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4.3 AVERAGE
4.3 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
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:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Another enjoyable book... another exam season preventing me from fully enjoying it.
I read this book because I wanted to be part of the cool kids. Now I've only got 2 more to go.
The book was very well written and engaging for the most part except the slow world building at the beginning when I felt bombarded with names that didn't mean anything over and over. Once I'm fully in the Don Salvara initial arc, though, it got good and information was given in a controlled way enough to keep my interest.
The world building was dark and intended for a mature readership. Overall, Camorr appears as a brutal version of renaissance Venice with lots of cruel laws and a savage underworld. The alchemy and the mysterious origin of the world were interesting enough to keep me turning the page even in chapters where it's just pure backstory.
The characters were well fleshed out, from every team member of the Gentlemen Bastards to the supporting characters and the villians like Capa Barsavi and the Grey King. Some characters I thought were especially interesting were the Spider because and Father Chains because let's be real everyone needed a Father Chains.
Now to the criticism. I feel violence was depicted gratuitously in many places, especially in some fighting scenes. I get the appeal it has to some folks, like the Cool Kids, but I really dislike violence and every punch in a book has to mean something to me. The second thing I really took offence with was how revenge was glorified in the book and how the author messed with my feelings while I get that it's necessary to drive the story forward, but I really dislike books that So that took a star off my ratings for this book.
But overall, the book was a positive experience, and it wasn't so bad considering this is the first Western fantasy I've read except for Harry Potter. I might be more open to this genre from now on.
The book was very well written and engaging for the most part except the slow world building at the beginning when I felt bombarded with names that didn't mean anything over and over. Once I'm fully in the Don Salvara initial arc, though, it got good and information was given in a controlled way enough to keep my interest.
The world building was dark and intended for a mature readership. Overall, Camorr appears as a brutal version of renaissance Venice with lots of cruel laws and a savage underworld. The alchemy and the mysterious origin of the world were interesting enough to keep me turning the page even in chapters where it's just pure backstory.
The characters were well fleshed out, from every team member of the Gentlemen Bastards to the supporting characters and the villians like Capa Barsavi and the Grey King. Some characters I thought were especially interesting were the Spider because
Spoiler
she reminded me of Yzma in a less caricaturistic way,Now to the criticism. I feel violence was depicted gratuitously in many places, especially in some fighting scenes. I get the appeal it has to some folks, like the Cool Kids, but I really dislike violence and every punch in a book has to mean something to me. The second thing I really took offence with was how revenge was glorified in the book and how the author messed with my feelings while
Spoiler
he killed off the Sanza twins and Bug.Spoiler
create characters I was fully invested in and kill them off and depicted it in a gruesome way, too. It kept me up at night and I had dreams where the twins and Bug were brought back to life by some miracle or some shit, and I hated myself for crying over fictional characters.But overall, the book was a positive experience, and it wasn't so bad considering this is the first Western fantasy I've read except for Harry Potter. I might be more open to this genre from now on.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I enjoyed the characters but the plot failed to really pull me in. So I struggled to get through it.
adventurous
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:
Yes
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
sad
tense
fast-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Vomit
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No