Reviews

Just… disengaged and bored. I felt like I was being told what was happening - not as a book but more like a newsletter - as there was no depth, barely any exploration into character and an endless parade of new characters, most of whom ended up dead but it didn’t matter as I didn’t care about any of them.

gkim9779's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional medium-paced

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

3.25

bhfine's review against another edition

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challenging inspiring 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

sandra_broadwill's review against another edition

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5.0

What a high I felt reading 200 pages a day as I devoured this book. I'm not even sure what to say at this point as I literally just set it down, but wow. Ken Liu's writing is insightful, wise, and gripping. Despite how enthralled I was, I feel this was only the setup for the epic story to come. I think this series will likely turn out to be a new favorite.

zoe_'s review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced

3.5

This book moves at breakneck speed and I have no idea what the next book has in tow. That being said, I did not expect to find passages of writing that would perfectly fit my thesis in here, so I might end up revisiting it even though it hasn't swept me off my feet. (I'll also probably read the sequel either way, though.)

I feel like most elements here were done passably well but no more than that. The intrigue was interesting but predictable (as soon as a specific thing happens you can go "o-ohhh, that's going to be a problem", already knowing what kind of problem it will be, and you'll be 100% correct), the politics rather superficial. There were so many characters introduced and killed off (sometimes in very quick succession to being introduced) that the entire story is a whirlwind. The main characters were interesting but, again, rather predictable.

What my lack of enthusiasm comes down to, to be completely honest, is probably the book's speed. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I prefer slow moving (fantasy) books, with enough time to explore the environment, to explore the characters, to explore the themes. This book was broad enough to explore themes (the corrupting element of power, the ideals of power, the impossibility of ideals, etc) but neither environments or characters experienced much depth. Even the protagonists ended up becoming more hardened and extreme versions of whom they started out as without going through much development.

I've also seen people criticise the lack of female representation in this, but having read the first book in Bakker's Prince of Nothing series, I feel like this book was practically teeming with interesting female characters. Could it have been better? Sure, but I already mentioned how this book could, perhaps, fit into my thesis and those passages are very Jia-centric/heavy so I feel like the women in this book have made the greatest inpact on me (so far at least), which is enough for me to be content with the female representation (for a first book, at least). Let the men kill each other off, the women have bigger fish to fry.

meanna's review against another edition

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adventurous 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

3.75

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