Scan barcode
emtees's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I really wanted to like this book a lot more than I did. The premise sounds exactly like the kind of thing I would enjoy - it’s basically urban fantasy, but set in something more like a traditional fantasy world. And there were things about it I enjoyed, but ultimately the writing style and characters just put me off too much.
The worldbuilding is both intriguing and confusing. It may just be that this is the first book in a very long series, and Sagara was going for an immersive feel, but I never felt like I got a clear grasp on what this world is. There’s a city, and there are parts of it that are controlled by an Emperor and parts that are fiefs, controlled by what are effectively crime lords. What, if anything, exists beyond this one city is unclear. There are a huge range of species living in this city - not only humans, but Barrani, who seem to be basically dark takes on elves, Leontine, who are lion people, Aerians, who have wings, Dragons, who are a whole big myster, etc - all of whom should have at least the potential to be interesting. And then there are the Hawks, a sort of multi-species police force that are the center of the story, and who combine modern police tropes with fantasy city guard type tropes in fun ways. The main character, Kaylin, is a human (maybe) who grew up in the fiefs but escaped their horrors to become the youngest member of the Hawks. The story centers around Kaylin being drawn in to a case, a series of sacrificial murders that strongly resembles a similar case from her childhood.
All this sounds great, but in the execution it just did not work for me. The writing style was just confusing. I’m all for being immersed in a new world and told to keep up, but that requires that the author have the skill for doling out information about the world as the story progresses, and that didn’t feel like it happened here. There was a lot that was just left vague, like the world and magic system ran on vibes instead of any kind of real depth. And the characters were… flawed, yes, but mostly in ways that were annoying rather than intriguing. Take Kaylin, the main character. Kaylin is either a badass fighter who can survive anything or a helpless child who needs to be coddled by everyone around her, in the rudest way possible, depending on the scene. Her defining feature is that she is always late; I don’t mean that is a cute quirk that gives her something unique, I mean that is literally the first thing everyone seems to know about her. That, and that she failed most of her classes for becoming a Hawk, not out of lack of ability or difficulty learning but apparently just… disinterest, I guess?… and yet we’re told over and over (and I mean really in almost every scene) that being a Hawk is not only extremely important to Kaylin, it’s her whole identity. She fights with everyone she meets, whether they are friends or enemies, but to be fair, everyone in the book seems to be like that. I don’t know if this is supposed to be a cop book trope, but everyone in this book is in a bad mood all the time. It actually undermines the later chapters, when they are all stressed and snippy because they are working on a very dark case; we’re meant to think that the pressure is getting to them, but they were all so grumpy to begin with it’s hard to tell the difference. And it doesn’t help that all the non-human characters seemed to be defined by species. There are Barrani, who are cold and mysterious, Leontine, who are so short-tempered I kept wondering how they could even be part of a functioning society, Dragons, who seem to have trouble getting along with the other species... Most of these characters seem to have very few personality traits apart from their species, and the same is true of the Hawks. I lost count of how many times a character’s behavior was excused or explained with “s/he’s a Hawk.” There didn’t seem to be much individuality in these people at all.
Some of this I think is that this is an older urban fantasy novel that I’m getting to late, and a lot of what rubbed me wrong was tropey stuff from the urban fantasy boom period. So many tough, shit-talking but secretly vulnerable female main characters; so many allies and love interests who argue all the time but really love each other; so much throw-it-all-in worldbuilding that doesn’t leave a lot of room for nuance. The two… well, I can’t really call them love interests because there is no significant romantic plot with either, but it’s clear that’s where the series will go… anyway, the two future love interests fit this perfectly. Nightshade is dark and mysterious, a supposed enemy who marks Kaylin as his own, a mark she both resents and takes advantage of. Severn is a guy from her past, someone she once loved but whom she has a dark history with, though it will not shock anyone to discover that Severn ultimately has a good (if, in my opinion, not good enough) explanation for the things that drove him and Kaylin apart. All of this feels so predictable that I was bored reading it.
There was stuff to like here. The actual plot of the novel is pretty great, and the mystery of who Kaylin really is is one I’m almost tempted to read the rest of the books to solve. But I doubt the style of them will change and ultimately that was enough for the lower rating.
The worldbuilding is both intriguing and confusing. It may just be that this is the first book in a very long series, and Sagara was going for an immersive feel, but I never felt like I got a clear grasp on what this world is. There’s a city, and there are parts of it that are controlled by an Emperor and parts that are fiefs, controlled by what are effectively crime lords. What, if anything, exists beyond this one city is unclear. There are a huge range of species living in this city - not only humans, but Barrani, who seem to be basically dark takes on elves, Leontine, who are lion people, Aerians, who have wings, Dragons, who are a whole big myster, etc - all of whom should have at least the potential to be interesting. And then there are the Hawks, a sort of multi-species police force that are the center of the story, and who combine modern police tropes with fantasy city guard type tropes in fun ways. The main character, Kaylin, is a human (maybe) who grew up in the fiefs but escaped their horrors to become the youngest member of the Hawks. The story centers around Kaylin being drawn in to a case, a series of sacrificial murders that strongly resembles a similar case from her childhood.
All this sounds great, but in the execution it just did not work for me. The writing style was just confusing. I’m all for being immersed in a new world and told to keep up, but that requires that the author have the skill for doling out information about the world as the story progresses, and that didn’t feel like it happened here. There was a lot that was just left vague, like the world and magic system ran on vibes instead of any kind of real depth. And the characters were… flawed, yes, but mostly in ways that were annoying rather than intriguing. Take Kaylin, the main character. Kaylin is either a badass fighter who can survive anything or a helpless child who needs to be coddled by everyone around her, in the rudest way possible, depending on the scene. Her defining feature is that she is always late; I don’t mean that is a cute quirk that gives her something unique, I mean that is literally the first thing everyone seems to know about her. That, and that she failed most of her classes for becoming a Hawk, not out of lack of ability or difficulty learning but apparently just… disinterest, I guess?… and yet we’re told over and over (and I mean really in almost every scene) that being a Hawk is not only extremely important to Kaylin, it’s her whole identity. She fights with everyone she meets, whether they are friends or enemies, but to be fair, everyone in the book seems to be like that. I don’t know if this is supposed to be a cop book trope, but everyone in this book is in a bad mood all the time. It actually undermines the later chapters, when they are all stressed and snippy because they are working on a very dark case; we’re meant to think that the pressure is getting to them, but they were all so grumpy to begin with it’s hard to tell the difference. And it doesn’t help that all the non-human characters seemed to be defined by species. There are Barrani, who are cold and mysterious, Leontine, who are so short-tempered I kept wondering how they could even be part of a functioning society, Dragons, who seem to have trouble getting along with the other species... Most of these characters seem to have very few personality traits apart from their species, and the same is true of the Hawks. I lost count of how many times a character’s behavior was excused or explained with “s/he’s a Hawk.” There didn’t seem to be much individuality in these people at all.
Some of this I think is that this is an older urban fantasy novel that I’m getting to late, and a lot of what rubbed me wrong was tropey stuff from the urban fantasy boom period. So many tough, shit-talking but secretly vulnerable female main characters; so many allies and love interests who argue all the time but really love each other; so much throw-it-all-in worldbuilding that doesn’t leave a lot of room for nuance. The two… well, I can’t really call them love interests because there is no significant romantic plot with either, but it’s clear that’s where the series will go… anyway, the two future love interests fit this perfectly. Nightshade is dark and mysterious, a supposed enemy who marks Kaylin as his own, a mark she both resents and takes advantage of. Severn is a guy from her past, someone she once loved but whom she has a dark history with, though it will not shock anyone to discover that Severn ultimately has a good (if, in my opinion, not good enough) explanation for the things that drove him and Kaylin apart. All of this feels so predictable that I was bored reading it.
There was stuff to like here. The actual plot of the novel is pretty great, and the mystery of who Kaylin really is is one I’m almost tempted to read the rest of the books to solve. But I doubt the style of them will change and ultimately that was enough for the lower rating.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment and Child abuse
Fantasy violence, including a significant amount against children. Themes of child abandonment and neglect.eafiu's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Grief, Murder, Violence, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death of parent, Kidnapping, and Torture
Minor: Addiction and Terminal illness
More...