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lornaflowerday's review against another edition
2.0
I feel like I just read 4 different books crammed into 1 with no direction or purpose. The idea was great, but the execution just didn’t work for me.
1.5 out of 5 (rounded up to 2 for Goodreads).
1.5 out of 5 (rounded up to 2 for Goodreads).
thewoollygeek's review against another edition
3.0
The premise of this sounds similar to strange the dreamer so was a bit hesitant, but other than it’s about gods and god spawn it is completely different. I did enjoy this but found it a bit slow to start, although action starts straight away I found it hard to get into at the beginning. But I felt there was a bit too much action going on for me, needed a bit of a slow down at some points or could have been spread over another book. I couldn’t really connect to the characters as much as I’d like, there were no shades of grey in them. It was a good read but I feel could have been better.
_marianal_'s review against another edition
2.0
I'm so angry at this books that I can't even start.
I wanted to love this book, when I read the sipnosis I thought that was a book that I will like.
Unfortunelly was a completely disapointement.
Is no Word building so ever, even the places mention durring the book don't give enought information for the reader.
With the caracters is the same issue, not enought building. From the beginning I was so upset with the caracter Joshua that I want to give up on the book. As more caracter are intruduce is not really nuch about them other than their powers and how they got put together. They are so plane that you cannot care for any of them.
The whole story happend so fast that so many partes could have been more developed.
The division in 3 different parts make no sence at all, it looks like was 3 different stories. As in each part the caracter that is narrating is the center of the book.
And WHY the autor decided to kill the Twins like that?? Like is something without any importance.
So many wrong thing that I can even describe them all.
I wanted to love this book, when I read the sipnosis I thought that was a book that I will like.
Unfortunelly was a completely disapointement.
Is no Word building so ever, even the places mention durring the book don't give enought information for the reader.
With the caracters is the same issue, not enought building. From the beginning I was so upset with the caracter Joshua that I want to give up on the book. As more caracter are intruduce is not really nuch about them other than their powers and how they got put together. They are so plane that you cannot care for any of them.
The whole story happend so fast that so many partes could have been more developed.
The division in 3 different parts make no sence at all, it looks like was 3 different stories. As in each part the caracter that is narrating is the center of the book.
And WHY the autor decided to kill the Twins like that?? Like is something without any importance.
So many wrong thing that I can even describe them all.
cosmictreeslug's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
The idea is so, so good. Execution was terrible, little makes sense. The ending easily knocked a star and a half off.
haibairn16's review against another edition
3.0
I loved this story! Sometimes the POV change was a little hard to adjust to. The relationships and plot felt a little forced here and there but overall I enjoyed the book!
nytephoenyx's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.25
The Orphanage of Gods has such a low Goodreads rating and I went into this book all like, “those must be overly critical! I bet it’s not that bad!” I embarked on my reading journey determined to find the sparkling diamond hidden beneath the façade. Despite my best effort, despite going into each part with a bright attitude of “this part will be better!” … I just can’t. I can’t give The Orphanage of Gods a shining review because it’s not an example of a good story, good writing, or good characters. The kindest thing I could possibly call it is “mediocre” and even that’s a stretch.
When the story begins, it’s night. Our protagonist – ridiculously named “Hero” – is hiding with her friend Joshua from the Guard. Hero gives us backstory and we learn she’s a half-god, her friend is a full-blooded extremely dangerous god, they’ve escaped the orphanage, and they’re going to rescue their friend who is a human but was taken as though she was a god. Concept, interesting. Result, nope. The story continues on with a lot of ordering around, world building through dialogue and flashbacks, and so many illogical choices it made my head spin. The characters escape things they shouldn’t, fall into action scenes that are so obviously constructed for fear of a lack of action. It’s just… no.
The Orphanage of Gods has three different POV characters (each gets a third of the book) and you absolutely can’t tell the difference between them except when they’re addressed in dialogue. Ten-year-old Raven, in particular, was a mess of a POV character. She’s in the book to be the “chosen one” but does nothing, is allowed to do nothing, and really… adds nothing? I’m not sure why Coggan chose to write in three separate POVs. The characters are so underdeveloped that if Coggan stuck to one POV, at least the reader may have gotten a deeper sense of the character.
Because I can’t close this review without saying this… … okay, these characters are kept until they’ve passed 18 years in an orphanage, then they’re cut to see what color their blood is. I just kept thinking… there are menstruating characters, right? Under this rule, their period would have given them away before they spent eighteen years in the orphanage. Not to mention things like bloody noses, accidental injuries, and fights. The central concept of this magical world is flawed.
There is so much “telling” in The Orphanage of Gods. The reader never experiences the world, not really. We learn about it through dialogue or through the POV character directly explaining things. Immersive writing is such a central lesson in penning fantasy, and I’m grateful that I rarely stumble across a book that does this so poorly. The writing style was strongly not for me, and better suited for maybe literary or speculative fiction.
I suppose I should give The Orphanage of the Gods a few points, though. It reminded me why low book ratings deserve red flags. Given four or so more drafts, this could have been an interesting fantasy. Instead, it screams of an underdeveloped story with interchangeable characters and amateur writing. Hard pass.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Torture, Cannibalism, Violence, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, and Gun violence
Minor: Child death
katziliest's review against another edition
2.0
I really wanted to give this book more than just two stars but... i can’t get over the end and all its faults... i read it in a hurry because i was really intrigued and i really liked it up to a certain point when it all went downhill. Something is missing in this book...
jagoda_readsbooks's review against another edition
1.0
Sadly that book wasn't meant for me. I couldn't connect to any of the characters. And there were just so many things I found way too illogical.
And none of the relationships between the characters were believable to me. I had a hard time finishing this book. :-(
And none of the relationships between the characters were believable to me. I had a hard time finishing this book. :-(
bookrambler's review against another edition
3.0
Reading the title, you may think it is similar to Strange the Dreamer, but it isn't. Yes, it has gods and god spawns and rivalry between then and humans, but that's where the similarities stop.
The Orphanage of Gods starts with Hero and Joshua -siblings(not my blood)- racing to find their friend/sister Kestrel. Kestrel was taken by Guardsmen when the three were trying to escape the orphanage.
A little backstory: There was a war where gods and god-lovers were slaughtered along with their children by people called Guardsmen( I think they are humans).Those children who survived were kept at an Orphanage and were bled to check if they were gods or not.
The story is told in the first person from the perspective of three persons: Hero, Raven, and Kestrel. There is a lot of action throughout the book and I wanted a breather every now and then. I couldn't connect with any of the characters because I believe so much was crammed into a single book.
I would have loved it if this fantasy was spilt into three or even two books for us to ease into the world and fall in love with the characters.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC.
The Orphanage of Gods starts with Hero and Joshua -siblings(not my blood)- racing to find their friend/sister Kestrel. Kestrel was taken by Guardsmen when the three were trying to escape the orphanage.
A little backstory: There was a war where gods and god-lovers were slaughtered along with their children by people called Guardsmen( I think they are humans).Those children who survived were kept at an Orphanage and were bled to check if they were gods or not.
The story is told in the first person from the perspective of three persons: Hero, Raven, and Kestrel. There is a lot of action throughout the book and I wanted a breather every now and then. I couldn't connect with any of the characters because I believe so much was crammed into a single book.
I would have loved it if this fantasy was spilt into three or even two books for us to ease into the world and fall in love with the characters.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC.