Reviews

The Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu

vals_penguin's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative mysterious sad 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? It's complicated

3.5

I thought the world building was great. The fantasy world the siblings created and the events that happen within are very metaphoric, showing parallels with Nannerl's ambition in a society that would never allow her to persue her talents and with her struggles to overcome feelings of resentment and envy towards her brother. Her coming-of-age and gradual acceptance of her place in society was sad to witness. 

However I have to wonder if some of the magic was lost on me because I'm not familiar with many of Mozart's works. I'm also not familiar with any kind of musical theory or any kind of terminology on various musical pieces that the siblings were working on. If I had been, maybe I would have been able to see the beauty in the music that surrounded the Mozart siblings.  

abbyl819's review against another edition

2.0

This book was tough for me to get through. I’ve enjoyed everything else Marie Lu has written, but I just couldn’t connect with this one. I didn’t like Nannerl’s character very much. Her voice felt juvenile for a ya book. The author obviously wanted readers to feel for her situation and empathize with her, but I found that she came across as selfish and childish.

As for the fantasy part of the story, it had similar vibes as Gilded by Marissa Meyer, except I liked that one much better. I never trusted or liked the characters of the kingdom and the world didn’t seem fully developed.

ciella__'s review

5.0

It has been years since I have been looking for a good book - and the word good is not good enough, but you get me. The last time I have read something that moving and well-written was like... 5 years ago? And I haven't been reading since because the book was so good and kept on being disappointed (if you want to know, it was The Book Thief by Markus Zusak).

Though I'm not fond of magical realism (to be honest, I would have never read the book if my friend didn't advise me), I found it rather enjoyable and not "disturbing" the plot.

The Kingdom of Back made me cry, a lot, especially in the end. I absolutely loved the Mozart siblings and I was personally moved (being an older sister myself ahah), as it described accurately the love-hate relationship we can have with our siblings... The love for music they both have touched me, made me cry several times.

I really liked Nannerl's character - determined, ambitious with a strong feminist view and her experience of the patriarchy (am I clear? probably not) through very small, almost trivial actions from her relatives (first being her father).

Anyway, 5 stars without hesitating. It's the kind of book that needs to be read slowly to be fully enjoyed - it's like gastronomy food, it's delicious, it needs to be enjoyed.

megan1002's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

sabrinatheghost's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• 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

cobaltbookshelf's review against another edition

2.0

2.5 starts

Cover is gorgeous book was interesting premise but execution was flat for me.
I like slower books but here I could feel how slow it is and I just couldn't connect with Nannerl's character, she just wasn't developed enough.
Overall I liked historical part, not so much fantasy part.

isathetiefling's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.5

kdahlo's review against another edition

3.0

I really liked the concept of this book, and there was enough to keep me reading. Despite that I thought it could have been better with a little more specificity. I didn't feel like I was fully able to picture the setting or the main character, despite being interested in the time period and familiar with the non-fantasy locations and characters. Because I liked the concept so much, I felt like I was often comparing the book to my idea of what the concept should have been or how it should have been executed.

emmae_05's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

shiqingxuan34's review against another edition

4.0

this had a very unique premise that worked out really well ! the writing was beautiful and contributed to the magical atmosphere created. i don't know much about classical music, so some of the terms used i wasn't familiar with. i wasn't even familiar with mozart's story ! though this was wonderful for me, i'm sure that it may mean much more to someone more familiar with this kind of music and story :) as i finished the book, it really made me think about how many amazing minds were lost in history for various reasons, so i really appreciate marie lu for writing this.