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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
(3.5)
Found families all the way, and very cool worldbuilding, but i wish the protagonist had a bit more agency - mostly, he just goes with the flow with 0 motion of what he wants
Found families all the way, and very cool worldbuilding, but i wish the protagonist had a bit more agency - mostly, he just goes with the flow with 0 motion of what he wants
What a strange, enchanting book. I think it's the first time I have read anything with a poly relationship and such intricate, diverse societies. It's cool to see such carefully thought out exploration of gender and sexuality and sex in general. Ariah himself was a very frustrating protagonist at times, ignorant and naive, but I think he has a good heart and a curiosity to him, that he learns to be better. His two loves are good to him.
I'm taking two stars though, for consent issues in some parts that never really get explored, and some parts that I just found confusing and dragging.
I'm taking two stars though, for consent issues in some parts that never really get explored, and some parts that I just found confusing and dragging.
"My mind is indecisive, wretchedly so, but my heart is not so patient."
* * *
Oh my goodness.
Oh.
I've spent like ten minutes just staring at the screen and mentally breathing into a paper bag because words kind of don't... begin? (A quirk of my Definitely Not Typical brain = the more important something is to me, or the more intense an emotion I experience, the harder it is for me to express it in words. That's what is happening here, so forgive any strange phrasing. *Ariah's words rid me of mine.*)
It's beautiful. This book is so beautiful. My chest aches thinking about moments in it. The prose reads like poetry, like lyrics to a song you never want to end. You read it and there's *more.* To life. To a world you may not think you belong to. And you might not. But you read something like this, and you think maybe someday, in another place, you could.
I am honestly starting to cry right this instant because of Sorcha in general and his existence. I can't actually get into this, as I'm skirting the edge of actually breaking down, and that WILL push me over, but. He is... so much.
Ariah himself is... one of the most compelling characters I've come across in some time. His openness - dangerous for a Shaper, or at least *in the way his culture dictates they live*, his inability to project "walls" and distance himself from emotion, people, desires, pains. His sense of losing himself in the people around them and the maelstrom of their lives. His indecision, his paralysis, his uncertainty, fear, grief, and slow-dawning hope.
Shapers can create 'mirrors' of magic. This book is a mirror to me. For better or worse, beautiful and infuriating, I see more of myself - and the deep, vulnerable ache to CONNECT, live together and understand one another, even in our shared isolation and relatable solitude - than I can easily say. It's a hard mirror to look into. But it heals the way cauterizing a wound does.
This is very hard to write.
It's sometimes hard to read.
But it should be read.
That is all I can say here because I am on the edge of coherency and it's getting overwhelming. Please read my highlights; there are many. https://www.goodreads.com/notes/31826131-ariah/24662516-roanna-sylver
And please read this book. It might hurt, but it also might heal.
* * *
Oh my goodness.
Oh.
I've spent like ten minutes just staring at the screen and mentally breathing into a paper bag because words kind of don't... begin? (A quirk of my Definitely Not Typical brain = the more important something is to me, or the more intense an emotion I experience, the harder it is for me to express it in words. That's what is happening here, so forgive any strange phrasing. *Ariah's words rid me of mine.*)
It's beautiful. This book is so beautiful. My chest aches thinking about moments in it. The prose reads like poetry, like lyrics to a song you never want to end. You read it and there's *more.* To life. To a world you may not think you belong to. And you might not. But you read something like this, and you think maybe someday, in another place, you could.
I am honestly starting to cry right this instant because of Sorcha in general and his existence. I can't actually get into this, as I'm skirting the edge of actually breaking down, and that WILL push me over, but. He is... so much.
Ariah himself is... one of the most compelling characters I've come across in some time. His openness - dangerous for a Shaper, or at least *in the way his culture dictates they live*, his inability to project "walls" and distance himself from emotion, people, desires, pains. His sense of losing himself in the people around them and the maelstrom of their lives. His indecision, his paralysis, his uncertainty, fear, grief, and slow-dawning hope.
Shapers can create 'mirrors' of magic. This book is a mirror to me. For better or worse, beautiful and infuriating, I see more of myself - and the deep, vulnerable ache to CONNECT, live together and understand one another, even in our shared isolation and relatable solitude - than I can easily say. It's a hard mirror to look into. But it heals the way cauterizing a wound does.
This is very hard to write.
It's sometimes hard to read.
But it should be read.
That is all I can say here because I am on the edge of coherency and it's getting overwhelming. Please read my highlights; there are many. https://www.goodreads.com/notes/31826131-ariah/24662516-roanna-sylver
And please read this book. It might hurt, but it also might heal.
I'm not particularly fond of fantasy novels but this one came so highly recommended that I thought I would give it a try. I'm glad I did. It turned out to be a beautiful, meandering story that forces us to look at friendship, love, gender and family in a new light and it couldn't possibly be more relevant. 4 stars
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
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
A bit too slow-paced for me, and I am already struggling with Ariah's POV. Several people I know really enjoy this book, though, so I'll likely try again at some point.
as frustrating as an odyssey tends to be! well written, kind of abuses ellipses sometimes. Weirdly reminded me of Candide??
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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:
Complicated
I had fun reading this, and liked it a lot. It was a super fun story with a loveable cast.
I feel as though this was a book in which almost too much happened. I would have preferred multiple books, with the story extended, allowing room for a deeper read into some of the events. For example, something interesting will start to happen, and then in the next paragraph it will have ended with a 'Six years had passed' type of thing. Which I didn't like.
Some of the plot and character was confusing to me. I liked Dirva as a flawed character but I grew to be annoyed with him. Some things come into the story with zero explanation and stay that way, while other things are overexplained. Some plot points like Ariah's torture and growing relationship with Laavi are completely rushed over even though they are major parts of the story which are often talked about. Some minor parts of the story seemed a bit 'white-knight'-ish, like certain ways the slaves are described. I loved Ariah as a main character, but I feel like I could have known more about him. I wasn't expecting the story to have a happy ending either since so many events ended badly. As in, halfway through whenever something started to happen I was setting myself up for another failure or upset. Like the relationship between Ariah and Sorcha, and Ariah and Dirva, and so on.
Overall Ariah was a very good read, it explored things like sex, gender, race, and hierarchy really well. I wish that parts of the story were more fleshed out. I truly feel that this story would have been better as a series of books rather than a single. It ended a bit abruptly, but I'm glad it had a happy ending.
I feel as though this was a book in which almost too much happened. I would have preferred multiple books, with the story extended, allowing room for a deeper read into some of the events. For example, something interesting will start to happen, and then in the next paragraph it will have ended with a 'Six years had passed' type of thing. Which I didn't like.
Overall Ariah was a very good read, it explored things like sex, gender, race, and hierarchy really well. I wish that parts of the story were more fleshed out. I truly feel that this story would have been better as a series of books rather than a single. It ended a bit abruptly, but I'm glad it had a happy ending.