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3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
This book can be put together in one word: WOW!
I had high hopes for the book and considering how mostly I’m disappointed with my choices, this book was way ahead my expectations. The world building, the vivid descriptions, the mythical creatures, the storyline, the pacing, the characters, the bad-ass fight scenes; everything was remarkable.
I should get over with the few details that bothered me first. Although the detailed descriptions were really needed for the world building, at times they felt repetitive and unnecessarily long. I’m not supposed to pinpoint the exact descriptions; but it cannot be ignored. I found myself reading a few lines and then going back to read it all over again because I couldn’t keep track of what was just written with all the fancy words and new terminology. Maybe it was just me and my tired brain or maybe it was the writing style and the flourished language that made me tired. Either way, this book wasn’t a one-time read for me that I could get over with in a single sitting.
Other than that, even though there isn’t a problem with the predictability of the book, there are no major twists and turns that would leave you slack-jawed. There were plot-twists that I could easily see coming; but it wasn’t a major letdown. It’s the only other aspect that I think could use some polishing.
Now, let’s talk about the charming world-building: Kristoff has certainly done an admirable job portraying the world of Shima. It has a touch of mythology with dystopian goodness; a soaring empire, distinguished clans, suffering slaves, rising conflict, deafening despair, deranged deaths, flickering hope, forgotten legends, stultifying wars, iron samurais, tech-savvy zealots, clandestine whisperings and beautiful creatures.
The protagonist is smart, bad-ass and one of your unforgettable female heroines. She made mistakes but didn’t take too long to realize them. But she isn’t my favorite character in this book. My favorite character is her best friend. I can’t even begin to describe how much I adore Kristoff for painting a picture of such a beautiful creature in my head with an enamoring personality. The way he has so intricately written every detail about the new world and the majestic creature is going to leave me dreaming about it for days. My hands are itching to write so much more but I really can’t. I’m most emotionally attached to this favorite character of mine.
There was a lot of action, beginning from the first chapter with constant pacing throughout the book. I liked how there was a reflection of every character from each other’s perspective. There were a lot of new discoveries, many new characters, new terms (which took some time getting used to), an intriguing legend (which I would personally like to read more about), hidden prowess, dangerous secrets with just the right equilibrium of fantasy and kingdom conspiracies.
This is just the book you need for a mouthful of awesome that will leave your mind whirring, imagining all kinds of dangerous yet gorgeous picturesque. 4 stars!
I received an ARC for Stormdancer from Netgalley in exchange of an honest and spoiler-free review.
I had high hopes for the book and considering how mostly I’m disappointed with my choices, this book was way ahead my expectations. The world building, the vivid descriptions, the mythical creatures, the storyline, the pacing, the characters, the bad-ass fight scenes; everything was remarkable.
I should get over with the few details that bothered me first. Although the detailed descriptions were really needed for the world building, at times they felt repetitive and unnecessarily long. I’m not supposed to pinpoint the exact descriptions; but it cannot be ignored. I found myself reading a few lines and then going back to read it all over again because I couldn’t keep track of what was just written with all the fancy words and new terminology. Maybe it was just me and my tired brain or maybe it was the writing style and the flourished language that made me tired. Either way, this book wasn’t a one-time read for me that I could get over with in a single sitting.
Other than that, even though there isn’t a problem with the predictability of the book, there are no major twists and turns that would leave you slack-jawed. There were plot-twists that I could easily see coming; but it wasn’t a major letdown. It’s the only other aspect that I think could use some polishing.
Now, let’s talk about the charming world-building: Kristoff has certainly done an admirable job portraying the world of Shima. It has a touch of mythology with dystopian goodness; a soaring empire, distinguished clans, suffering slaves, rising conflict, deafening despair, deranged deaths, flickering hope, forgotten legends, stultifying wars, iron samurais, tech-savvy zealots, clandestine whisperings and beautiful creatures.
The protagonist is smart, bad-ass and one of your unforgettable female heroines. She made mistakes but didn’t take too long to realize them. But she isn’t my favorite character in this book. My favorite character is her best friend. I can’t even begin to describe how much I adore Kristoff for painting a picture of such a beautiful creature in my head with an enamoring personality. The way he has so intricately written every detail about the new world and the majestic creature is going to leave me dreaming about it for days. My hands are itching to write so much more but I really can’t. I’m most emotionally attached to this favorite character of mine.
There was a lot of action, beginning from the first chapter with constant pacing throughout the book. I liked how there was a reflection of every character from each other’s perspective. There were a lot of new discoveries, many new characters, new terms (which took some time getting used to), an intriguing legend (which I would personally like to read more about), hidden prowess, dangerous secrets with just the right equilibrium of fantasy and kingdom conspiracies.
This is just the book you need for a mouthful of awesome that will leave your mind whirring, imagining all kinds of dangerous yet gorgeous picturesque. 4 stars!
I received an ARC for Stormdancer from Netgalley in exchange of an honest and spoiler-free review.
This is probably a must-read for all Anime and Manga fans out there. You'll definitely recognize the feel of it. Not to mention it'd be really helpful to already understand what a yokai and oni are, as well as any number of other recognizable Japanese words (clothing items, ranks, weaponry, etc).
I basically enjoyed it after a really slow start. I enjoyed Yukiko and Buruu, as well as some of the side characters. I probably could have done without the teenage romance, but this is a YA book so I don't know that I can really complain about it.
Like so many YA books it is essentially an allegory. Shima's Chi dependence mirroring the modern world's dependence on oil and it's destructive self-perpetuation. The maniac Shogun could easily be the greedy 1% crushing the common man, while placating him with lies and base entertainments.
All in all, well worth picking up.
I basically enjoyed it after a really slow start. I enjoyed Yukiko and Buruu, as well as some of the side characters. I probably could have done without the teenage romance, but this is a YA book so I don't know that I can really complain about it.
Like so many YA books it is essentially an allegory. Shima's Chi dependence mirroring the modern world's dependence on oil and it's destructive self-perpetuation. The maniac Shogun could easily be the greedy 1% crushing the common man, while placating him with lies and base entertainments.
All in all, well worth picking up.
Reviews and more at The Sirenic Codex
I barely read this book so I don't feel like this will be much of a review. Nonetheless, I did read it in some sense so here are some very early thoughts.
I ran out of books and picked this one up from my school library the librarian told me technically, taking books out isn't possible at this time but I could if I returned it by Friday. So my attitude toward this book was that if I were to read it, it would have to make me love it because two days during summative period is not a lot of time for reading.
The other thing I knew about Stormdancer is that it wasn't a book that used Japanese culture very well. I read the reviews and made the conscious decision to try this book, but never take this book as an accurate portrayal of Japanese culture.
From the pages I read, I had just one pretty big issue. It was that I had no clue what was happening. There were so many name drops of stuff I had never heard of. I'm open to learning new things but I felt like the writing, especially the description, was so clunky. I was completely lost because I kept encountering Japanese words that I didn't understand. I felt like the explanations were insufficient for me, too.
A lot of the descriptions were very formulaic. It was a lot of stuff like 'the rice paper walls were decorated with ------ and ------' and there were three of these type of sentences, all with parallel structure, right after one another. I didn't find it very interesting because I didn't know what the words meant, and I generally care very little for heavy description. What I prefer is more of a poet's description; describing the emotions rather than random details about the scene.
The plot also felt excruciatingly slow. It felt like it took forever for stuff to happen. I mean, of course that would happen if you spend so much time on descriptions. But I really got nothing out of them. I think ordinarily I would stick with Stormdancer for some more time. I wouldn't let it go so fast, but I didn't have the time. That being said, the beginning wasn't appealing to me.
I have heard that after 50 or so pages when the voyage starts the story improves. Is that true? I got to them on the ship before I had to return the book. So, I'll let you guys determine what I should do: give it another shot, or move on?
I barely read this book so I don't feel like this will be much of a review. Nonetheless, I did read it in some sense so here are some very early thoughts.
I ran out of books and picked this one up from my school library the librarian told me technically, taking books out isn't possible at this time but I could if I returned it by Friday. So my attitude toward this book was that if I were to read it, it would have to make me love it because two days during summative period is not a lot of time for reading.
The other thing I knew about Stormdancer is that it wasn't a book that used Japanese culture very well. I read the reviews and made the conscious decision to try this book, but never take this book as an accurate portrayal of Japanese culture.
From the pages I read, I had just one pretty big issue. It was that I had no clue what was happening. There were so many name drops of stuff I had never heard of. I'm open to learning new things but I felt like the writing, especially the description, was so clunky. I was completely lost because I kept encountering Japanese words that I didn't understand. I felt like the explanations were insufficient for me, too.
A lot of the descriptions were very formulaic. It was a lot of stuff like 'the rice paper walls were decorated with ------ and ------' and there were three of these type of sentences, all with parallel structure, right after one another. I didn't find it very interesting because I didn't know what the words meant, and I generally care very little for heavy description. What I prefer is more of a poet's description; describing the emotions rather than random details about the scene.
The plot also felt excruciatingly slow. It felt like it took forever for stuff to happen. I mean, of course that would happen if you spend so much time on descriptions. But I really got nothing out of them. I think ordinarily I would stick with Stormdancer for some more time. I wouldn't let it go so fast, but I didn't have the time. That being said, the beginning wasn't appealing to me.
I have heard that after 50 or so pages when the voyage starts the story improves. Is that true? I got to them on the ship before I had to return the book. So, I'll let you guys determine what I should do: give it another shot, or move on?
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Man, it was so great to be able to reread this book! So awesome to reread it, and I can't wait to read more of this series!
*First read October 13th 2012*
This was a fantastic book, though before Buruu it was harder to pay attention to the book, but once they met, the pages just flew by! Loved it! And really want the 2nd book now!!!
*First read October 13th 2012*
This was a fantastic book, though before Buruu it was harder to pay attention to the book, but once they met, the pages just flew by! Loved it! And really want the 2nd book now!!!
Katharine is a judge for the Sara Douglass 'Book Series' Award. This entry is the personal opinion of Katharine herself, and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of any judging panel, the judging coordinator or the Aurealis Awards management team.
I won't be recording my thoughts (if I choose to) here until after the AA are over.
I won't be recording my thoughts (if I choose to) here until after the AA are over.
4 to 4.5/5stars.
This was such a good book.
The worldbuilding is magnificient, its very heavy which made it a slower read than what im used to but i didnt mind. It was all very detailed and interesting and made for such a vivid story setting.
The plot was great, it took about 100 pages to really get going but once we were there, not a dull moment. Loved every second of it, even the more sad bits.
I loved the characters because they were all flawed. Even Yukiko our main character sometimes had me "ugh". I adored her relationship with Buruu, it was so endearing.
All in all a slower but such a great read. Excited to see where this story will go next !
This was such a good book.
The worldbuilding is magnificient, its very heavy which made it a slower read than what im used to but i didnt mind. It was all very detailed and interesting and made for such a vivid story setting.
The plot was great, it took about 100 pages to really get going but once we were there, not a dull moment. Loved every second of it, even the more sad bits.
I loved the characters because they were all flawed. Even Yukiko our main character sometimes had me "ugh". I adored her relationship with Buruu, it was so endearing.
All in all a slower but such a great read. Excited to see where this story will go next !
adventurous
emotional
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
4.5 stars. This was my first Steampunk read, and although I found it a bit hard to follow in the beginning, I ended up really enjoying that aspect of the story by the end.
Yukiko's father, Masaru, is the hunt master for the Imperial Court. One day the Shogun commands him and his team to bring him back the legendary creature; the Arashitora. (A mythical creature with the body of a tiger and the head of an eagle) He has seen a vision of him riding one of these creatures, heading his army to win the war.
The only problem: The Arashitora are no more. Just a myth. And when you fail your Shogun the penalty is death. So it is no surprise that the hunt master, his team and his daughter suit up for an expedition anyways. Better than sitting around waiting to die. So everyone was completely surprised when they actually DID find this mythical creature flying around in the skies. It was no easy feat, but they captured the beast and caged him to bring him back to their leader.
It was only when their air ship was badly damaged in a raging lightening storm afterwards that things take a turn. The ship was damaged enough that they all had to abandon ship, but Yukiko abandons the abandoned ship to save the poor beast which is trapped in his metal cage. She is separated from her father and the crew, not knowing if anyone has survived besides her.
But her adventure doesn't end here. Suddenly she is stuck on a strange island, where other creatures rumoured to be extinct also turn out to be not so extinct. One thing she knows for sure: The Arashitora wants nothing to do with her, except maybe kill her. But it is a series of events that unfold that bring the two of them closer together, and eventually form a bond of friendship that is truly the greatest part of this book.
The world was really complicated and took a while for me to really understand the politics and the people. There was very helpful glossary in the back of the book which I referred too quite often as there were many Japanese terms I wasn't familiar with. The farther into the book I got, the less I had to look up, but I really appreciated it being there for sure.
The story did start out pretty slow, probably because of all the world building and the book is very description heavy. But I didn't mind in this book. I really liked Yukiko I think she is a fantastic female protagonist. She has some very juvenile views of the world, and it isn't until she is forced to look out for herself for the first time in a truly life or death situation that her character really starts to develop.
Yukiko has a special ability called the Kenning. She can reach out her thoughts to animals and she uses this to try and win the trust of the Arashitora, and honestly, the dialogue between Yukiko and the Arashitora, (later named Buruu after a loved hound of Yukikos) that really steals the show in this novel. At first Buruu is nothing but animal in her head (KILL, KILL, KILL) but as the two slowly come to terms that they need each other to get out of this place alive, soon each others primal instincts start effecting the other (Yukiko gets her rage on, and Buruu learns the subtle science that is sarcasm.)
I was kind of surprised at how the book ended. It had all the great ingredients of a ending; betrayal, fights to the death, and a lot of blood. I was kind of surprised at who ended up killed in the end, and there were some whose deaths were not really confirmed which makes me think they have yet a part to play in the next book. There were a lot of underdeveloped characters though, so the twists that came at the end didn't really have the impact I think the author was aiming for. Its too bad that the ending was a bit rushed.
But all in all I absolutely loved this book and am going to be reading the next one straight away.
Yukiko's father, Masaru, is the hunt master for the Imperial Court. One day the Shogun commands him and his team to bring him back the legendary creature; the Arashitora. (A mythical creature with the body of a tiger and the head of an eagle) He has seen a vision of him riding one of these creatures, heading his army to win the war.
The only problem: The Arashitora are no more. Just a myth. And when you fail your Shogun the penalty is death. So it is no surprise that the hunt master, his team and his daughter suit up for an expedition anyways. Better than sitting around waiting to die. So everyone was completely surprised when they actually DID find this mythical creature flying around in the skies. It was no easy feat, but they captured the beast and caged him to bring him back to their leader.
It was only when their air ship was badly damaged in a raging lightening storm afterwards that things take a turn. The ship was damaged enough that they all had to abandon ship, but Yukiko abandons the abandoned ship to save the poor beast which is trapped in his metal cage. She is separated from her father and the crew, not knowing if anyone has survived besides her.
But her adventure doesn't end here. Suddenly she is stuck on a strange island, where other creatures rumoured to be extinct also turn out to be not so extinct. One thing she knows for sure: The Arashitora wants nothing to do with her, except maybe kill her. But it is a series of events that unfold that bring the two of them closer together, and eventually form a bond of friendship that is truly the greatest part of this book.
The world was really complicated and took a while for me to really understand the politics and the people. There was very helpful glossary in the back of the book which I referred too quite often as there were many Japanese terms I wasn't familiar with. The farther into the book I got, the less I had to look up, but I really appreciated it being there for sure.
The story did start out pretty slow, probably because of all the world building and the book is very description heavy. But I didn't mind in this book. I really liked Yukiko I think she is a fantastic female protagonist. She has some very juvenile views of the world, and it isn't until she is forced to look out for herself for the first time in a truly life or death situation that her character really starts to develop.
Yukiko has a special ability called the Kenning. She can reach out her thoughts to animals and she uses this to try and win the trust of the Arashitora, and honestly, the dialogue between Yukiko and the Arashitora, (later named Buruu after a loved hound of Yukikos) that really steals the show in this novel. At first Buruu is nothing but animal in her head (KILL, KILL, KILL) but as the two slowly come to terms that they need each other to get out of this place alive, soon each others primal instincts start effecting the other (Yukiko gets her rage on, and Buruu learns the subtle science that is sarcasm.)
I was kind of surprised at how the book ended. It had all the great ingredients of a ending; betrayal, fights to the death, and a lot of blood. I was kind of surprised at who ended up killed in the end, and there were some whose deaths were not really confirmed which makes me think they have yet a part to play in the next book. There were a lot of underdeveloped characters though, so the twists that came at the end didn't really have the impact I think the author was aiming for. Its too bad that the ending was a bit rushed.
But all in all I absolutely loved this book and am going to be reading the next one straight away.
'We are Shima. Defy us at your peril, for what is given can be taken away.'
If there's anything you can count on in a Kristoff's book it's good world building, interesting politics and funny banter. Lovable familiars, intense character dynamics and scenes that have you raging at the unfairness. I was shocked when I understood what Shima does with their slaves, wtf. It is well paced and had many quotable moments - my ebook is highlighted to death.
And the snark, man, it made giggle and now I want a thunder tiger. Kristoff's so good at writing familiars who hate humans but get soft for just one of them. I loved his bond with Yukiko.
Can't wait to see where this is going.
'So to the hells with being afraid. Be clever instead.
If there's anything you can count on in a Kristoff's book it's good world building, interesting politics and funny banter. Lovable familiars, intense character dynamics and scenes that have you raging at the unfairness. I was shocked when I understood what Shima does with their slaves, wtf. It is well paced and had many quotable moments - my ebook is highlighted to death.
And the snark, man, it made giggle and now I want a thunder tiger. Kristoff's so good at writing familiars who hate humans but get soft for just one of them. I loved his bond with Yukiko.
Can't wait to see where this is going.
'So to the hells with being afraid. Be clever instead.