Scan barcode
spriggana's review
3.0
Pros: Interesting world (OK, city), not-obvious plot (except the "orphan with unusual powers" trope which is really old) and interesting enough to check out the sequel.
Cons: Poorly formated ebook – no "scene splits". And the ending blatantly setting up a sequel, which fortunately had been written and published, but without it one major plot would be unresolved (I assume it is resolved in volume 2).
Cons: Poorly formated ebook – no "scene splits". And the ending blatantly setting up a sequel, which fortunately had been written and published, but without it one major plot would be unresolved (I assume it is resolved in volume 2).
sheyri's review against another edition
3.0
TW:
It was decent enough, but I expected a bit more. The mystery was good, but a bit repetetive at times.
What really bothered me was the age of the characters. How old are they?
Tom is constantly referred to as "boy" or "kid", and is described at small. I get the impression he's somewhere from 12 to 14, but I also think he's supposed to be older. Sometimes he thinks like an almost adult, but then acts like a younger teen again.
I don't remember getting an age for either him, or Kat, Lyle or Jezmina, so that makes it really hard for me to pin it down. Now, there's the problem with that? Several, actually.
1) He loves Jezmina. Or is that just a child's crush, yet to develop into more? How old is Jezmina? Way older, which would make it a bit weird? Or about his age, which would make it even weirder, but for Jezmina.
2) Jezmina has a somewhat leading role in the gang. So, are the gangs lead by teens? There's no way that would work. They wouldn't be able to pull it off all the time, and no way every adult would be bullied into following their rules. The entire City Below dominated by kids and teens? Very unrealistic. So, is Jezmina a young adult at the very least? Or is she younger like Tom?
3) Jezmina is implied to be in a sexual relationship with Lyle, the leader of Tom's gang. She's also trying to flirt with and seduce every male she comes across. So either all of them are potential pedophiles, or yet again Tom is attracted to an older, adult woman (and someone should tell him there is very little chance that will work out).
All that bothered me a lot, simply because it was never clearly stated, but could've been so easily resolved.
Or is Tom's age intentionally never mentioned, to make him a self-insert character? That is just lazy.
Also, there are two weird sexual things.
And then there's Dewar kissing Kat at one moment. An older male, clearly way into adulthood, kissing a girl. Even if it's just brief and to distract her from attacking him. NO!
Spoiler
murder, violenceIt was decent enough, but I expected a bit more. The mystery was good, but a bit repetetive at times.
What really bothered me was the age of the characters. How old are they?
Tom is constantly referred to as "boy" or "kid", and is described at small. I get the impression he's somewhere from 12 to 14, but I also think he's supposed to be older. Sometimes he thinks like an almost adult, but then acts like a younger teen again.
I don't remember getting an age for either him, or Kat, Lyle or Jezmina, so that makes it really hard for me to pin it down. Now, there's the problem with that? Several, actually.
1) He loves Jezmina. Or is that just a child's crush, yet to develop into more? How old is Jezmina? Way older, which would make it a bit weird? Or about his age, which would make it even weirder, but for Jezmina.
2) Jezmina has a somewhat leading role in the gang. So, are the gangs lead by teens? There's no way that would work. They wouldn't be able to pull it off all the time, and no way every adult would be bullied into following their rules. The entire City Below dominated by kids and teens? Very unrealistic. So, is Jezmina a young adult at the very least? Or is she younger like Tom?
3) Jezmina is implied to be in a sexual relationship with Lyle, the leader of Tom's gang. She's also trying to flirt with and seduce every male she comes across. So either all of them are potential pedophiles, or yet again Tom is attracted to an older, adult woman (and someone should tell him there is very little chance that will work out).
All that bothered me a lot, simply because it was never clearly stated, but could've been so easily resolved.
Or is Tom's age intentionally never mentioned, to make him a self-insert character? That is just lazy.
Also, there are two weird sexual things.
Spoiler
First, this plant weapon. You have to rub it near the top to make it spill it's seed. Yes, really. And no, just no. You can do better than that.And then there's Dewar kissing Kat at one moment. An older male, clearly way into adulthood, kissing a girl. Even if it's just brief and to distract her from attacking him. NO!
shane_tiernan's review against another edition
2.0
If I could give this 2.5 stars I would. It had a lot of elements that I like. Magic, constructs, monsters, intrigue but it didn't really gel for me. My biggest problem, right from the start was that I couldn't picture the city. It sounded like it was some very unique construct of "rows" that were stacked on top of each other but the description didn't make sense to me. So I was distracted for a long time trying to figure out how a character could fall off the wall and pass by other "rows" which I guess were levels like the different floors of a building but I'm not sure. I really wanted to be astounded by this "cool/original" idea for a city but I couldn't be so that was disappointing.
Then also in the beginning the main character's name is Tom, but another important character's name is Thomas. That helped add to the confusion of things.
I liked the multiple bad guys/intriguey thing. I liked the frantic pace of characters being chased around.
I didn't like the kind of deus ex machina of the Blade and the ending seemed to take too long wrapping things up. I also wasn't a fan of the cliffhanger left at the end for one of the characters.
Then also in the beginning the main character's name is Tom, but another important character's name is Thomas. That helped add to the confusion of things.
I liked the multiple bad guys/intriguey thing. I liked the frantic pace of characters being chased around.
I didn't like the kind of deus ex machina of the Blade and the ending seemed to take too long wrapping things up. I also wasn't a fan of the cliffhanger left at the end for one of the characters.
chaosrayne's review against another edition
3.0
This book was pretty average. It had some good ideas and the world building was interesting. I'll check out the next one.
josher71's review against another edition
2.0
I enjoyed it but there needs to be far more backstory. Things happen and are referenced that are never explained and it was a little frustrating not to have more depth to this could be fascinating world.
cupiscent's review against another edition
Giving up at page 106 (so a quarter of the way through) because bored. I'm not attached to any of the characters: Tom the street brat is rootless and relatively generic; Tylus the kite guard is suffering from rich white boy ennui (oh, but, did he really want to have one of the most privileged and respected positions in the city?) and could do with a smack in the face; Magnus the villain is terribly cliche, and while I did think for a little bit that I might like his risen-from-nothing assassin underling, that was before said underling decided that in addition to information, his prostitute contact would also freely provide him with sex. (Ugh, fuck off.) When I put the book down, we have just met Kat, the only girl in the city apparently, but she's not got a lot of fascinating about her, and certainly not enough to keep me in it.
I hoped, from the title, that the concept of dreaming would weigh more on the story. That there would be uncertainty about whether you were awake or asleep. But it seems to just be a metaphor. (Maybe I didn't give it long enough to develop. There are certainly ~Mysteries~ around the city; maybe one of them plugs into that concept, given more time.)
But the real kicker, for me, was a prose style that just didn't engage me with the characters. For me, the best example and worst offending paragraph is one where Tom has just been offered a helping hand by a non-human creature:
Nothing book-throwingly wrong about this, but my to-read list is too long to spend time finishing it when I'm so very uninterested.
I hoped, from the title, that the concept of dreaming would weigh more on the story. That there would be uncertainty about whether you were awake or asleep. But it seems to just be a metaphor. (Maybe I didn't give it long enough to develop. There are certainly ~Mysteries~ around the city; maybe one of them plugs into that concept, given more time.)
But the real kicker, for me, was a prose style that just didn't engage me with the characters. For me, the best example and worst offending paragraph is one where Tom has just been offered a helping hand by a non-human creature:
Tom stared at the hand, uncertain. Some instinct was telling him to trust this strange, talking flathead, yet he couldn't think of a logical reason why he should. After the briefest hesitation, he gripped the proffered hand...Well, if that isn't the most boring moment of story-turning indecision I've ever read, it's because the others were so boring I've wiped them from my memory. Some instinct is a lazy, aggravating motivator, and this could have been so much more interestingly delivered. Tom's been raised to be wary and fearful of these creatures. But this one has been calm and friendly and far more open and honest than anyone, human or otherwise, Tom has ever met. But no one does anything for free down in the depths of the city. But this might be his only chance to survive the forces that are after him.
Nothing book-throwingly wrong about this, but my to-read list is too long to spend time finishing it when I'm so very uninterested.
strawberrycasualreader's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
One of my favorite books that I’ve read. It has a little of (almost)everything !
bcinkoske's review
adventurous
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? No
4.5