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uruseibaka's review against another edition
2.0
Actual rating: 2.5 stars
In response to having this book recommended to Sarah J. Maas and Leigh Bardugo readers, I made lists.
Similarities with SJM:
•competition
•protagonist whose homeland was destroyed/lost
Similarities with Leigh Bardugo:
•layout of Our Queen's palace resembles the Ice Court from SoC, both have rings/circles
•the shadows = nichevo'ya
That's pretty much it. Only those little details resemble the two outstanding authors, if you're asking about the writing style, plot, feels, nada. I think they should have placed Suzanne Collins in the line-up of similar authors instead because the auditions worked a lot like the Hunger Games. Training, bloodbath, one winner; you know the drill. As a matter of fact, Mask of Shadows is more similar to THG than any SJM or Leigh Bardugo book.
I learned from last semester's English class about intertextuality, a concept of how every literary piece is formed from ideas the author got from other texts and own prior knowledge. Basically, everything is a rip-off of some other things. Mask of Shadows reminds me of that and I even think it proves that concept to be true. This book is identical to The Hunger Games and has a tiny bit of Throne of Glass and The Grisha trilogy in it; with a few tweaks thrown in by Linsey Miller.
Sure, it has a pinch of this and that but what this book really lacks is the attention to detail, the writing precision. There were things that just seemed illogical, details carelessly tossed out the window. It also lacked the swing and the bang, the intense feeling of anticipation both SJM and Leigh Bardugo have delivered. On top of that, it follows the extremely overused plot of "I will rise and make them all pay!"
As for the details; in its last chapter, Mask of Shadows features a timeline on the history of the nations mentioned in the book, which I think is a bad idea. I could barely read through my History book and I'm sure other readers struggled too. It's information overload, to put it simply. Though I do hope there's a map in the next book to help readers visualize the story better.
On the other hand, I find it funny how the author downplays the lethality of the competition by calling it an audition and the competitors as auditioners. It's like they're off to do a song and dance number for three judges and not to kill each other to see who's the deadliest and become an assassin.
Okay, giving innocent words a dark nuance, I see.
The only reasons that kept me reading were to see if Sal would succeed and to live in the mind of a gender fluid character for just a while. There wasn't enough action to make it groundbreaking but Sallot Leon sure is one interesting character and helped me understand an aspect of gender identity better. This is the first YA fantasy book I've read with an openly non-binary character and I appreciate the author's effort in diversifying YA main characters. Queer characters have always been the sidekicks and not even properly portrayed and it's nice to have a change of scenery and the right one at that.
In summary, there were more "eh"s in my mind than "whoa"s. I recommend reading it if you're looking for a book with a gender fluid character. Other than that, it has the "whole nation at the brink of chaos while someone's trying to get revenge" thing going on. I sincerely hope the sequel fares better.
Many thanks to Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley for giving me access to an eARC. The quotes above may differ from the final copy.
"Familiarity bred trust, and trust got you killed, made you think someone was there to catch you when they weren’t."
In response to having this book recommended to Sarah J. Maas and Leigh Bardugo readers, I made lists.
Similarities with SJM:
•competition
•protagonist whose homeland was destroyed/lost
Similarities with Leigh Bardugo:
•layout of Our Queen's palace resembles the Ice Court from SoC, both have rings/circles
•the shadows = nichevo'ya
That's pretty much it. Only those little details resemble the two outstanding authors, if you're asking about the writing style, plot, feels, nada. I think they should have placed Suzanne Collins in the line-up of similar authors instead because the auditions worked a lot like the Hunger Games. Training, bloodbath, one winner; you know the drill. As a matter of fact, Mask of Shadows is more similar to THG than any SJM or Leigh Bardugo book.
I learned from last semester's English class about intertextuality, a concept of how every literary piece is formed from ideas the author got from other texts and own prior knowledge. Basically, everything is a rip-off of some other things. Mask of Shadows reminds me of that and I even think it proves that concept to be true. This book is identical to The Hunger Games and has a tiny bit of Throne of Glass and The Grisha trilogy in it; with a few tweaks thrown in by Linsey Miller.
Sure, it has a pinch of this and that but what this book really lacks is the attention to detail, the writing precision. There were things that just seemed illogical, details carelessly tossed out the window. It also lacked the swing and the bang, the intense feeling of anticipation both SJM and Leigh Bardugo have delivered. On top of that, it follows the extremely overused plot of "I will rise and make them all pay!"
As for the details; in its last chapter, Mask of Shadows features a timeline on the history of the nations mentioned in the book, which I think is a bad idea. I could barely read through my History book and I'm sure other readers struggled too. It's information overload, to put it simply. Though I do hope there's a map in the next book to help readers visualize the story better.
On the other hand, I find it funny how the author downplays the lethality of the competition by calling it an audition and the competitors as auditioners. It's like they're off to do a song and dance number for three judges and not to kill each other to see who's the deadliest and become an assassin.
Okay, giving innocent words a dark nuance, I see.
"They’d welcomed me into their house, and I was going to tear it down."
The only reasons that kept me reading were to see if Sal would succeed and to live in the mind of a gender fluid character for just a while. There wasn't enough action to make it groundbreaking but Sallot Leon sure is one interesting character and helped me understand an aspect of gender identity better. This is the first YA fantasy book I've read with an openly non-binary character and I appreciate the author's effort in diversifying YA main characters. Queer characters have always been the sidekicks and not even properly portrayed and it's nice to have a change of scenery and the right one at that.
In summary, there were more "eh"s in my mind than "whoa"s. I recommend reading it if you're looking for a book with a gender fluid character. Other than that, it has the "whole nation at the brink of chaos while someone's trying to get revenge" thing going on. I sincerely hope the sequel fares better.
Many thanks to Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley for giving me access to an eARC. The quotes above may differ from the final copy.
lurker_stalker's review against another edition
2.0
I went into this with pretty high hopes but they were quickly dashed. I didn't find much of anything that happened interesting and I kept wishing that the action would pick up and the main character would stop whining. The story being told in first person didn't help. Some authors can make it work but I was so tired of being in Sal's head that I found myself zoning out many times. I'd give it a 1.5 according to Goodreads since I'm stuck between I didn't like it and it was ok but rounding up because it I didn't totally not like it. Just mostly.
I was hoping for a new fantasy author to follow but unless I hear something compelling from a trusted book-friend, I'll pass on the sequel.
I received the book from the publisher via NetGalley.
I was hoping for a new fantasy author to follow but unless I hear something compelling from a trusted book-friend, I'll pass on the sequel.
I received the book from the publisher via NetGalley.
danielled75's review against another edition
4.0
Sal is a small time highway thief who is growing up on the streets, working for a heartless master and wishing for a different life. This opportunity for a new life presents itself in the manner of an announcement of an audition for a spot as a member of the Left Hand, seeing this as the perfect opportunity to better his life and to start putting his personal plans into motion.
These are not your normal “auditions”. It’s pretty much a kill or be killed type of deal. Along with trying to stay alive, there are rules put in place by the members of the Left Hand that watch over the auditions, they even have lessons for them.
I found Sal to be a very interesting character, not just because of their back story and how they came to be where they are in the story but also because Sal is gender fluid. Mind you I am not knowledgeable at all about being gender fluid, but the way that Sal described it in the book, made it easier for me to visualize Sal as a character in the book.
There was the relationship between Sal and Maud that I enjoyed also. Maud didn’t sugar coat her reasons why she wanted to see Sal achieve the position of Opal, and I felt that being that open with Sal helped them achieve their mutual goals. Even the banter between them at times was very sibling like in my eyes. I do hope that there will be more of this in the next book.
There were parts of the story that I felt I was watching Game of Thrones, seeing as how Sal has a list of names of those he needs to exact revenge on, just like Arya Stark.
I will admit I was sad to see some of the auditioners go, I was really hoping to find out more about the acrobats and their back story. Maybe there will be a side story about their travels and exploits and how they came to take part (wishing).
I’m not sure where the second book will take us, since there were a number of things that happened at the end, but I do look forward to following Sal and the other members of the Left Hand and whatever jobs/orders they are given by the Queen, along with Sal’s personal goals.
These are not your normal “auditions”. It’s pretty much a kill or be killed type of deal. Along with trying to stay alive, there are rules put in place by the members of the Left Hand that watch over the auditions, they even have lessons for them.
I found Sal to be a very interesting character, not just because of their back story and how they came to be where they are in the story but also because Sal is gender fluid. Mind you I am not knowledgeable at all about being gender fluid, but the way that Sal described it in the book, made it easier for me to visualize Sal as a character in the book.
There was the relationship between Sal and Maud that I enjoyed also. Maud didn’t sugar coat her reasons why she wanted to see Sal achieve the position of Opal, and I felt that being that open with Sal helped them achieve their mutual goals. Even the banter between them at times was very sibling like in my eyes. I do hope that there will be more of this in the next book.
There were parts of the story that I felt I was watching Game of Thrones, seeing as how Sal has a list of names of those he needs to exact revenge on, just like Arya Stark.
I will admit I was sad to see some of the auditioners go, I was really hoping to find out more about the acrobats and their back story. Maybe there will be a side story about their travels and exploits and how they came to take part (wishing).
I’m not sure where the second book will take us, since there were a number of things that happened at the end, but I do look forward to following Sal and the other members of the Left Hand and whatever jobs/orders they are given by the Queen, along with Sal’s personal goals.
astraia_sun's review against another edition
4.0
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I'll be honest. I picked this book up because the plot was so similar to Throne of Glass. Only it sounded more interesting. And I'll be honest, I liked it a whole heck of a lot more than Throne of Glass. A quick perusal of reviews tells me this book was pretty divisive. Some people found it boring. I didn't. Everything that I wanted out of Throne of Glass, which wasn't given to me in that book, appeared here. Sal is sneaky, cunning, and so are the rest of the auditioners for the Left Hand. In fact, the entire point of the Audition was for the contestants to try and kill each other and outsmart each other. And I got that and it was awesome.
Sal was an interesting protagonist to me, but then again I haven't read any books with a gender-fluid main character. That actually didn't come up as much as I thought it would be based on a couple of reviews I read. It did come up, but I felt the focus was much more on Sal's revenge quest and relationship with Elise and the Left Hand.
As for their relationship with Elise, it felt very, very rushed to me. That's probably my biggest problem. Sal only knows Elise for a few days, and the insta-love was a bit nauseating to me. I will fully admit this is entirely personal preference. I much prefer a slow-burn romance and Sal's attitude towards their relationship would have made more sense to me if they'd known each other longer. As it stands, I can see the romance appealing to younger readers so I guess it's down to "whatever floats your boat."
I will say that this book definitely felt like a first novel, as some of the plot was weak and a bit "convenient". That being said, I really enjoyed reading this book in spite of its flaws. The author definitely put effort into world-building and the politics, even if I wished some of those politics had been shown a bit more consistently. I also VERY much appreciated that Sal wasn't the best at everything. Sal had to learn a lot, and adapt a lot, and they knew it. Sal's strength lay in their cunning and adaptability as well as the fact that they expected traps around every corner. I loved Sal's friendship with Maud, too. Highlight of the book for me.
In the end, I look forward to reading the sequel.
I'll be honest. I picked this book up because the plot was so similar to Throne of Glass. Only it sounded more interesting. And I'll be honest, I liked it a whole heck of a lot more than Throne of Glass. A quick perusal of reviews tells me this book was pretty divisive. Some people found it boring. I didn't. Everything that I wanted out of Throne of Glass, which wasn't given to me in that book, appeared here. Sal is sneaky, cunning, and so are the rest of the auditioners for the Left Hand. In fact, the entire point of the Audition was for the contestants to try and kill each other and outsmart each other. And I got that and it was awesome.
Sal was an interesting protagonist to me, but then again I haven't read any books with a gender-fluid main character. That actually didn't come up as much as I thought it would be based on a couple of reviews I read. It did come up, but I felt the focus was much more on Sal's revenge quest and relationship with Elise and the Left Hand.
As for their relationship with Elise, it felt very, very rushed to me. That's probably my biggest problem. Sal only knows Elise for a few days, and the insta-love was a bit nauseating to me. I will fully admit this is entirely personal preference. I much prefer a slow-burn romance and Sal's attitude towards their relationship would have made more sense to me if they'd known each other longer. As it stands, I can see the romance appealing to younger readers so I guess it's down to "whatever floats your boat."
I will say that this book definitely felt like a first novel, as some of the plot was weak and a bit "convenient". That being said, I really enjoyed reading this book in spite of its flaws. The author definitely put effort into world-building and the politics, even if I wished some of those politics had been shown a bit more consistently. I also VERY much appreciated that Sal wasn't the best at everything. Sal had to learn a lot, and adapt a lot, and they knew it. Sal's strength lay in their cunning and adaptability as well as the fact that they expected traps around every corner. I loved Sal's friendship with Maud, too. Highlight of the book for me.
In the end, I look forward to reading the sequel.
bettybug's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
rainbowdragonz's review against another edition
adventurous
4.75
This is what I wanted Throne of glass to be. And it is a very similar concept of people competing to be the hand of the Queen and having to kill each other. But I felt the characters were more understandable and I fell in love with all of them. There's also a touch of hunger games training vibes, which was my fave part of those books. Sal is a brilliantly written character and I am honestly in love with them, and there's the bonus of Sal giving us great gender fluid representation, particularly one who is not taking shitake Mushrooms from anyone, particularly this who misgender them. This book is well worth a read and I am very excited to read the sequel!
lunaballz's review against another edition
While I was reading this it was interesting and I enjoyed it, but when I set it down I didn't care if I picked it back up. Unfortunately, I went for a vacation for 2 weeks and when I came back I just couldn't care less about picking it back up. I kept hoping I'd find the motivation, but after almost 2 months of not reading it I'm throwing in the towel and DNFing it.
My personal rating: 2 star
It gets a higher goodreads rating because while I found the story uninspiring, it does have a genderfluid character that a lot of research apparently went into and I hope to see more books with lgbt+ characters in the future
My personal rating: 2 star
It gets a higher goodreads rating because while I found the story uninspiring, it does have a genderfluid character that a lot of research apparently went into and I hope to see more books with lgbt+ characters in the future
precedent's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
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? It's complicated
4.5
thelibrarylady42's review against another edition
2.0
*copy provided by NetGalley*
I wanted to love this book I really did! Mostly because I was so excited about a fantasy book with a genderfluid main character and that was the best part of this book and I felt it was done pretty well.
I've never read a book with a genderfluid main character so I don't have anything to compare it to yet. Everything else was just difficult to get through.
I found myself reading and rereading passages over and over so I could understand what was going on. There were massive info dumps that meandered and didn't make much sense until I read them at least twice. I found it difficult to care about the characters.
Overall I just wanted so much more from this book. I will not be purchasing for the library at this time. If anyone has any suggestions about other books with genderfluid main characters, please let me know. I would love to read something better.
I wanted to love this book I really did! Mostly because I was so excited about a fantasy book with a genderfluid main character and that was the best part of this book and I felt it was done pretty well.
I've never read a book with a genderfluid main character so I don't have anything to compare it to yet. Everything else was just difficult to get through.
I found myself reading and rereading passages over and over so I could understand what was going on. There were massive info dumps that meandered and didn't make much sense until I read them at least twice. I found it difficult to care about the characters.
Spoiler
When Ruby was killed in the final battle I felt like I should be crying but I just couldn't make myself feel it. I was also a little annoyed because I felt like it was setting book two up to go through the same process only with Sal now on the other side.Overall I just wanted so much more from this book. I will not be purchasing for the library at this time. If anyone has any suggestions about other books with genderfluid main characters, please let me know. I would love to read something better.
erebus53's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is a standard blades and fantasy, YA, elimination challenge (see: Hunger Games, Battle Royale, A Gathering of Shadows), set on a backdrop of politcal unrest and genocide.
A war orphaned scrappy urchin thief vies for the honour of being official secret enforcer to the queen in this week's episode of Survivor Court Assassin.
For the trope it's still pretty well done. The love interest is only made cooler by the main character being genderfluid, but this is normalised and not a major plot point. Representation is cool, especially when it doesn't undermine storytelling.
I can see this being the setup for an ongoing saga, and I'm not sad about it.
A war orphaned scrappy urchin thief vies for the honour of being official secret enforcer to the queen in this week's episode of Survivor Court Assassin.
For the trope it's still pretty well done. The love interest is only made cooler by the main character being genderfluid, but this is normalised and not a major plot point. Representation is cool, especially when it doesn't undermine storytelling.
I can see this being the setup for an ongoing saga, and I'm not sad about it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Classism, Murder, Xenophobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Torture