Reviews

Book 2 in the Shadows of the Apt series, and a return to the political and war machinations of the many insect-kinden. This huge book continues to build on the first’s foundation of a sprawling, factional world, and large cast of characters, but the pace of the action speeds up considerably. That said, despite all the action and conflict, it’s a slow read - as there are so many characters to establish. At times I felt my interest waning, but all that investment in character arcs means that the emotional beats land well.

If you like political/military fantasy then the series is worth a go - the overarching plot so far feels unoriginal, but the world building with its insect influence feels fresh, and Tchaikovsky (in his debut series) shows his skill at both believable characterisation and weaving many threads with dropping any.

noranne's review against another edition

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3.0

Wow this one took forever. It's not a bad book, exactly, but it's long and so much of it is about fighting. I do not really like reading about fighting. I wish I could have read an abridged version of this book that was about half as long but covered the same plot and character points. The pacing was also strange, the battles in the first half are lovingly detailed and then the last quarter of the book it's like "this happened, this happened, this happened."

I find the overall plot to be pretty straightforward, but it's not uninteresting. The characters feel sketched in still even after two books.

Not sure if I'll continue with this series or not, but it's not terrible or anything.

mwplante's review against another edition

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4.0

Tchaikovsky really kicks the Shadows of the Apt into high gear with this second entry. This one makes good on the epic battles the last book seemed to promise lay ahead. In fact, I am now even more in awe of Tchaikovsky's ability to move the plot along. He manages to fit at least three major battles in this relatively slim volume. Cities fall, seiges are broken, and armies are slaughtered. The characters continue to be interesting but an epic of this scale has little time to spare on intricate characterization of its sprawling cast.

groenling's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense

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

4.0

karinlib's review against another edition

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4.0

I'm not going to say too much here, other than I really enjoyed this book 2nd book in a series, and I look forward to reading the next book.

In an interview, Tchaikovsky said "who doesn't like insects?" I wanted to raise my hand, metaphorically, particularly the flying stinging kind.

Despite my cringing every time the author mentions the Wasps (one of the main groups), I will continue to read the series.

cloudsinthecupboard's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

awoodalla's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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

4.75

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