Reviews

The Black Tides of Heaven by Neon Yang

Only show reviews with written explanations

auora1484's review against another edition

Go to review page

mysterious reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

auroragraph's review

Go to review page

could not get into the world/magic system, just not for me

(7/10)- This was pretty good. I really liked the world building, even if I felt that certain things were not explained enough. I enjoyed the characters, but I found that a lot of them were underdeveloped and really could have been delved into more. I also found that there wasn’t enough foreshadowing, and that a lot of elements were just introduced when they were necessary to the plot, which isn’t a great way to tell a story. Overall, though, it was interesting. I’m looking forward to reading the next one.

palmkd's review

Go to review page

inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

The story follows two twins, one expected and desired, the other a spare. They're born to an incredibly powerful figurehead and "gifted" to the Grand Monastery to be raised. This was a super interesting world where your gender isn't official until you go through a confirmation ceremony. The twins are returned to their mother, who holds a very high rank in society and exercises her power without care for the civilians. This is the first in a 4 part series. This first story focuses on the Twin's upbringing and how they find themselves settling into adulthood and learning about the world outside their sheltered walls. Are the Machinists or the Tensors in the right? Is the protectorate actually protecting anyone? I'm very intrigued by this world and the setup and look forward to continuing this series!

Content Warnings

arinreads's review

Go to review page

emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

sometimes novellas just WORK. there might not be that much context to it as you would've liked but somehow it doesn't matter, it works and it's lovely and it's good. i even teared up a couple of times, this was very impressive

rashellnicole's review

Go to review page

fast-paced

4.5

I can tell from this first book that this is going to be a series of novellas that I hold dear, much like the Singing Hills Cycle series by Nghi Vo. Similar in style, narrative flow, and characterization, the first book in the Tensorate series follows twins Mokoya and Akeha and their lives in the Grand Monastery as they are raised to pay the debt their mother incurred by asking for the Monastery’s help with suppressing a rebellion. As the children grow, so do their connections to the Slack and their gifts with that. Mokoya has the gift of prophecy, which the Monastery works to develop, in particular, as it turns out it’s impossible to stop any of these events from occurring.

Akeha is there for their sibling after each visceral prophecy, though it eventually starts to tear them apart. When Mokoya reveals that they are preparing to be confirmed as a woman, Akeha’s world shatters. Raised genderless, they choose their gender at 17, but they always assumed their path would be the same as their twin’s. Instead, Akeha must consider their own choice for confirmation and what it means to be separate from their twin.

After they both have their confirmation ceremonies, they part ways. Their mother has no use for Akeha as a son when Mokoya’s gift of prophecy works in her favor. Akeha leaves the world he’s always known to see what else the world has in store. Many adventures and encounters are had, he falls in love, and he ends up being the driving force behind the next Machinist rebellion (those opposing his mother’s rule). We have a bittersweet family reunion and the promise of more familial (and realm-related) drama to come in future novellas. I, for one, can’t wait to get my hands on the next book, and I’m grateful the series is complete so I can binge it!