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4.43 AVERAGE
4.43 AVERAGE
It took me a lot to finish this book and at times I thought to just DNF it... The worldbuilding is beautiful and the characters are compelling but I was quickly loosing interest in the story.
I'm glad I finish it though... the ending was perfect and sad and important and almost tempted me to give this book 4 stars instead of 3.
I still don't think City of Stairs needed sequels though.
I'm glad I finish it though... the ending was perfect and sad and important and almost tempted me to give this book 4 stars instead of 3.
I still don't think City of Stairs needed sequels though.
In 2014, I picked up City of Stairs with no idea what to expect but just hoping for a good story. What I ended up getting was more than a good story. It was a fantastic one that covered a multitude of topics and even multiple genres through superb writing and outstanding world-building. I was hooked on this weirdly familiar and yet totally strange world of Continentals and Saypuris, gods and politicians, haves and have-nots. The second novel, City of Blades was just as compelling for it used the passage of time on the original heroes to further that first story while the use of a new main character and location provided enough differences to make it unique. The final book in the Divine Cities series, City of Miracles, also uses time to its advantage, but it also does something the second novel did not. By occurring in Bulikov again and through following Sigrud on his revenge mission, Robert Jackson Bennett brings readers full circle, showing readers how far society has come since that first otherworldly battle while providing satisfying closure on an amazing series.
I thoroughly enjoyed the chance to get to know more about the silent weapon that is Sigrud. He has always been a formidable figure, happier in the shadows where he can do what is necessary with no fanfare and more importantly no police. While he still does his work in the shadows, this time we still get to see what he is thinking as he does these rather gruesome deeds. We see his regret and loneliness, his resignation and his devotion to his lost friend. This greatly humanizes him. Moreover, it changes your impression of him from a weapon for hire to someone with less enthusiasm for the role assigned to him than originally thought. Sigrud becomes less a menacing figure and more someone worthy of your sympathy at the unfortunate twists his life has taken. In turn, this changes your opinions of all of those who have utilized his lethal skills to great advantage in the previous novels, making them a bit more mercenary than previously thought. By the simple act of shifting the narrative to someone who was nothing more than a silent weapon, Mr. Bennett added more depth and nuance to an already complex story.
Suffice it to say, if you are reading City of Miracles, it is because you have read the previous books and are already a fan. For those readers, City of Miracles provides a welcome conclusion to this impressive story. It is not a rehashing of the previous novels but rather a continuation of them, touching on many of the same themes but allowing them to mature and evolve as naturally occurs over time. Mr. Bennett’s writing remains stellar; his ability to create humor and pathos while providing a light bulb moment all in the same sentence continues to amaze and delight me. In short, it is everything we have come to love about the Divine Cities series with the added bonus of closure on key characters and story lines.
I thoroughly enjoyed the chance to get to know more about the silent weapon that is Sigrud. He has always been a formidable figure, happier in the shadows where he can do what is necessary with no fanfare and more importantly no police. While he still does his work in the shadows, this time we still get to see what he is thinking as he does these rather gruesome deeds. We see his regret and loneliness, his resignation and his devotion to his lost friend. This greatly humanizes him. Moreover, it changes your impression of him from a weapon for hire to someone with less enthusiasm for the role assigned to him than originally thought. Sigrud becomes less a menacing figure and more someone worthy of your sympathy at the unfortunate twists his life has taken. In turn, this changes your opinions of all of those who have utilized his lethal skills to great advantage in the previous novels, making them a bit more mercenary than previously thought. By the simple act of shifting the narrative to someone who was nothing more than a silent weapon, Mr. Bennett added more depth and nuance to an already complex story.
Suffice it to say, if you are reading City of Miracles, it is because you have read the previous books and are already a fan. For those readers, City of Miracles provides a welcome conclusion to this impressive story. It is not a rehashing of the previous novels but rather a continuation of them, touching on many of the same themes but allowing them to mature and evolve as naturally occurs over time. Mr. Bennett’s writing remains stellar; his ability to create humor and pathos while providing a light bulb moment all in the same sentence continues to amaze and delight me. In short, it is everything we have come to love about the Divine Cities series with the added bonus of closure on key characters and story lines.
This book is another companion novel that takes place years after the previous books. It was a very fitting conclusion to the trilogy, and I would highly recommend this entire series!
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Man, right in the feels!
I'm so glad we got one last trip to the divine cities and I think this series is due a reread soon since it's so fascinating. And well written. And captures the epicness of epic fantasy without the faux medieval crap.
One of the things that Bennett does, and he's not alone in this, is he attempts to talk about the problem of righting a broken world. Which, yeah, tell me about it. And I can't decide whether the model of the individual who can make the right choices in the right place to break the cycle of violence is meant as inspirational hope or as one of the fiercest fantasies to which we cling.
I'm so glad we got one last trip to the divine cities and I think this series is due a reread soon since it's so fascinating. And well written. And captures the epicness of epic fantasy without the faux medieval crap.
One of the things that Bennett does, and he's not alone in this, is he attempts to talk about the problem of righting a broken world. Which, yeah, tell me about it. And I can't decide whether the model of the individual who can make the right choices in the right place to break the cycle of violence is meant as inspirational hope or as one of the fiercest fantasies to which we cling.
What I loved: Sigrud is a wonderful character and I thoroughly enjoyed the action/mystery plot surrounding him. After seeing him as a supporting character in the previous two books it was great seeing him as the main perspective. I also love the themes that are explored over these three books about power, government, and society. I think they are done so well in a series that on its surface is very much like an action movie franchise to me. This was a very good and cathartic end to this trilogy which I really never knew how it would be wrapped up.
What I liked: The plot was pretty good, I found in the middle things weren't as exciting for me even though exciting things were happening. I think that is because I wanted to pay more attention to character relationship development which was happening but I never got to see flourish here.
Recommendation: If you have read the first two you should read this. If you like action mystery plot lines with some awesome God mythology based fantasy this series is probably for you. In terms of writing style I am reminded of Brandon Sanderson and Brent Weeks when I read these personally so if you do or do not like their style that should give you an idea of how this series might work for you!
What I liked: The plot was pretty good, I found in the middle things weren't as exciting for me even though exciting things were happening. I think that is because I wanted to pay more attention to character relationship development which was happening but I never got to see flourish here.
Recommendation: If you have read the first two you should read this. If you like action mystery plot lines with some awesome God mythology based fantasy this series is probably for you. In terms of writing style I am reminded of Brandon Sanderson and Brent Weeks when I read these personally so if you do or do not like their style that should give you an idea of how this series might work for you!
While I really enjoyed both the previous books of this trilogy, they had some pretty obvious flaws; the characters suffered from a "tell instead of show" sort of coolness, the plot twists were fairly predictable (though that improved a fair bit by book 2) and there was some amount of Mary Sue-ness with some characters, for example, consider Sigrud's ability to magically come out ahead in any encounter he participates in, including but not limited to his fight with the magical serpent creature in book 1.
This book washes most of my criticisms away by doing all the things that I liked as well, and doing everything I disliked _much, much_ better. For one thing, the book comes up with a credible explanation for Sigrud's Mary Sue-ness.
This was the perfect capstone for the trilogy as a whole, and while neither Sigrud nor Mulaghesh were as relatable to me as Shara was, I enjoyed reading the story from their perspectives as well. The trilogy as a whole tells a very interesting story, which is reminiscent of Max Gladstone's Craft Sequence in the beginning and N.K. Jemisin's Inheritance Trilogy by the end.
If you like either of those authors, I highly recommend these books. The writing isn't as polished, but it improves drastically throughout the series, and doesn't detract from everything else that the series does well.
This book washes most of my criticisms away by doing all the things that I liked as well, and doing everything I disliked _much, much_ better. For one thing, the book comes up with a credible explanation for Sigrud's Mary Sue-ness.
This was the perfect capstone for the trilogy as a whole, and while neither Sigrud nor Mulaghesh were as relatable to me as Shara was, I enjoyed reading the story from their perspectives as well. The trilogy as a whole tells a very interesting story, which is reminiscent of Max Gladstone's Craft Sequence in the beginning and N.K. Jemisin's Inheritance Trilogy by the end.
If you like either of those authors, I highly recommend these books. The writing isn't as polished, but it improves drastically throughout the series, and doesn't detract from everything else that the series does well.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.75/5 stars
City of Miracles picks up several years after the events of City of Blades. Sigrud is in hiding, avoiding Saypuri and Continental authorities after his berserker rage killed several Saypuri soldiers. But when Shara Komayd is assassinated in Ahanashtan, Sigrud comes out of hiding to do what he's best at: kill a lot of folks until he's avenged her death. Except the forces that killed Shara aren't quite what they initially appear to be - and a new Divinity is on the rise.
I LOVE the world of the Continent and Saypur, not least because it has some forms of modern technology existing alongside magic and miracles. So it's fascinating to read this third installment, given that many years have passed and Saypuri technology has really taken off. (Ahanashtan even has skyscrapers now). Bennett's world has always felt real, but in this third outing, it's practically leaping off the pages (and out of the shadows).
What's particularly interesting this time around? The focus on the mechanics of miracles and the children of the Divinities. We learn a lot more about how miracles come into existence and how they function, some gaining properties just shy of sentience. We learn more about the creation of the world from Olvos and her theories on the Divine. And if that's not enough, we also get thrust into the world of the Divine children, each responsible for some minor domain of the world based on their parentage - everything from laughter to dreams.
And Sigrud is finally our main POV. He has been a scene-stealer in both previous volumes (though less so in City of Blades), so it's quite satisfying to watch him get all the limelight here. Bennett manages to give him a much stronger emotional conflict than I expected; instead of relying on the rogue with a heart of gold stereotype, Sigrud genuinely believes he's a bad person. He believes he only brings suffering and death to the ones he loves. The events of this novel force him to confront that directly, culminating in the knowledge of what the Finger of Kolkan did to him.
There's also a lot of lovely interplay between Sigrud and Shara's adopted daughter Taty. Sigrud is determined to do for Taty what he could not, in the end, do for Shara: protect her. Yet at the same time, he does not wholly shield her from the world, knowing that there are things she must understand to comprehend her danger. These scenes are remarkably touching for their realistic portrayal of an almost father/daughter relationship, a favorite trope of mine that is often vastly underplayed in fantasy fiction.
Read the rest of my review on my website
City of Miracles picks up several years after the events of City of Blades. Sigrud is in hiding, avoiding Saypuri and Continental authorities after his berserker rage killed several Saypuri soldiers. But when Shara Komayd is assassinated in Ahanashtan, Sigrud comes out of hiding to do what he's best at: kill a lot of folks until he's avenged her death. Except the forces that killed Shara aren't quite what they initially appear to be - and a new Divinity is on the rise.
I LOVE the world of the Continent and Saypur, not least because it has some forms of modern technology existing alongside magic and miracles. So it's fascinating to read this third installment, given that many years have passed and Saypuri technology has really taken off. (Ahanashtan even has skyscrapers now). Bennett's world has always felt real, but in this third outing, it's practically leaping off the pages (and out of the shadows).
What's particularly interesting this time around? The focus on the mechanics of miracles and the children of the Divinities. We learn a lot more about how miracles come into existence and how they function, some gaining properties just shy of sentience. We learn more about the creation of the world from Olvos and her theories on the Divine. And if that's not enough, we also get thrust into the world of the Divine children, each responsible for some minor domain of the world based on their parentage - everything from laughter to dreams.
And Sigrud is finally our main POV. He has been a scene-stealer in both previous volumes (though less so in City of Blades), so it's quite satisfying to watch him get all the limelight here. Bennett manages to give him a much stronger emotional conflict than I expected; instead of relying on the rogue with a heart of gold stereotype, Sigrud genuinely believes he's a bad person. He believes he only brings suffering and death to the ones he loves. The events of this novel force him to confront that directly, culminating in the knowledge of what the Finger of Kolkan did to him.
There's also a lot of lovely interplay between Sigrud and Shara's adopted daughter Taty. Sigrud is determined to do for Taty what he could not, in the end, do for Shara: protect her. Yet at the same time, he does not wholly shield her from the world, knowing that there are things she must understand to comprehend her danger. These scenes are remarkably touching for their realistic portrayal of an almost father/daughter relationship, a favorite trope of mine that is often vastly underplayed in fantasy fiction.
Read the rest of my review on my website
A sad finish to a wonderful trilogy. Even near the end, the author still has a couple more plausible twists that make it complete. Once done, I just sat there stunned and amazed. That is saying volumes, as I read a lot and many fiction books don't have me do that.
Sigrud is the focus, but there is a lot going on around him. Wherever he goes, things go boom. But this time there is sorrow at the death of Shara. He has lost so much over the three books, that his thoughts get quite dark.
This book isn't fun, it is more about the anguish of children. Are we making the world a better place for them or will they repeat the same mistakes as their parents? Even Divinities are fallible. I found the ending fitting for everyone involved.
Sigrud is the focus, but there is a lot going on around him. Wherever he goes, things go boom. But this time there is sorrow at the death of Shara. He has lost so much over the three books, that his thoughts get quite dark.
This book isn't fun, it is more about the anguish of children. Are we making the world a better place for them or will they repeat the same mistakes as their parents? Even Divinities are fallible. I found the ending fitting for everyone involved.