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tuckermeijer's review against another edition
4.0
Almost DNFd this one after the first 120 pages, but I'm ultimately glad I stuck with it. It really draws you in once you get a feel for the style and is surprisingly moving at times. It's not always a pleasant reading experience; the descriptions of violence (particularly sexual violence) are gratuitous and, at times, don't move the plot forward. It's a dense book that I feel like people will either like or hate – I found myself in the former category.
vanessaamber53's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It's difficult for me to put into words what my thoughts are on this book, they're about as confusing as the unreliable narration in the beginning. I'm pretty easy to please when it comes to the media that I consume, I either like something or I don't. This book was decidedly not an easy or lazy read, it's one you have to actively read or you will miss crucial pieces of the puzzle. I felt a little bit frustrated with the first 75 pages and the last 75 pages, it felt confusing, disorienting, and disjointed. The narration style felt like a big adjustment at the beginning and it took me a while to really get into the flow of the writing. I didn't really like how the story jumped in the final section, and the ending felt slightly disjointed and rushed.
Having said that, the sections of the book between those first and last 75 pages was largely an enjoyable read for me. The vulgar and explicit writing style, the characterization of all of the fantasy characters, and the world building as the story progressed really kept me in the mind frame that was necessary for this read. I was engaged, interested, and after the first 75, I really fell into the flow of the narration and writing style. Once I was locked in, I found it difficult to put this book down. It was super exciting for me to enter such a fully fleshed out and well-written new fantasy world.
I would give this book a 4 out of 5, I would read it again, and I'd be willing to recommend it to others even. After reading a lot of reviews, I will say I don't know if I see the comparison to Tolkein’s writing style. About the only similarity I see is that there was a dysfunctional fellowship with a mission. The warning I would give is to take pretty much every review (yes even mine) with a grain of salt. This is such a decisive work that it's something you'd have to read for yourself to know if you'd like it or not.
Having said that, the sections of the book between those first and last 75 pages was largely an enjoyable read for me. The vulgar and explicit writing style, the characterization of all of the fantasy characters, and the world building as the story progressed really kept me in the mind frame that was necessary for this read. I was engaged, interested, and after the first 75, I really fell into the flow of the narration and writing style. Once I was locked in, I found it difficult to put this book down. It was super exciting for me to enter such a fully fleshed out and well-written new fantasy world.
I would give this book a 4 out of 5, I would read it again, and I'd be willing to recommend it to others even. After reading a lot of reviews, I will say I don't know if I see the comparison to Tolkein’s writing style. About the only similarity I see is that there was a dysfunctional fellowship with a mission. The warning I would give is to take pretty much every review (yes even mine) with a grain of salt. This is such a decisive work that it's something you'd have to read for yourself to know if you'd like it or not.
toast_is_me's review against another edition
got bored, it felt like the main story was finished. not overly invested in the characters.
thaddeus's review against another edition
2.0
Refreshing to read a tale soaked in the mythology of Africa, as most of the stories I read descend from the Britannic/Norse/Greek strains. Gripped by the writing and pace. A third of the way into the story I was overwhelmed by descriptive, non-stop violence and sex - the two often blurred together - and I put the book down.
amarie77's review against another edition
5.0
According to some, there are only 5 or 6 plots to write and what makes each story unique is the details: the world building and the characters. In both, this book excels. It will blow your mind, break your heart and occasionally twist your stomach. In the words of Neil Gaiman: "It's something very new that feels old, in the best way."
arkaymagnus's review against another edition
4.0
Hallucinatory and intoxicating, this is a wonderful journey through deep fantastic realism, a real mythological land aeons away from the Eurocentric feudalism cut from your standard fantasy cookie.
Multiple stories and stories within stories. It's confusing at first, then it slowly rocks you into a different pace, a different rhythm of dreamlike prose and roundabout ways to get to the place you don't know you're going.
I nearly rated it a three because of the digressive storytelling, which I do feel was to the book's disadvantage at times. But I was rarely bored throughout the 620 pages, and that's a feat that deserves recognition.
I'm honestly not sure what else to say. This is a tough book, a brutal book, a colourful book, and it is unapologetically different in a number of ways that fantasy needs to be different if it is to evolve. It pulls no punches and makes no apologies, yet like certain characters in the book, you end up loving it despite its flaws, or perhaps because of them.
Multiple stories and stories within stories. It's confusing at first, then it slowly rocks you into a different pace, a different rhythm of dreamlike prose and roundabout ways to get to the place you don't know you're going.
I nearly rated it a three because of the digressive storytelling, which I do feel was to the book's disadvantage at times. But I was rarely bored throughout the 620 pages, and that's a feat that deserves recognition.
I'm honestly not sure what else to say. This is a tough book, a brutal book, a colourful book, and it is unapologetically different in a number of ways that fantasy needs to be different if it is to evolve. It pulls no punches and makes no apologies, yet like certain characters in the book, you end up loving it despite its flaws, or perhaps because of them.
jenbreads's review against another edition
2.0
I had a hard time getting through this book. I felt the last section was the best; it was at times difficult to follow the dialogue and story for the earlier sections. The style was different and I appreciated the effort but found this may not be for me if there are the following books.
elbiesamuels's review against another edition
1.0
This book was not what I was expecting, and I think that seriously impacted my enjoyment of it. It was billed as high fantasy, so I was expecting more of an epic story and a complex world that I could sink into. The way that this novel is laid out, with Tracker telling the events in a non-chronological series of stories that jumps back and forth, cutting to other stories, and referring both backwards and forwards in chronology made it very hard to follow. Additionally, the lack of dialogue tags (he said, Leopard said, etc.) made longer conversations hard to follow as well. I often had to go back and try to map the dialogue for myself so I could figure out who was speaking and when.
I did know that the book dealt with violent and sexual (and violent sexual) material going into it, but the usage of these things didn't particularly have meaning or consequence to the story. There is a lot of casual wife beating, which I think would have had the same impact in characterizing the world and the people within it if it was less-often employed. The overuse of it became grating after a while, since neither the plot nor the characters were dynamic or interesting enough to balance out the heaviness of the violence. I kept asking myself why I was still reading this book.
There were a lot of really interesting and intriguing things about it, but I think it fell short in the execution. The writing style was nuanced and very clearly skilled, but the frequent lack of clarity (which I think had to do with giving the story a dreamlike or mythical feel) made the physical act of reading it a chore.
I did know that the book dealt with violent and sexual (and violent sexual) material going into it, but the usage of these things didn't particularly have meaning or consequence to the story. There is a lot of casual wife beating, which I think would have had the same impact in characterizing the world and the people within it if it was less-often employed. The overuse of it became grating after a while, since neither the plot nor the characters were dynamic or interesting enough to balance out the heaviness of the violence. I kept asking myself why I was still reading this book.
There were a lot of really interesting and intriguing things about it, but I think it fell short in the execution. The writing style was nuanced and very clearly skilled, but the frequent lack of clarity (which I think had to do with giving the story a dreamlike or mythical feel) made the physical act of reading it a chore.
jennburk's review against another edition
1.0
DNF - struggled all the way to page 63 before I decided I don't have to make myself read a book if I'm not enjoying it. Which is a shame, because I wanted to love this blend of "myth, fantasy and history," as described on the inside cover, but it seems that the author was determined to make the story as lewd and vulgar as possible. My mind felt like it was running an obstacle course trying to follow the narrative.