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4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
DNF at 20%. This book got a rave review from Brandon Sanderson on the strength of its magical system, and I can understand why. Bennett plays with gravity and speed in some fun ways reminiscent of Sanderson's own Mistborn and Stormlight series.
But the story hasn't gripped me yet -- in between all the infodumping it's a pretty basic orphan-with-mysterious-past crossed with thief-gets-double-crossed plot so far -- and there have been a few red flags that make me wary that anything is going to get better. First was the the mention of wandering "g*psies," which in a single sentence combines together a slur, an ethnic stereotype, and plain bad worldbuilding. Next was the scene in which a viewpoint cop is celebrated by the narrative as he brutally attacks people for information at the start of his investigation. And then there's just a variety of questionable entitled attitudes displayed on the author's Twitter page.
So... read if you like Sandersonian magic and aren't put off by the above, I guess. But this is a long book at the start of a series, so I'm pretty happy with bowing out of it now.
But the story hasn't gripped me yet -- in between all the infodumping it's a pretty basic orphan-with-mysterious-past crossed with thief-gets-double-crossed plot so far -- and there have been a few red flags that make me wary that anything is going to get better. First was the the mention of wandering "g*psies," which in a single sentence combines together a slur, an ethnic stereotype, and plain bad worldbuilding. Next was the scene in which a viewpoint cop is celebrated by the narrative as he brutally attacks people for information at the start of his investigation. And then there's just a variety of questionable entitled attitudes displayed on the author's Twitter page.
So... read if you like Sandersonian magic and aren't put off by the above, I guess. But this is a long book at the start of a series, so I'm pretty happy with bowing out of it now.
4.5 stars rounding down. Yep this was bloody good.
A survivor, a thief and possibly the hero who is needed to save the world. As tropes go, this wasn't any different. But it more than made up for it with the story.
The city is ruled by the Mafia. Or barons you could say. Imagine "Into the Badlands" but with engineers who can write magic into stuff they create.
And our heroine Sancia just steals something that all the richest, cutthroat barons want ensuing pandemonium of the highest order.
Anything more I say is going to be a spoiler so I'll just say RAFO.
This is mild fantasy with hints of romance that even urban/YA fans would cherish.
A survivor, a thief and possibly the hero who is needed to save the world. As tropes go, this wasn't any different. But it more than made up for it with the story.
The city is ruled by the Mafia. Or barons you could say. Imagine "Into the Badlands" but with engineers who can write magic into stuff they create.
And our heroine Sancia just steals something that all the richest, cutthroat barons want ensuing pandemonium of the highest order.
Anything more I say is going to be a spoiler so I'll just say RAFO.
This is mild fantasy with hints of romance that even urban/YA fans would cherish.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
fast-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:
Complicated
What a creative, well thought out world. I thoroughly enjoyed this one and look forward to book two. Bennett is fast becoming one of my favorite authors .
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
An easy read with a steampunk vibe. High invention. Violent with moderately high gore. Characters are interesting and have histories of being enslaved or involved in slavery, which form the core ethical conversations in the book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore, Violence
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A really unique story with a lot of satisfying world-building. The idea of scriving is very similar to the magic done in Babel, which is clever and beyond difficult. It took me a little bit to get into the story; Sancia's internal thoughts felt too frequent, telling rather than showing. But I'm intrigued by the ending and can't wait to see where it goes!
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes