Reviews

Le Tropique des Serpents by Marie Brennan

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bluejaybooks's review against another edition

Reading this book really made me think about some of the criticisms of novels like The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue. The Invisible Life of Addie La Rue is sometimes criticized for its lack of discussion about colonialism. This lack is somewhat explained by the fact that Addie is never shown to travel outside of traditionally Western countries. (Except perhaps some in central/South America.) This is sometimes countered by saying that V. E. Schwab is writing based off her own experience as a white woman who is only writing about places she has personally experienced and her personal experiences at large. I've also heard some comments suggesting that it's probably not a good idea for white authors to take on topics like colonialism anyway.

Yet here we have a series with a white protagonist written by an author who is, at the very least, white passing that discusses colonialism and has that protagonist travel to the portions of the globe affected by colonialism. But at the same time, this book is written in a fantasy setting with countries that are often clearly coded to correspond with real world places as opposed to the real world. The author is also an archeologist, so it could be argued she's writing what she knows through her protagonist's scientific investigations taking her places far from where she lives. Then there is the fact that this book was written in 2014 as opposed to Addie La Rue which was written in 2020. The discord has changed a fair amount since then. This book also has a more niche audience than the more mainstream Addie La Rue which could further account for my lack of ability to find criticism of its discussion of colonialism.

Anyway, no real conclusions here. Just thoughts <3

inkdrinker6259's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious relaxing slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

bluepazookie's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Loveable characters? Yes

3.0

Books 1 and 2 were almost solely about expeditions and had extremely little about dragons themselves - probably DNFing series. Character lovable, but not what I was looking for. 🐉