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3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
Schizophrenic
The opening novel of the Night Angel trilogy counts the following among its strengths: adult plotting, fast pace, considerable intrigue, lots of full-circle identity reveals (“oh no he isn’t!”) and many offscreen characters who will undoubtedly surface in its later installments.
Azoth is your stereotypical street urchin: unloved, downtrodden, and brimming with potential. His hopes are singular: to apprentice the premiere wetboy (read: assassin) of his generation. It takes some convincing to procure this position with the infamous Durzo Blint, a man who is feared and respected by all. Durzo breeds him into an unfeeling, unthinking, killing machine of unparalled skill. Or does he?
It goes without saying that the following happens: Azoth’s change in identity is not wholly accompanied by a change in personality. He still loves and cares for a select few people, in particular a vulnerable young woman who suffered mutilation because of his inaction during adolescence. He might break some of Durzo’s cardinal rules to protect her. Durzo himself is mysterious and demands tremendous loyalty, discouraging questions. As the plot unpackages, we are treated to a moderately sized cast of characters, ranging in importance and power.
Weeks does all of this capably. Magic is almost wholly absent from the first half of the novel, but after surfacing it is used with reckless abandon. The rules are completely unclear. If you are looking for a magic “system” that can be puzzled over or reasoned through, you will be sorely disappointed. The magic mechanism furthermore sounds eerily like the One Power of [b:The Eye of the World|228665|The Eye of the World (Wheel of Time, #1)|Robert Jordan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1337818095s/228665.jpg|2008238] (i.e. characters “weave power” and “draw upon the source” and “channel” etc.). In the least accusing way possible, Weeks does use the phrase “words are wind” in the opening chapters. Rabid [a:George R.R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1351944410p2/346732.jpg] fans will need to figure out which author deserves credit for this phrase.
The Way of Shadows’ narrative does jump from a logical precipice, however. The plot grows increasingly thick and points of political intrigue are introduced briefly before becoming way-too-complex-than-they-deserve. The nations in question are given almost no background, so invasions don’t really incite reader sympathies. Another trouble: one character undergoes a preposterous change in worldview that fuels the intrigue of the latter half of the novel. It is completely out of step with everything that has come before. This is the fulcrum of the entire novel. The ascetic, emotionless character suddenly becomes goofily out of sync, and the deus ex persona rings false.
Other readers could potentially tire of the bloody, violent, jugular-slicing bowel frenzy. I for one like adult fantasy, and this only periodically gets gratuitous.
In sum – the plot takes some nice, interesting turns, even if they are not completely explained or downright confusing. Editing is shaky. Characters are strong and worthy of following further. A promising first novel, and cool, but not unassailably so.
The opening novel of the Night Angel trilogy counts the following among its strengths: adult plotting, fast pace, considerable intrigue, lots of full-circle identity reveals (“oh no he isn’t!”) and many offscreen characters who will undoubtedly surface in its later installments.
Azoth is your stereotypical street urchin: unloved, downtrodden, and brimming with potential. His hopes are singular: to apprentice the premiere wetboy (read: assassin) of his generation. It takes some convincing to procure this position with the infamous Durzo Blint, a man who is feared and respected by all. Durzo breeds him into an unfeeling, unthinking, killing machine of unparalled skill. Or does he?
It goes without saying that the following happens: Azoth’s change in identity is not wholly accompanied by a change in personality. He still loves and cares for a select few people, in particular a vulnerable young woman who suffered mutilation because of his inaction during adolescence. He might break some of Durzo’s cardinal rules to protect her. Durzo himself is mysterious and demands tremendous loyalty, discouraging questions. As the plot unpackages, we are treated to a moderately sized cast of characters, ranging in importance and power.
Weeks does all of this capably. Magic is almost wholly absent from the first half of the novel, but after surfacing it is used with reckless abandon. The rules are completely unclear. If you are looking for a magic “system” that can be puzzled over or reasoned through, you will be sorely disappointed. The magic mechanism furthermore sounds eerily like the One Power of [b:The Eye of the World|228665|The Eye of the World (Wheel of Time, #1)|Robert Jordan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1337818095s/228665.jpg|2008238] (i.e. characters “weave power” and “draw upon the source” and “channel” etc.). In the least accusing way possible, Weeks does use the phrase “words are wind” in the opening chapters. Rabid [a:George R.R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1351944410p2/346732.jpg] fans will need to figure out which author deserves credit for this phrase.
The Way of Shadows’ narrative does jump from a logical precipice, however. The plot grows increasingly thick and points of political intrigue are introduced briefly before becoming way-too-complex-than-they-deserve. The nations in question are given almost no background, so invasions don’t really incite reader sympathies. Another trouble: one character undergoes a preposterous change in worldview that fuels the intrigue of the latter half of the novel. It is completely out of step with everything that has come before. This is the fulcrum of the entire novel. The ascetic, emotionless character suddenly becomes goofily out of sync, and the deus ex persona rings false.
Other readers could potentially tire of the bloody, violent, jugular-slicing bowel frenzy. I for one like adult fantasy, and this only periodically gets gratuitous.
In sum – the plot takes some nice, interesting turns, even if they are not completely explained or downright confusing. Editing is shaky. Characters are strong and worthy of following further. A promising first novel, and cool, but not unassailably so.
3'5. El epílogo y sus moñeces me sobra completamente.
Reseña en el blog: https://finding-books.blogspot.com.es/2016/08/titulo-el-camino-de-las-sombras-saga-el.html
Reseña en el blog: https://finding-books.blogspot.com.es/2016/08/titulo-el-camino-de-las-sombras-saga-el.html
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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 Stars!!
“What happens when you strip away all the masks a man wears and you find not a face beneath them but nothing at all?”
Going to be honest and say I wasn't sure how much I would like this one- This is my first Weeks Novel. I did not read any reviews for it and went in blind. I'm so glad I did that! I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome. This first book of the series did not concentrate much on world building but more on character development, which usually would bother me.. but in this book it really worked. With as little of the world building that we get, I was still able to see into this world that Weeks created. I really enjoyed seeing each character grow over the course of the book. Its definitely a rollercoaster of a ride- From the first chapter I was drawn in- even though it takes a while for the book to pick up, I was still engaged, then once you hit the peak the ride takes off at high speed with twists and turns all the way to the end! I would say to anyone reading this to stick with it- For the first book in a series, the writing was great and even though there was nothing SUPER AMAZING in it, I found it to be a very enjoyable- Solid Read :P Looking forward to the rest of the series.
“What happens when you strip away all the masks a man wears and you find not a face beneath them but nothing at all?”
Going to be honest and say I wasn't sure how much I would like this one- This is my first Weeks Novel. I did not read any reviews for it and went in blind. I'm so glad I did that! I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome. This first book of the series did not concentrate much on world building but more on character development, which usually would bother me.. but in this book it really worked. With as little of the world building that we get, I was still able to see into this world that Weeks created. I really enjoyed seeing each character grow over the course of the book. Its definitely a rollercoaster of a ride- From the first chapter I was drawn in- even though it takes a while for the book to pick up, I was still engaged, then once you hit the peak the ride takes off at high speed with twists and turns all the way to the end! I would say to anyone reading this to stick with it- For the first book in a series, the writing was great and even though there was nothing SUPER AMAZING in it, I found it to be a very enjoyable- Solid Read :P Looking forward to the rest of the series.
A street urchin vows to escape his hardscrabble life by becoming an apprentice to the best magically-enhanced assassin in the city. He grows. Drama unfolds. Inot the most original story but I really enjoyed this fast paced bit of bad assed escapism (although I gagged at an awkward profession of love). The writing reminds me a lot of Joe Abercrombie...good times!
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
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
Winter 2022 (February);
~ My Brothers Favorite Book for his Birthday
My brother has been asking me to read this series for years, and he even bought me the trilogy for a birthday when I had people bringing me their favorite books, but I sat down this year to read his favorite book as a his birthday present. I ended up loving this book, Azoth, Kylar, Mama K, Logan, Doll Girl, basically everyone everywhere.
I love an assassin book where people are actually assassins. The same with street thugs, and prostitutes. Where the book isn't claiming titles and roles to set up boxes, but actually living in them, with the beauty and horror that comes along with each. I am definitely looking forward to when I get to dig into the rest of this trilogy.
~ My Brothers Favorite Book for his Birthday
My brother has been asking me to read this series for years, and he even bought me the trilogy for a birthday when I had people bringing me their favorite books, but I sat down this year to read his favorite book as a his birthday present. I ended up loving this book, Azoth, Kylar, Mama K, Logan, Doll Girl, basically everyone everywhere.
I love an assassin book where people are actually assassins. The same with street thugs, and prostitutes. Where the book isn't claiming titles and roles to set up boxes, but actually living in them, with the beauty and horror that comes along with each. I am definitely looking forward to when I get to dig into the rest of this trilogy.
I never know whether or not to read a book when, like this one, it has such mixed reviews. I went ahead anyway, because my first challenge for the first week of 2015 was to read a book that had more than 500 pages, this one seemed interesting, and I was running away from [b:The Time Traveler's Wife|18619684|The Time Traveler's Wife|Audrey Niffenegger|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1380660571s/18619684.jpg|2153746], which gave me extremely creepy vibes from the get-go.
I must say this book sorely disappointed me. It has a good premise: a fantasy world where mysterious magical forces are crawling beneath the surface and little kids are trying to survive growing up in the underworld of a corrupt city. Kings, mages, assassins. What went wrong?
Well, the thing is that the writing itself just isn't good, I'm sorry.
First of all, it's really confusing. It's not the first book where the reader learns about the worldbuilding from the main character, as the character himself finds things out. Except the writer often throws in wrong information, to give the sense of how the character is confused too. I'm afraid that didn't quite work out: in a world that complicated you have to explain things plainly, easily. I'm not studying for an exam; I'm relaxing in bed with a book. You're not going to have 100% of my attention and, as a writer, you should know that. I've finished this book yesterday night but if you asked me to describe accurately the relations between the countries, the power structure of the reign of Midcyru, the different types of mages, the different types of magical weapons, the backstory that lead to the events happening in the book... I'd be hard pressed to give you a clear picture.
The fighting scenes are confusing too, most of the time I had no idea where the characters were standing/holding on to/falling towards, I tried to picture the fights as clearly as possible in my head before reading on, but then the next lines conflicted with what I thought again and again and again.
He also does a lot of telling instead of showing. A whole lot of it. Example (not an actual quote from the book): don't tell me "he walked silent as a cat through every corner of the castle". You only use a metaphor when you can make it subtle enough (as in, "his feet padded soundlessly along the floor as he explored every nook and corner of the castle with feline agility") or when you make it humorous à-la Terry Pratchet (as in, "he moves silently as a log floating gently on a calm river. On a very calm river. A river flowing oh so calmly. Damn, now he really needs to go take a leak".)
Most of the "revelations" were very easy to predict. I knew what was going to happen next more than half the time.
Onto the characters. For starters, what about the names? I don't usually criticize names, but these were really weird. A hitman named Durzo Blint? (I was talking about this book to my boyfriend and he burst out laughing at the name.) And what about Kylar and Logan? Those are names I would expect to hear watching 16 & Pregnant or vines, but definitely not in a medieval-style high fantasy.
Durzo Blint, I can see, was supposed to be noble and tormented. To me, he came across as a selfish drama king.
Momma K I was sure was going to be an interesting character, except the writer decided to fall into the old cliché that sees all prostitutes regretting their loveless lives and decaying body. Oy vey. At least she had some kind of agency of her own.
Doll Girl was little more than a prop for Kylar; she only existed in relation to him. We learn later on that not only she was in love with Azoth as a little child, she also was in love with her benefactor, and was attracted to Kylar. And they all turned out to be same person! How incredibly unrealistic, cheesy and cliché. To make matters worse, it's also mentioned at least twice that she is, without a doubt, a virgin. This is apparently very important information.
The problem is that the whole book reads out as a sexually frustrated 14-year-old boy power fantasy. Boobs are mentioned all the time. I could have accepted it (even expected it) from the point of view of the teenage characters, but then even old-as-dirt Durzo seems stupefied by boobs. Also, I'm ESL, but it was pretty awkward to read as Elene was described as "curvaceous".
Back to Elene and male fantasies, I doubt the book passes the Bechdel test (which isn't the be-all and end-all, but it does signal something). All the women have their curves described one way or another, and they all are created to revolve around the male characters.
The one character I liked out of this whole thing was Jenine, and we don't get to see much of her at all. I won't read the following books, but I hope she gets a better part in those (and isn't used as a sacrificial lamb for the sake of drama - see the "Women in Refrigerator" trope). Logan was okay too, as was the trio Dorian/Solon/Feir. Tell us more about them?
A lot of characters were hard to tell apart: I often didn't know if we were talking about Regnus Gyre, Count Drake, General Agon, Captain Arturian or Sergeant Gamble. Differentiating more neatly between them and writing in a clearer way would have helped greatly. The author could also have considered not having so many oldish dudes in positions of power, after all there is no written rule saying fantasy worlds have to be sexist, or skewed in favour of older people.
Like I mentioned, I won't be reading the following books, but I really hope the author has matured some. I won't give this book one star because I didn't loathe it and didn't have to force myself to finish it, but I did read most of it with both eyebrows raised. He had a good idea, but needs to let go of the ego trip and the power fantasies. Though I'm sure that's what a lot of his audience appreciates, and hey, we all have to pay the bills at the end of the month.
For a fantasy series with actually noble characters, who are mocked when they get as over-dramatic as all the guys in The Way of Shadows do all the time, good female characters and excellent writing, try instead the Gentleman Bastard series by Scott Lynch, starting with [b:The Lies of Locke Lamora|127455|The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard #1)|Scott Lynch|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1386924569s/127455.jpg|2116675].
(Note to self: week 1 of the 2015 reading challenge: a book with more than 500 pages)
I must say this book sorely disappointed me. It has a good premise: a fantasy world where mysterious magical forces are crawling beneath the surface and little kids are trying to survive growing up in the underworld of a corrupt city. Kings, mages, assassins. What went wrong?
Well, the thing is that the writing itself just isn't good, I'm sorry.
First of all, it's really confusing. It's not the first book where the reader learns about the worldbuilding from the main character, as the character himself finds things out. Except the writer often throws in wrong information, to give the sense of how the character is confused too. I'm afraid that didn't quite work out: in a world that complicated you have to explain things plainly, easily. I'm not studying for an exam; I'm relaxing in bed with a book. You're not going to have 100% of my attention and, as a writer, you should know that. I've finished this book yesterday night but if you asked me to describe accurately the relations between the countries, the power structure of the reign of Midcyru, the different types of mages, the different types of magical weapons, the backstory that lead to the events happening in the book... I'd be hard pressed to give you a clear picture.
The fighting scenes are confusing too, most of the time I had no idea where the characters were standing/holding on to/falling towards, I tried to picture the fights as clearly as possible in my head before reading on, but then the next lines conflicted with what I thought again and again and again.
He also does a lot of telling instead of showing. A whole lot of it. Example (not an actual quote from the book): don't tell me "he walked silent as a cat through every corner of the castle". You only use a metaphor when you can make it subtle enough (as in, "his feet padded soundlessly along the floor as he explored every nook and corner of the castle with feline agility") or when you make it humorous à-la Terry Pratchet (as in, "he moves silently as a log floating gently on a calm river. On a very calm river. A river flowing oh so calmly. Damn, now he really needs to go take a leak".)
Most of the "revelations" were very easy to predict. I knew what was going to happen next more than half the time.
Onto the characters. For starters, what about the names? I don't usually criticize names, but these were really weird. A hitman named Durzo Blint? (I was talking about this book to my boyfriend and he burst out laughing at the name.) And what about Kylar and Logan? Those are names I would expect to hear watching 16 & Pregnant or vines, but definitely not in a medieval-style high fantasy.
Durzo Blint, I can see, was supposed to be noble and tormented. To me, he came across as a selfish drama king.
Spoiler
You're a billion years old and have tremendous power, and all you do is go around whining woe-is-me and killing people for money? You still haven't figured out that making a difference in people's lives would have made your own less empty? He could have single-handedly figured out a way to take all the children off the street, for example. But nope, instead he kills people for money and thinks life is empty. Okay then.Momma K I was sure was going to be an interesting character, except the writer decided to fall into the old cliché that sees all prostitutes regretting their loveless lives and decaying body. Oy vey. At least she had some kind of agency of her own.
Doll Girl was little more than a prop for Kylar; she only existed in relation to him. We learn later on that not only she was in love with Azoth as a little child, she also was in love with her benefactor, and was attracted to Kylar. And they all turned out to be same person! How incredibly unrealistic, cheesy and cliché. To make matters worse, it's also mentioned at least twice that she is, without a doubt, a virgin. This is apparently very important information.
The problem is that the whole book reads out as a sexually frustrated 14-year-old boy power fantasy. Boobs are mentioned all the time. I could have accepted it (even expected it) from the point of view of the teenage characters, but then even old-as-dirt Durzo seems stupefied by boobs. Also, I'm ESL, but it was pretty awkward to read as Elene was described as "curvaceous".
Back to Elene and male fantasies, I doubt the book passes the Bechdel test (which isn't the be-all and end-all, but it does signal something). All the women have their curves described one way or another, and they all are created to revolve around the male characters.
Spoiler
I don't think it's a coincidence that Jarl, who has such a passive, accepting role throughout the whole thing (until the very end, where he is granted access to the heights of masculinity again), is very soon in a girl's dress, with all that it implies in that context.The one character I liked out of this whole thing was Jenine, and we don't get to see much of her at all. I won't read the following books, but I hope she gets a better part in those (and isn't used as a sacrificial lamb for the sake of drama - see the "Women in Refrigerator" trope). Logan was okay too, as was the trio Dorian/Solon/Feir. Tell us more about them?
A lot of characters were hard to tell apart: I often didn't know if we were talking about Regnus Gyre, Count Drake, General Agon, Captain Arturian or Sergeant Gamble. Differentiating more neatly between them and writing in a clearer way would have helped greatly. The author could also have considered not having so many oldish dudes in positions of power, after all there is no written rule saying fantasy worlds have to be sexist, or skewed in favour of older people.
Like I mentioned, I won't be reading the following books, but I really hope the author has matured some. I won't give this book one star because I didn't loathe it and didn't have to force myself to finish it, but I did read most of it with both eyebrows raised. He had a good idea, but needs to let go of the ego trip and the power fantasies. Though I'm sure that's what a lot of his audience appreciates, and hey, we all have to pay the bills at the end of the month.
For a fantasy series with actually noble characters, who are mocked when they get as over-dramatic as all the guys in The Way of Shadows do all the time, good female characters and excellent writing, try instead the Gentleman Bastard series by Scott Lynch, starting with [b:The Lies of Locke Lamora|127455|The Lies of Locke Lamora (Gentleman Bastard #1)|Scott Lynch|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1386924569s/127455.jpg|2116675].
(Note to self: week 1 of the 2015 reading challenge: a book with more than 500 pages)
adventurous
dark
tense
A book that I would describe as a mix of Games of Thrones and Assassin’s Creed attributs established in Weeks’ own medieval and fictional continent to create a thrilling story with assassins, wars, kingdom and political intrigues, love, murders and a part of magic.
This combination creates such a passionate story with twists and turns all around that I couldn’t help but devour the book and go to my bookstore ordering the rest of the trilogy right after.
I haven’t so into a book for years and this book gave a great pleasure for reading again, 100% recommend this trilogy if you are into medieval fictions.
This combination creates such a passionate story with twists and turns all around that I couldn’t help but devour the book and go to my bookstore ordering the rest of the trilogy right after.
I haven’t so into a book for years and this book gave a great pleasure for reading again, 100% recommend this trilogy if you are into medieval fictions.