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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
Oh gosh, this is a hard one to rate. There are things I loved: the way sex is treated as something normal. The women, different women, with different goals and always their own agencies. Grainne (I would read a whole book just about Grainne). How Phedre is not turned into something else (or magically saved from her not-good ways) just because she maybe falls in love.
There are things I was incredibly annoyed by: the purple prose, especially when it came to sex. The way the world was clearly based on reality (but not enough to be critical or even just interesting). Did I mention the purple prose? The way D'Angelines are better than e-v-e-r-y-o-n-e else. Did I mention the purple prose? The way the writing shies away from the actual sex - which is strange for a book so full of it.
A mixed back, something along the lines of 2.5 on a scale from 0 to 5 (not from 1 to 5).
There are things I was incredibly annoyed by: the purple prose, especially when it came to sex. The way the world was clearly based on reality (but not enough to be critical or even just interesting). Did I mention the purple prose? The way D'Angelines are better than e-v-e-r-y-o-n-e else. Did I mention the purple prose? The way the writing shies away from the actual sex - which is strange for a book so full of it.
A mixed back, something along the lines of 2.5 on a scale from 0 to 5 (not from 1 to 5).
I will admire the amount of depth of work that was put to this story by Jacqueline but I'm just not completely invested in it. I listened to the audiobook which prevented me from dnf'ing, the beginning of the book and the names really took me some time to figure out. I think I was also expecting something different. I'm most likely not continuing.
This book was a little bit of a slow start for me. The first 300 pages or so had me wondering a little just what everyone was raving about. Phedre starts out as a spoiled child, and it was hard for me to sympathize with her. Plus, I think that the nature of the events in the beginning made things difficult for me: lots of characters that it was difficult to keep straight, and not even Phedre really knew the exact purpose of what she was doing.
However, once I got past that beginning section, I found myself completely drawn in, to that point of 'cannot put this book down.' I read the last half of the book in one sitting because I just couldn't bear to stop reading. I fell in love with the characters and ended up completely emotionally invested in the story and to me that warrants the 5 stars, even though it took me a little while to get there!
However, once I got past that beginning section, I found myself completely drawn in, to that point of 'cannot put this book down.' I read the last half of the book in one sitting because I just couldn't bear to stop reading. I fell in love with the characters and ended up completely emotionally invested in the story and to me that warrants the 5 stars, even though it took me a little while to get there!
I'm not sure what I expected but what I got was not it.
The author is a fantastic writer. The story is complex and believable within the context. It is a compelling story that is surely worth the read.
But.
The flaws may be my own and not the books however I am appalled by the sex in this book. It almost physically hurt me. I tried to implore my anthropological roots and bring out some cultural relativity but but but... I was still morally outraged for a good portion of my reading time. Which does not lend itself to an enjoyable read. The religion, which is based on a blending of Christianity and paganism, is at first glance harmless and lovely but on second glance and a little thought is truly horrible. I wanted to smack their gods, but at least one of them would have liked it. :/
Also, the politics where pretty boring for the first half of the book. She immerses you in a world, about which you know nothing, and while you want to know about how it came to be she tells you about court policy, protocol, and people.
The author is a fantastic writer. The story is complex and believable within the context. It is a compelling story that is surely worth the read.
But.
The flaws may be my own and not the books however I am appalled by the sex in this book. It almost physically hurt me. I tried to implore my anthropological roots and bring out some cultural relativity but but but... I was still morally outraged for a good portion of my reading time. Which does not lend itself to an enjoyable read. The religion, which is based on a blending of Christianity and paganism, is at first glance harmless and lovely but on second glance and a little thought is truly horrible. I wanted to smack their gods, but at least one of them would have liked it. :/
Also, the politics where pretty boring for the first half of the book. She immerses you in a world, about which you know nothing, and while you want to know about how it came to be she tells you about court policy, protocol, and people.
I have been hesitant to write a review for this book, not sure exactly what I wanted to say, or how to say it.
I think to fully enjoy you need to enjoy A)the high politics of fictitious worlds B) getting your ass beat while having sex C) the flowering prose of a woman in love with flowering prose.
A) You get dunked head first when you open the book into political situations (and a world whose culture) you have no background for. I was constantly confused and had to keep going back and forth between pages and chapters to figure out what was going on. Once you catch on it's not so difficult but to begin with you're just lost. Plus I didn't care. I couldn't muster the energy to care about these things I didn't understand.
B) I am not a prude but this book made me feel prudish. I don't particularly enjoy sex in books when it's something I would fancy doing in real life much less when it makes me cringe, want to avert my eyes from the page and think, "OH HELL NO! I'LL STAB A CRACKA!" Then there is the religion, which in theory might not sound that bad, but in practice, um, doesn't turn out so well. Perhaps it's my cultural bias, or just plain common sense, but I have a problem with children being trained to be sex workers no matter what it's called, how nicely it's written about, or if it's done in honor of deity. Just no.
C) I can only take so much of this shit. I know the populace of this world was erudite, cultured, and very full of their own dignity but OH LAWD. I'm pretty sure that even in the nicest of society somebody lets a "son of a bitch" slip every once in a while. Especially while getting raped and beaten with a cat o' nine tails at the same time.
I think to fully enjoy you need to enjoy A)the high politics of fictitious worlds B) getting your ass beat while having sex C) the flowering prose of a woman in love with flowering prose.
A) You get dunked head first when you open the book into political situations (and a world whose culture) you have no background for. I was constantly confused and had to keep going back and forth between pages and chapters to figure out what was going on. Once you catch on it's not so difficult but to begin with you're just lost. Plus I didn't care. I couldn't muster the energy to care about these things I didn't understand.
B) I am not a prude but this book made me feel prudish. I don't particularly enjoy sex in books when it's something I would fancy doing in real life much less when it makes me cringe, want to avert my eyes from the page and think, "OH HELL NO! I'LL STAB A CRACKA!" Then there is the religion, which in theory might not sound that bad, but in practice, um, doesn't turn out so well. Perhaps it's my cultural bias, or just plain common sense, but I have a problem with children being trained to be sex workers no matter what it's called, how nicely it's written about, or if it's done in honor of deity. Just no.
C) I can only take so much of this shit. I know the populace of this world was erudite, cultured, and very full of their own dignity but OH LAWD. I'm pretty sure that even in the nicest of society somebody lets a "son of a bitch" slip every once in a while. Especially while getting raped and beaten with a cat o' nine tails at the same time.
This is probably one of the best books I have ever read, finally a decent female fronted fantasy.
I have had this book on my shelf for the past two years. I am not exactly the most eager person to throw myself into a series, but I was really tempted with this one.
I loved this book so much! Many have judged its adult content, but I really enjoyed the way everything was portrayed. The world building made so much sense to me, and, if you look beyond the fantasy and erotic elements, you will find a very well written historical fiction. I did not have any issues with the way young people grew up in the Night's Court because, like it or not, history has known many such elements, and more often than not, there was no protection, education or skill offered. Whether one's modern and civilized sensibilities accept or not, young children were often subjected to far more horrendous acts than in this book.
Also, the adult content I found to be extremely well handled. Are the scenes ones that I would re-enact? No. But then again, when I read a novel, I want to be entertained, amazed, frightened, enticed and even disgusted or shaken. The writing is so elegant, gripping and erotic, one cannot read this and be disappointed.
Once again, I was taught that not all heroines must be tom-boys and action girls to be likable and useful. Phedre is neither, yet she is such an enjoyable point of view to read and delve in. She is no less tough than a warrior, but her uniqueness is well designed and used. What she lacks in strength and ability to fight, she makes up for in intelligence, sensibility, adaptability and stubbornness. Her growth is not entirely obvious because, while she does grow and mature, it did not seem to me like she began at an extremely inferior level in the first place. Her voice is quite mature from the get-go, which may be a bit of a negative aspect if you are looking for a coming-of-age story with immense character growth. But I was not looking for such a story.
My favourite character was, needless to say, Joscelin. I cannot imagine who could fail to like him from his very first scene. Is he full of surprises and mysterious? Not in my opinion. But he was such a sweet, eager and adorable character and I really wanted these two to be together. The way in which that was achieved was no great game of twists and turns, but it was beautiful to observe nonetheless. I believe that a romantic liaison, while important, should never become the main goal or element in any story.
This novel is a true epic. The action takes place over an immense area and features a large cast of well-developed or, at least, well-described characters. It also has the noble barbarian trope (not sure if that is the name, but whatever), which is one of my all time favourite cliches. I loved the names, the special terms for certain acts or objects, and the whole reading process was an exciting, fun, kinky, emotional turning of the pages. Also, when the time came for violence and gore, the author delivered.
I will soon return to this beautiful, immense and superbly sexual universe, but I needed a break from its intensity. I recommend this work to all those who like epic novels, but who are not scared of violence mixed in with sex. The world of an anguisette is not exactly tame and easily swallowed, but in the end, it makes for a fascinating read.
I loved this book so much! Many have judged its adult content, but I really enjoyed the way everything was portrayed. The world building made so much sense to me, and, if you look beyond the fantasy and erotic elements, you will find a very well written historical fiction. I did not have any issues with the way young people grew up in the Night's Court because, like it or not, history has known many such elements, and more often than not, there was no protection, education or skill offered. Whether one's modern and civilized sensibilities accept or not, young children were often subjected to far more horrendous acts than in this book.
Also, the adult content I found to be extremely well handled. Are the scenes ones that I would re-enact? No. But then again, when I read a novel, I want to be entertained, amazed, frightened, enticed and even disgusted or shaken. The writing is so elegant, gripping and erotic, one cannot read this and be disappointed.
Once again, I was taught that not all heroines must be tom-boys and action girls to be likable and useful. Phedre is neither, yet she is such an enjoyable point of view to read and delve in. She is no less tough than a warrior, but her uniqueness is well designed and used. What she lacks in strength and ability to fight, she makes up for in intelligence, sensibility, adaptability and stubbornness. Her growth is not entirely obvious because, while she does grow and mature, it did not seem to me like she began at an extremely inferior level in the first place. Her voice is quite mature from the get-go, which may be a bit of a negative aspect if you are looking for a coming-of-age story with immense character growth. But I was not looking for such a story.
My favourite character was, needless to say, Joscelin. I cannot imagine who could fail to like him from his very first scene. Is he full of surprises and mysterious? Not in my opinion. But he was such a sweet, eager and adorable character and I really wanted these two to be together. The way in which that was achieved was no great game of twists and turns, but it was beautiful to observe nonetheless. I believe that a romantic liaison, while important, should never become the main goal or element in any story.
This novel is a true epic. The action takes place over an immense area and features a large cast of well-developed or, at least, well-described characters. It also has the noble barbarian trope (not sure if that is the name, but whatever), which is one of my all time favourite cliches. I loved the names, the special terms for certain acts or objects, and the whole reading process was an exciting, fun, kinky, emotional turning of the pages. Also, when the time came for violence and gore, the author delivered.
I will soon return to this beautiful, immense and superbly sexual universe, but I needed a break from its intensity. I recommend this work to all those who like epic novels, but who are not scared of violence mixed in with sex. The world of an anguisette is not exactly tame and easily swallowed, but in the end, it makes for a fascinating read.
I don't like pain stuff, and so I thought that that would be one thing that kept me from liking this book as much as I could have. As it turns out, I was wrong.
There are so many other thinks that I disliked about it.
**spoilers**
This book is too long. Looking over it, I can't think of anything in particular that I would cut from it, but it just wasn't written well enough to keep my attention up consistently. Parts of this were mind-numbingly boring, especially during the latter third of the book, and I just wanted it to end. It seemed that the narrative wanted to end too. The writing in the beginning of the book was sometimes really gorgeous and expressive; coming towards the end, everything was rushed and the chapters kept getting shorter and we sped through plot point after plot point. I don't think Carey particularly likes writing battles, and that didn't make them very enjoyable to read.
Another reason I'm so dissatisfied with this book is because I saw potential in a lot of things and I was let down. I'm angry about Hyacinthe, and the cop-put way he was shelved (especially as he was one of the few brown people in the painfully white main cast). I hate the way d'Angelines were crafted as this perfect, godly race of beautiful people, in both a Watsonian and Doylist way. Most of the romance was terribly boring and did nothing for me and added nothing to the story. To me, Joscelin and Phèdre's bond would have been much more profound and touching if it had been a platonic-romantic asexual one. And while I'm glad that an f/f relationship was at the heart of so much of the book, Melisande/Phèdre did very little for me, mostly because of the nature of their bond.
Besides the sex (which again, was just too much for me) the sheer amount of rape was hard to handle. And what happened to Phèdre on several occasions was definitely rape, I don't care if some god put a thousand red flecks in her eye. Lots of elements of the Night's Court were basically skeevy as hell.
And I don't know. Something about this book wanted to be epic, the beginning of a saga, but it just wasn't there. I don't have much patience for court intrigues, but even if I did, I don't think the story here would have pulled me in the way it was supposed to.
There were some great things about the book, of course; I can see why it's well-liked. Decent worldbuilding, some great characters (shout out to Ysandre, Alcuin and Thelesis), and some lovely storytelling, early on.
But a lot of it just didn't work for me, I suppose. There are some things I like, and some things I don't like, and as it stands, I do not particularly care for this book. I doubt I'll continue the series.
2.5
There are so many other thinks that I disliked about it.
**spoilers**
This book is too long. Looking over it, I can't think of anything in particular that I would cut from it, but it just wasn't written well enough to keep my attention up consistently. Parts of this were mind-numbingly boring, especially during the latter third of the book, and I just wanted it to end. It seemed that the narrative wanted to end too. The writing in the beginning of the book was sometimes really gorgeous and expressive; coming towards the end, everything was rushed and the chapters kept getting shorter and we sped through plot point after plot point. I don't think Carey particularly likes writing battles, and that didn't make them very enjoyable to read.
Another reason I'm so dissatisfied with this book is because I saw potential in a lot of things and I was let down. I'm angry about Hyacinthe, and the cop-put way he was shelved (especially as he was one of the few brown people in the painfully white main cast). I hate the way d'Angelines were crafted as this perfect, godly race of beautiful people, in both a Watsonian and Doylist way. Most of the romance was terribly boring and did nothing for me and added nothing to the story. To me, Joscelin and Phèdre's bond would have been much more profound and touching if it had been a platonic-romantic asexual one. And while I'm glad that an f/f relationship was at the heart of so much of the book, Melisande/Phèdre did very little for me, mostly because of the nature of their bond.
Besides the sex (which again, was just too much for me) the sheer amount of rape was hard to handle. And what happened to Phèdre on several occasions was definitely rape, I don't care if some god put a thousand red flecks in her eye. Lots of elements of the Night's Court were basically skeevy as hell.
And I don't know. Something about this book wanted to be epic, the beginning of a saga, but it just wasn't there. I don't have much patience for court intrigues, but even if I did, I don't think the story here would have pulled me in the way it was supposed to.
There were some great things about the book, of course; I can see why it's well-liked. Decent worldbuilding, some great characters (shout out to Ysandre, Alcuin and Thelesis), and some lovely storytelling, early on.
But a lot of it just didn't work for me, I suppose. There are some things I like, and some things I don't like, and as it stands, I do not particularly care for this book. I doubt I'll continue the series.
2.5