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birte's review
adventurous
dark
sad
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? Yes
3.5
desolation73's review
3.0
I thought Hand of the sun king was beautifully written but it was written from one perspective the follow up suddenly features three perspective and well for me it was bloody confusing and also a bit of a chore and I struggled too finish this .
But there are also moments when JT writes beautifully which makes me really pained too write this review.
Asian inspires fantasy well I really enjoyed fonda Lees jade City and the is leagues behind that .
But there are also moments when JT writes beautifully which makes me really pained too write this review.
Asian inspires fantasy well I really enjoyed fonda Lees jade City and the is leagues behind that .
ventuxho's review
adventurous
reflective
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? Yes
5.0
barium_squirrel's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
rachlpearson's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
DNF at30%
tattooedbibliophile's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This series started very strong. I was sent the first book as part of my Goldsboro Science Fiction and Fantasy subscription, and had not heard it advertised elsewhere, so I wouldn't have picked it up otherwise.
The first book in the series follows Wen Alder, who is a boy with a Sienese (the oppressor) father and a Naian (the oppressed) mother. His uncle is the leader of a rebel faction fighting the Sienese, and his grandmother is a wanted witch whom his father has agreed to hide because of his love for Wen Alder's mother. Alder is being groomed to take a test and become a hand of the emperor to increase his family's status in the Sienese cultural hierarchy. But his grandmother does not want their culture to die, or for him to deny his Naian culture in favor of the Sienese. So she secretly teaches him at night. He loves these lessons because of his hunger for magic. She gives him his Naian name, Foolish Cur, which proves apt throughout the series. In the first book he passes the test first in his class and manages to hide his magic.
In this book, Foolish Cur is learning they ways in which the Sienese colonize and erase other cultures. He begins to learn the hypocrisy of the Sienese teachings, and the parallels in this book to the current genocide occurring in Palestine are so uncanny its as if the author knew it would happen. (Except of course that it has happened in history many times and we do not learn from it.) But this book is written taking from the Chinese culture. Normally I do research into an author before I purchase a book, but because I received it via subscription I did not. The knowledge of this author throughout this book impressed me so greatly, I assumed the writer was marginalized.
But at the end it all starts to fall apart. The emperor has been colonizing the world in an effort to "minimize chaos and so ensure peace" by deleting any culture who did not agree with his and stealing their magic away. He is the big bad. But in many series, the author will introduce a bigger baddie. When the bigger baddie gets introduced at the end of this book, the author excuses the emperor - he has only been trying to keep back the bigger baddie, which is his excuse for genocide. There can be no excuse for genocide, so I immediately did the author research I should have in the first place and discovered the author to be a white guy from Spokane. While I wouldn't have a problem with this otherwise, the fact that an author would use the oppression and genocide of a culture for a plot line, do the research, have the knowledge but yet show a complete lack of understanding for the actual hearts and minds of the oppressed, really drove home for me why marginalized people want to tell their own stories.
Now, perhaps the third book redeems the series, but so far, we have a main character who bulldozes through his own people in his quest for power (because that's what the magic is for him - power,) and a genocidal emperor who is excused for trying to keep peace. Because of my chronic inability to not finish a series, and my unfortunate habit of buying a series in its entirety before starting it, I have the third book and plan to finish the series. I'll post an update when I do...
The first book in the series follows Wen Alder, who is a boy with a Sienese (the oppressor) father and a Naian (the oppressed) mother. His uncle is the leader of a rebel faction fighting the Sienese, and his grandmother is a wanted witch whom his father has agreed to hide because of his love for Wen Alder's mother. Alder is being groomed to take a test and become a hand of the emperor to increase his family's status in the Sienese cultural hierarchy. But his grandmother does not want their culture to die, or for him to deny his Naian culture in favor of the Sienese. So she secretly teaches him at night. He loves these lessons because of his hunger for magic. She gives him his Naian name, Foolish Cur, which proves apt throughout the series. In the first book he passes the test first in his class and manages to hide his magic.
In this book, Foolish Cur is learning they ways in which the Sienese colonize and erase other cultures. He begins to learn the hypocrisy of the Sienese teachings, and the parallels in this book to the current genocide occurring in Palestine are so uncanny its as if the author knew it would happen. (Except of course that it has happened in history many times and we do not learn from it.) But this book is written taking from the Chinese culture. Normally I do research into an author before I purchase a book, but because I received it via subscription I did not. The knowledge of this author throughout this book impressed me so greatly, I assumed the writer was marginalized.
But at the end it all starts to fall apart. The emperor has been colonizing the world in an effort to "minimize chaos and so ensure peace" by deleting any culture who did not agree with his and stealing their magic away. He is the big bad. But in many series, the author will introduce a bigger baddie. When the bigger baddie gets introduced at the end of this book, the author excuses the emperor - he has only been trying to keep back the bigger baddie, which is his excuse for genocide. There can be no excuse for genocide, so I immediately did the author research I should have in the first place and discovered the author to be a white guy from Spokane. While I wouldn't have a problem with this otherwise, the fact that an author would use the oppression and genocide of a culture for a plot line, do the research, have the knowledge but yet show a complete lack of understanding for the actual hearts and minds of the oppressed, really drove home for me why marginalized people want to tell their own stories.
Now, perhaps the third book redeems the series, but so far, we have a main character who bulldozes through his own people in his quest for power (because that's what the magic is for him - power,) and a genocidal emperor who is excused for trying to keep peace. Because of my chronic inability to not finish a series, and my unfortunate habit of buying a series in its entirety before starting it, I have the third book and plan to finish the series. I'll post an update when I do...
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Racism, and Genocide
ameliez's review
adventurous
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
thewulverslibrary's review
3.0
The Garden of Empire by JT Greathouse is book two in The Pact and the Pattern and what a way to do a sequel. Foolish Cur, previously Wen Alder, finds that his allies in the rebellion will cross any line if it means freedom from the Empire. But he can't overcome a foe as strong as Emperor Tenet alone. Koro Ha, his former tutor, discovers the Empire is not so forgiving of those who raise a traitor and their suspicion may cost him and his people more than he can imagine. As war against the Empire rages, Foolish Cur knows there is a greater threat. The Emperor plans his own coup against the gods, and they will wreak destruction if he tries. To stop him, Foolish Cur might have to risk everything - and resort to ancient magics that could tear the world apart.
I re-read The Hand of the Sun King before this and it is clearly evident that whilst that was Wen Alder's story, this continuation will have multiple points of view as others play an important role in the events that will unfold. We are treated to different parts of the Sien Empire and lands that were only briefly touched upon before. We see different perspectives of anger and vengeance, lore and betrayal. This story has opened up wider and Greathouse does incredibly well to juggle each perspective and showing different rule. The mystery and intrigue is still intricately plotted throughout and the future of the series seems to be larger than ever before.
The characters were interesting and imaginative. The world-building unique and expressive. There is inner turmoil that deals with coming-of-age and identification as we go through each experience and Greathouse shows the ambition of this novel right from the start. The captivation of Wen's choices and vanity is further explored and we can see the blindness that he leads with in a new light. He is not a perfect character, nor a perfect person, but the devotion and complexity that he offers was one of the more interesting parts of his characters growth. Each new character was also shown to be different and that can be a hard craft to manage with such a vast array of culture.
Greathouse has an elegant way of describing landscapes and beliefs. The thoughtfulness of nature and gods is further explored but the way it was handled was more info-dumping that shown and that can hinder the experience of a beautifully crafted philosophy. There were parts where characters behaved unlike themselves just to create a thrill for the narrative and that fell short when the story needed pushed forward. The ending itself has blew this story wide open and I cannot wait to see what JT Greathouse does with the next novel.
This was a fantastic book, an amazing sequel and one I will definitely see to completion.
I re-read The Hand of the Sun King before this and it is clearly evident that whilst that was Wen Alder's story, this continuation will have multiple points of view as others play an important role in the events that will unfold. We are treated to different parts of the Sien Empire and lands that were only briefly touched upon before. We see different perspectives of anger and vengeance, lore and betrayal. This story has opened up wider and Greathouse does incredibly well to juggle each perspective and showing different rule. The mystery and intrigue is still intricately plotted throughout and the future of the series seems to be larger than ever before.
The characters were interesting and imaginative. The world-building unique and expressive. There is inner turmoil that deals with coming-of-age and identification as we go through each experience and Greathouse shows the ambition of this novel right from the start. The captivation of Wen's choices and vanity is further explored and we can see the blindness that he leads with in a new light. He is not a perfect character, nor a perfect person, but the devotion and complexity that he offers was one of the more interesting parts of his characters growth. Each new character was also shown to be different and that can be a hard craft to manage with such a vast array of culture.
Greathouse has an elegant way of describing landscapes and beliefs. The thoughtfulness of nature and gods is further explored but the way it was handled was more info-dumping that shown and that can hinder the experience of a beautifully crafted philosophy. There were parts where characters behaved unlike themselves just to create a thrill for the narrative and that fell short when the story needed pushed forward. The ending itself has blew this story wide open and I cannot wait to see what JT Greathouse does with the next novel.
This was a fantastic book, an amazing sequel and one I will definitely see to completion.