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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
i have indeed enjoyed this, although i literally lost track of who is who. okay, i have the urge to explain. the story was told beautifully. the book is written from two different point of views (lia and xania), which were both narrated by anna popplewell in the audio book. to me, this was a bit off-putting.
don't get me wrong. anna popplewells voice really grew on me. but it took me half of the book to get into the story and i started to feel it. i think, if i had read it i would have been more into it. but it is what it is.
on a more positive note, i loved loved the LGBTQ+ representation in this book. although we were in times of queens and castles and war and treason, there was no homophobia. all the court cared about was an heir. the queen loves women? fine. just produce an heir somehow, thank you. there were so many "(...) he loves his husband"-reveals and i just
don't get me wrong. anna popplewells voice really grew on me. but it took me half of the book to get into the story and i started to feel it. i think, if i had read it i would have been more into it. but it is what it is.
on a more positive note, i loved loved the LGBTQ+ representation in this book. although we were in times of queens and castles and war and treason, there was no homophobia. all the court cared about was an heir. the queen loves women? fine. just produce an heir somehow, thank you. there were so many "(...) he loves his husband"-reveals and i just
adventurous
mysterious
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Some good ideas, but the execution left me wanting. The espionage felt shallow and forced. The choices being made similar.
emotional
fast-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:
No
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I absolutely adore this! First of all, such a detailed and beautiful world for the setting, it was so easy to put myself in Edar. The wide range of characters were introduced well, leaving very little confusion as to who is who.
My only criticism is that there isn't more. I would love to spend many more hours exploring this world and the intricate relationships that are working behind the scenes of this monarchy.
The very best thing about this book though is the normality of non-heterosexual relationships. It is wonderful to see mentions of the Master of Coin being in love with his Husband, the leader of the Navy and her wife. Making relationships, like my own, so normal and without need of explanation is such a refreshing and exciting concept.
Love, love, love this book.
My only criticism is that there isn't more. I would love to spend many more hours exploring this world and the intricate relationships that are working behind the scenes of this monarchy.
The very best thing about this book though is the normality of non-heterosexual relationships. It is wonderful to see mentions of the Master of Coin being in love with his Husband, the leader of the Navy and her wife. Making relationships, like my own, so normal and without need of explanation is such a refreshing and exciting concept.
Love, love, love this book.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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:
No
The first 150ish pages were quite good, but as it continued the problems I had with the writing only got bigger and bigger. There were multiple times where the word choice was exactly the same as a few pages back, and it didn’t seem purposeful, just like someone forgot to use a thesaurus (or listen to a copy editor). Sometimes I was confused how we got from one sentence to the next, and the political stuff was far too ambitious and not explained well enough. I was confused about who was good and who wasn’t many times. By the end, I still cared about Xania and Lia’s relationship, but probably nothing else - I felt like the last 100 pages were supposed to be exciting but I was just bored of the stock plotline. The world building was just not there - I couldn’t get a real feel for the place nor most of the characters. Also, why is Lia drinking all the time? I don’t care if the author wanted to give her a cool “Lena Luthor and her scotch” edge, it reads so awkwardly (as many things did, honestly a lot of this felt lacking emotion/motivation/clear explanation). And, although this may be my own 22 year old distaste for reading about teens, why have your characters be in their late teens but worrying about marriage, drinking, having (hinted at) sex? The plot would lose nothing if they were even aged up to just 20. I know they’re supposed to be young and trying to handle “adult responsibilities,” but 1) so are people in their early twenties and 2) they just didn’t quite read like believable teenagers.
3 stars because I’m gay and did like the romance and general concept, but the execution could’ve been better.
3 stars because I’m gay and did like the romance and general concept, but the execution could’ve been better.
3.5 stars rounded to 4.
Really good first half! Plot begins to fall apart in end, especially in the frantic, confusing, and outright messy last 20%, which leads to just... Frustrating moments where these characters you've grown to love become completely different people, changing traits and personalities at the drop of a dime.
Certainly don't regret reading it, might even recommend to someone, but was a bit of a slog to finish as I became uninterested by both the plot and characters in that overly packed final third.
Really good first half! Plot begins to fall apart in end, especially in the frantic, confusing, and outright messy last 20%, which leads to just... Frustrating moments where these characters you've grown to love become completely different people, changing traits and personalities at the drop of a dime.
Certainly don't regret reading it, might even recommend to someone, but was a bit of a slog to finish as I became uninterested by both the plot and characters in that overly packed final third.