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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
a man in his 40s obviously wrote this book, I need to thoroughly cleanse my eyes after reading this shit, bitch gets her coochie “blown” and plastic surgery and a boob job at 16 please just make them legal next time perv.
review:
design:
The cover is very confusing at first. It shows a few details that already refer to the storylines and objects that will be important in the book. Mia's motto is also printed on the cover. In general, the cover conveys the same dark, dangerous vibe that reigns throughout the book.
Reading flow:
Since this is a fantasy book with a whole new world, it was not always easy to get the describtion of the environment right. In addition, Kristoff works a lot with footnotes, especially in the first half, in order to provide the story with historical context. Kristoff also has a very detailed and sometimes almost poetic writing style, which sometimes had a positive, but other times a negative effect on the story. This meant that for a long time there was no good reading flow and I had to struggle through the story, especially in the first half. It got really exciting in the last third, when Mia's training at the Red Church came to an end. At this point I had got used to Kristoff's writing style and hardly put the book down. There were also only a few footnotes, so that I was no longer so distracted.
Content and characters:
The story was extraordinary from the start, if at times not immediately tangible. It was exciting right from the start when Mia had to fight for her life and this tension never eased, but getting along with Mia, her abilities and Jay Kristoff's writing style required a little perseverance and concentration, especially in English. But once you got used to it and let half of the story sink in, the story began to get super exciting and unpredictable. I really haven't suspected any of the numerous twists in the story. Especially towards the end I often thought "WTF" and couldn't believe what I had read. That was largely due to the Red Church, the association of ice-cold murderers and assassins who train their students in the most brutal way. So the story is not for people with light nerves.
Kristoff created very special characters in this story, who often surprised me with their buried traits. At the beginning I wasn't able to establish a connection with the protagonist Mia. After arriving at the Red Church, however, she showed some hidden character traits, including especially her rational thinking and her existing sense of morality, and I liked her character development, so in the end I could connect with her. My favorite character was without a doubt Tric. Mia's fellow contender, and later even a good friend, was immediately likeable. He also has a history that led him to the Red Church, but you could tell from the beginning that he was not an ice-cold killer. Together, in the midst of murderers and liars, the two tried to preserve a part of their humanity. In the story it became clear that Mia is not the only one with special skills. In the Red Church there were the siblings Adonai and Marielle, both of whom were so disturbing and could really make you shudder.
Unfortunately, there is not much else to say about the story, as everything else would reveal and spoil storylines. That's why I'll leave it here;) I tell you that much, Mia's story is far from over after this book. It has only just started, but no worries...there are still two follow-up volumes
design:
The cover is very confusing at first. It shows a few details that already refer to the storylines and objects that will be important in the book. Mia's motto is also printed on the cover. In general, the cover conveys the same dark, dangerous vibe that reigns throughout the book.
Reading flow:
Since this is a fantasy book with a whole new world, it was not always easy to get the describtion of the environment right. In addition, Kristoff works a lot with footnotes, especially in the first half, in order to provide the story with historical context. Kristoff also has a very detailed and sometimes almost poetic writing style, which sometimes had a positive, but other times a negative effect on the story. This meant that for a long time there was no good reading flow and I had to struggle through the story, especially in the first half. It got really exciting in the last third, when Mia's training at the Red Church came to an end. At this point I had got used to Kristoff's writing style and hardly put the book down. There were also only a few footnotes, so that I was no longer so distracted.
Content and characters:
The story was extraordinary from the start, if at times not immediately tangible. It was exciting right from the start when Mia had to fight for her life and this tension never eased, but getting along with Mia, her abilities and Jay Kristoff's writing style required a little perseverance and concentration, especially in English. But once you got used to it and let half of the story sink in, the story began to get super exciting and unpredictable. I really haven't suspected any of the numerous twists in the story. Especially towards the end I often thought "WTF" and couldn't believe what I had read. That was largely due to the Red Church, the association of ice-cold murderers and assassins who train their students in the most brutal way. So the story is not for people with light nerves.
Kristoff created very special characters in this story, who often surprised me with their buried traits. At the beginning I wasn't able to establish a connection with the protagonist Mia. After arriving at the Red Church, however, she showed some hidden character traits, including especially her rational thinking and her existing sense of morality, and I liked her character development, so in the end I could connect with her. My favorite character was without a doubt Tric. Mia's fellow contender, and later even a good friend, was immediately likeable. He also has a history that led him to the Red Church, but you could tell from the beginning that he was not an ice-cold killer. Together, in the midst of murderers and liars, the two tried to preserve a part of their humanity. In the story it became clear that Mia is not the only one with special skills. In the Red Church there were the siblings Adonai and Marielle, both of whom were so disturbing and could really make you shudder.
Unfortunately, there is not much else to say about the story, as everything else would reveal and spoil storylines. That's why I'll leave it here;) I tell you that much, Mia's story is far from over after this book. It has only just started, but no worries...there are still two follow-up volumes
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
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:
No
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Took me a while to get into the writing style but by the end couldn’t put it down. Quite gory.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Such a waste.
After the first act, I though this was gonna be a solid 4 stars.
During act 2, this dropped to a 3.
But because of Act 3, this ends up a 2 out 5 (barely).
First off, this book is not what was sold to us. "This is not a YA book" we are told. This is a story of murders, of violence, of vengeance.
Yeah, no. This is at 80% a YA book. The author uses and re-uses all the classic tropes of a YA fantasy book of this type. Even though I knew the setting was a classic one - A school of assassins, I was expecting the author to add a layer of complexity, or originality to it. But no.
A good example of what I call a YA trope : Even though we have plenty of antagonists in this story, Jay Kristoff felt the need to create a fellow student who is gonna be the "rival" of Mia at school. That rival doesn't bring much, and whatever they bring could have been done in another, more original way. So, the only real reason we have this "rival", it's because it's something that is expected in a YA story with a school setting. It's "classic".
Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with YA books, but it's simply not how this book is being sold to us.
And the overall problem with this, it's that once you understand the Kristoff uses all the classic tropes of YA books, the story becomes highly predictable. What a shame.
It goes so far as playing the card of (SPOILER) :. Which is something you'd expect from a YA book which this book, we are told, is not.
Adding to that all the graphic violence and explicit sex scenes, and you have a book that doesn't know what it's supposed to be.
The second issue I have, it's the lack of consequences from all the violence, both physical and psychological. When those consequences are addressed, it's always done in a very superficial way. A paragraph or so, and our characters move on from whatever trauma they should have. With the lack of consequence for all this brutality, you start to ask yourself, "what's the point of all this explicit violence?". Story-wise, there is none. Once I understood that, I just stop caring. Ho, this guy just died painfully ? Though shit, bro. I'll just add your name to the list.
JK, I don't care enough to keep a list.
Third issue, it's the non-stop action. In each chapter, something happens. I liked it at first, very entertaining. But by the second half of the book, it became tiresome. You never get the chance to breathe and digest what happened in the previous chapter. Worst is that some important events will lose their significance as they are drowned in the sea that all this action creates.
And finally, my biggest hurdle. That third act.
My suspension of disbelief completely shattered, I push through as everything I read prior is turned on its head, without any logical reason. Between the end of Act 2, and the act 3, Mia does a complete 180 degrees, with no explanation. Other than the author wanting to force this ending on her.
More details about what's bothering me here (SPOILER!):
All through act 2, I always perceived the Church as the main antagonist. These are not good people. I was expecting Mia to rebel at some point, as clearly her values are different from the Church's. Finally, at the end of act 2, Mia refuses to kill an innocent and choose not to be initiated as Blade. This event tell us two things :
1. Mia realizes that her place is not at the church. That her values and the church's are different.
2. That the Church's indoctrination didn't work on her.
But then during act 3, she goes on a killing spree to protect the church ? Are we supposed to root for the church in this book ? This is not the message we got through Act 2.
That Mia goes back to save Tric and Neav, and to avenge Carlotta, and even her father, that makes senses. That is on par with what we know of Mia at this point.
That she actively takes the Church side in this conflict, and kills 100+ men without remorse ? That contradicts what Jay Kristoff just told us at the end of act 2...
Also, it would take almost 3h for 200 soldiers to cross through the blood walk, the head of Mia in the pool would have been covered in blood, and so someone should have notice her at some point, the poison's Master should have detected the poison in the food, and Cassius would have use his powers to free himself and the others, as we saw Mia doing the same earlier in the book. Suspension of disbelieve completely shattered during this final act.
A word about the author's style. The metaphorical language and the footnotes didn't really bothered me. What bothered me is all the clichés sprinkled in the book. It really reads like a bad TV screenplay at times.
Couple of good things :
- The world building is fantastic;
- The story is actually structured correctly, which is not always the case with modern fantasy authors.
Strong start, horrible ending.
EDIT : After a week of digestion, I decided to bump this to 3 stars (instead of 2). Even tough I was disappointed with act 3, I still like the character of Mia, and I'm intrigued enough by the story to continue with book 2.
After the first act, I though this was gonna be a solid 4 stars.
During act 2, this dropped to a 3.
But because of Act 3, this ends up a 2 out 5 (barely).
First off, this book is not what was sold to us. "This is not a YA book" we are told. This is a story of murders, of violence, of vengeance.
Yeah, no. This is at 80% a YA book. The author uses and re-uses all the classic tropes of a YA fantasy book of this type. Even though I knew the setting was a classic one - A school of assassins, I was expecting the author to add a layer of complexity, or originality to it. But no.
A good example of what I call a YA trope : Even though we have plenty of antagonists in this story, Jay Kristoff felt the need to create a fellow student who is gonna be the "rival" of Mia at school. That rival doesn't bring much, and whatever they bring could have been done in another, more original way. So, the only real reason we have this "rival", it's because it's something that is expected in a YA story with a school setting. It's "classic".
Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with YA books, but it's simply not how this book is being sold to us.
And the overall problem with this, it's that once you understand the Kristoff uses all the classic tropes of YA books, the story becomes highly predictable. What a shame.
It goes so far as playing the card of (SPOILER) :
Spoiler
The Chosen One.Adding to that all the graphic violence and explicit sex scenes, and you have a book that doesn't know what it's supposed to be.
The second issue I have, it's the lack of consequences from all the violence, both physical and psychological. When those consequences are addressed, it's always done in a very superficial way. A paragraph or so, and our characters move on from whatever trauma they should have. With the lack of consequence for all this brutality, you start to ask yourself, "what's the point of all this explicit violence?". Story-wise, there is none. Once I understood that, I just stop caring. Ho, this guy just died painfully ? Though shit, bro. I'll just add your name to the list.
JK, I don't care enough to keep a list.
Third issue, it's the non-stop action. In each chapter, something happens. I liked it at first, very entertaining. But by the second half of the book, it became tiresome. You never get the chance to breathe and digest what happened in the previous chapter. Worst is that some important events will lose their significance as they are drowned in the sea that all this action creates.
And finally, my biggest hurdle. That third act.
My suspension of disbelief completely shattered, I push through as everything I read prior is turned on its head, without any logical reason. Between the end of Act 2, and the act 3, Mia does a complete 180 degrees, with no explanation. Other than the author wanting to force this ending on her.
More details about what's bothering me here (SPOILER!):
Spoiler
All through act 2, I always perceived the Church as the main antagonist. These are not good people. I was expecting Mia to rebel at some point, as clearly her values are different from the Church's. Finally, at the end of act 2, Mia refuses to kill an innocent and choose not to be initiated as Blade. This event tell us two things :
1. Mia realizes that her place is not at the church. That her values and the church's are different.
2. That the Church's indoctrination didn't work on her.
But then during act 3, she goes on a killing spree to protect the church ? Are we supposed to root for the church in this book ? This is not the message we got through Act 2.
That Mia goes back to save Tric and Neav, and to avenge Carlotta, and even her father, that makes senses. That is on par with what we know of Mia at this point.
That she actively takes the Church side in this conflict, and kills 100+ men without remorse ? That contradicts what Jay Kristoff just told us at the end of act 2...
Also, it would take almost 3h for 200 soldiers to cross through the blood walk, the head of Mia in the pool would have been covered in blood, and so someone should have notice her at some point, the poison's Master should have detected the poison in the food, and Cassius would have use his powers to free himself and the others, as we saw Mia doing the same earlier in the book. Suspension of disbelieve completely shattered during this final act.
A word about the author's style. The metaphorical language and the footnotes didn't really bothered me. What bothered me is all the clichés sprinkled in the book. It really reads like a bad TV screenplay at times.
Couple of good things :
- The world building is fantastic;
- The story is actually structured correctly, which is not always the case with modern fantasy authors.
Strong start, horrible ending.
EDIT : After a week of digestion, I decided to bump this to 3 stars (instead of 2). Even tough I was disappointed with act 3, I still like the character of Mia, and I'm intrigued enough by the story to continue with book 2.
Bright spots:
- Mia and her powers are super interesting. Very cinematic - each fight scene toward the end feels like a short film.
- What's not to love about a daemon familiar that is also pure shadow?
- The worldbuilding is rich and detailed
- Nice build of tension in the final act
- Nice twist that I actually did NOT see coming
Less bright spots:
- Kristoff never met a metaphor or simile he didn't like, apparently. It's distracting and, in some places, makes the narrative more confusing.
- The plot takes forever to get going in earnest, and this is when the purple prose is at its most intense. I almost put the book down five or six times in the first third of the story. If you can stick it out, it DOES get better.
- The dialog is all over the place - sometimes the characters sound like relatively contemporary teenagers, other times they sound like medieval western Europeans.
- Mia and her powers are super interesting. Very cinematic - each fight scene toward the end feels like a short film.
- What's not to love about a daemon familiar that is also pure shadow?
- The worldbuilding is rich and detailed
- Nice build of tension in the final act
- Nice twist that I actually did NOT see coming
Less bright spots:
- Kristoff never met a metaphor or simile he didn't like, apparently. It's distracting and, in some places, makes the narrative more confusing.
- The plot takes forever to get going in earnest, and this is when the purple prose is at its most intense. I almost put the book down five or six times in the first third of the story. If you can stick it out, it DOES get better.
- The dialog is all over the place - sometimes the characters sound like relatively contemporary teenagers, other times they sound like medieval western Europeans.