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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
Edit: Paul Krueger has been outed as a harasser recently. I'm rescinding my recommendation and will not be supporting the author moving forward.
A unique fantasy novel. I loved that it was LGBT friendly. Overall it was just okay.
This was a fun read with good worldbuilding. I can see where the Avatar and Pokemon comparisons come in, the world building seems heavily influenced by them. The author is a big anime fan and you can feel it. Overall It was a lot more positive and uplifting than most modern fantasy, which was a nice change of pace.
There's a great deal to like here! First, I genuinely welcome an alt-Earth story that's not set in alt-Europe or alt-America. I know just enough of the real colonial history 19th-20th Century Asia to appreciate where Mr Krueger chose to draw his inspiration, instead, and it rang true to me. The adventure story is almost breathless, moving along so rapidly and constantly that it's easy to lose track of how little actual time is passing, because so much is happening so quickly.
What I found I liked best, though, was that these characters were real young people caught up in their time period, with both the real histories of their mutually antagonistic countries on their minds, and all the "ordinary" problems of being a young adult. Each is supremely credible in their role. In particular, the struggle of Steel Prince Jimuro with imposter syndrome will, I think, ring true for anybody who ever found themselves in a position of great importance and uncertain if they were "really ready" for it!
There's a lot of threads and points of view in this book, but Krueger successfully weaves them all together. Despite being marketed as "#1" as if this were the opening of a trilogy, this book clearly stands on its own. What it leaves dangling is merely what real life leaves dangling--there's always tomorrow and new stuff is going to happen!
I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good magical adventure, a good alt-Earth fantasy set in a technological (rather than a mediaeval) time frame, or a good exploration of young adult characters with relatable emotions! Bonus if you're also looking for entirely positive, judgment-free treatment of LGBTQ+ characters, who abound throughout the book.
I look forward to seeing what Mr Krueger has in store for us next!
What I found I liked best, though, was that these characters were real young people caught up in their time period, with both the real histories of their mutually antagonistic countries on their minds, and all the "ordinary" problems of being a young adult. Each is supremely credible in their role. In particular, the struggle of Steel Prince Jimuro with imposter syndrome will, I think, ring true for anybody who ever found themselves in a position of great importance and uncertain if they were "really ready" for it!
There's a lot of threads and points of view in this book, but Krueger successfully weaves them all together. Despite being marketed as "#1" as if this were the opening of a trilogy, this book clearly stands on its own. What it leaves dangling is merely what real life leaves dangling--there's always tomorrow and new stuff is going to happen!
I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good magical adventure, a good alt-Earth fantasy set in a technological (rather than a mediaeval) time frame, or a good exploration of young adult characters with relatable emotions! Bonus if you're also looking for entirely positive, judgment-free treatment of LGBTQ+ characters, who abound throughout the book.
I look forward to seeing what Mr Krueger has in store for us next!
adventurous
tense
medium-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
An excellent and different fantasy
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I might be conservative in only giving this 4 stars. The world building was very good. I loved the Asian foundation. There were a good number of interesting and engaging characters. The story was slightly complex, but all the pieces tied together well.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I might be conservative in only giving this 4 stars. The world building was very good. I loved the Asian foundation. There were a good number of interesting and engaging characters. The story was slightly complex, but all the pieces tied together well.
Lost interest as I went along in this book. It was billed as Pokemon meets Avatar the Last Airbender, and I definitely can see that. It almost seems like the author thought “What would it be like in the Avatar world once the Fire Nation invasion was over” and took that plot and ran with it for his own world. I hope that makes sense.
I don’t think this book is bad by any means, but it just doesn’t hold my interest. The characters are in their late teens/early twenties, but it read like a YA book.
I don’t think this book is bad by any means, but it just doesn’t hold my interest. The characters are in their late teens/early twenties, but it read like a YA book.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
tense
slow-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
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
A fantasy epic with steady action, complex characters, representation, magic, and political intrigue, STEEL CROW SAGA is a story of characters attempting to navigate emotion and belief in a dangerous time.
The characters are all unique complex, interacting with each other in various and unexpected ways. They all have engaging chemistry, and I had a particular fondness for the eccentric Xiulan who gets in over her head with the ambitious thief, Lee.
The world building is inspired and fresh. It’s very immersive, which is important as the politics is where it gets complicated (politics, complicated? Shocking, I know!). Not just the moral implications, but the struggles each party has to face. At times it felt like the villains and antagonists didn’t get as much page time, but that time was spent building the primary characters, so it was a fair trade.
All of the action scenes were exciting and the use of bonded animals was really entertaining. This is a great book for anyone who likes complicated political fantasies inspired by Asian cultures.
The characters are all unique complex, interacting with each other in various and unexpected ways. They all have engaging chemistry, and I had a particular fondness for the eccentric Xiulan who gets in over her head with the ambitious thief, Lee.
The world building is inspired and fresh. It’s very immersive, which is important as the politics is where it gets complicated (politics, complicated? Shocking, I know!). Not just the moral implications, but the struggles each party has to face. At times it felt like the villains and antagonists didn’t get as much page time, but that time was spent building the primary characters, so it was a fair trade.
All of the action scenes were exciting and the use of bonded animals was really entertaining. This is a great book for anyone who likes complicated political fantasies inspired by Asian cultures.
Closer to a 3.5?
I generally liked this book, and it contained a lot of specific things that I liked as well. But the execution/writing style didn't really jive with me all the time.
Liked: The characters, in general. There were four primary characters who were all very different from each other, all had significant flaws and strengths, and all were compelling to different degrees. I found Tala the most compelling, personally (she felt the most real to me), but I didn't dislike any of the characters by the end.
The two different forms of pacting, and how differently they're seen by different factions. How Xiulan's sister was almost certainly going to be a better choice as ruler than Xiulan. The And finally, the entire post-war (but with still-simmering tensions and a ton of history) setting. I also thought the romance(s?) were decent. And the implications and ethics of pacting your brother and stealing pacts were interesting.
Disliked: Some of the author's writing tics drove me crazy. Like the way he drove home characters' qualities incessantly. For example, it seemed like every chapter people talked about how much Xiulan or Jimuro talked. Like, we get it already. Similarly, there were an absurd number of references to an obvious in-universe Sherlock Holmes knock-off. The first few times I kind of rolled my eyes and went along with it, but it kept happening over and over. This was honestly my biggest issue with the book; the really repetitive show-not-tell about the characters' qualities.
Also, I was increasingly irritated with how obviously the nations in the book were based on real countries on Earth. Even down to tea ceremonies, eating bulgogi, and naming conventions. If he wanted to make something based on Asian cultures, I didn't get the point of just changing the names of the kingdoms while they were obviously supposed to represent Japan, China, etc.
So in conclusion, it was a pretty good book that I liked in theory more than I did in actuality because of the execution of the writing and some of the author's choices.
I generally liked this book, and it contained a lot of specific things that I liked as well. But the execution/writing style didn't really jive with me all the time.
Liked: The characters, in general. There were four primary characters who were all very different from each other, all had significant flaws and strengths, and all were compelling to different degrees. I found Tala the most compelling, personally (she felt the most real to me), but I didn't dislike any of the characters by the end.
The two different forms of pacting, and how differently they're seen by different factions. How Xiulan's sister was almost certainly going to be a better choice as ruler than Xiulan. The And finally, the entire post-war (but with still-simmering tensions and a ton of history) setting. I also thought the romance(s?) were decent. And the implications and ethics of pacting your brother and stealing pacts were interesting.
Disliked: Some of the author's writing tics drove me crazy. Like the way he drove home characters' qualities incessantly. For example, it seemed like every chapter people talked about how much Xiulan or Jimuro talked. Like, we get it already. Similarly, there were an absurd number of references to an obvious in-universe Sherlock Holmes knock-off. The first few times I kind of rolled my eyes and went along with it, but it kept happening over and over. This was honestly my biggest issue with the book; the really repetitive show-not-tell about the characters' qualities.
Also, I was increasingly irritated with how obviously the nations in the book were based on real countries on Earth. Even down to tea ceremonies, eating bulgogi, and naming conventions. If he wanted to make something based on Asian cultures, I didn't get the point of just changing the names of the kingdoms while they were obviously supposed to represent Japan, China, etc.
So in conclusion, it was a pretty good book that I liked in theory more than I did in actuality because of the execution of the writing and some of the author's choices.