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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
FULL Review on the blog! https://literaryleisha.wordpress.com/2019/01/15/review-the-girl-king-by-mimi-yu-blog-tour/
*This was sent to me for free in exchange for a review.
The plot is definitely a slow one, especially at the beginning. At the start, I was intrigued and hopeful but the middle chunk of the book was just too slow. There’s a lot of build-up and background information going on. (I read the ARC – which is an uncorrected proof. How much of this ended up in the final copy, I don’t know) It did feel unnecessarily long in places, with editing down it could’ve been great. The last 150-200 pages were the best, they were gripping and interesting – I was really engrossed at this point. At almost 500 pages, it really needed to pick up before then. It was pretty long winded, I feel it would’ve been better condensed down.
The world-building; simplistic and minimal. There are hints and glimpses of the world but not enough, in my opinion. The parts of the world and magic we did see, were so interesting and cool – I just wish there was more to it! Hopefully, the sequel will enlighten us.
As with a lot of YA, it has its tropes. A lot of the plot twists and turns were pretty predictable. Nothing was particularly surprising, there was no ‘shock factor’ because you could see what was going to happen.
Nothing was overly original, it wasn’t bad at all. Just nothing new, really. It’s the same fantasy story of the royal claiming back their throne – just with a slightly different setting.
*This was sent to me for free in exchange for a review.
The plot is definitely a slow one, especially at the beginning. At the start, I was intrigued and hopeful but the middle chunk of the book was just too slow. There’s a lot of build-up and background information going on. (I read the ARC – which is an uncorrected proof. How much of this ended up in the final copy, I don’t know) It did feel unnecessarily long in places, with editing down it could’ve been great. The last 150-200 pages were the best, they were gripping and interesting – I was really engrossed at this point. At almost 500 pages, it really needed to pick up before then. It was pretty long winded, I feel it would’ve been better condensed down.
The world-building; simplistic and minimal. There are hints and glimpses of the world but not enough, in my opinion. The parts of the world and magic we did see, were so interesting and cool – I just wish there was more to it! Hopefully, the sequel will enlighten us.
As with a lot of YA, it has its tropes. A lot of the plot twists and turns were pretty predictable. Nothing was particularly surprising, there was no ‘shock factor’ because you could see what was going to happen.
Nothing was overly original, it wasn’t bad at all. Just nothing new, really. It’s the same fantasy story of the royal claiming back their throne – just with a slightly different setting.
3.75 stars
This book included some cliche fantasy character tropes, but I thought the story itself went in a unique direction, and I was hooked by the end. I particularly enjoyed the four(?) different POVs we get to read from. I felt invested in all of them, which is a rare occurrence! Looking forward to book 2.
This book included some cliche fantasy character tropes, but I thought the story itself went in a unique direction, and I was hooked by the end. I particularly enjoyed the four(?) different POVs we get to read from. I felt invested in all of them, which is a rare occurrence! Looking forward to book 2.
I was lucky enough to get a pre release copy of this book from my local book club and I am so glad I did because I loved this book so much it was just absolutely incredible and I can’t wait to read the next one
Wonderful well written book, strong female lead from the start and not shy about it ! Great pacing, didn’t want to put this down and can’t wait for more ! A real epic on fantasy and a rising star. I look forward to many more books , I am excited if they are all this good !
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion
Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don't really understand why this book has such poor reviews? It definitely has its weaknesses and you can tell it's a debut as you read it, but honestly I didn't think that outweighed its strengths. Some people said that the characters were one-dimensional, but I didn't find that to be the case. I really enjoyed seeing the sister rivalry between Lu and Min, and I liked Min's character and arc a lot! The magic system was really interesting as well. The action, political intrigue, and worldbuilding were written really well, and the writing style itself was engaging and beautiful. The only faults I really had with this book was the predictability of some of the plot twists, the uneven pacing throughout the book, and the insta-romance, but I'm willing to forgive those because this truly was an excellent book! I would definitely recommend it for fans of Asian fantasy and fantasy in general.
Originally posted to I Should Read That
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This review is spoiler-free.
I was lucky enough to get my paws on an early copy of this book, which was one of my most hightly anticipated books of 2019. While it wasn’t necessarily my cup of tea I think a lot of readers are going to love this debut.
You all know I love books that feature sisters, and this was the main draw of The Girl King, and this was one of the highlights of the book for me. I really loved the way the sisters’ relationship changes, evolves, and becomes more and more complex. This book had such an interesting take on the sisterly relationship -- they are not particularly close, however their love for each other complicates the separate paths they’re going down. As much as I love reading about sisters who have a fierce love for each other, it was so refreshing to read about a more complicated sibling relationship.
Lu and Min are our two main characters and they’re so incredibly different. I was absolutely fascinated by Min’s story arc. In the beginning, she is so incredibly meek and timid but has such an incredible rage burning beneath the surface. The way that rage begins to develop into mysterious powers was so intriguing, and I loved watching her give in to her anger. It was so easy to forget that she was so young -- only fifteen years old -- and Yu did a great job balancing that rage with the thought process of a child.
While I really enjoyed Min’s side of the story, I had a tougher time with Lu. Lu is our Girl King -- she’s been training to sit on the throne her entire life and it is snatched away from her at the last minute. I think Lu is going to appeal to a lot of readers for her fierce, stubborn personality, however she just didn’t click with me. In a lot of ways her personality reminded me of Lila Bard, a character I dislike but is beloved by so many readers. That kind of character is not someone I enjoy reading about and I really struggled with Lu’s chapters, which make up at least half of the book. The two sisters really overpower Nok, our third POV character, who should have had the best storyline but felt a little underwhelming.
Overall, I liked The Girl King, but it just didn’t quite click with me as a reader. However I think this book is going to be perfect for you if you like fierce, headstrong heroines, political intrigue, complex families, and magic.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This review is spoiler-free.
I was lucky enough to get my paws on an early copy of this book, which was one of my most hightly anticipated books of 2019. While it wasn’t necessarily my cup of tea I think a lot of readers are going to love this debut.
You all know I love books that feature sisters, and this was the main draw of The Girl King, and this was one of the highlights of the book for me. I really loved the way the sisters’ relationship changes, evolves, and becomes more and more complex. This book had such an interesting take on the sisterly relationship -- they are not particularly close, however their love for each other complicates the separate paths they’re going down. As much as I love reading about sisters who have a fierce love for each other, it was so refreshing to read about a more complicated sibling relationship.
Lu and Min are our two main characters and they’re so incredibly different. I was absolutely fascinated by Min’s story arc. In the beginning, she is so incredibly meek and timid but has such an incredible rage burning beneath the surface. The way that rage begins to develop into mysterious powers was so intriguing, and I loved watching her give in to her anger. It was so easy to forget that she was so young -- only fifteen years old -- and Yu did a great job balancing that rage with the thought process of a child.
While I really enjoyed Min’s side of the story, I had a tougher time with Lu. Lu is our Girl King -- she’s been training to sit on the throne her entire life and it is snatched away from her at the last minute. I think Lu is going to appeal to a lot of readers for her fierce, stubborn personality, however she just didn’t click with me. In a lot of ways her personality reminded me of Lila Bard, a character I dislike but is beloved by so many readers. That kind of character is not someone I enjoy reading about and I really struggled with Lu’s chapters, which make up at least half of the book. The two sisters really overpower Nok, our third POV character, who should have had the best storyline but felt a little underwhelming.
Overall, I liked The Girl King, but it just didn’t quite click with me as a reader. However I think this book is going to be perfect for you if you like fierce, headstrong heroines, political intrigue, complex families, and magic.
*I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
Why did I want to read? Asian inspired fantasy, with two female protagonists? Sign me up.
The Girl King was a 2019 release I was super excited for, and I felt very privileged to receive an ARC of it. Perhaps because my expectations were so high, the reality was bound to fall a little short. Although there were some glimpses of things I really liked and found interesting – probably enough to induce me to continue the series beyond this point – this book was just ok. And not just ok, but problematic in places, in ways that I only began to really question after I’d finished reading.
This book marks another move from Euro-centric fantasy, and I did love not only the setting but also the way it focused almost entirely on the female characters within that world. One thing The Girl King cannot be accused of is not having enough women, even if they don't really like each other too much, which was another source of frustration.
However, the particularly lacklustre romances, problematic queer rep, and unnecessary sexual assault scenes are what really make me hesitant to recommend this to people.
TW: rape/sexual assault
Full review here!
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes