Scan barcode
timinbc's review against another edition
3.0
OK, I'm going to read the next one. But ...
Let me start by saying I took off a whole star for the ending.
Maybe if the cover indicated that it's #1 of a series .... but even if it had ... I've read LOTS of series in which each volume ends a medium-size story arc that fits within the larger arc. This one–damn the spoiler warnings, full speed ahead–builds all the plotlines up into a clever crescendo, and Then. Just. Stops. With our heroes in a pit full of snakes and dynamite fuses fizzing overhead.
It's a YA, and I am aware of that as I write this.
It has very good pacing, and the plot elements come together cleanly.
Most of the good characters are interesting. Aloysius and Boris and Noyes are cartoonishly bad to the point of being annoying and then eventually ludicrous. I wondered if Catherine would deal with Boris by saying she loved him, forcing him to growl, "Hah! I'll show you!" and stab himself to death to spite her.
Not sure what to think about the trembling incipient gay love between March and Edyon. For one thing we are not really shown how this is viewed in either country, except for one character who didn't seem to care much. Where are we going with this? Readers may at this point wish to review comments on Green's other "Half ..." series.
As soon as we know that X & Y both love Catherine, we know there are only two paths:
Finally, Brigant and Pitoria seem very similar but have wildly different attitudes toward women; it's kinda hard to see how Catherine she got so liberated growing up in Brigant, especially when her mother sure didn't liberate her.
Let me start by saying I took off a whole star for the ending.
Maybe if the cover indicated that it's #1 of a series .... but even if it had ... I've read LOTS of series in which each volume ends a medium-size story arc that fits within the larger arc. This one–damn the spoiler warnings, full speed ahead–builds all the plotlines up into a clever crescendo, and Then. Just. Stops. With our heroes in a pit full of snakes and dynamite fuses fizzing overhead.
It's a YA, and I am aware of that as I write this.
It has very good pacing, and the plot elements come together cleanly.
Most of the good characters are interesting. Aloysius and Boris and Noyes are cartoonishly bad to the point of being annoying and then eventually ludicrous. I wondered if Catherine would deal with Boris by saying she loved him, forcing him to growl, "Hah! I'll show you!" and stab himself to death to spite her.
Not sure what to think about the trembling incipient gay love between March and Edyon. For one thing we are not really shown how this is viewed in either country, except for one character who didn't seem to care much. Where are we going with this? Readers may at this point wish to review comments on Green's other "Half ..." series.
As soon as we know that X & Y both love Catherine, we know there are only two paths:
Spoiler
(a) there's another volume so they both live; (b) there isn't another volume so one of them will have to die in a heroic, hanky-soaking scene.Finally, Brigant and Pitoria seem very similar but have wildly different attitudes toward women; it's kinda hard to see how Catherine she got so liberated growing up in Brigant, especially when her mother sure didn't liberate her.
jasiroses's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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
4.0
smateer73's review against another edition
4.0
This book was pretty good. I liked almost all of the characters, especially Tash and Catherine. There wasn’t excessive romance which was nice. Overall, the book has a interesting plot with many facets, though it does take a long time to really show how everything connects and what the story’s really about.
riptidemigod's review
2.0
ça a pris beaucoup de temps mais maintenant que tout est mis en place et que Catherine a grow a spine j ai UN PEU hâte de commencer le 2
j1nxc's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-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
3.25
leopardsummer8's review against another edition
4.0
The Smoke Thieves has been pretty close to the top of my TBR for a while now because any fantasy book with found-family elements and multiple POVs is basically an automatic must-read. Now I've finally gotten around to it, and I don't know quite what to think.
The weird thing is, I enjoyed the book despite the fact that it felt like almost nothing happened. I think that the five POVs really worked in the story's favor. Usually, I don't like books as much if I can't get a feel for the overarching plot, but I didn't mind as much because I was entertained just getting to know the characters and the world.
Admittedly, Ambrose has the weakest POV: he just simps for Catherine the whole time, which wasn't horrible until I learned he's 21 and she's 16... and his entire personality is just HER. I also didn't love Catherine, but I did respect her. I've read the "betrothed to some prince" trope too many times to count, but she genuinely wanted the neighboring kingdom to like her, and she made much smarter decisions than I expected. Tash, March, and Edyon were by far the highlights of the story. Tash's POVs were super interesting and I really liked her character and how unique she was. March and Edyon were also very unique; their dynamic was quite different than anything I'd read before. I look forward to seeing what shenanigans they can get into in the next book. Overall, I really liked seeing how the characters interact with each other and how their plots interweaved throughout the novel.
While The Smoke Thieves felt like a prequel to a series or an introduction to a world, it sets up for a fun and action-packed fantasy story about demons, royalty, and found family.
4/5
The weird thing is, I enjoyed the book despite the fact that it felt like almost nothing happened. I think that the five POVs really worked in the story's favor. Usually, I don't like books as much if I can't get a feel for the overarching plot, but I didn't mind as much because I was entertained just getting to know the characters and the world.
Admittedly, Ambrose has the weakest POV: he just simps for Catherine the whole time, which wasn't horrible until I learned he's 21 and she's 16... and his entire personality is just HER. I also didn't love Catherine, but I did respect her. I've read the "betrothed to some prince" trope too many times to count, but she genuinely wanted the neighboring kingdom to like her, and she made much smarter decisions than I expected. Tash, March, and Edyon were by far the highlights of the story. Tash's POVs were super interesting and I really liked her character and how unique she was. March and Edyon were also very unique; their dynamic was quite different than anything I'd read before. I look forward to seeing what shenanigans they can get into in the next book. Overall, I really liked seeing how the characters interact with each other and how their plots interweaved throughout the novel.
While The Smoke Thieves felt like a prequel to a series or an introduction to a world, it sets up for a fun and action-packed fantasy story about demons, royalty, and found family.
4/5
swan_h's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
leilaxx's review against another edition
3.0
I have to wait 1 year for the next book 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
I will admit the first couple chapter were slow, I was going to Dnf but didn’t. Everything started to make sense
I will admit the first couple chapter were slow, I was going to Dnf but didn’t. Everything started to make sense