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hkuhlman7's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Minor: Torture, Death, and Cursing
scedne0's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Torture and Violence
atalea's review against another edition
- 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
I am still interested in seeing where the story is going, because I've heard great things about it sequels (which I own) so I will continue the series but I am not in a rush to do so.
I think this is a series you need to be in the right headspace in, same as with a Robin Hobb book. My advice: take your time with it and don't expect this (at least the first book) to be an action-heavy book. It's main focus lies on political maneuvering and retrospection which causes the pace of the story to drop significantly. Still, overall I enjoyed it.
Graphic: Xenophobia, Violence, Colonisation, War, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Slavery, Murder, Death, Torture, Abandonment, Blood, Bullying, and Confinement
Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Cannibalism
mspilesofpaper's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Torture
astrodad's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Torture and Injury/Injury detail
pinkfloydian's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Torture, Xenophobia, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Slavery, and Violence
priim's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Torture
dragontomes2000's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Let me start with Hadrian. I found Hadrian to be thought provoking, strong, tactful, but also flawed. He is the kind of character who I enjoy reading about because he seems human. His relationship with his family is very rocky. It is interesting to see how family kind of shaped Hadrian because it really shapes his character throughout a majority of the book. I love seeing that aspect of family in books. How family can shape your whole being.
I do not want to spoil this book in anyway possible. This story spans, if my calculations are correct 40ish years. With this being a expansive sci-fi novel that takes place in our world in the very very distant future, you will understand while reading why this takes place over such a long time line. With that being said, Empire of Silence was brilliantly paced. EoS is full of action, exploration, politics, and espionage. It takes all of those aspects and balances them in such a way that is perfect. Christopher Ruocchio has a writing style that to me is very seamless. It was never jarring. Every chapter had a purpose to move the plot forward. EoS can be a bit info dumpy at times but never in a way, to me at least, that took me out of the story. I was completely absorbed and I just want to more.
Another small note and that is this book is at times incredibly visual and violent. Although it is not action heavy, the scenes that are can be graphic at times. There are also some scenes that are not shown but just told to the reader that can be very descriptive and gruesome. Just take note of that before heading in.
Empire of Silence is only the beginning of what I know is going to be an extraordinary Sci-Fi EPIC! Howling Dark is next and my soul is ready!
Moderate: Gore, Grief, Physical abuse, Torture, and Violence