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sarah984's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
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? It's complicated
5.0
A really original and beautifully told story. The structure takes some getting used to but it's ultimately worth it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Cannibalism, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Ableism, Confinement, War, Murder, Violence, Grief, Animal cruelty, Death of parent, Animal death, Mental illness, and Torture
Minor: Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Child death, and Incest
starryjoy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I'm going to be processing my emotions for a few days. Just going to say for now, please try out this book. It was surprising how much I enjoyed it. Someone mentioned this is like Princess Mononoke but dialed up and the dial keeps spinning...oh no it broke. Theater vibes. Stories within stories. Top fav for this year.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Gore, Cannibalism, War, Violence, Blood, and Ableism
storyorc's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-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
4.0
World like a Studio Ghibli dream, violence to make you wince, and characters who range from trying so hard to be better to monsters with oddly redeeming qualities. The experimental literary device of head hopping into bit-characters for a sentence or two of italics allows people from all strata of this society a voice and makes it feel so alive and extensive. It is one of many examples of how Jimenez infuses the story with empathy to give it depth; he doesn't demand that we excuse wrong-doing, only that we understand it.
The main two characters are exactly the messy and fun relationship needed to anchor such a surreal tale. The framing device of a modern-day emigrant watching the story as a play was atmospheric and provided some cool a-ha moments but might have felt more vital to someone with more similarities in their family history. I was always eager to return to our two heroes of myth.
The main two characters are exactly the messy and fun relationship needed to anchor such a surreal tale. The framing device of a modern-day emigrant watching the story as a play was atmospheric and provided some cool a-ha moments but might have felt more vital to someone with more similarities in their family history. I was always eager to return to our two heroes of myth.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: War, Child abuse, and Ableism
Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexism
iszys's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
5.0
While reading this, I really had to give in and just trust that the author was giving me enough information. I felt uncomfortable with my lack of truly understanding what was happening at all times, but I ended up really enjoying his unique writing style.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Sexual content, War, and Child abuse
Minor: Alcoholism, Ableism, and Rape
shannnne_reads_words's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and War
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Ableism, Vomit, and Cannibalism
Minor: Abandonment, Excrement, Homophobia, and Suicide
prosenheim's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Ableism, Physical abuse, Torture, Gore, Cannibalism, Sexual violence, and War
whillsjournal's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
While I do truly appreciate the haunting added context from ghosts affected by the events, that was not intriguing enough to save this book. With the constant hopping of focus away from the “main characters” to gives pages of exposition on a side character, the journey they embark on has no care or motive behind it. The author also really has a thing for putting people in piles of feces (it’s weird it happened at all let alone multiple times) and ultimately, it felt like the author wanted to write a fluff of pages that included certain predetermined beats with as many pages between. The twist in the fourth section was intriguing, but not enough overall. Very brief moments of excitement filled with a deluge of uncaptivating page filler. The side/parallel narratives were fine, but at times distracting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Excrement
Minor: Ableism
violetlunablossom's review against another edition
dark
emotional
inspiring
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
5.0
I once heard someone call The Spear Cuts Through Water "the most unique reading experience they've ever had" and I couldn't agree more. This book is so reminiscent of traditional oral storytelling performances that you see across tons of different cultures and I don't think it's any coincidence that Simon Jimenez told this story in the format that he did. The jumps between first, second, and third person were a little hard to grasp at the beginning but once I was able to find my footing in the rhythm of Jimenez's style, my reading experience was automatically amplified.
Even though the main plot is pretty easy to follow—two young warriors are tasked with escorting a dying goddess across the land to end the violent reign of the sons of a tyrannical emperor—the number of twists and turns kept me engaged the entire time. The themes of love and redemption shined through all of this, though, and it was always honed back in when things were picking up or dying down. The two heroes, Jun and Keema, are brilliantly written, and the way their love blossoms through all the pain and trauma they experience is nothing short of touching. I was particularly endeared to Keema and found his thoughtful and tender heart to be a much-needed contrast to the cruelty around him.
I also want to gush about the side characters because never had I been so excited to read a new POV every page or chapter. It didn't matter if they had one line of (internal) dialogue or a dozen pages featuring their POV, all of it was impeccable. There was one particular POV that had me outright sobbing (iykyk) and I quite literally had to put my book down when it ended because it was literally one of the most incredible pieces of character writing I've ever read.
The way that violence is written is phenomenal too. There were so many times that I felt absolutely horrified at what I was reading and it was all the more unnerving with the beautiful prose that it was described with. So often have I read sci-fi fantasy books with straightforward, brutal violence but none have left me feeling viscerally uncomfortable the way Jimenez's descriptions have.
The Spear Cuts Through Water is a celebration of storytelling and a reminder of how impactful it is as a craft. I cannot recommend this book enough and urge everyone who reads this review to either pick up the book or give it a reread.
Even though the main plot is pretty easy to follow—two young warriors are tasked with escorting a dying goddess across the land to end the violent reign of the sons of a tyrannical emperor—the number of twists and turns kept me engaged the entire time. The themes of love and redemption shined through all of this, though, and it was always honed back in when things were picking up or dying down. The two heroes, Jun and Keema, are brilliantly written, and the way their love blossoms through all the pain and trauma they experience is nothing short of touching. I was particularly endeared to Keema and found his thoughtful and tender heart to be a much-needed contrast to the cruelty around him.
I also want to gush about the side characters because never had I been so excited to read a new POV every page or chapter. It didn't matter if they had one line of (internal) dialogue or a dozen pages featuring their POV, all of it was impeccable. There was one particular POV that had me outright sobbing (iykyk) and I quite literally had to put my book down when it ended because it was literally one of the most incredible pieces of character writing I've ever read.
The way that violence is written is phenomenal too. There were so many times that I felt absolutely horrified at what I was reading and it was all the more unnerving with the beautiful prose that it was described with. So often have I read sci-fi fantasy books with straightforward, brutal violence but none have left me feeling viscerally uncomfortable the way Jimenez's descriptions have.
The Spear Cuts Through Water is a celebration of storytelling and a reminder of how impactful it is as a craft. I cannot recommend this book enough and urge everyone who reads this review to either pick up the book or give it a reread.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Cannibalism, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual content, Ableism, and Child abuse
micareads123's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
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? It's complicated
5.0
Outstanding. This book is in a league of its own and has raised the bar for adult fantasy storytelling (for me). I think it’s safe to say it’s one of the best-crafted books I’ve ever read. It is a crime that it was overlooked for all of the awards last year.
The prose is phenomenal, almost poetic. Jimenez has undeniable talent, and his style is so incredibly unique. He gives readers only the amount of information they need to follow the story, nothing more. And not only does the author trust the reader to read the book with an open mind, he trusts that the reader trusts him to pull everything together in the end. The writing demands your full attention, but the payoff at the end is well worth the time it takes to read it.
The book feels like a dream, and that’s because it is one. While the majority of the narrative is told in the form of a performance in the Inverted Theatre, in a dream dimension, the story flows seamlessly back and forth through time, the author slowly weaving an expansive and sweeping tapestry. The author also expertly shifts between the first, second and third person, from paragraph to paragraph, even sentence to sentence. It’s as if the author looked at the chaos of juggling all three perspectives and said, challenge accepted. And he delivered.
The story explores themes of oral storytelling traditions, honouring one’s ancestors, colonization, cultural assimilation, war and, above all, love and intimacy. And it took me through so many emotions: awe, love, heartbreak, disgust. It turned my stomach and it made me laugh out loud on several occasions. It gave me sad and happy tears.
You get to see the two protagonists at their ugliest and in their most joyful moments, and by the end of the book, it feels as if you have spent a lifetime with them.
I don’t think this is a book for everyone. It is a book for readers who like to have their limits challenged or who want to read something very unlike anything they’ve read before. I would recommend it to fans of the Locked Tomb and Broken Earth trilogies.
Make sure to check CWs for this one!
The prose is phenomenal, almost poetic. Jimenez has undeniable talent, and his style is so incredibly unique. He gives readers only the amount of information they need to follow the story, nothing more. And not only does the author trust the reader to read the book with an open mind, he trusts that the reader trusts him to pull everything together in the end. The writing demands your full attention, but the payoff at the end is well worth the time it takes to read it.
The book feels like a dream, and that’s because it is one. While the majority of the narrative is told in the form of a performance in the Inverted Theatre, in a dream dimension, the story flows seamlessly back and forth through time, the author slowly weaving an expansive and sweeping tapestry. The author also expertly shifts between the first, second and third person, from paragraph to paragraph, even sentence to sentence. It’s as if the author looked at the chaos of juggling all three perspectives and said, challenge accepted. And he delivered.
The story explores themes of oral storytelling traditions, honouring one’s ancestors, colonization, cultural assimilation, war and, above all, love and intimacy. And it took me through so many emotions: awe, love, heartbreak, disgust. It turned my stomach and it made me laugh out loud on several occasions. It gave me sad and happy tears.
You get to see the two protagonists at their ugliest and in their most joyful moments, and by the end of the book, it feels as if you have spent a lifetime with them.
I don’t think this is a book for everyone. It is a book for readers who like to have their limits challenged or who want to read something very unlike anything they’ve read before. I would recommend it to fans of the Locked Tomb and Broken Earth trilogies.
Make sure to check CWs for this one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Cannibalism
Moderate: Ableism
avacadosocks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Ableism, Sexual content, Blood, Gore, and Child abuse