Scan barcode
jmeston's review against another edition
5.0
Lots of hard journeys ending in relief. Some terrible acts for symbolic reasons: fire logic destiny and Sainnite dominance/honor. There's one that I still can't quite forgive. Even at the end of the book earth logic is pretty mysterious and super powerful.
The inaction that frustrates and binds Karis and Zanja at the beginning of the novel seemed opaque to me. After discussing it I can agree that Karis' refusal to take power was a strategy to wait for the right moment. Garland the cowardly cook is good company and a useful eye to see the core characters anew. The food/shelter/companionship found at the end of those uncomfortable treks feel earned and deeply satisfying.
The stories come so thick and fast that I lost track of the structure of the book. But it didn't matter, I loved it all.
The inaction that frustrates and binds Karis and Zanja at the beginning of the novel seemed opaque to me. After discussing it I can agree that Karis' refusal to take power was a strategy to wait for the right moment. Garland the cowardly cook is good company and a useful eye to see the core characters anew. The food/shelter/companionship found at the end of those uncomfortable treks feel earned and deeply satisfying.
The stories come so thick and fast that I lost track of the structure of the book. But it didn't matter, I loved it all.
badmc's review against another edition
4.0
Story about Shaftal, a land in a 20 years war, continues in this volume which also continues the stories of all the characters we had got to know in the first book. They are much changed from their ordeals, and yet stuck in passivity. The way out of that passivity is baffling, and frankly I didn't completely get it.
Here, the POV shifts between two warring people - Shaftali and Sainnites. I think it was very well done, as we got to understand the people we have come to dislike in the first book. I think Clement, a Sainnites Leutenat-General, is one of the best rounded characters in the series so far. I enjoyed her story and character arc!
I like the world-building and how the feel for the world and its people grows through the narrative. There is no info-dumps and we get to experience many of the things through characters, or their flash-backs. I also like the way trauma is dealt with here: without unnerving detail, and respectful of the victims.
The strongest selling point of these books for me are still characters. They are vivid, with strong personalities, and every one adds something to the story.
"Zanja asked if she and Karis would be separated forever - and the dreadful answer was that they would not separate at all. They were bound together on the side of the cliff, trapped there, each of them unable to choose to let the other one fall. And there they were destined to remain."
Here, the POV shifts between two warring people - Shaftali and Sainnites. I think it was very well done, as we got to understand the people we have come to dislike in the first book. I think Clement, a Sainnites Leutenat-General, is one of the best rounded characters in the series so far. I enjoyed her story and character arc!
"She should have known better than to become fond of a young soldier, Clement thought bitterly. All Sainnite children die in war. As fast as we send them into battle, they die. We might as well just kill them when they're born and save us all the trouble of raising them."
I like the world-building and how the feel for the world and its people grows through the narrative. There is no info-dumps and we get to experience many of the things through characters, or their flash-backs. I also like the way trauma is dealt with here: without unnerving detail, and respectful of the victims.
"You've seen some things worth seeing, and I like the way it's marked you."
The strongest selling point of these books for me are still characters. They are vivid, with strong personalities, and every one adds something to the story.
"Do you think there might be something a bit disordered about our lives?" "We've got too much talent and not enough sense."
mothwing's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this book, much like its predecessor [b:Fire Logic|644341|Fire Logic (Elemental Logic, #1)|Laurie J. Marks|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1390630660s/644341.jpg|630504]. The world building is subtle and well-rounded, the characters are complex and three-dimensional, they have likeable and dislikeable sides to them, they have motivations for their actions which make sense. Most of them are competent at what they're doing and its a very subtle story for a Fantasy book whose main charactes are mostly soldiers. The magic system confused me at times, at did some of the plot points, but that is likely due to me having read Fire Logic ages ago.
Spoiler
, like Zanja dying. Why is that necessary?? Why "dying"? I was so confused...nini23's review against another edition
4.0
I dove straight from Fire Logic into Earth Logic. Karris, revealed as the lost G'deon, plays a more prominent part here. I found the segment where she recovers from her smoke addiction moving. A lot of the pacing involved restless waiting but that is probably pretty realistic in a war (99% boredom and 1% terror?). Norina and J'han's daughter is more grown-up and develops a personality. Children are not often incorporated into fantasy books except in those coming of age fantasy YA so this was an unusual example of a child tagging along for the adventure. A lot of times she whined and made herself a bother but the group who had all become her parents accommodated her. The other interesting angle mentioned was the logistical reproductive capabilities of the invading Sainnites. Important revelations and a turning point of the war. We also get new POVs from Clement (a lieutenant-general in the Sainnite army) and Garland (a deserter Sainnite cook who joins the ragtag resistence Shaftali group). Cadmar the Sainnite general was all too reminiscent of the Trumps of this world.
I liked the story of the plague and the folklore that sprang up to explain it. In reality, I can see how this fable could be used to explain to low literacy groups how to eliminate the illness.
With both the books, I feel the author has incorporated some Asian culture into her world-building. One gets hints and wisps here and there - the numerous reference to drinking green tea and the elaborate tea ceremony, the small porcelain tea cups and tea-set, eating of buns and dumplings. The description of the glyphs in book one reminded me of either kanji or chinese characters. I can almost picture the region as being somewhere in Central Asia perhaps?
I was a little baffled by how much the group obsessed and depended on the glyph readings, which sounded like tarot card readings. The whole plan of killing Zanja really seemed quite half-baked. The sentient ravens were depended on far too much to move the plot along.
'Forgive your colonizers' and 'embrace love not hate lest you turn into them' is an overarching theme throughout. Venturing into the real world for a second, I wonder what the Tibetans, the Palestinians, the Chechnyans, the indigenous groups around the world think of that.
Overall, I still find this fantasy series to be refreshing, mostly through its normalizing of same sex couples and community. There's been a lot of positive LGTBQIA fantasy work released since this was published in the 2000s but I would still recommend it to other fantasy lovers searching for something different.
I liked the story of the plague and the folklore that sprang up to explain it. In reality, I can see how this fable could be used to explain to low literacy groups how to eliminate the illness.
With both the books, I feel the author has incorporated some Asian culture into her world-building. One gets hints and wisps here and there - the numerous reference to drinking green tea and the elaborate tea ceremony, the small porcelain tea cups and tea-set, eating of buns and dumplings. The description of the glyphs in book one reminded me of either kanji or chinese characters. I can almost picture the region as being somewhere in Central Asia perhaps?
I was a little baffled by how much the group obsessed and depended on the glyph readings, which sounded like tarot card readings. The whole plan of killing Zanja really seemed quite half-baked. The sentient ravens were depended on far too much to move the plot along.
'Forgive your colonizers' and 'embrace love not hate lest you turn into them' is an overarching theme throughout. Venturing into the real world for a second, I wonder what the Tibetans, the Palestinians, the Chechnyans, the indigenous groups around the world think of that.
Overall, I still find this fantasy series to be refreshing, mostly through its normalizing of same sex couples and community. There's been a lot of positive LGTBQIA fantasy work released since this was published in the 2000s but I would still recommend it to other fantasy lovers searching for something different.
lleullawgyffes's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
inspiring
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
5.0
msjenne's review against another edition
5.0
There are so many things in this book! It is very thingful. And thingful books are my favorite.
coolcurrybooks's review against another edition
4.0
The Elemental Logic series is shaping up to be one of those book series where I’m a fan of the characters and the world but not at all of the plot.
Earth Logic is the second in the Elemental Logic series, a fantasy series set in a world without sexism or heteronormativity. If you’re unfamiliar with the series, you should probably start with the first book, Fire Logic.
This is usually the point in the review where I give a basic plot synopsis. However, I’m not really sure what the plot of Earth Logic is? Karis is the G’deon, and it’s her responsibility to rule and care for the nation of Shaftal, which is currently invaded by foreigners, the Sainnites. The occupation needs to be ended, but the entire plan for this revolves around vague prophecies which make no sense to me. Have I mentioned how much I hate fantasy books where the entire plot is based off prophecy?
Anyway, the prophecy says that if Shaftal is to be saved, Zanja must be dead. That’s literally all the information given, and the characters decide to act on this? I have no idea how the entire Zanja plot line is at all relevant to the book!
In reflection, it felt like not a lot happened in Earth Logic, especially when it comes to the chapters concerning the characters from Fire Logic. There’s some angsting over what to do about the Zanja prophecy. There’s lots of sitting around and talking. There’s lots of Karis doing nothing. Is it any surprise that my favorite character in this book was one of the new POV characters, Clement, who seemed like the only person in the book actually doing things?
Clement is a high placed officer of the Sainnites who was brought to the country of Shaftal by her adoptive soldier mother when she was a child. She also is one of the few people who know just how bad thing are looking for the Sainnites. Basically, demographics are not in their favor. Since all of the Sainnites are soldiers, they have very few children. And what children they do manage to raise up inevitably become new soldiers and tend to get killed in rather short order.
I still like the characters of this series. I still like that it’s set in a world where queer relationships are normal and no one raises an eye at women doing things or holding positions of authority. But while I really liked Fire Logic, I found Earth Logic disappointing. I don’t know if I’ll be continuing with this series.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
Earth Logic is the second in the Elemental Logic series, a fantasy series set in a world without sexism or heteronormativity. If you’re unfamiliar with the series, you should probably start with the first book, Fire Logic.
This is usually the point in the review where I give a basic plot synopsis. However, I’m not really sure what the plot of Earth Logic is? Karis is the G’deon, and it’s her responsibility to rule and care for the nation of Shaftal, which is currently invaded by foreigners, the Sainnites. The occupation needs to be ended, but the entire plan for this revolves around vague prophecies which make no sense to me. Have I mentioned how much I hate fantasy books where the entire plot is based off prophecy?
Anyway, the prophecy says that if Shaftal is to be saved, Zanja must be dead. That’s literally all the information given, and the characters decide to act on this? I have no idea how the entire Zanja plot line is at all relevant to the book!
In reflection, it felt like not a lot happened in Earth Logic, especially when it comes to the chapters concerning the characters from Fire Logic. There’s some angsting over what to do about the Zanja prophecy. There’s lots of sitting around and talking. There’s lots of Karis doing nothing. Is it any surprise that my favorite character in this book was one of the new POV characters, Clement, who seemed like the only person in the book actually doing things?
Clement is a high placed officer of the Sainnites who was brought to the country of Shaftal by her adoptive soldier mother when she was a child. She also is one of the few people who know just how bad thing are looking for the Sainnites. Basically, demographics are not in their favor. Since all of the Sainnites are soldiers, they have very few children. And what children they do manage to raise up inevitably become new soldiers and tend to get killed in rather short order.
I still like the characters of this series. I still like that it’s set in a world where queer relationships are normal and no one raises an eye at women doing things or holding positions of authority. But while I really liked Fire Logic, I found Earth Logic disappointing. I don’t know if I’ll be continuing with this series.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
nerdtasticnoms's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-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
5.0
synteis's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
reflective
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
ladyjax's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
tense
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? It's complicated
5.0