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albyatross's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
Look I love a religious-themed fantasy novel, ok. And yeah, maybe Csorwe abandons the prophecy cult she was raised in at 14 thus necessitating a weird time skip in the middle of the book, but also she's partly like an orc and watching a maybe-orc grapple with the life-long impact of being a traitor to their religion was a breath of fresh air. Ok. Ok.
And her bits bickering with Tal and Oranna were fun.
ps - The Box is mostly a plot MacGuffin to make the plot Go, so if you hate those, skip on out.
And her bits bickering with Tal and Oranna were fun.
ps - The Box is mostly a plot MacGuffin to make the plot Go, so if you hate those, skip on out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Toxic friendship
Minor: Alcohol
jayluke92's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 I'd say! It was good! Not really much else to add.
r2wend2's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
neens_m's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Death, and Blood
ju_shi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
tonsillitis's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
mels_reading_rook's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars
A solid debut novel, but I had a few problems with it.
My biggest struggle with this book was that I wasn't sure what I was reading most of the time. When I first started it, the setting seemed to be more fantasy-esque, and I was enjoying following Csorwe and her struggles. As time went on, however, and the characters began to explore more of the worlds, the setting became less clear to me. I believe this is more in the sci-fi genre than the fantasy, but I could never truly tell because I never fully grasped what the setting was like through the writing. I had a similar feeling about the magic system: I never had a true understanding of how the magic worked despite it seeming like it will have major consequences to the characters in the future. This is more forgivable though since Csorwe is not a practitioner of magic, and her lack of understanding should also reflect the readers'.
Also, the pacing wasn't quite right for me. I enjoyed the story, but at the same time, it felt like it was progressing very slowly. And then to break the slow times, there were moments of higher action that lasted only a brief time before bringing it back to its usual pace.
What I really enjoyed was seeing the struggle of Csorwe coming into her own and the personal conflict she had with her past. It's interesting to see a character who has been groomed all her life for another's purpose, the slow and painful difficulties of breaking with it, and figuring out what she wants for herself.
I will certainly be reading the sequel when it releases later this year.
A solid debut novel, but I had a few problems with it.
My biggest struggle with this book was that I wasn't sure what I was reading most of the time. When I first started it, the setting seemed to be more fantasy-esque, and I was enjoying following Csorwe and her struggles. As time went on, however, and the characters began to explore more of the worlds, the setting became less clear to me. I believe this is more in the sci-fi genre than the fantasy, but I could never truly tell because I never fully grasped what the setting was like through the writing. I had a similar feeling about the magic system: I never had a true understanding of how the magic worked despite it seeming like it will have major consequences to the characters in the future. This is more forgivable though since Csorwe is not a practitioner of magic, and her lack of understanding should also reflect the readers'.
Also, the pacing wasn't quite right for me. I enjoyed the story, but at the same time, it felt like it was progressing very slowly. And then to break the slow times, there were moments of higher action that lasted only a brief time before bringing it back to its usual pace.
What I really enjoyed was seeing the struggle of Csorwe coming into her own and the personal conflict she had with her past. It's interesting to see a character who has been groomed all her life for another's purpose, the slow and painful difficulties of breaking with it, and figuring out what she wants for herself.
I will certainly be reading the sequel when it releases later this year.
booklover444's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
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
4.0
vermilionred's review against another edition
5.0
I really liked Csorwe as a protagonist. I liked that she genuinely wasn't observant, I liked her contrast with Tal, I liked that she clearly didn't really have the context to understand just how weird her life was. I liked Oranna, and I liked Shuthmili and I liked that Csorwe didn't have any wordliness at all to take a step back from anything, and so just went all in on everything. Setting was also very cool.