Reviews

Song of Silver, Flame Like Night by Amélie Wen Zhao

angelreadsfantasy's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I really liked the plot of this book and the world building. However I was pretty annoyed with how the world and the rules of the world were explained; it was one huge info-dump by one of the characters, and it didn't quite explain how the 'magic' of the Elantians worked. I also had some issues with the dual perspective; I liked Lan enough, but Zen... I wish I could like him, but everytime it switch to his perspective, the story felt disrupted. Aside form these minor issues I had with the book, the reading itself was quite enjoyable, and the side characters were all pretty loveable. 

aricaz's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes

3.75

agirlsnightbookbash's review

adventurous dark slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent

sehellys's review

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

An intriguing Chinese-folklore inspired fantasy with dual POV romance and intriguing plot. 
Unfortunately some parts of it fell a bit flat because some character development was not earned and because beautiful descriptive writing was occasionally jarringly interrupted by crass modern dialogue. As long as Lan didn't speak I enjoyed her character immensely. I also really liked Zen and his character arc but some parts of his story felt uncohesive and progressing too rapid, with too much or too little pay off for major plot points. 

Overall still an enjoyable read and I am intrigued enough to read the second part of this.

cobaltbookshelf's review against another edition

3.0

First of all, let’s take a moment to admire this gorgeous book cover. The first half of the book went surprisingly fast, secund not so much. Dynamic between Lan and Zen was sweet and the romance is charming. Overall, I would highly recommend this one to ya fantasy lovers.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

callistag1's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

2.75

I was bored while listening to it via audiobook. It wasn't bad, but I felt like I was just ready for it to be over.

adelle_bookworm's review against another edition

4.0

Slabší 4/5. Trvalo mi, než jsem se začetla, ale nakonec to bylo vcelku čtivé a bavilo mě to, bavil mě svět, jaký autorka představila, i princip, na němž fungoval. Akce tu funguje, její gradace taky. Jediné, co mě opravdu mrzí, je závěrem se Zenem, to bylo strašně ukvapené; u bitvy jsem se často ztrácela v tom, kam se Zen poděl a co s ním je, konec mi pak vůbec neseděl. Osobně mi to přijde neuzavřené, je dost očividně našlápnuto na další díl, ale přesto by to chtělo aspoň něco ucelenějšího. U qi a fungování magie by mi také nevadilo jít víc do hloubky, ale pro příběh to v základu stačilo. Líbil se mi Lanin sarkasmus, který to vše vyvažoval, i to asijské prostředí, a zajímavé mi přijde to podstrčení principu jin a jang skrze Lan a Zena, aniž bychom si to během čtení vyloženě uvědomovali.

starrysheep's review

emotional 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

5.0

skeindalous's review against another edition

adventurous slow-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

2.75

sorayah11's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0