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3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
This was recommended to me as a good example of gritty, street-level fantasy. If this is a good example, I'm going to stay far, far away from the bad examples.
The book starts with Azoth wanting to apprentice to a famous assassin, but then he balks when given the condition he has to kill someone. I would've forgiven the angst and waffling and realization this is what it means to be an assassin, if that was what stopped young Azoth. But, no. Instead, we're treated to a long, drawn-out thought process of how he might do it, why he should, what the consequences are, and everything but what I'd expect an 11-year-old boy to think about. When it finally happens, the text glosses over it, to be doled out in flashbacks later.
Then we're treated to flashes of life over the next ten years for Azoth, now going by Kylar Stern. Most of the characters in this book have more than one name, incidentally, and names are used interchangeably. So, if you still want to read this after reading my review, be warned that you'll have to keep track of not only people's names, but their pseudonyms. And several people have names that could be confused for one another's. One character goes by Elene, and there's a minor character named Elena, as well.
Female characters are described in terms of their relationships to male characters. One woman is described as headstrong, and, within a few paragraphs, is informed her preteen son holds the power in their house. Her attempts to subvert this are crushed, and the next we hear from her, she's brutally murdered.
The strongest female character in the whole story is a prostitute. Not that I have a problem with prostitutes, but it tells me a few things about what the male author thinks of his female characters. There's a queen who could've been a decent character, except that her biggest role is to plot to put someone else on the throne, instead of her. Because they'll respect him, you see. Which is where I made a choking noise that's still hurting my throat.
So ten years are glossed over in a few overwrought scenes, leading me to the distinct impression that the author only had a few cool scenes he wanted to write, and had only the thinnest justification for stringing them together. As this book is long enough as it is, I suppose I shouldn't complain too stridently.
There's a guy who can tell the future who fits into all this, of course, because the plot isn't maddening enough without the author blatantly adding some, "I know something you don't know!"
While we are treated to tedious inner dialogues, we're rarely given the insights that would make the characters real, at least to me. Inner motivation is often left for the reader to guess, and characters often act in ways that are counter to their interests. I'm left to conclude, most of the time, that they did it so there would be a plot.
As for the plot, it shows up around the halfway point with an assassinated prince. One would think the child (Azoth/Kylar) has grown up some in the last ten years, but there's plenty more dithering to be had. Sometimes, we follow thought processes leading us to conclusions with no bearing on the plot, or that are blatantly wrong, or that we've already figured out. Had the author been forced to cut dithering and navel gazing, this book would've been a quarter its size.
When I found myself yawning through the drawn-out battle between apprentice and master, I knew this book was a mistake to pick up.
I will not be picking up the next book in this series. This one was painful enough to get through. As it is, I'm sorry I finished it. There are so many better books I could've been reading, meanwhile.
I read this on audio, which didn't help the book's quality one bit. The narrator read a lot of it with melodramatic emphasis. So many of the voices sounded similar that, in one scene with three people with the same accents, I couldn't tell who was speaking. A better narrator would've been wasted on this book, but it didn't make an unpleasant read any more palatable.
The book starts with Azoth wanting to apprentice to a famous assassin, but then he balks when given the condition he has to kill someone. I would've forgiven the angst and waffling and realization this is what it means to be an assassin, if that was what stopped young Azoth. But, no. Instead, we're treated to a long, drawn-out thought process of how he might do it, why he should, what the consequences are, and everything but what I'd expect an 11-year-old boy to think about. When it finally happens, the text glosses over it, to be doled out in flashbacks later.
Then we're treated to flashes of life over the next ten years for Azoth, now going by Kylar Stern. Most of the characters in this book have more than one name, incidentally, and names are used interchangeably. So, if you still want to read this after reading my review, be warned that you'll have to keep track of not only people's names, but their pseudonyms. And several people have names that could be confused for one another's. One character goes by Elene, and there's a minor character named Elena, as well.
Female characters are described in terms of their relationships to male characters. One woman is described as headstrong, and, within a few paragraphs, is informed her preteen son holds the power in their house. Her attempts to subvert this are crushed, and the next we hear from her, she's brutally murdered.
The strongest female character in the whole story is a prostitute. Not that I have a problem with prostitutes, but it tells me a few things about what the male author thinks of his female characters. There's a queen who could've been a decent character, except that her biggest role is to plot to put someone else on the throne, instead of her. Because they'll respect him, you see. Which is where I made a choking noise that's still hurting my throat.
So ten years are glossed over in a few overwrought scenes, leading me to the distinct impression that the author only had a few cool scenes he wanted to write, and had only the thinnest justification for stringing them together. As this book is long enough as it is, I suppose I shouldn't complain too stridently.
There's a guy who can tell the future who fits into all this, of course, because the plot isn't maddening enough without the author blatantly adding some, "I know something you don't know!"
While we are treated to tedious inner dialogues, we're rarely given the insights that would make the characters real, at least to me. Inner motivation is often left for the reader to guess, and characters often act in ways that are counter to their interests. I'm left to conclude, most of the time, that they did it so there would be a plot.
As for the plot, it shows up around the halfway point with an assassinated prince. One would think the child (Azoth/Kylar) has grown up some in the last ten years, but there's plenty more dithering to be had. Sometimes, we follow thought processes leading us to conclusions with no bearing on the plot, or that are blatantly wrong, or that we've already figured out. Had the author been forced to cut dithering and navel gazing, this book would've been a quarter its size.
When I found myself yawning through the drawn-out battle between apprentice and master, I knew this book was a mistake to pick up.
I will not be picking up the next book in this series. This one was painful enough to get through. As it is, I'm sorry I finished it. There are so many better books I could've been reading, meanwhile.
I read this on audio, which didn't help the book's quality one bit. The narrator read a lot of it with melodramatic emphasis. So many of the voices sounded similar that, in one scene with three people with the same accents, I couldn't tell who was speaking. A better narrator would've been wasted on this book, but it didn't make an unpleasant read any more palatable.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
De weg van schaduw is het eerste deel van de serie Engelen van de nacht. Het boek gaat over Azoth, een kind dat opgroeit in de Wirwar, een zwaar criminele krottenwijk. Zonder ouders of andere mensen die op hem passen, komt hij in zeer gevaarlijke omstandigheden terecht. Geen wonder dat hij wil worden als Durzo Blint, een legendarische moordenaar. Durzo Blint is nergens bang voor en dat lijkt Azoth het hoogste goed. Na een dramatische gebeurtenis wordt hij het hulpje van Durzo Blint. Uiteindelijk blijkt Azoth een heel speciale jongen te zijn met een talent dat heel zeldzaam is. Maar om dat talent tevoorschijn te laten komen, moeten er heel wat dingen gebeuren.
Het uitgangspunt van dit boek is niet echt origineel. De leerjongen zijn van een crimineel is al vaker aan bod gekomen, evenals de volksjongen die iets heel speciaals blijkt te kunnen. Maar de uitwerking van het verhaal is gelukkig wel een stukje origineler dan het uitgangspunt. De wereld waarin Azoth opgroeit is een wrede wereld vol gevaren. Dat wordt mooi beschreven, hoewel er het hele boek door vele vragen overblijven. De vriendschap die Azoth sluit met een adellijke jongen laat ook de wat fraaiere kanten van Cenaria zien, het koninkrijk dat steeds vreest voor een inval van het naburige grote rijk. Er zit een grote vaart in het verhaal, waardoor het boek heerlijk vlot leest. Het magiegebruik is origineel genoeg om boeiend te zijn. De politieke verwikkelingen zijn echter hier en daar wat te ondoorzichtig en soms wat ongeloofwaardig. Gelukkig gebeuren er genoeg dingen om daar een beetje overheen te kunnen lezen. Al met al is het een veelbelovend eerste deel van een serie die ik graag verder zou willen lezen.
Het uitgangspunt van dit boek is niet echt origineel. De leerjongen zijn van een crimineel is al vaker aan bod gekomen, evenals de volksjongen die iets heel speciaals blijkt te kunnen. Maar de uitwerking van het verhaal is gelukkig wel een stukje origineler dan het uitgangspunt. De wereld waarin Azoth opgroeit is een wrede wereld vol gevaren. Dat wordt mooi beschreven, hoewel er het hele boek door vele vragen overblijven. De vriendschap die Azoth sluit met een adellijke jongen laat ook de wat fraaiere kanten van Cenaria zien, het koninkrijk dat steeds vreest voor een inval van het naburige grote rijk. Er zit een grote vaart in het verhaal, waardoor het boek heerlijk vlot leest. Het magiegebruik is origineel genoeg om boeiend te zijn. De politieke verwikkelingen zijn echter hier en daar wat te ondoorzichtig en soms wat ongeloofwaardig. Gelukkig gebeuren er genoeg dingen om daar een beetje overheen te kunnen lezen. Al met al is het een veelbelovend eerste deel van een serie die ik graag verder zou willen lezen.
It took me a long time to first this book. I would pick it up and put it down for over a year. When I finally put my mind to finishing it though, I managed to finish it in a day. It is now one of my favorite books and Trilogies.
From all the hype I'd read, The Way of the Shadows was a fantasy novel chock full o' the standard fantasy tropes, full of slam-bang action, and more fun that it deserved to be considering it doesn't really explore new ground in fantasy fiction.
Well, the hype was correct. I did indeed enjoy the novel. The adventures of Kylar Stern reminded me why I got into fantasy as a 12 year old kid. Done right, it can be loads of fun.
Was some of the novel obvious to a seasoned fantasy reader? Sure, lots of it was. A main character who starts from nothing, is trained by a gruff and sometimes ruthless mentor, suffers greatly along the way, only to persevere and become a bad ass . . . yeah, I've read loads of novels that traveled that well-worn path.
Do I care? Nope. 'Twas good stuff. Give it a read of you are looking for a fun romp.
Well, the hype was correct. I did indeed enjoy the novel. The adventures of Kylar Stern reminded me why I got into fantasy as a 12 year old kid. Done right, it can be loads of fun.
Was some of the novel obvious to a seasoned fantasy reader? Sure, lots of it was. A main character who starts from nothing, is trained by a gruff and sometimes ruthless mentor, suffers greatly along the way, only to persevere and become a bad ass . . . yeah, I've read loads of novels that traveled that well-worn path.
Do I care? Nope. 'Twas good stuff. Give it a read of you are looking for a fun romp.
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes