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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
3.5 stars. 14th century Belgium is not a time I think about often, and certainly not on the relatively granular scale presented in this book, but it was fun! A cast of predominantly women going up against revenants and chimeras and Hell on earth.
Doubly fun to read a book by a local Ottawa author! Fantastical historical fiction is always a blast, even slower-paced versions like this one.
Doubly fun to read a book by a local Ottawa author! Fantastical historical fiction is always a blast, even slower-paced versions like this one.
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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:
No
а ви знали, що пекло — це величезний звір, у нутрощі якого душі потрапляють через пащу? от середньовічні європейці знали. і коли каштелянка пекла виїхала з ним на поверхню землі, щоби знайомитися з людьми і здобувати друзів, персонажі кейт гартфілд доволі скоро зрозуміли, що трапилося. а кому не вистачило візуальних підказок, тим допомогли осмислити ситуацію покійники, які потяглися додому, щоб забрати там найцінніше, і армії босхіанських химер, виплавлених у пекельному горні й мастерних у справі облоги міст.
героїні роману вирушають відстоювати свої права — на спадок, на коханих, на самих себе — якщо не в єпископському суді, то на полі бою, і спостерігати за канонічним процесом виявляється не менш цікаво, ніж за аристократичними інтригами чи батальними сценами. уболівати хочеться за всіх — тобто за майже всіх, окрім короля франції, але ж має в сюжеті бути хоч хтось, через кого не розривається серце. і якщо з цієї книжки колись зроблять гру (а з неї вийшла б неймовірна гра), я дуже хочу можливості грати не тільки за маргріт, беатрікс і клода, а й за каштелянку пекла — мабуть, насамперед за неї.
героїні роману вирушають відстоювати свої права — на спадок, на коханих, на самих себе — якщо не в єпископському суді, то на полі бою, і спостерігати за канонічним процесом виявляється не менш цікаво, ніж за аристократичними інтригами чи батальними сценами. уболівати хочеться за всіх — тобто за майже всіх, окрім короля франції, але ж має в сюжеті бути хоч хтось, через кого не розривається серце. і якщо з цієї книжки колись зроблять гру (а з неї вийшла б неймовірна гра), я дуже хочу можливості грати не тільки за маргріт, беатрікс і клода, а й за каштелянку пекла — мабуть, насамперед за неї.
adventurous
challenging
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is like one of those Boschean nightmare canvases come to life, except it's a woman, a queer mercenary, and her daughter fighting to survive, retrieve stolen artifacts, and, for fun, a mild farce about inheritance law and what happens when the shitty dude who hid money from you tries to go and give it to his new undead master, and you'd maybe like that to be able to surive, please and thank you. The best kind of medieval farce with a side of trying to survive as your city is under siege. Definitely worth your time.
Really well-written fantasy set in the middle ages, felt very medieval. A little too much body horror for me and I have been spoiled by reading romance with its happy endings - the ending felt optimistic but ambiguous in ways that I don't enjoy as a reader. But excellent overall.
This is a great little ensemble cast piece, with something of a main character to lead and motivate the team through a Bruegel/Bosch inspired invasion of medieval Bruges. Despite the abundance of monsters, this book reads as far more of dark historical fiction fantasy novel than horror.
Instead of the shock of the creatures, the tension comes mostly from the continual relegation of women just trying to survive as second class citizens. The book feels really true to the time and place, and the struggles of how women navigate the institutional biases all while trying to survive a war torn environment were gripping.
The plot of the book is pretty straightforward, our main character wants the money that's owed to her and her daughter from her PoS husband who may or may not be dead (instead is an undead creature of grief and disease), and she has to take up her rights of inheritance with her invaders who are literally chthonic entities, the church and a scheming monarch. On her way, this cranky protagonist enlists the help of a trans man-at-arms and the support of a cast of other intriguing women allies.
This book wasn't about action, although it certainly has real moments of action punctuating it. It's about the characters, their motivations, and what power that they can hold on to in an environment designed to strip it all away. Even the titular villain, The Chatelaine, is bound by these same constraints and the author makes her remarkably sympathetic as the straps tighten around her.
"When the Devil puts up walls, men smash them, and if they cannot smash them, they despair, or they walk away. But women must trickle through the cracks, they find a way through because they have no choice, because they have nowhere to go, and nothing to smash with."
There are some wonderfully human moments in this. I found myself loving it over and over. And even up to the very end the book had me guessing how it was going to play out.
Instead of the shock of the creatures, the tension comes mostly from the continual relegation of women just trying to survive as second class citizens. The book feels really true to the time and place, and the struggles of how women navigate the institutional biases all while trying to survive a war torn environment were gripping.
The plot of the book is pretty straightforward, our main character wants the money that's owed to her and her daughter from her PoS husband who may or may not be dead (instead is an undead creature of grief and disease), and she has to take up her rights of inheritance with her invaders who are literally chthonic entities, the church and a scheming monarch. On her way, this cranky protagonist enlists the help of a trans man-at-arms and the support of a cast of other intriguing women allies.
This book wasn't about action, although it certainly has real moments of action punctuating it. It's about the characters, their motivations, and what power that they can hold on to in an environment designed to strip it all away. Even the titular villain, The Chatelaine, is bound by these same constraints and the author makes her remarkably sympathetic as the straps tighten around her.
"When the Devil puts up walls, men smash them, and if they cannot smash them, they despair, or they walk away. But women must trickle through the cracks, they find a way through because they have no choice, because they have nowhere to go, and nothing to smash with."
There are some wonderfully human moments in this. I found myself loving it over and over. And even up to the very end the book had me guessing how it was going to play out.
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
adventurous
funny
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