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rixx's review against another edition
4.0
Brutal, in a good way. Incredible character-building. Story arc is so Duane that you'd recognise it anywhere, but let's not pretend that this is a bad thing.
lizshayne's review
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Segnbora was not my favorite character from the previous book, which made this one feel rather like a slog. Which, you know, fine. As is true in many novels, people improve upon the application of a dragon. And the pursuit of the plot continues to be interesting.
I forgot how 80s the 80s was. I have now been THOROUGHLY reminded.
There's a lot to unpack here and I almost don't want to becauseit's not exactly that Duane handles either sexual assault or the process of healing BADLY. It's more the very 80s ideology that—in a world where wars are fought and the devil walks the earth, the worst fucking thing that can ever happen to a person is rape and that's a woman's story arc. Men are driven by fridged women and women are driven by rape. And, like, UGH. It's not bad for it's time. It's just...out of character, maybe? And, of course, the narrative is about tzelem elokim and ALSO about Christian love and forgiveness and they are very strange bedfellows here .
It was, as they say, fine, but I can understand why getting through it felt like a slog.
I forgot how 80s the 80s was. I have now been THOROUGHLY reminded.
There's a lot to unpack here and I almost don't want to because
It was, as they say, fine, but I can understand why getting through it felt like a slog.
jwells's review against another edition
So many things about this book are awesome. Unfortunately I have to echo other reviewers in complaining about the regrettably detailed scene where Segnbora relives her childhood trauma. Yes, the same trauma as every Generic Female Fantasy Protagonist, because apparently it's the only bad thing that can happen to girls? and yes, in really horrifying detail. It's awful, and to me, it really breaks the tone of this series. Not that violence doesn't happen in this series, but there's fighting evil and adventuring, and then there's...this.
It's in chapter 13 if anyone wants to know.
I quite liked the character's Spoiler spiritual awakening that allowed her to use her magic and also I thought Hasai and the dragons are unique and cool. I also enjoyed the Spoilermagic earthquake management scene, what an interesting way to do magic combat on large scale.
(Review imported from Goodreads.)
It's in chapter 13 if anyone wants to know.
I quite liked the character's Spoiler spiritual awakening that allowed her to use her magic and also I thought Hasai and the dragons are unique and cool. I also enjoyed the Spoilermagic earthquake management scene, what an interesting way to do magic combat on large scale.
(Review imported from Goodreads.)
j00j's review against another edition
1.0
Okay, so the storyline generally continues in an interesting way, and I quite liked some of the other character development, and the dragons were interesting. However, [rest of review contains spoilers. Also, trigger warning!:] there is some major fail. It turns out that Segnbora's intimacy issues and inability to focus her Flame are because she was sexually abused as a child and had mostly repressed that. Now, yes, it's believable that she'd have these kinds of issues as a result of that, but rape as a plot point and significant motivator for a female character's actions is a cliche, and one I can live without. I also found her conclusion at the end that her rapist was just a tool of the Goddess to get her where she needed to be to save the world and stuff to be HIGHLY PROBLEMATIC. OH DIANE DUANE NO.
ariellogram's review against another edition
I really enjoyed the first book in this series, but I absolutely loved this one, for the sophisticated reason of DRAGONS. Segnbora is an amazing character, and I'm glad to see Diane Duane writing female leads again (not that her male leads are any less good, but she writes women so well in a genre that often slights them), and what's more, the supporting characters were fleshed out as well. Also, Herewiss! It's interesting getting an outsider's perspective on him. And did I mention DRAGONS?
As for the issue of her forgiving her rapist - I read it differently than a lot of reviewers, it seems. Instead of the Goddess having Segnbora raped to make her the way she was, I saw it as the Goddess showing Segnbora that it was a part of her past, something that influenced her life, and that she needed to make peace with it and with herself to progress as a person. I found that to ring very true, and it moved me.
As for the issue of her forgiving her rapist - I read it differently than a lot of reviewers, it seems. Instead of the Goddess having Segnbora raped to make her the way she was, I saw it as the Goddess showing Segnbora that it was a part of her past, something that influenced her life, and that she needed to make peace with it and with herself to progress as a person. I found that to ring very true, and it moved me.
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