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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
Fiametta daughter to Master Beneforte, a legendary creator, wishes her father would teach her more magic but it hasn't happened yet and one night at a banquet for his patron the man is killed and father and daughter wind up on the run together but unfortunately for Fiametta her father dies during the escape and his body is stolen by the men who committed the coo. She must find a way to rescue his corpse before he is used as part of a dark magic spell.
This was interesting but a little to YA for me. I do still like Bujold's story telling abilities though.
This was interesting but a little to YA for me. I do still like Bujold's story telling abilities though.
Fiametta is a strong female character dealing with medieval(?) prejudices. Bujold claims 3 sources for this story. 1) Folktales of heroes who come across unburied bodies, due to their debts, who pay the debts and bury the bodies, then are helped in their future adventures by said ghost. 2) Kobolds, and a self-effacing Swiss miner from a 16th century Latin treatise on mining translated by Hoover. 3) Golden saltcellar, bronze Perseus, mad castellan, wonderful and egotistical Cellini in the Autobiography of Benvenuto Cellini.
Bujold is brilliant, but this didn't sparkle for me at all. Couldn't get into it, really.
It was ok but I wasn't really in the mood.
Content warnings: death, fictional magic, murder, religious ideology
Ok so initially, I went into this book knowing nothing about it. Other than it was recommended to me. I think I fell in love within the first 10 pages. just. wow.
There were a few slow spots but that's understandable for ANY book to have. They didn't take away from the rest of the book. We had a happily ever after type ending which fit well for this book. AND we had a woman of colour as the main character. That was great and exciting.
And everything I want to gush about would be spoiling the book which I'm determined not to do. But the way things played out was exciting and exhilarating and had she decided to write it any differently it wouldn't have been as good.
I'm usually not huge on books that use religious ideology as heavily as this one does. Mostly because of my own experiences. Particularly with Christian type religions. But the way this book mixed the magic and religion was actually really good. It didn't feel forced in nor did it feel like the literary equivalent of shoving it down your throat. But your mileage may vary on that so proceed at your own risk.
Ok so initially, I went into this book knowing nothing about it. Other than it was recommended to me. I think I fell in love within the first 10 pages. just. wow.
There were a few slow spots but that's understandable for ANY book to have. They didn't take away from the rest of the book. We had a happily ever after type ending which fit well for this book. AND we had a woman of colour as the main character. That was great and exciting.
And everything I want to gush about would be spoiling the book which I'm determined not to do. But the way things played out was exciting and exhilarating and had she decided to write it any differently it wouldn't have been as good.
I'm usually not huge on books that use religious ideology as heavily as this one does. Mostly because of my own experiences. Particularly with Christian type religions. But the way this book mixed the magic and religion was actually really good. It didn't feel forced in nor did it feel like the literary equivalent of shoving it down your throat. But your mileage may vary on that so proceed at your own risk.
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A delightful historical fantasy adventure. Bujold is a legendary figure in the pantheon of the greatest SFF writers of all time, almost always delivering brilliant, charming, exciting, and wonderfully written novels, and this stand-alone novel is not an exception. The only problem is that I've now read all her books, so now I just have to wait until she drops another gem.
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes