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todd_bissell's review against another edition
2.0
I read this as the first of the three books in the Godspeaker Trilogy omnibus. But I was dissatisfied enough with it that I won't be reading the other two books in the omnibus -- and will post my review here, instead.
This book is problematic, because I had a hard time engaging with the principle character. Hekat, at first the scrappy heroine, morphs into the titular character: a rabid religious fanatic of little dimension, but with plenty of reasons for the reader to hate both her and her animal- and human-sacrificing ultra-violent empire. Her foil is her godspeaker and her son, but they are immaterial to her dreams of world domination.
I don't always want a "happy-happy, joy-joy" ending -- and maybe this all plays out in the 2nd and 3rd books to a more satisfying conclusion. But with this book, there is no pay-off and no comeuppance for her bloody fanaticism..., and the entire book left a bad taste in my mouth.
This book is problematic, because I had a hard time engaging with the principle character. Hekat, at first the scrappy heroine, morphs into the titular character: a rabid religious fanatic of little dimension, but with plenty of reasons for the reader to hate both her and her animal- and human-sacrificing ultra-violent empire. Her foil is her godspeaker and her son, but they are immaterial to her dreams of world domination.
I don't always want a "happy-happy, joy-joy" ending -- and maybe this all plays out in the 2nd and 3rd books to a more satisfying conclusion. But with this book, there is no pay-off and no comeuppance for her bloody fanaticism..., and the entire book left a bad taste in my mouth.
hellobookbird's review against another edition
2.0
I am proud. I am defiant. I am Hekat, precious and beautiful. The god sees me. I am seen by the god.
In a family torn apart by poverty and violence, Hekat is no more than an unwanted mouth to feed, worth only a few coins from a passing slave trader.
But Hekat was not born to be a slave. For her, a different path has been chosen. It is a path that will take her from stinking back alleys to the house of her god, from blood-drenched battlefields to the glittering palaces of Mijak.
She did not want a beautiful face. Not if that meant she was precious to Abajai, and Yagji, to all the men who sold beautiful girls for gold.
Wowee, how to rate this one? DNF @ 30% (which, mind you, is page 218). Mijak is a brutal and savage world. Hekat is a brutal and savage girl. The god is a brutal and savage god that connects everything.
He was like Retoth, a small nothing perosn who left no footprints on the world.
Let's start with Mijak. Miller has done a phenomenal job fleshing out this society, as reflected in the cadence of the narrative and the dialogue (that not every reader will be able to handle) as well as the events that transpire. It is a man's world with no place for women other than the breeding of more men. It is founded on the ruling of seven warlords, where warriors die with honor. The only break in it's very stringent rules is the fact that women can become both warriors and godspeakers (and aren't treated as lesser) for no apparent reason other than perhaps providing a way for Hekat to advance in power.
His fear was food, his fear was drink. She ate and drank him as she danced for the god.
Speaking of Hekat...let me be clear: you are not made to like her. She is a sociopath. Her characterization is how cruelty begets cruelty and how repeated cruelties can be internalized in horrible and fractured ways. In the beginning you are lent some empathy for her circumstances. She is the unnamed, unwanted spawn that is sold for some coin which is the only good she could be used for her father. With her slavers she is shown kindness for the first time but internalizes her specialness as being above the rest...of being on equal footing as her slavers. It's understandable given her circumstances...it made me think about grooming in our society. However, when she eventually finds out she is a special slave but a slave none-the-less she renounces her slavers and instead decides to be a slave to the god.
I am Hekat, godtouched and precious. What do I care for the friendship of men?
Perhaps following Hekat further would have been enough to disabuse me of the book. However, it ultimately came down to the fact that the religion saturates every character's thoughts and actions...so much so that it scrubs them of any real personality. It became a litany of the god wills, the god thinks, follow the god, honor the god. Having a strong religious presence is fine but not to the point of having all the characters become automatons.
This is not for everyone. If you need a light in the darkness or a character to whom you can give some love and feel good about, this book is not for you. It wasn't for me.
For something similar but done infinitely better...I'd recommend [b: And I Darken|27190613|And I Darken (The Conqueror's Saga, #1)|Kiersten White|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1449153532l/27190613._SY75_.jpg|41682914] instead. Emily May's review here.
impalingheaven's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Fantastic.
It's hard to put into words, but something about the way this story is written is what helps make it metal. If I were reading it as a book I might've lost interest, but hearing it spoken helps make it better. I actually don't mind the sort of simplistic straightforward prose: it matches Hekat's beginnings and stalwart devotion to the God, as well as the general Barbarian tone to the world. Haven't read anything else by Miller, but it just fits
Pacing-wise, it is slow. Then A LOT happens in the last fifth of the book, with lots of time skips.
I love the way she worldbuilds without TELLING you. Like, she never explains Godbraids or highnoon, but by the characters thoughts and treatment of these ideas, you get what they are and why they're important. It really does a great job immersing you in the world and how cruel it is.
Also... I think I just love the setup. I love the take that there IS a God, not just a religion or flying solely by belief, there is an actual, quantifiable God. A God who DOES grant power and DOES smite via the tools who speak for him. After a time, you KNOW Hekat is a powerful tool for the God, and she has unwavering devotion in him. The struggles in the book are not so much Hekat's as they are THE PEOPLE AROUND HER trying to stop her and preserve their way of life. But as you read, you can see the rising tide and how inevitable their struggles are against her. Yes, she's a bitch and brutal, but she is also literally doing as her God commands. And no one can stop him.
I highly recommend this!
It's hard to put into words, but something about the way this story is written is what helps make it metal. If I were reading it as a book I might've lost interest, but hearing it spoken helps make it better. I actually don't mind the sort of simplistic straightforward prose: it matches Hekat's beginnings and stalwart devotion to the God, as well as the general Barbarian tone to the world. Haven't read anything else by Miller, but it just fits
Pacing-wise, it is slow. Then A LOT happens in the last fifth of the book, with lots of time skips.
I love the way she worldbuilds without TELLING you. Like, she never explains Godbraids or highnoon, but by the characters thoughts and treatment of these ideas, you get what they are and why they're important. It really does a great job immersing you in the world and how cruel it is.
Also... I think I just love the setup. I love the take that there IS a God, not just a religion or flying solely by belief, there is an actual, quantifiable God. A God who DOES grant power and DOES smite via the tools who speak for him. After a time, you KNOW Hekat is a powerful tool for the God, and she has unwavering devotion in him. The struggles in the book are not so much Hekat's as they are THE PEOPLE AROUND HER trying to stop her and preserve their way of life. But as you read, you can see the rising tide and how inevitable their struggles are against her. Yes, she's a bitch and brutal, but she is also literally doing as her God commands. And no one can stop him.
I highly recommend this!
apathetic_teapot's review against another edition
1.0
Was not a book for me. Did not personally enjoy what I read of the book.My review is based on my personal enjoyment of the book and not the quality of writing. I'm sure the author did fine.
goobdiddy's review against another edition
3.0
A well-written book about an extremely brutal world. Miller does an excellent job of describing the setting of this story, although some of dialog and descriptions can be a bit tiresome (nearly every object is prefixed by god-, since it's a very religious society).
The story follows the life of Hekat, a young girl whose society initially places more value on life of the family's goats, as she changes her fortune and travels throughout her land of Mijak. This society is completely dominated by very bloodthirsty religion that features a VERY active deity, so faith is quite literally rewarded with visible results.
Plenty of sex, language, and buckets upon buckets of blood, so be forewarned if that sort of thing bothers you ;)
Quick summary: It was very easy to be sucked into the story, and I'm looking forward to the next installment.
The story follows the life of Hekat, a young girl whose society initially places more value on life of the family's goats, as she changes her fortune and travels throughout her land of Mijak. This society is completely dominated by very bloodthirsty religion that features a VERY active deity, so faith is quite literally rewarded with visible results.
Plenty of sex, language, and buckets upon buckets of blood, so be forewarned if that sort of thing bothers you ;)
Quick summary: It was very easy to be sucked into the story, and I'm looking forward to the next installment.
drsldn's review against another edition
4.0
I particularly enjoyed that this book gave a coherent and sympathetic voice to the people who are usually dismissed as "savages" (in fantasy as well as in history/reality). It was a little unbalanced in terms of pace: a long build-up and then a great deal of significance happens in the final 100 pages. I think it is a pity that Lilit was essentially one-dimensional and only a tool of the plot, when I had come to know the other characters in-depth, created with nuance and credibility, more so than usually found in story-driven genre fiction. I am looking forward to the remainder of the story, and hopefully meeting a few more interesting characters.
vizira's review against another edition
2.0
this was... weird. I loved the depth of the world building, I loved awful fierce Hekat, but god the pacing was horrendous, and that's pretty hard to forgive in a 700 page novel
moerenavillasenor's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- 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? Yes
2.5
darkcrystal1839's review against another edition
3.0
Having finished the whole trilogy, I now appreciate this first book much more. You begin the trilogy seeped in this horrid Mijaki culture, and you need that in-depth knowledge to truly appreciate the threat against the much more likable Ethrea (in books 2 and 3). It’s not just some vague “bad thing” coming to destroy the “good thing.” You really know what’s in store for the Ethreans, and it makes it pretty horrifying as you read the pathetic attempts made by the people of Ethrea to stave off what you know to be inevitable. Sure you hope it will work out for the best, but when you compare the two nations, you know damn well who would kick whose ass in a fight.
Karen Miller definitely wrote an epic with this trilogy, and it’s a great read. As I said, if you can wade through the first book, it certainly pays off. And if you can make it through this entire trilogy, you have a new appreciation for Karen Miller’s raw talent. I’m currently reading another set by her, and I think if I didn’t know how good her writing can really be, I might have given up on the book I’m reading. She’s got a way of introducing you to her worlds and stories that makes you wonder a little when the real meat of the story is going to begin, if ever. She certainly expects her readers to hang in there for the long haul. I would definitely recommend giving these books a go, especially if you’re a fan of the fantasy genre. And hey, if you don’t like them, at least they’re look great on your shelves.
Karen Miller definitely wrote an epic with this trilogy, and it’s a great read. As I said, if you can wade through the first book, it certainly pays off. And if you can make it through this entire trilogy, you have a new appreciation for Karen Miller’s raw talent. I’m currently reading another set by her, and I think if I didn’t know how good her writing can really be, I might have given up on the book I’m reading. She’s got a way of introducing you to her worlds and stories that makes you wonder a little when the real meat of the story is going to begin, if ever. She certainly expects her readers to hang in there for the long haul. I would definitely recommend giving these books a go, especially if you’re a fan of the fantasy genre. And hey, if you don’t like them, at least they’re look great on your shelves.
tani's review against another edition
1.0
Argh. What should I say, other than that I really disliked this book? I chose it because the cover drew my eye. Let that be a lesson to me, I guess. I did not enjoy the way that Karen Miller wrote this book, with the constant run-on sentences and whatnot, and I hated most of the characters, with the exceptions of Vortka and Zandakar (and even those two I disliked sometimes, just for their sheer inability to see the truth about things). Hekat has hit my list of most despised characters ever. It's been a long time since I've developed such an unrelenting dislike for a character, especially for one that I started the book sincerely wanting to like.
I will say that Karen Miller has some really great world-building skills, and I did admire her ability to keep to a style, no matter how much it drove me crazy. And I'll admit that I'm curious about what happens in the other books in the series (if only because I'd love to see someone take Hekat down), but I'm unsure I'll ever be able to bring myself to read the next book.
At least I'm finally finished!
I will say that Karen Miller has some really great world-building skills, and I did admire her ability to keep to a style, no matter how much it drove me crazy. And I'll admit that I'm curious about what happens in the other books in the series (if only because I'd love to see someone take Hekat down), but I'm unsure I'll ever be able to bring myself to read the next book.
At least I'm finally finished!