Scan barcode
calathean's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
This book made me realise how much I enjoy reading about characters who are deeply loyal to a person, even at their own expense. Both Kel and Lin are very loyal main characters - Lin in wanting to save her best friend's life and Kel in living to protect Conor at all cost even dying for him if necessary. Likeable characters, strong friendships, strong worldbuilding within Castellane. The toxicity of the friendship between Conor and Kel due to the power imbalance and Kel literally being Conor's shield despite the friendship itself being genuine and Conor not wanting Kel to die or treating him like a servant at all is delicious. The worldbuilidng was a bit difficult to follow when it comes to the world outside Castellane, I'm still not sure which country is which and what their deal is. And it was also difficult to remember all the nobles and not get Conor's friends mixed up.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Child death, Medical content, and Violence
Moderate: Classism, Sexism, Blood, Murder, Xenophobia, Chronic illness, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death of parent, Physical abuse, Vomit, Sexual content, Drug use, and Rape
black_swan_3000's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Minor: Suicide and Rape
sleu's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
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? It's complicated
4.0
I went into reading this not knowing or having read anything by Cassandra Clare and also not knowing anything about this book beyond its title- I didn’t even read the dust jacket/back of the book. I liked it and will keep reading the series. But I would have loved a map of all of Dannemore and not just Castellane! Many reviews I read after reading the book and before writing this were negative because there was too much world building. I have never thought of myself as loving heavy world building but maybe I do because this didn’t seem like too much. I loved reading all the details of this world and why things are the way they are.
However, this book did feel slow until the second half/last third. And it left many things unanswered, but that doesn’t seem unusual to a first book in a series of at least four books. This book definitely felt largely like set up for whatever else is to come while also sowing the seeds of questions/mysteries still to be answered. The characters are also complex. I don’t fully love any of the characters- but that’s ok there are still parts of most characters that I do love. Everyone has flaws and no one is all good or all bad in real life anyway.
Although this is an adult fantasy book and has some mature themes, it felt YA sometimes. The story is a lot of fantasy (political intrigue and maneuvering) with a small amount of romance in the background, and the romance that exists is still in slow burn phase aka not a lot of pay off yet. I liked how (to me at least) I couldn’t tell where the romance was going. When I first started reading it I thought character A and B would be romantically linked but then that changed, and then changed again and honestly even though it is clear by the end what characters currently have feelings for each other- I would not be surprised if it changes again in future books. And I like that. It’s not set in stone yet who is supposed to be with whom- though I have no doubt that many readers have strong and varying opinions about this. The characters seem to have multiple potential romantic interests and I’m excited to see who ends up with whom. But again, the main part of the story is not the romance- it’s about what is going on in Castellane and issues that the characters are dealing with.
Unlike some readers who consider it a cop out to use elements of cultures that exist in our world (e.g. Italy, France, India, China, Korea) in fantasy world building, I liked it as it made the world building easier to grasp. I also really liked that the Ashkar have many similarities to Jewish traditions and history. You don’t often get that in fantasy books.
I could say more about this book but don’t want to make this much longer than it already is, so if you like more romance with a backdrop of fantasy this probably isn’t for you. At least not at this point in the series. If you like a lot of set up/world building and having lots of unsolved mysteries at the end, you will like it - and if you don’t then maybe wait until the second book comes out before deciding whether or not to read it.
Ancient texts, magic, political intrigue among noble families and between the various countries, class structure, criminal underworld, characters that struggle with prejudice and identity/belonging, secrets, and more are found in this story. This is not a fast paced story centered around a love story but it is a good first book in a traditional fantasy series that I think is a good set up for faster paced books to come.
However, this book did feel slow until the second half/last third. And it left many things unanswered, but that doesn’t seem unusual to a first book in a series of at least four books. This book definitely felt largely like set up for whatever else is to come while also sowing the seeds of questions/mysteries still to be answered. The characters are also complex. I don’t fully love any of the characters- but that’s ok there are still parts of most characters that I do love. Everyone has flaws and no one is all good or all bad in real life anyway.
Although this is an adult fantasy book and has some mature themes, it felt YA sometimes. The story is a lot of fantasy (political intrigue and maneuvering) with a small amount of romance in the background, and the romance that exists is still in slow burn phase aka not a lot of pay off yet. I liked how (to me at least) I couldn’t tell where the romance was going. When I first started reading it I thought character A and B would be romantically linked but then that changed, and then changed again and honestly even though it is clear by the end what characters currently have feelings for each other- I would not be surprised if it changes again in future books. And I like that. It’s not set in stone yet who is supposed to be with whom- though I have no doubt that many readers have strong and varying opinions about this. The characters seem to have multiple potential romantic interests and I’m excited to see who ends up with whom. But again, the main part of the story is not the romance- it’s about what is going on in Castellane and issues that the characters are dealing with.
Unlike some readers who consider it a cop out to use elements of cultures that exist in our world (e.g. Italy, France, India, China, Korea) in fantasy world building, I liked it as it made the world building easier to grasp. I also really liked that the Ashkar have many similarities to Jewish traditions and history. You don’t often get that in fantasy books.
I could say more about this book but don’t want to make this much longer than it already is, so if you like more romance with a backdrop of fantasy this probably isn’t for you. At least not at this point in the series. If you like a lot of set up/world building and having lots of unsolved mysteries at the end, you will like it - and if you don’t then maybe wait until the second book comes out before deciding whether or not to read it.
Ancient texts, magic, political intrigue among noble families and between the various countries, class structure, criminal underworld, characters that struggle with prejudice and identity/belonging, secrets, and more are found in this story. This is not a fast paced story centered around a love story but it is a good first book in a traditional fantasy series that I think is a good set up for faster paced books to come.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Classism
Minor: Child death, Death of parent, and Rape
lizzelovesbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
This is my first Cassandra Clare book, and here's a breakdown of my thoughts on Sword Catcher:
- That 40 page prologue should have been a novella sold later down the line. It tells us nothing of (current) import to the story line and is quoted back so often, we didn't need to read it in its entirety in the first place.
- If not for the fact that I was listening to the audiobook at the same time, I would have DNFed. I did DNF for a while till my Libby lend of the audiobook came up.
- The info dumping has no rhyme or reason to it. I understand wanting to bring the world to life, but I honestly wanted to zone off through most of it.
- Things only get really interesting in the last chapter. Until this chapter, I was convinced I wouldn't pick up the next book. I'm still not convinced.
- I beg of you, we need shorter chapters.
Any other criticisms don't feel objective or constructive enough to mention. As I said I haven't read any other of this authors work so I'm not sure if this style is typical for her, but it wasn't a vibe for me. I'll edit this review if I pick up the sequel.
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
mobkima's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Super long exposition that takes up half the book. While Clare is great at descriptions of clothes and scenery, she can be a bit wordy in this novel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia and Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Rape
chemnerd1023's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
elizabeth_lepore's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Misogyny, Blood, Alcohol, Rape, Medical content, and Sexual content
Minor: Drug use and Injury/Injury detail
annakh16's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.25
This was great fun. I loved getting to know the world of Castellan - yes, it was slightly heavy on the description sometimes, but overall I think the attention to detail is a strength of the book. Clare builds an intricate and rich world that emerges vividly from the pages.
The characters were also a big plus for this book for me. I loved spending time with Lin and Kel - they’re lovable and interesting to equal measures - and the web of side characters and their many intricacies and connections kept the story going. I definitely hope to see more of their backstories in the next book. (Also Merren fan club, anyone?)
I agree with the people saying the book can feel a bit like merely a prologue to the next instalment. I didn’t mind that too much - exploring the world and relationships in it was enough for me for now, and I think there’s still enough plot to keep it interesting. It all depends on what Clare does with all the plots she teased in the next book.
Some more spoiler critiques: Lin and Connor, why? She‘s much too smart and dedicated for him. Not a fan of whatever exactly their relationship is.
I also think Vienne‘s death came too abruptly (fighting like „Demoselle Death“ in one second and being killed like a fly in the next?) and was a bit of a missed opportunity. Would’ve loved to see more of her.
Overall really enjoyed this and looking forward to the next book.
The characters were also a big plus for this book for me. I loved spending time with Lin and Kel - they’re lovable and interesting to equal measures - and the web of side characters and their many intricacies and connections kept the story going. I definitely hope to see more of their backstories in the next book. (Also Merren fan club, anyone?)
I agree with the people saying the book can feel a bit like merely a prologue to the next instalment. I didn’t mind that too much - exploring the world and relationships in it was enough for me for now, and I think there’s still enough plot to keep it interesting. It all depends on what Clare does with all the plots she teased in the next book.
Some more spoiler critiques:
I also think Vienne‘s death came too abruptly (fighting like „Demoselle Death“ in one second and being killed like a fly in the next?) and was a bit of a missed opportunity. Would’ve loved to see more of her.
Overall really enjoyed this and looking forward to the next book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Blood, Alcohol, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Medical content, Xenophobia, and Vomit
Minor: Death of parent and Rape
s0litarybe3's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Alcohol, Murder, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Medical content, Mental illness, and Misogyny
Minor: Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Rape, Sexual violence, Alcohol, Blood, and Suicidal thoughts
madscientistcat's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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? No
4.5
A bit predictable but in an engaging way. The characters are fun and interesting and the politics/court intrigue is sufficiently dramatic. I can’t wait for the series to continue!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Murder, Death, and Violence
Moderate: War
Minor: Rape