up with it, there are so many components and stories and twists that you get a bit of whiplash.
The characters were all interesting and unlikeable to varying degrees, and the “magic” that wasn’t magic was complex and mysterious in ways that never full unravel. The plot was dense and it took a fair bit of time for the connections to start weaving together but once they did, I couldn’t put it down.
This novel was a ride that I wasn’t expecting and I loved every minute of it. An easy 5 stars for me.
It’s fantasy, but feels really genre-bending in some ways. At times it feels sci-fi like, the gratuitous violence often feels like a horror, there’s a murderous crime at the centre that feels like a mystery, and somehow with all this going on there’s also a decent amount of humour and wit. It’s one of those stories that you wonder how it’s possible someone actually came up with it, there are so many components and stories and twists that you get a bit of whiplash.
The characters were all interesting and unlikeable to varying degrees, and the “magic” that wasn’t magic was complex and mysterious in ways that never full unravel. The plot was dense and it took a fair bit of time for the connections to start weaving together but once they did, I couldn’t put it down.
This novel was a ride that I wasn’t expecting and I loved every minute of it. An easy 5 stars for me.
melonhead1215's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book is fucking weird. Like soooo weird. I picked it up because a booktuber I enjoy likened it to The Locked Tomb and at that point, nothing can scare me off.
It’s so weird, though. The beginning was really slow for me because you are just thrown into the plot, introduced to so many characters, and have to wait to really get into the logic of the storyline. I didn’t fully understand everything, but again. After Tamsyn, this isn’t an issue at all. By the middle I was hooked and I did actually love the ending. Overall, this was a fun time. It was definitely something different from my usual reads.
It’s so weird, though. The beginning was really slow for me because you are just thrown into the plot, introduced to so many characters, and have to wait to really get into the logic of the storyline. I didn’t fully understand everything, but again. After Tamsyn, this isn’t an issue at all. By the middle I was hooked and I did actually love the ending. Overall, this was a fun time. It was definitely something different from my usual reads.
yak_attak's review against another edition
3.5
The Library at Mount Char is mainly strange, and in such a way that it's fairly difficult to discuss it without really grappling with whatever the fuck is going on her, in many ways to its credit. There's not a lot of 'let's slow down and make everything obvious now' (even if the characters constantly say that there will be) and a lot of the side details, world building whatchamacallems are all kept at a distance, letting you fill in the blanks to your heart's content.
But we can take a stab at it. A love story, revenge story, somewhat about the dangers of hubris, and somewhat about the inhumanity and dispassion that knowledge and power bring, told through a modern lens of... greek gods? Or something like them at any rate. There's infinite cosmos, and there's a murderer war machine guy who wears a tutu. It never quite falls into modern hyuck hyuck jokey fiction, but it's on the line, and the straightforward prose doesn't enhance much (an early complaint? The character who knows every language ever for all time doesn't speak any differently than any other character. it's... a missed opportunity.)
It's just a... strange book, one that I did enjoy reading and appreciate, but I'm not sure it's particular blend of nonsense is quite my thing. And though I expect that's more likely than not, it's also one that it does seem like people should try.
But we can take a stab at it. A love story, revenge story, somewhat about the dangers of hubris, and somewhat about the inhumanity and dispassion that knowledge and power bring, told through a modern lens of... greek gods? Or something like them at any rate. There's infinite cosmos, and there's a murderer war machine guy who wears a tutu. It never quite falls into modern hyuck hyuck jokey fiction, but it's on the line, and the straightforward prose doesn't enhance much (an early complaint? The character who knows every language ever for all time doesn't speak any differently than any other character. it's... a missed opportunity.)
It's just a... strange book, one that I did enjoy reading and appreciate, but I'm not sure it's particular blend of nonsense is quite my thing. And though I expect that's more likely than not, it's also one that it does seem like people should try.
redknightrabbit's review against another edition
challenging
dark
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
polarbear2023's review against another edition
5.0
It's literally sooooo fuckinh good and insane and psychotic like I fuckinh love it bruh you don't understand she's beautiful