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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book could be described as a typical YA fantasy. And I might be inclined to agree except for one major thing. Min's character is critical to making this book stick out in my mind. Her progression through the story is fascinating to me and genuinely made me NEED to know what happens next. Min is a very meek and easily manipulated character to the point of it being pitiful. But as she progresses and learns more of the power she holds, the reader sees a very different side of her. It demonstrates how people who have been manipulated and used for so long can slowly begin to snap.
Lu is more of the classic YA character: headstrong, brave, and stubborn. She definitely shows development as well but I just didn't find it as interesting. Nok is the main love interest of Lu and comes from a family of animal shapeshifters who have been all but wiped out by Lu's empire. Nok is different because he's a very anxious and reluctant character. He's been hurt a lot and doesn't want to open up his life to more pain. I liked his progression as a character but the final moments of the book with him felt sort of cheap to me.
Overall I enjoyed the book but some of it was a little bit of the same as things I've already read.
Lu is more of the classic YA character: headstrong, brave, and stubborn. She definitely shows development as well but I just didn't find it as interesting. Nok is the main love interest of Lu and comes from a family of animal shapeshifters who have been all but wiped out by Lu's empire. Nok is different because he's a very anxious and reluctant character. He's been hurt a lot and doesn't want to open up his life to more pain. I liked his progression as a character but the final moments of the book with him felt sort of cheap to me.
Overall I enjoyed the book but some of it was a little bit of the same as things I've already read.
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
I enjoyed this a lot more than I anticipated, and the Girl King has easily become one of my favourite fantasy novels. From the mythology and wordbuilding, to the vividly crafted prose, each page sweeps you into a story about magic, destiny, hope, power, whilst also touching upon themes of colonialism. These themes, particularly the first three are embedded in the characters' journeys, which the story explores through the multiple (third person limited) points of view of Lu, Min, and Nokhai. Overall this is certainly a great fantasy duology to read, and I'm looking forward to next installment.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Death, Violence, Blood, Colonisation, War
Minor: Sexual assault
This was a fun and enjoyable read, I definitely enjoyed a fantasy setting that took inspiration from a period/time that wasn't "medieval Western Europe". But I did find the characters a bit prone to the "protagonist magically thinks racism and imperialism are bad despite being the daughter of the Emperor" trope. Also it's possible to show these things as bad without having one character literally tell another that they are bad. Probably slightly more of a YA book than I was after? But good for a quick and entertaining read.
I'm getting a little tired of the "sisters raised differently and eventually at odds/war with each other" thing. This would have been two stars for that, and because we spend far too much time with Lu and Nok and Min and less time understanding the world or the beliefs (there are some interesting twists on the Shangri-La plot, for example). But I'm giving it three because even with that, there's something about Lu that I found appealing and I'm holding out hope that we learn more about this world in Book 2.
eARC provided by publisher.
eARC provided by publisher.
An enjoyable fantasy adventure with compelling characters. I liked how the point-of-view switched between the trio of main characters because this revealed details of the story to the reader, giving hints of what was to come for the other characters not in the same scene/situation.
When I began reading this book, I didn't know it was part of a series. I honestly thought it was a stand-alone novel. But of course it ends with things wide-open and now I'm ready for the next book!
When I began reading this book, I didn't know it was part of a series. I honestly thought it was a stand-alone novel. But of course it ends with things wide-open and now I'm ready for the next book!
Rating: 3.5 stars
Hmph, I feel really deflated writing about this book because I was really excited to read it & it turned out just to be “okay”. I did really enjoy the dramatic ending; the big scene that was being built up the whole way through the book was really good & there were a couple of good surprises, I just wish the rest of the book was as intense & fast paced as the ending. Mimi Yu is a good writer & I love the idea of the story, I just wish the book had had more to it; there wasn’t enough to the story to fill 488 pages so despite the story being good, it just felt incredible dragged out. I’ve preordered the sequel but I’m not sure if I’ll still be interested by the time March comes around.
⚠️ Violence, gory sword fights, murder, animal slaughter, parental death/murder, hunting, genocide of a fictional community, imprisonments in labour camps, discussions of infertility & panic attacks (secondary character) ⚠️
Possible extended review to follow.
Hmph, I feel really deflated writing about this book because I was really excited to read it & it turned out just to be “okay”. I did really enjoy the dramatic ending; the big scene that was being built up the whole way through the book was really good & there were a couple of good surprises, I just wish the rest of the book was as intense & fast paced as the ending. Mimi Yu is a good writer & I love the idea of the story, I just wish the book had had more to it; there wasn’t enough to the story to fill 488 pages so despite the story being good, it just felt incredible dragged out. I’ve preordered the sequel but I’m not sure if I’ll still be interested by the time March comes around.
⚠️ Violence, gory sword fights, murder, animal slaughter, parental death/murder, hunting, genocide of a fictional community, imprisonments in labour camps, discussions of infertility & panic attacks (secondary character) ⚠️
Possible extended review to follow.
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-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