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kjjohnson's review against another edition
5.0
4.5
I thought this was a great book overall, and a big improvement over the first two in the series. Part of this may be that it had more POV sections from characters I liked or found interesting, and fewer from those I found boring.
I am still really attached to Jewel, and I think one of the things I enjoy most about her was that while she does have a special gift, she’s not the only one who does, and it isn’t of itself the reason that people collect around her. That’s her loyalty and sense of duty and responsibility to the people she cares about, and her willingness to go to bat for them at any cost. I enjoyed her being mentored, particularly by the Terafin, and learning and discussing more how to be a leader and how complicated the world and potential actions are, while remaining herself.
The pacing was a lot better, although I still find West’s prose unnecessarily wordy and occasionally repetitive (and why all the em dashes?). A lot of this book was very tense and foreboding, and her descriptions of the tortured voices rising from the ground and there being nothing anyone could do about them, for weeks, was haunting. I also loved the sections where Finch and Teller went to work for different areas of the House and learned and carved little places for themselves - I found it both endearing and interesting, and a great way to expand the world.
It was an interesting choice to have Jewel sit out almost the entirety of the final conflict between Allasakar and our group of heroes, but I think it was a good one. She isn’t a fighter and doesn’t have great magical power, so it makes sense that she wouldn’t be there. It also shows her character growth, as one of the things she’s consistently hated most has been people she cares about being in danger while she is unable to do anything about it; she accepted that she couldn’t here and that people have different roles and can’t do everything themselves.
The fight was good and tense, and left intriguing plot threads, but I think I liked even more the epilogue-ish ending. It was unexpectedly funny, for one, and I thought the den throwing a party that included all of their old friends who helped them when they were nobodies was a great choice to tie everything together.
I still don’t understand the purpose of Jester in the story, and chuckled a little when the Terafin was giving him the House name and was basically ‘I don’t really know what you do but you make your friends laugh, so that’s something’. I also thought it was a little cheesy that almost everyone her den interacted with ended up liking them, but you know what? They’re good people and I like them too, so I don’t mind.
All in all, I enjoyed this book a lot, primarily for the characters but also for the tension and world, and look forward to reading the Sun Sword series, which apparently comes next chronologically.
I thought this was a great book overall, and a big improvement over the first two in the series. Part of this may be that it had more POV sections from characters I liked or found interesting, and fewer from those I found boring.
I am still really attached to Jewel, and I think one of the things I enjoy most about her was that while she does have a special gift, she’s not the only one who does, and it isn’t of itself the reason that people collect around her. That’s her loyalty and sense of duty and responsibility to the people she cares about, and her willingness to go to bat for them at any cost. I enjoyed her being mentored, particularly by the Terafin, and learning and discussing more how to be a leader and how complicated the world and potential actions are, while remaining herself.
The pacing was a lot better, although I still find West’s prose unnecessarily wordy and occasionally repetitive (and why all the em dashes?). A lot of this book was very tense and foreboding, and her descriptions of the tortured voices rising from the ground and there being nothing anyone could do about them, for weeks, was haunting. I also loved the sections where Finch and Teller went to work for different areas of the House and learned and carved little places for themselves - I found it both endearing and interesting, and a great way to expand the world.
It was an interesting choice to have Jewel sit out almost the entirety of the final conflict between Allasakar and our group of heroes, but I think it was a good one. She isn’t a fighter and doesn’t have great magical power, so it makes sense that she wouldn’t be there. It also shows her character growth, as one of the things she’s consistently hated most has been people she cares about being in danger while she is unable to do anything about it; she accepted that she couldn’t here and that people have different roles and can’t do everything themselves.
The fight was good and tense, and left intriguing plot threads, but I think I liked even more the epilogue-ish ending. It was unexpectedly funny, for one, and I thought the den throwing a party that included all of their old friends who helped them when they were nobodies was a great choice to tie everything together.
I still don’t understand the purpose of Jester in the story, and chuckled a little when the Terafin was giving him the House name and was basically ‘I don’t really know what you do but you make your friends laugh, so that’s something’. I also thought it was a little cheesy that almost everyone her den interacted with ended up liking them, but you know what? They’re good people and I like them too, so I don’t mind.
All in all, I enjoyed this book a lot, primarily for the characters but also for the tension and world, and look forward to reading the Sun Sword series, which apparently comes next chronologically.
saulenger's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
tani's review against another edition
4.0
Unlike many here, I haven't read The Sacred Hunt books - I'm reading this series for the first time, and the author recommends reading those next. So, this wasn't exactly the slog for me that it was for others, which I appreciate. I liked how this gave more depth to Jewel's den, and Finch and Teller's new jobs were actually one of my favorite parts here. I also liked this that book, more than the two prior, had an epic fantasy feel. We see more magic, more demons, more big name characters and battles. The world felt so expansive in this one, and I loved that. Plus, even though this is just a brief pause in the series, it actually gives a really emotionally satisfying conclusion to this part of the story, which is always really nice in these longer series.
adj1920's review against another edition
4.0
UPDATE: 5/18/2020
Bumped up my rating from 3 to 4 stars. I appreciate that Jewel's den gets some character development beyond being "the nurturing one", "the smart one", "the loyal one", etc etc. Arann, Finch, Teller and newcomer Angel all have their own lives outside of Jewel and a trajectory beyond the group, which has exciting possibilities for the story going forward. Jewel is still stubborn, but she's learning and it will be interesting to see what she grows into.
ORIGINAL REVIEW: 3/26/2015
House War, I can't quit you.
I read the first two books a few years ago, then got busy with life and never finished the series. Well, at this point I have mixed feelings about continuing the series.
The Hidden City really drew me in. I loved Rath, his complicated past, and his even more complicated present with Jewel. Then came City of Night, which focused on Jewel and her ever-growing den. And that's where the author started to lose me. Still, the overall plot was decent, and between Rath and Sigurne Mellifas there was enough adult interaction to keep me interested. House Name picks up the story as Jewel and her den become guests of House Terafin and are introduced to the world of wealth, power and political intrigue. I understand that these are supposed to be scrappy urchins with hearts of gold- but the den's exploits, Jewel's stubbornness start to wear thin after a while. The demon confrontation didn't disappoint, even if it did drag on a bit.
Good reading but beware that these books need some heavy editing- it often takes 20 pages to get through as many lines of dialogue, and we are privy to every character's every. single. inner. thought. It was a problem in the first two novels but it spiraled out of control in this one; I found myself skimming through entire chapters. I know how to speed read and it still wore me down.
Bumped up my rating from 3 to 4 stars. I appreciate that Jewel's den gets some character development beyond being "the nurturing one", "the smart one", "the loyal one", etc etc. Arann, Finch, Teller and newcomer Angel all have their own lives outside of Jewel and a trajectory beyond the group, which has exciting possibilities for the story going forward. Jewel is still stubborn, but she's learning and it will be interesting to see what she grows into.
ORIGINAL REVIEW: 3/26/2015
House War, I can't quit you.
I read the first two books a few years ago, then got busy with life and never finished the series. Well, at this point I have mixed feelings about continuing the series.
The Hidden City really drew me in. I loved Rath, his complicated past, and his even more complicated present with Jewel. Then came City of Night, which focused on Jewel and her ever-growing den. And that's where the author started to lose me. Still, the overall plot was decent, and between Rath and Sigurne Mellifas there was enough adult interaction to keep me interested. House Name picks up the story as Jewel and her den become guests of House Terafin and are introduced to the world of wealth, power and political intrigue. I understand that these are supposed to be scrappy urchins with hearts of gold- but the den's exploits, Jewel's stubbornness start to wear thin after a while. The demon confrontation didn't disappoint, even if it did drag on a bit.
Good reading but beware that these books need some heavy editing- it often takes 20 pages to get through as many lines of dialogue, and we are privy to every character's every. single. inner. thought. It was a problem in the first two novels but it spiraled out of control in this one; I found myself skimming through entire chapters. I know how to speed read and it still wore me down.
unitynow8's review against another edition
5.0
After reading the first 3 of this series, I seems to come in sideways to The Broken Crown. I originally put down The Broken Crown after about half of it because it was just too confusing. I think now I can revisit it, still be a bit confused but will be able to cope better. I don't want to start book 4 of the house wars, since apparently the the Sun Sword series run between book 3 and 4.
Jay and her den are the only reason. I need to know what happens with them.
Jay and her den are the only reason. I need to know what happens with them.
fantasylover's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
heidi_mcj's review against another edition
5.0
I love these books. Some think that the writing is too verbose but I enjoy it. I kind of sink into her writing and into her stories.
katyanaish's review against another edition
4.0
I very much enjoy this series - and had a hard time putting this down - but there were some things about it that were odd.
Firstly, the thing we have seemingly been building towards - the demons in the undercity, the coming of the Lord of the Hells... which Rath sacrificed his life to give warning about - it is handled about 2/3 into the book, and oddly, none of our main characters are there.
I'm aware that several other series tie into this one. The instructions on the series read order, though, were to read these first 3 books in House War, and then read the Sun Sword series ... and so it was very odd to find myself in a climactic battle, that the main characters of House War have been working towards... but not have literally any of them present. Yes, there were lots of secondary characters there, including ones I like very much - Merlonne APhaniel, Sigurne, Devon ATerafin - but it was hard to feel super emotionally invested in this fight when Jewel, the den, and Aramais were all not present, and we've simply never spent that much time with these other characters. I recognize that the fight was important. I wanted them to win because I didn't want the world to end. I just felt oddly disconnected from it, with the series main characters all just hanging out back at the house waiting for word.
And I missed Rath - I really loved him - but I have to say that I like Aramais. She's harder - she has to be - but you can see the depth of her care, and I have tremendous respect for her. If we had to lose Rath, I can live with Aramais filling his shoes as Jewel's ... guardian, for lack of a better word.
I loved seeing more of the world - the Exalted, the Kings, the Ten - and getting a fuller picture of it all. It was just odd having the main characters hand the big fight off to characters we barely know.
I am definitely reading onward. I'm just not sure if I should flop over to the Sun Sword series - which seems to involve a totally different set of characters - or continue on with the House War series, and then hit the Sun Sword afterward, to fill in the perspective of these different characters. Because I don't really want to move away from Jewel and the Terafin until I see where they end, you know?
Firstly, the thing we have seemingly been building towards - the demons in the undercity, the coming of the Lord of the Hells... which Rath sacrificed his life to give warning about - it is handled about 2/3 into the book, and oddly, none of our main characters are there.
I'm aware that several other series tie into this one. The instructions on the series read order, though, were to read these first 3 books in House War, and then read the Sun Sword series ... and so it was very odd to find myself in a climactic battle, that the main characters of House War have been working towards... but not have literally any of them present. Yes, there were lots of secondary characters there, including ones I like very much - Merlonne APhaniel, Sigurne, Devon ATerafin - but it was hard to feel super emotionally invested in this fight when Jewel, the den, and Aramais were all not present, and we've simply never spent that much time with these other characters. I recognize that the fight was important. I wanted them to win because I didn't want the world to end. I just felt oddly disconnected from it, with the series main characters all just hanging out back at the house waiting for word.
And I missed Rath - I really loved him - but I have to say that I like Aramais. She's harder - she has to be - but you can see the depth of her care, and I have tremendous respect for her. If we had to lose Rath, I can live with Aramais filling his shoes as Jewel's ... guardian, for lack of a better word.
I loved seeing more of the world - the Exalted, the Kings, the Ten - and getting a fuller picture of it all. It was just odd having the main characters hand the big fight off to characters we barely know.
I am definitely reading onward. I'm just not sure if I should flop over to the Sun Sword series - which seems to involve a totally different set of characters - or continue on with the House War series, and then hit the Sun Sword afterward, to fill in the perspective of these different characters. Because I don't really want to move away from Jewel and the Terafin until I see where they end, you know?
winterreader40's review against another edition
5.0
Continuing Jewel's journey with the first few months after she shows up at the Terafin's door with news that her brother is dead while a member of her Den is dying. Jewel spends the first half of this book trying to find one of the entrances to the undercity but they are being unmade and if she can't find one she won't be able to prove that the Lord of the Hells is trying to return to the mortal plain and it isn't just a few demons or Kialli that got loose. We also follow the members of her Den as they are employed in the house guard, the merchant authority and the office of the right-kin and others as they explore the more behind the scenes aspects of the house.
When Jewel finally finds a way into the city things get dangerous for the men and women who are going down to fight the demons but it's still better than continuing to listen to the screams of the people who where taken as they are tortured to death as the demons project the sound over the city at irregular intervals to destroy hope in the people above as well as those they have taken.
This is my favorite from this series so far, lots happens and many emotions are felt.
When Jewel finally finds a way into the city things get dangerous for the men and women who are going down to fight the demons but it's still better than continuing to listen to the screams of the people who where taken as they are tortured to death as the demons project the sound over the city at irregular intervals to destroy hope in the people above as well as those they have taken.
This is my favorite from this series so far, lots happens and many emotions are felt.
coriandercake's review against another edition
4.0
These books definitely get better at the technical level as they go on. I haven't read any other series by West, so this was all unique story for me. I appreciate that the teenage characters are limited in the actions they take by their lack of experience and age, unlike most fantasy. I thought the final major battle went on for too long, as I'm not a big fan of battle scenes but other than that this book was excellent.