Reviews

Dark Earth by Rebecca Stott

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ewilletts23's review

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adventurous challenging informative mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

burntout_bookworm's review against another edition

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dark mysterious 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? Yes

4.0

Dark Earth is an incredibly captivating and unique historical fiction of two sisters living in England in 500 AD.
Isla and Blue are both feared by the rest of their community. The sisters have been exiled with their father as a result of each having a talent or born with a trait that frightens their community, Isla born with eyes of two different colors and Blue who seems destined to a path as a Wiccan. Their father retains some power as he is the last Great Smith, able to create firetongue swords. Then the Great Smith dies and the sisters must figure out how to survive in a world that seems to hate the very idea of them.
The story is told over 5 parts. I found so much of the story to be well-paced and exciting. There were some excellent action scenes and the descriptions were beautiful. But the end of the book seemed rushed. Suddenly the answer is seemingly dropped at the heroines’ feet and boom, everything is solved. I was disappointed in that aspect, but overall rated the book a 4 star for how magical the storytelling was.
I had the pleasure of both reading an electronic copy and listening to an audiobook of Dark Earth. While the book itself is wonderful, and also contains a map that is helpful in envisioning the communities, I really have to credit the audiobook for really capturing my attention. The narrator, Hannah Morris’s, does an absolute superb job in bringing to life Isla, Blue and the rest of the characters, even the nefarious Vort. I blitzed through the audiobook in 2 days while working.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for providing me with the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

bibliobeth's review

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2.5

I found it really difficult to get attached to any of the characters in here and therefore, didn't care what happened to them in the end. For such a character driven story, they should have jumped off of the page, but sadly none of them felt very in depth - especially our main character!

btaylorb's review

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dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This book has a lot that I love and tend to look for in historical fiction and mythic fantasy:

People in the distant past thinking about their legacy into the distant future, asking themselves whether people hundreds of years in the future will find evidence of their having lived and wondering how their lives and legacies be interpreted.
A depiction of the "Dark Ages" as a time that was culturally and ethnically diverse.
A story that explores a pre-Arthurian Britain, that references his existence in terms of a living person whose emerging legend signals a new era, reflecting on how regular living people plant the seeds and nurture the roots that become legends and symbols over time.
A world where magic is commonplace but no less sacred for being mundane.

toniak's review

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2.0

Everything about this book sounded appealing to me, but the execution didn't quite make it. The ending seemed weird. In fact, with everything leading up to it, I thought I was being set up for a sequel, and then it just tried to tie everything up in a quick bow that just didn't work for me. I appreciate the research that went into the time period in which it was set, but kinda thought it was going in a direction where one sister would be the "Lady of the Lake" and the other Morgan La Fey, and then it just screeched to a U Turn and talked about layers of history going into the future.

eshalliday's review

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1.0

This was a disappointing read for me and yet, the premise had been so appealing: a historical novel with a touch of fantasy is just right for me. But 'Dark Earth' proved remote and ultimately failed to engage me.

Firstly, I was put off by Stott's curt style of writing. Although there are touches of the poetic in the odd phrase or description, the writing is simplistic. Sentences are immediate; they are mostly active voice, subject-verb-object, comprising for the most part less than 10 words.

Neither did I connect with characters or plot. I would procrastinate each time I came to read this novel. The folklore and mythology prove too jarring when it comes to fostering empathy for the characters. The character dynamics themselves are somewhat lacklustre.

I can't pinpoint exactly why I felt so detached from Rebecca Stott's latest novel. It should have been such an interesting read, but unfortunately, felt uninspiring.

My thanks are due to 4th Estate at HarperCollins for an advanced copy of the book via Netgalley.