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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
Beautiful storytelling, clever, and unashamed nature of tigers, women, and the world
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Two words:
Fucking. Brilliant.
I love these novellas. Hands-down, these are some of my favorite pieces of writing to date. The fact that Vo can tell multiple stories in so few pages with so much depth and intricacy is a testament to their impeccaple skill. I would recommend these novellas in particular to people who love well-crafted fantasy stories but don't have a ton of time on their plates. Especially for people who want stories that leave you with so much to chew on even after you read the final sentence. My standards for writing as a whole are starting to shift because of these books. Just. Fucking. Brilliant.
This novella in particular felt a little more distant and reflective than the last one, not because it's less poignant. Really, it's just because of the nature of the premis. The experience of a tiger, the understanding of animal's perspective through different lenses, and also the debate over how the center story really went, makes the frame story more prominent. It had to be such an interesting challenge, balancing the frame story with the center story just so. I enjoy that balance in this book in a way that I wouldn't have in the previous. The previous book's center story felt more immersive and deeply benefited from being so in a way that would have been a disservice to this second book. In this, we feel the concern and tension in the frame story, we get a sense for the lengths Chi can go to both keep themself alive and, if they're lucky, get a story out of it, too. Vo's world for these books had a chance to come to life in this second in-universe book (absolutely perfectly good as a standalone, but better with the context of the previous). Through both the center story and frame story in this novella, the setting becomes even more deep and vivid in a way that wouldn't have worked in the first book. We see more types of beings, more ways that magic exists and influences this world, we see a different part of the world that we only heard about in the first book. It's like the first book was the stage, immaculately built, and now Vo's constructing the set and lighting just so for future shows.
Fucking. Brilliant.
I love these novellas. Hands-down, these are some of my favorite pieces of writing to date. The fact that Vo can tell multiple stories in so few pages with so much depth and intricacy is a testament to their impeccaple skill. I would recommend these novellas in particular to people who love well-crafted fantasy stories but don't have a ton of time on their plates. Especially for people who want stories that leave you with so much to chew on even after you read the final sentence. My standards for writing as a whole are starting to shift because of these books. Just. Fucking. Brilliant.
This novella in particular felt a little more distant and reflective than the last one, not because it's less poignant. Really, it's just because of the nature of the premis. The experience of a tiger, the understanding of animal's perspective through different lenses, and also the debate over how the center story really went, makes the frame story more prominent. It had to be such an interesting challenge, balancing the frame story with the center story just so. I enjoy that balance in this book in a way that I wouldn't have in the previous. The previous book's center story felt more immersive and deeply benefited from being so in a way that would have been a disservice to this second book. In this, we feel the concern and tension in the frame story, we get a sense for the lengths Chi can go to both keep themself alive and, if they're lucky, get a story out of it, too. Vo's world for these books had a chance to come to life in this second in-universe book (absolutely perfectly good as a standalone, but better with the context of the previous). Through both the center story and frame story in this novella, the setting becomes even more deep and vivid in a way that wouldn't have worked in the first book. We see more types of beings, more ways that magic exists and influences this world, we see a different part of the world that we only heard about in the first book. It's like the first book was the stage, immaculately built, and now Vo's constructing the set and lighting just so for future shows.
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This one really pulled me in— a marvelously well-done story with a sharper, more cohesive structure than the first. The shift between perspectives felt smooth and intentional, but not so blended that you lose the contrast. I’d dare say it handles this even better than The Empress of Salt and Fortune.
Vo’s use of dual storytelling— two sides of the same tale is beautifully layered. Emotional, sometimes contradictory, and always deliberate.
Its full of tension and danger, with our cleric literally fleeing hungry tigers while coaxing out a story that may or may not save their life. Romantic stakes and life-or-death stakes working hand in hand.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Satisfying but confusing but satisfying.
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I admit I didn’t love this book quite as much as I did The Empress of Salt and Fortune, but it is still a marvelously well done story. I love the way Vo tells the same story from two perspectives, each fundamentally anchored in ostensibly the same events but interpreted in drastically different ways. This along side the heightened tension of the current danger to the cleric. All in all, I’ll be looking for more of Vo’s work and would happily listen to another book narrated by Kay.