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adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
On paper, this shouldn't have worked for me, but somehow it did.
I think it helps that I went into this knowing it was a romantasy. If I'd gone into it thinking it was the next Six of Crows like some unfortunate reviewers did (who the hell made that comparison first?! I hope not the publisher!) then I might have felt differently.
I actually think Five Broken Blades has more in common with Throne of Glass - or more specifically, around about the fourth book when the other major characters come out to play. In fact Royo and Aeri reminded me of Lorcan and Elide, two characters I haven't thought about since I suffered through Empire of Storms.
The thing is, what the Throne of Glass series does well, this book doesn't do well, and vice versa. Let's start off with the unfavourable comparisons!
Throne of Glass has far superior world-building, which is saying something because I wouldn't say Throne of Glass has particularly interesting world-building itself - basically, Five Broken Blades has next to no world-building whatsoever.
Apparently the world-building is inspired by Korean mythology and history, and my response to that is - is the inspiration in the room with us? And okay, I'm not Korean, so I might easily be missing something, but this book really does give you nothing on all levels when it comes to description of anything, even the characters themselves. I can't even say what time period the story might be inspired by. If it weren't for the characters' names and the food they eat it could literally be inspired by anywhere, at any point in pre-industrial time. (I'd recommend the YA fantasy The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea or the adult romantasy The God and the Gumiho as books inspired by Korean mythology where you can really feel in the influence!). As someone who loves a world that feels lived in, it's a shame this one wasn't developed at all.
(The one bit of world-building we do get is that this particular nation is very sexist - as opposed to Mikail's nation. This comes across particularly in that this is clearly not a safe place for women, with the threat of sexual assault and rape something that does haunt the narrative, albeit never in a graphic way beyond Mikail's non-gratuitous description of what happened to his hometown. I've seen more than one review say the book itself is sexist or the characters are irredeemably sexist which is just...dare I say it...a bit pearl clutchy when considered objectively negative. Only Euyn is aggressively sexist and honestly it works with his character, being both a prince of this sexist nation and someone who feels betrayed by his mother. Mikail finds the sexism eyeroll worthy, Tiyung has only one braincell and it's constantly thinking about Sora, and Royo refuses to take on any job which hurts women, which I guess you could argue is sexist, but again suits his character. Obviously the mostly villainous side and minor characters are often sexual predators, but I've read far worse. Also - the women are strong! And it's their femininity which makes them strong! Euyn is constantly proved wrong! There's also sisterly love and budding female friendship!)
The second thing Throne of Glass does better is the pacing with regards to the relationship developments. Both series have 3/4 main couples, and I'm going to ignore the main one in ToG for this comparison because I'm really thinking about the couples who come in later (like the aforementioned Lorcan and Elide) who have to share page time and POVs with multiple other characters, because that's what makes these series really similar to me. Now, baring in mind that at this point in the series, Sarah J Maas is basically uber-popular and can do pretty much what she wants in terms of word count and no. of books, whereas Mai Corland is a debut author with, I imagine, a contract for a trilogy of average 400/500 page novels. However, that's still a lot of space to let your romances stew a bit. I had this same criticism for The Jasad Heir - why are authors so afraid nowadays to keep the will they/won't they going into book two at least? (This book, I might add, also does this with the friendships...)
Now, here's the thing. I actually like the characters here. Which is where I make a comparison to Throne of Glass again - in that series, I liked the women way more than the men, because all of the men were just really annoying and possessive (I guess I'm a Chaol girlie by default because of this, with Dorian a close second...I just really hate SJM fae). Here the men outnumbered the women - and I liked all of them! Are they particularly deep or interesting characters? Not really, but for a popcorn read they were good enough. I can totally buy into the pairings, and I can see the budding friendships too, but they are all so rushed. Notably the only couple that doesn't feel rushed is Euyn and Mikail, a.k.a. the Murder Gays, because they have a pre-established relationship (side note: they're also the best written characters more generally). Sora and Tiyung have also known each other for years, but the dynamic is different. It almost worked, exceptit went too far too quickly. And I kind of understand why - Tiyung gets imprisoned at the end of the book and Sora needs an extra motive to save him, I guess. But while I can buy Sora's forgiveness they don't really interact enough in the book as friends before all the romance and lovey-dovey stuff gets thrown about. Aeri and Royo are probably the worst offenders, not so much in their actions (which actually do feel very natural!) but in their words. I know Aeri's had a hard life, but already thinking of these people as family?! And Royo really needed more time with his trauma...
Aeri and Royo actually brings me onto another issue I had, which is the writing style. The novel is written in that basic YA first person present tense that I'm just kind of tired of, really, not because I dislike first person present (I like all tenses and POVs!) but because the introspection usually ends up being so offensively tell-don't-show. You know what makes first person such a fun perspective to play with? Untrustworthy narrators! The narrator's actions defying their thought processes! And voice! Unique character voices when you have multi-POVs! Yet rarely are these things utilised and it makes me sad :( But anyway, yeah, I did find myself eye-rolling at some of the characters' inner thoughts with this one; a little less introspection, a little more action please? On the other hand, it made for an incredibly smooth audiobook read, which gives it popcorn points I guess.
This sounds so much like a rant review but it actually isn't - in spite of all the issues I had with the story, I gave this book 4*s! I guess that's the power of knowing what you're getting into and being pleasantly surprised by the characters (especially Mikail and Euyn) and actually quite fun journey. The ending was particularly good and I do actually want to know what happens next!
Look, sometimes a book isn't technically good. Just as we can acknowledge a good book's qualities while not enjoying the reading experience, we can acknowledge a bad book's flaws while still having a surprisingly good reading experience. And I wouldn't say this book is bad - the only element I'd argue was actually poor quality was the world-building. Even the super-rushed relationships were, at least, between likeable characters with chemistry. And I had fun, damn it. This is, objectively, a 3.25-3.5* book that I've given 4*s purely for being enjoyable, and yes I will be reading the sequel. For comparison, Empire of Storms, an objectively better book with similar vibes, annoyed me so much that I soft-DNF'ed the series.
Anyway. This was another review like Wind and Truth where I was mostly sorting out my own thoughts. If anyone actually read all of this nonsense, I'm so sorry 😅
I think it helps that I went into this knowing it was a romantasy. If I'd gone into it thinking it was the next Six of Crows like some unfortunate reviewers did (who the hell made that comparison first?! I hope not the publisher!) then I might have felt differently.
I actually think Five Broken Blades has more in common with Throne of Glass - or more specifically, around about the fourth book when the other major characters come out to play. In fact Royo and Aeri reminded me of Lorcan and Elide, two characters I haven't thought about since I suffered through Empire of Storms.
The thing is, what the Throne of Glass series does well, this book doesn't do well, and vice versa. Let's start off with the unfavourable comparisons!
Throne of Glass has far superior world-building, which is saying something because I wouldn't say Throne of Glass has particularly interesting world-building itself - basically, Five Broken Blades has next to no world-building whatsoever.
Apparently the world-building is inspired by Korean mythology and history, and my response to that is - is the inspiration in the room with us? And okay, I'm not Korean, so I might easily be missing something, but this book really does give you nothing on all levels when it comes to description of anything, even the characters themselves. I can't even say what time period the story might be inspired by. If it weren't for the characters' names and the food they eat it could literally be inspired by anywhere, at any point in pre-industrial time. (I'd recommend the YA fantasy The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea or the adult romantasy The God and the Gumiho as books inspired by Korean mythology where you can really feel in the influence!). As someone who loves a world that feels lived in, it's a shame this one wasn't developed at all.
(The one bit of world-building we do get is that this particular nation is very sexist - as opposed to Mikail's nation. This comes across particularly in that this is clearly not a safe place for women, with the threat of sexual assault and rape something that does haunt the narrative, albeit never in a graphic way beyond Mikail's non-gratuitous description of what happened to his hometown. I've seen more than one review say the book itself is sexist or the characters are irredeemably sexist which is just...dare I say it...a bit pearl clutchy when considered objectively negative. Only Euyn is aggressively sexist and honestly it works with his character, being both a prince of this sexist nation and someone who feels betrayed by his mother. Mikail finds the sexism eyeroll worthy, Tiyung has only one braincell and it's constantly thinking about Sora, and Royo refuses to take on any job which hurts women, which I guess you could argue is sexist, but again suits his character. Obviously the mostly villainous side and minor characters are often sexual predators, but I've read far worse. Also - the women are strong! And it's their femininity which makes them strong! Euyn is constantly proved wrong! There's also sisterly love and budding female friendship!)
The second thing Throne of Glass does better is the pacing with regards to the relationship developments. Both series have 3/4 main couples, and I'm going to ignore the main one in ToG for this comparison because I'm really thinking about the couples who come in later (like the aforementioned Lorcan and Elide) who have to share page time and POVs with multiple other characters, because that's what makes these series really similar to me. Now, baring in mind that at this point in the series, Sarah J Maas is basically uber-popular and can do pretty much what she wants in terms of word count and no. of books, whereas Mai Corland is a debut author with, I imagine, a contract for a trilogy of average 400/500 page novels. However, that's still a lot of space to let your romances stew a bit. I had this same criticism for The Jasad Heir - why are authors so afraid nowadays to keep the will they/won't they going into book two at least? (This book, I might add, also does this with the friendships...)
Now, here's the thing. I actually like the characters here. Which is where I make a comparison to Throne of Glass again - in that series, I liked the women way more than the men, because all of the men were just really annoying and possessive (I guess I'm a Chaol girlie by default because of this, with Dorian a close second...I just really hate SJM fae). Here the men outnumbered the women - and I liked all of them! Are they particularly deep or interesting characters? Not really, but for a popcorn read they were good enough. I can totally buy into the pairings, and I can see the budding friendships too, but they are all so rushed. Notably the only couple that doesn't feel rushed is Euyn and Mikail, a.k.a. the Murder Gays, because they have a pre-established relationship (side note: they're also the best written characters more generally). Sora and Tiyung have also known each other for years, but the dynamic is different. It almost worked, except
Aeri and Royo actually brings me onto another issue I had, which is the writing style. The novel is written in that basic YA first person present tense that I'm just kind of tired of, really, not because I dislike first person present (I like all tenses and POVs!) but because the introspection usually ends up being so offensively tell-don't-show. You know what makes first person such a fun perspective to play with? Untrustworthy narrators! The narrator's actions defying their thought processes! And voice! Unique character voices when you have multi-POVs! Yet rarely are these things utilised and it makes me sad :( But anyway, yeah, I did find myself eye-rolling at some of the characters' inner thoughts with this one; a little less introspection, a little more action please? On the other hand, it made for an incredibly smooth audiobook read, which gives it popcorn points I guess.
This sounds so much like a rant review but it actually isn't - in spite of all the issues I had with the story, I gave this book 4*s! I guess that's the power of knowing what you're getting into and being pleasantly surprised by the characters (especially Mikail and Euyn) and actually quite fun journey. The ending was particularly good and I do actually want to know what happens next!
Look, sometimes a book isn't technically good. Just as we can acknowledge a good book's qualities while not enjoying the reading experience, we can acknowledge a bad book's flaws while still having a surprisingly good reading experience. And I wouldn't say this book is bad - the only element I'd argue was actually poor quality was the world-building. Even the super-rushed relationships were, at least, between likeable characters with chemistry. And I had fun, damn it. This is, objectively, a 3.25-3.5* book that I've given 4*s purely for being enjoyable, and yes I will be reading the sequel. For comparison, Empire of Storms, an objectively better book with similar vibes, annoyed me so much that I soft-DNF'ed the series.
Anyway. This was another review like Wind and Truth where I was mostly sorting out my own thoughts. If anyone actually read all of this nonsense, I'm so sorry 😅
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Infertility, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Terminal illness, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Rape
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Murder
Moderate: Drug use, Genocide
Minor: Infertility, Rape
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really wanted this story to be one book. I'm not sure if I'll continue because while some of the characters were lovable and interesting, others weren't. I enjoyed the writing most of the time, but parts were dry and robotic.
The plot twist was pretty good and took me relatively by surprise. Unfortunately, the twist is also why this is more than one book.
I think it's probably just not for me because I can't say it was bad overall, but I felt disappointed with the whole experience anyway.
The plot twist was pretty good and took me relatively by surprise. Unfortunately, the twist is also why this is more than one book.
I think it's probably just not for me because I can't say it was bad overall, but I felt disappointed with the whole experience anyway.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Infertility, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Cursing, Violence, Blood, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Classism
Minor: Ableism, Addiction, Confinement, Drug abuse, Infertility, Vomit, Police brutality, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol
adventurous
mysterious
tense
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:
Yes
This book was fantastic! It’s fast-paced, the chapters are short and written wonderfully in the different voices of each point-of-view, the action constantly keeps you on your toes, and the characters are incredibly likable despite being desperate liars. I loved every second of it! I need Tiyung protected at all costs! Can’t wait to read the next book!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Gore, Infertility, Physical abuse, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
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:
Yes
I saw ‘Cari can reads’ show this as one of her favorite books of the year so far and new I wanted to read it. So once I saw it in Barnes & Noble in the most beautiful edition I had to read it immediately. The book was very engaging and fast paced, since it’s compared to six of crows so much I have to check that one out
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Drug use, Genocide, Infertility, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Torture, Trafficking, Death of parent, War, Classism
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
I really, really disliked the audio. 2 narrators out of 6 POV characters were awful. The first 50% of this was rough. 50-75 got interesting. 75-100 I was fully invested.
There will be a book 2, for those who don't like reading series before it's complete.
Content warnings: small mention of animal death (past events) happen twice. Death (also children and babies) mentioned in past. There's actually a death that I felt was a bit glossed over that was kind of brutal. Closed door sexual scenes, but it's mentioned.
The why it's not a 5 star:
Why, out of 6 POV are they all coupled immediately? Had there been 1-2 people not heading for a romance this story would have felt more natural.
There will be a book 2, for those who don't like reading series before it's complete.
Content warnings:
The why it's not a 5 star:
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal death, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Infertility, Rape, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Trafficking, Death of parent, Classism
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Misogyny, Slavery, Violence, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Classism
Minor: Genocide, Infertility