Reviews

The Stone Sky by N.K. Jemisin

bookber's review against another edition

4.0

3.5 / 5

I'm so disappointed that I didn't love this book as much as I had hoped! I had just finished my re-reads of [b:The Fifth Season|19161852|The Fifth Season (The Broken Earth, #1)|N.K. Jemisin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386803701l/19161852._SY75_.jpg|26115977] and [b:The Obelisk Gate|26228034|The Obelisk Gate (The Broken Earth, #2)|N.K. Jemisin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1660867781l/26228034._SY75_.jpg|46213537] (which I gave 5 stars) in preparation for this book and unfortunately I don't think it quite lived up to its predecessors.

I found this one quite slow, and ended up "soft DNF'ing" it around 150 pages in before picking it up again a few weeks later and still struggling to push through certain sections.

I liked how the series wrapped up and brought all of its ideas together in a clever way, and I still love this series as a whole, but I didn't love the 3 separate POVs in this book as I wanted to spend more time with Essun. I understand what the new POV was trying to achieve but I don't think it needed to span across the entire book, and I found it difficult to sympathise with Nassun's extreme rage or her intense love for Schaffa. I feel like I missed the Essun x Alabaster duo and nothing else quite matched that for me.

The last 100 or so pages were really good and it felt like an achievement to finish this trilogy after initially starting it in 2020, but I couldn't help but feel a little underwhelmed after expecting another perfect 5 star.

alicebme's review against another edition

5.0

I definitely want to get these on audiobook. Such an intricate and completely badass story.

kaamezcua2's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious 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

5.0

lowkeymarie's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

3.5

oluwasina's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

seaflower's review

slow-paced

3.0

salemander's review against another edition

5.0

literally some of the most amazing books i’ve ever read. the world building, the way the magic works, the characters just all of it is so beautiful and horrible and just wow. the mother/daughter relationship made me sob. i feel such conflicting feelings for my mom, maybe not in such an intense and dramatic way with like the whole planet at stake, but the way nk jemisin handles it is so brilliant. 

blkswn's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

5.0

beckahh_i's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective tense 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

Every time I finish a book like this that is so brilliantly written that I'm not entirely sure what actually happened but I definitely had a good time, I am in awe of people's brains that are clearly smarter than I am 😅 N.K. Jemisin has quickly become a favorite auto buy author. The entire Broken Earth trilogy is so brilliantly written, and is definitely one of my new favorite series of all time. 

This style of writing is very different from other sci-fi/fantasy, and so I can understand why it would be for everyone, but if you want insanely good writing that will leave your jaw on the floor, I would highly recommend this.

The Stone Sky was a phenomenal final book, and wrapped up all the questions I had through the first two books. There were times I truly didn't understand what was going to happen, but it all made sense in the end and I loved every second of it.

ludicwren's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75