Reviews

Ctnosti králů by Ken Liu

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emilyeliz's review against another edition

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adventurous dark slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

dkadastra's review against another edition

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5.0

This was one of the more unique and original fantasies I've read in a while. In the beginning, it seemed like it was laid out as a series of vignettes, rather than an overarching story, but eventually the vignettes (which were setting up the world and characters in an interesting, comprehensive way) coalesced into a riveting, coherent story. Throughout the narrative, POV characters were introduced, quickly served their purpose and were killed off, but Ken Liu manages to give them incredible characterization in their short time on the main stage. It's hard for me to describe the style of the writing and the prose, but it managed to, at various times, sound like a fable, a history, and a more modern fantasy. The amount of story contained in this book was massive, enough that I'm sure an entire trilogy could have been made from it, so I'm genuinely curious as to where the story goes from here.

morganrose's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

pmjnewton's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I liked lots of things about this book- big universe/ lots of plot lines/ heroic women. I thought it got better as it went on and I’m going to read the next in the series. However at times I found it a bit 2 dimensional and I wouldn’t put it up on my Must Read Fantasy . But these dynasty books do sometimes take a while to get going, so will persevere

chasinggrace's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

A fantastic, epic, detailed story of the battle for power in one of the most intricate worlds I’ve ever read about. This story examines the ethics of war, trust between friends and foes, betrayals of grand proportions, and how far one will go for what he believes is right.

The culture that the author creates is masterful and the world is lush. If you take the time to understand the intricacies of this land and its people, you’ll be transported.

However, it’s clear that this book is to be seen as a tool for world-building. While the pacing isn’t bad, the middle of the novel is bogged down with details - names, battles, animals, locations, places, gods, etc - that slow down the plot. I found this book difficult to want to pick up at times, because it isn’t something to be consumed lightly. There is a need to constantly remind myself of who is who, where everyone is, which god rules which state, what city is where, etc. Many characters are introduced just to be killed, but such is the matter of war.

Overall, I’m interested to see where this story goes, but I hope the next books are more intriguing than a war & peace play-by-play. I hope to feel more attached to the characters, hopefully through more intricate relationships. This was a slow-burn labor of love to read.

Favorite characters I hope to see explored in the following books: Jia, Gin, Kuni

Content Warnings