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aconitecafe's review against another edition
5.0
Dark, tragic, poetic, and so painfully emotional-in a good way.
This is a MUST READ!! It's a beautifully written tragic tale, and I am only sad I put off reading it for so long.
The multi-POVs adds so much depth to the story, a raw honest look at all the characters fears, hopes and secrets. They hold so much potential, power & hope. But it all depends on how they each decide to harness it.
The ending was perfection.
This is a MUST READ!! It's a beautifully written tragic tale, and I am only sad I put off reading it for so long.
The multi-POVs adds so much depth to the story, a raw honest look at all the characters fears, hopes and secrets. They hold so much potential, power & hope. But it all depends on how they each decide to harness it.
The ending was perfection.
kittyg's review against another edition
4.0
*I read this as a Judge for this year's #SPFBO competition*
This story is absolutely, devastatingly, beautifully written. There were so many wonderful phrases, sentences and emotions that the author managed to evoke whilst reading this, and yet it's also a pretty dark and even slightly borders on the Horror category.
I have to admit that typically this isn't a story I would probably pick up, as it's definitely dark and has things like cannilbalism from page one. That sort of thing is graphically described, so if you can't stomach that then don't try this one, but if you can it's haunting and terribly beautiful too.
This story follows a group of people who each have some sort of untapped power. At the start of the book we meet Taub who is a starving man who cannot help but to devour. As the story goes on this hunger to consume and convert overtakes everything and he becomes a new character altogether.
Next up we have the twins, Seraphina and Neryan. Seraphina is trapped under the power of the ruler of the land. She has a fire magic but she is harnessed and unable to use it after being broken for helping her brother escape.
Neryan is free but wishes for nothing more than to rescue his sister and his magic is water.
Mouse is the adopted daughter of Neryan and her magic is a surprise to even her. She starts off with a deep gnawing which forces her to suck out souls. She has little control but wants to save those she loves and tries her best to do that.
Vadden is a rebel against the ruler of this place, Eyad. They were once friends and more but now he is determined to bring Eyad to justice for the crimes he's committed. His power is Storms.
Eyad's power is mind-reading which definitely has its perks when you're the ruler of the land. He's done awful things to get to this point but the story questions whether he has humanity left.
We also have the Ascended, a race of ancients who watch events unfold and push and pull the characters for their own ends.
I liked the subtle reference to coping with disabilities in this story, it was present in a good way but not dominant over the story.
I also loved the writing, Sarah C has a way with prose and it's beautiful to read the story through her words. I really think that it's on a higher level than many other SFF titles I have read in terms of conjuring emotional responses through the prose, and worth praising.
Overall, a story that drew me in and kept me reading solidly for two evenings. I would certainly be interested to see where on earth it can go next as the last part of the book is very dramatic, and it's the first in a series. 4.5*s so 9/10 for #SPFBO.
This story is absolutely, devastatingly, beautifully written. There were so many wonderful phrases, sentences and emotions that the author managed to evoke whilst reading this, and yet it's also a pretty dark and even slightly borders on the Horror category.
I have to admit that typically this isn't a story I would probably pick up, as it's definitely dark and has things like cannilbalism from page one. That sort of thing is graphically described, so if you can't stomach that then don't try this one, but if you can it's haunting and terribly beautiful too.
This story follows a group of people who each have some sort of untapped power. At the start of the book we meet Taub who is a starving man who cannot help but to devour. As the story goes on this hunger to consume and convert overtakes everything and he becomes a new character altogether.
Next up we have the twins, Seraphina and Neryan. Seraphina is trapped under the power of the ruler of the land. She has a fire magic but she is harnessed and unable to use it after being broken for helping her brother escape.
Neryan is free but wishes for nothing more than to rescue his sister and his magic is water.
Mouse is the adopted daughter of Neryan and her magic is a surprise to even her. She starts off with a deep gnawing which forces her to suck out souls. She has little control but wants to save those she loves and tries her best to do that.
Vadden is a rebel against the ruler of this place, Eyad. They were once friends and more but now he is determined to bring Eyad to justice for the crimes he's committed. His power is Storms.
Eyad's power is mind-reading which definitely has its perks when you're the ruler of the land. He's done awful things to get to this point but the story questions whether he has humanity left.
We also have the Ascended, a race of ancients who watch events unfold and push and pull the characters for their own ends.
I liked the subtle reference to coping with disabilities in this story, it was present in a good way but not dominant over the story.
I also loved the writing, Sarah C has a way with prose and it's beautiful to read the story through her words. I really think that it's on a higher level than many other SFF titles I have read in terms of conjuring emotional responses through the prose, and worth praising.
Overall, a story that drew me in and kept me reading solidly for two evenings. I would certainly be interested to see where on earth it can go next as the last part of the book is very dramatic, and it's the first in a series. 4.5*s so 9/10 for #SPFBO.
davramlocke's review against another edition
1.0
I DNF'd this book at the 65% mark. I was enjoying it for the most part, despite some issues, and then the author decided to depict child cannibalism, for no plot reasons that I can even fathom, and I was so disgusted that I couldn't even think about reading the book anymore. It made me visibly angry, which one could say is commendable in fiction if it serves a purpose. This did not. There is a line, and while it might be subtle in some cases, this one act vaulted over that line and condemned an otherwise fine book.
bibliotropic's review against another edition
4.0
I’ll start off by saying that Seraphina’s Lament is a very hard novel for me to review. Mostly because while the story itself is fascinating, the characters interesting, most of what I want to do is gush over Chorn’s writing style.
But one step at a time.
Seraphina’s Lament takes place in the Sunset Lands, a place that was previously a monarchy but that had its ruling power overthrown in a revolution. Now in charge is Premier Eyad, head of the collectivist government, maker of the laws that have resulted in overfarming and the resulting famine. As with most people who attained power in such a way, he’s paranoid about counterrevolutionary elements, and oddly sees “failure to grow food where food won’t grow” as a punishable offense. People are fleeing, to escape a life of starvation and cruelty. But problems in the Sunset Lands run deeper than that. An army of skeletons approaches Lord’s Reach, dying people infected by hunger until their very humanity has been eaten away, led by what was once a man and who now calls himself the Bone Lord. Magic in the form of elemental talents seems to be dying, except in those for whom it grows wildly and out of control. Old powers stir. People are changing, becoming something new, something different.
And before you become, you must break.
While the book is named for one of its characters, the story goes far beyond Seraphina herself. She is a slave, owned by Eyad, scarred and in chronic pain and possessing a fire talent that seems to be growing in strength. There’s Neryan, Seraphina’s twin brother who escaped slavery, possessing a water talent that is Seraphina’s opposite and complement, bent on freeing his sister from bondage. There’s Vadden, who grabs the title of My Favourite Character from early on and keeps it through the story, determined to remove Eyad from power and atone for the wrongs he committed in playing a part to overthrow the previous government and pave the way for Eyad to take the abusive stance he has. Every single character is broken in some way, holding themselves together against overwhelming odds, and none of them are perfect, which is what makes them all so compelling to read about.
I mentioned Chorn’s writing style, and it’s that which makes this book really memorable, at least for my part. Her writing is incredibly evocative, poetic, concerned with metaphor and simile that sets the mood in a way that physical descriptions can’t always manage. Instead of mentioning the phase of the moon, for instance, you get lines akin to, “The moon was a scythe meant for killing,” a description that conveys the phase to the reader anyone (for those looking for clear imagery to picture), and also sets the tone of the scene without any further words. The book has been categorized by many as being grimdark, and that word alone tends to conjure images of blood and violence and death, and yes, those things are definitely present in Seraphina’s Lament, but in ways that are more horrifying (at least to me) than someone being hacked to death with swords and axes. Instead, you have chilling depictions of people eating their recently deceased neighbours, sometimes children, acts born of starvation and desperation in a dying land. Much of the poetic prose is beautiful, which serves as a counterpoint to the events that, inspired by history, horrify and disgust.
This is the sort of book that largely defies proper description, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that to really understand it, you have to read it. Reviews and summaries really only scratch the surface, and I know I’m failing to really do Seraphina’s Lament justice here. Chorn is a rising star in the grimdark world, a star worth tracking, and I, for one, am excited to see what she’ll do next.
(Book received in exchange for review.)
But one step at a time.
Seraphina’s Lament takes place in the Sunset Lands, a place that was previously a monarchy but that had its ruling power overthrown in a revolution. Now in charge is Premier Eyad, head of the collectivist government, maker of the laws that have resulted in overfarming and the resulting famine. As with most people who attained power in such a way, he’s paranoid about counterrevolutionary elements, and oddly sees “failure to grow food where food won’t grow” as a punishable offense. People are fleeing, to escape a life of starvation and cruelty. But problems in the Sunset Lands run deeper than that. An army of skeletons approaches Lord’s Reach, dying people infected by hunger until their very humanity has been eaten away, led by what was once a man and who now calls himself the Bone Lord. Magic in the form of elemental talents seems to be dying, except in those for whom it grows wildly and out of control. Old powers stir. People are changing, becoming something new, something different.
And before you become, you must break.
While the book is named for one of its characters, the story goes far beyond Seraphina herself. She is a slave, owned by Eyad, scarred and in chronic pain and possessing a fire talent that seems to be growing in strength. There’s Neryan, Seraphina’s twin brother who escaped slavery, possessing a water talent that is Seraphina’s opposite and complement, bent on freeing his sister from bondage. There’s Vadden, who grabs the title of My Favourite Character from early on and keeps it through the story, determined to remove Eyad from power and atone for the wrongs he committed in playing a part to overthrow the previous government and pave the way for Eyad to take the abusive stance he has. Every single character is broken in some way, holding themselves together against overwhelming odds, and none of them are perfect, which is what makes them all so compelling to read about.
I mentioned Chorn’s writing style, and it’s that which makes this book really memorable, at least for my part. Her writing is incredibly evocative, poetic, concerned with metaphor and simile that sets the mood in a way that physical descriptions can’t always manage. Instead of mentioning the phase of the moon, for instance, you get lines akin to, “The moon was a scythe meant for killing,” a description that conveys the phase to the reader anyone (for those looking for clear imagery to picture), and also sets the tone of the scene without any further words. The book has been categorized by many as being grimdark, and that word alone tends to conjure images of blood and violence and death, and yes, those things are definitely present in Seraphina’s Lament, but in ways that are more horrifying (at least to me) than someone being hacked to death with swords and axes. Instead, you have chilling depictions of people eating their recently deceased neighbours, sometimes children, acts born of starvation and desperation in a dying land. Much of the poetic prose is beautiful, which serves as a counterpoint to the events that, inspired by history, horrify and disgust.
This is the sort of book that largely defies proper description, and I’m not exaggerating when I say that to really understand it, you have to read it. Reviews and summaries really only scratch the surface, and I know I’m failing to really do Seraphina’s Lament justice here. Chorn is a rising star in the grimdark world, a star worth tracking, and I, for one, am excited to see what she’ll do next.
(Book received in exchange for review.)
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