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hails2dabails's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Murder, Death, Violence, Child death, and Blood
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Addiction, Alcohol, and Animal death
kmack79's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
Even the brave will fall"
There are humans, draighs, giants, wyrm, wolven, and a talking bird.
The world building was good and the magic system I feel is just the beginning in this book.
The black sun is gaining its ascendency and there are going to be far larger problems to come than this war. The prophesy indicates darkness and light will demand two champions, the Black Sun and the Bright Star. They would be wise to seek out both, for if the Black Sun gains ascendancy, mankind’s hopes and dreams will fall to dust
Corban is a young warrior who is learning to protect and serve under King Brenin. He finds a wolven who he raises from a pup that now has grown and is his protective companion. He is the main character in this book so you definitely root for him.
Veradis is a very skilled swordsmen who is in the High prince Nathair's warband. He seems like a cool character. Seems like a Jamie Lanister type except isnt so cocky. ; )
Nathair- the High Prince, doesn't agree with his father (High King Aquilus) to summon his fellow kings to council.
The book reminded me of Game of thrones in many ways. Its violent. Don't get too comfortable with characters they may die!
There are humans, draighs, giants, wyrm, wolven, and a talking bird.
The world building was good and the magic system I feel is just the beginning in this book.
The black sun is gaining its ascendency and there are going to be far larger problems to come than this war. The prophesy indicates darkness and light will demand two champions, the Black Sun and the Bright Star. They would be wise to seek out both, for if the Black Sun gains ascendancy, mankind’s hopes and dreams will fall to dust
Corban is a young warrior who is learning to protect and serve under King Brenin. He finds a wolven who he raises from a pup that now has grown and is his protective companion. He is the main character in this book so you definitely root for him.
Veradis is a very skilled swordsmen who is in the High prince Nathair's warband. He seems like a cool character. Seems like a Jamie Lanister type except isnt so cocky. ; )
Nathair- the High Prince, doesn't agree with his father (High King Aquilus) to summon his fellow kings to council.
The book reminded me of Game of thrones in many ways. Its violent. Don't get too comfortable with characters they may die!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Violence, War, Death, and Death of parent
angemelb's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Lots of characters to get your head around from the get go. Coming of age for Corban, young man who is being trained by mystery man. A Prince, Nathair, counsel-Evnis, and others who filed with greed/ambition.... tale of kings being superceded and who shall win in the end? Help from strange places/ people/ creatures.... really enjoyed this first book and ate throug the pages. Can't wait to see what happens next.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Alcoholism, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Blood, and Bullying
grunks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Blood, Gore, Violence, Torture, Child death, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, and Death of parent
Moderate: Alcoholism and Alcohol
bebby92's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
This is a very slow burn and feels like a set up for the rest of the series but it’s so worth it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, War, Death of parent, and Animal death
arbitrary_convenience's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The only thing that makes this not a perfect 5/5 is that sometimes the descriptions are a bit tedious and you have to reread the same paragraph 10 times.
But it’s so exciting every time I pick it up. And I get so hype seeing what happens next.
But it’s so exciting every time I pick it up. And I get so hype seeing what happens next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Domestic abuse and Alcoholism
dryhop's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-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
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. That's the tl;dr. I wasn't sure I was going to, and in fact had avoided the book for quite a while, walking by it countless times at countless Barnes and Nobles for a good few years at least. I'm not really sure why. There's going to be some Wheel of Time comparisons here because I am rereading that series at the same time and the differences create a really nice contrast.
Gwynne does not muck about with his words. Chapters can be rather short, almost thriller novel short at times. I am just finishing the 5th book in the Wheel of Time and there was almost half a chapter of description in that book to let you know that the servants wore black livery. In that span, Gwynne would have moved the plots forward with two of his characters in as many chapters. This is more an observation than a pro or a con, but I did find it refreshing by comparison and you really feel like you're plowing through the book as you burn through the shorter chapters. The stakes are real and characters can die. They may not be as at risk as Game of Thrones characters, but there are definitely consequences to actions other than a sternly worded rebuke. In particular, the last probably 15% of the book or so really plows forward in action and a lot changes in that time. I also tended to care about most of the viewpoint characters and didn't feel like I had to slog through a chapter for a character I didn't really like, a problem I am running into with WoT.
For some criticism, it starts out slow. There's a lot of characters and locations to introduce and it takes awhile before I personally started to really feel invested and for the characters to start to feel different. In particular, Veradis and Kastell were vary samey to me for a bit and Camlin pops infrequently enough that at one point I had to stop and slip back chapters to remember who he even was. So be wary if you're a much more limited viewpoint type of person. By the end I had no problem but there was some time in the beginning and middle where I had to do a little work. I personally also found a weird inconsistency with scale. It felt like it could take weeks or so to get somewhere and then they could turn around and walk back in a couple days. Maybe I didn't follow close enough, but it struck me a couple of times.
Overall, I am excited to continue this series and it acts as the perfect counterpoint to the WoT as I reread that. Characters all feel reasonably motivated to be doing what they're doing, there's real stakes, and a big canvas with lots of things happening. It gives me very Games of Thrones vibes while still being its own thing. An interesting note, this book might be the book that I have accidentally purchased the most physical copies of, buying it twice on accident and a third time as part of a boxed set of all four books. There's a lot going on, but I recommend this book.
Gwynne does not muck about with his words. Chapters can be rather short, almost thriller novel short at times. I am just finishing the 5th book in the Wheel of Time and there was almost half a chapter of description in that book to let you know that the servants wore black livery. In that span, Gwynne would have moved the plots forward with two of his characters in as many chapters. This is more an observation than a pro or a con, but I did find it refreshing by comparison and you really feel like you're plowing through the book as you burn through the shorter chapters. The stakes are real and characters can die. They may not be as at risk as Game of Thrones characters, but there are definitely consequences to actions other than a sternly worded rebuke. In particular, the last probably 15% of the book or so really plows forward in action and a lot changes in that time. I also tended to care about most of the viewpoint characters and didn't feel like I had to slog through a chapter for a character I didn't really like, a problem I am running into with WoT.
For some criticism, it starts out slow. There's a lot of characters and locations to introduce and it takes awhile before I personally started to really feel invested and for the characters to start to feel different. In particular, Veradis and Kastell were vary samey to me for a bit and Camlin pops infrequently enough that at one point I had to stop and slip back chapters to remember who he even was. So be wary if you're a much more limited viewpoint type of person. By the end I had no problem but there was some time in the beginning and middle where I had to do a little work. I personally also found a weird inconsistency with scale. It felt like it could take weeks or so to get somewhere and then they could turn around and walk back in a couple days. Maybe I didn't follow close enough, but it struck me a couple of times.
Overall, I am excited to continue this series and it acts as the perfect counterpoint to the WoT as I reread that. Characters all feel reasonably motivated to be doing what they're doing, there's real stakes, and a big canvas with lots of things happening. It gives me very Games of Thrones vibes while still being its own thing. An interesting note, this book might be the book that I have accidentally purchased the most physical copies of, buying it twice on accident and a third time as part of a boxed set of all four books. There's a lot going on, but I recommend this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Violence
ripxw's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Animal death, Murder, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, and Blood
Moderate: Torture, Death, War, and Death of parent
Minor: Alcoholism
kat1105's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Blood, Child abuse, Misogyny, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death of parent, Gore, Grief, Emotional abuse, Ableism, Alcohol, Alcoholism, War, Torture, and Violence
ocean_the_reader's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Upon reread this is definitely mostly set up for the rest of the series. I can't believe everything that's been foreshadowed.
I felt a lot of things while reading and I just love these characters so much. I can't wait to get to the rest of the series. Especially since I don't remember what happens next.
It took a while for me to actually get invested in this one. But when I did, I didn't want to put it down. I'm very intrigued to see what everyone's roles end up being.
And I definitely don't trust those Vin Thalun people. They're up to something that seems will benefit only them and will cause a lot of damage.
I felt a lot of things while reading and I just love these characters so much. I can't wait to get to the rest of the series. Especially since I don't remember what happens next.
It took a while for me to actually get invested in this one. But when I did, I didn't want to put it down. I'm very intrigued to see what everyone's roles end up being.
And I definitely don't trust those Vin Thalun people. They're up to something that seems will benefit only them and will cause a lot of damage.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Grief, Violence, Death, Murder, Alcohol, Death of parent, and Gore