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dietlindrozekin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
- Characters: 6/10: De band die ik in het vorige boek met de karakters had, of de verwondering voor de karakters, had ik in dit derde deel van de Daêvabad-trilogie minder. Vaker dan eens stoorde ik me zelfs aan de personages omdat ze er te lang over deden om dingen te beseffen.
- Atmosfeer: 8/10: De wereld waarin het verhaal zich afspeelt blijft super.
- Writing: 7/10: An sich is alles goed geschreven, maar ik merkte wel dat ik af en toe de beschrijvingen van alles oversloeg en me concentreerde op de dialogen om het vooruit te laten gaan.
- Plot: 9/10: De schrijfster is echt een meesteres in het uitwerken van verhaallijnen! Love her for that.
- Intrigue: 8/10: Ik had een tijdje nodig om in het verhaal te komen (de eerste 200 pagina's, bijna had ik het boek weggelegd), tot opeens de geschiedenis van de stad en van Nahri in puzzelstukjes werd blootgegeven en toen werd het interessant. Hoe fascineer je een historica? Begin met de geschiedenis! Eenmaal ik die rode draadlijn terugvond in het boek was ik vanzelf ook meer en meer geïnteresseerd in het verhaal en de huidige tijdlijn.
- Logic: 8/10: Je moet er wel je hoofd er een beetje bijhouden om de complotten en geschiedenis te verwerken.
- Enjoyment: 6,5/10: Ik had echt lang nodig om in het verhaal te komen, ik heb echt passages overslaan omdat het mij te lang duurde maar uiteindelijk heb ik er wel nog van genoten omdat het wel een goed boek is.
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Blood, Slavery, and Death
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
boba_n_books's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I was worried this book would be too long, but when I got to the end, I didn’t want it to be over. There were plenty of tense and tearful moments, and I cherished every second of it.
My favorite thing about this entire trilogy is that no one was fully good or fully evil. Everyone has motivations for doing what they thought was right, and each and every one of them did something wrong at some point in time. I felt deeply for every character but especially for Dara, Nahri, and Ali since theirs are the perspectives we followed throughout the series.
This is definitely going down as one of my favorite books / trilogies of all time. If you love political intrigue, power dynamics, magic, and morally gray characters, give this trilogy a chance. I hope more people read it and that it goes down as a favorite for years and years to come.
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Torture and Genocide
Minor: Cursing
thenextbookdilemma's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
This series is one of my favorites EVER. I feel it embedded in my heart and I mourn having finished it, I grieve the end of these characters’ stories.
This is a luscious, tangled epic fantasy inspired by the Muslim faith, ancient myths and magical djinn spirits. It will so thouroughly sweep you away through ancient Cairo to magical cities, into the clouds on flying carpets and winged beasts and into ocean depths with scaled monsters and sunken ships. It will fill you with wonder and it will squeeze your heart (and your stomach) at every point.
Nahri. A thief, a liar, a consummate survivor, she always smiles at her mark. Nahri is my favorite kind of protagonist—an acerbic, take no $hit, beat you at your own game, I don’t need a protector, kind of gal. She is a mongoose in a den of cobras (if you haven’t seen these videos, youtube them), constantly underestimated, constantly surprising people. Nahri’s story is tragic and powerful and about making a home in a place determined to crush you, and then defending that home with everything you have.
Ali. A self-righteous zealot, a misguided and privileged idealist. Ali struggles to reconcile his faith with the politics of his royal family. While initially one of my least favorite characters, I so completely enjoyed his character arc and self discovery. Ali spends this series finding out who is is, and choosing who he wants to be.
Dara. Dara’s story broke me again and again. I raged against his circumstances, past and present and yearned for a future he could deserve. Dara forces you to ask yourself many questions and reminds you that we are products of the environment we are shaped in.
This book pushes you to question what can be forgiven. What does redemption look like? Will vengeance only ever beget more vengeance? Do our differences really separate us? I love these characters so much, deep dark flaws and all, and I thank Chakraborty for taking me on this magical and devastating journey.
May the fires burn brightly for you.
Graphic: Racism, Slavery, War, Violence, Classism, Trafficking, and Murder
espressoreader's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Beyond this political intrigue, there is also a beautiful story line with friendship, betrayal, reconciliation and ultimately understanding. The story shows the impact of generational abuse post traumatic stress, and gaslighting. It shows the impact of unhealthy relationships at all levels, and it shows very competent people suffering from and overcoming the physical and emotional abuse.
It does all of these things, without appearing to be activist propaganda. It relates real emotion experiences and actions rather than just glossing over everything as he’s racist and he’s too religious. I find that this book was extremely respectful of all ideologies, and showed the strengths and weaknesses inherent with those ideologies, and the flawed ways they were represented by their followers. This was overall a great trilogy, and I would love to see more from this author.
Graphic: Self harm, Death, Body horror, Bullying, Torture, Hate crime, Grief, Death of parent, Colonisation, Classism, Abandonment, Xenophobia, Emotional abuse, Body shaming, Child abuse, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Violence, War, Slavery, Religious bigotry, Racial slurs, Racism, Physical abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Kidnapping, Murder, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, and Gaslighting
massivepizzacrust's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I will read anything S.A. Chakraborty writes.
Graphic: Death, Murder, Genocide, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, and Blood
brynalexa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Torture, Medical content, Violence, Alcohol, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Mass/school shootings, Gun violence, War, Slavery, Murder, Gore, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Ableism, Sexual content, Misogyny, and Dementia
blubonby's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Death, Violence, Slavery, and Murder
thoseoldcrows23's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Violence, Death, Murder, War, Torture, Slavery, Genocide, Gaslighting, Blood, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Homophobia and Pregnancy
theletterdee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Violence and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Murder
astropova's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I think the author did a great job with the final battle and tying up all the loose ends afterwards. I think every character really got the endings that were perfectly tailored to them.
This book was so long, but I think one of its biggest strengths is that it has just *incredible* pacing. There was not a single moment where I felt bored or like there was unnecessary fluff, detail, or just word count padding. Every scene was so sharp and had purpose. An exemplar of epic fantasy!
Graphic: War, Slavery, Violence, Death, Genocide, Murder, and Blood
Moderate: Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, and Torture
Minor: Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, and Vomit