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dykish's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
coppercrane2's review against another edition
adventurous
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
emilikert's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-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
3.0
em1066's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
quirkycatsfatstacks's review against another edition
4.5
Summary
Ile-Rien is a proud kingdom full of magic, politics, and occasionally treachery. Okay, the last part isn't so ideal. Luckily, people like Thomas Boniface (the Captain of the Queen's Guard) stand between danger and the people.
A dark wizard is taking action again in the kingdom, but things are not as they seem. Somebody must be helping the wizard find a way inside. Worse, the fae have become more active in the area. This might be more than Thomas can handle on his own.
My Review
If you're looking for a book full of magic, politics, and intrigue, The Element of Fire is the book for you. In truth, there's so much going on in this book that it took me some time to truly appreciate it all.
The Element of Fire is split into multiple perspectives. The primary two are Thomas Boniface and Kade (half-fae daughter of the late king). Thomas' side provides politics, investigations, battles, and more. Meanwhile, Kade provides a different perspective on the same world. It's fascinating.
This world is a complex one. We have sorcerers, kingdoms, fae, and different noble families (which means loads of different goals and schemes). It took me a bit to get into the swing of things – probably at least three chapters before I was well and truly invested. But it's worth the time spent, I promise!
It's worth noting that The Element of Fire is Martha Wells' debut novel. So, obviously, we know that Wells has grown a lot as a writer since this book. However, I need to find out how much it's changed for this reprinted version. I thoroughly enjoyed The Element of Fire, regardless.
I would read another dozen books set in Ile-Rien, which is good because there are five in total, plus short stories. However, I'll have to decide if I want to wait for the rest (three and onward) to be republished or if I want to just dive right in.
Highlights:
High Fantasy
Complex World Building
Politics & Magic
Heist Vibes
You Can Also Find Me On:
Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks | Quirky Cat's Comics | The Book Review Crew | Monkeys Fighting Robots | Storygraph | Bookhype | Bookstagram | Twitter | Tumblr | Reedsy
Ile-Rien is a proud kingdom full of magic, politics, and occasionally treachery. Okay, the last part isn't so ideal. Luckily, people like Thomas Boniface (the Captain of the Queen's Guard) stand between danger and the people.
A dark wizard is taking action again in the kingdom, but things are not as they seem. Somebody must be helping the wizard find a way inside. Worse, the fae have become more active in the area. This might be more than Thomas can handle on his own.
My Review
If you're looking for a book full of magic, politics, and intrigue, The Element of Fire is the book for you. In truth, there's so much going on in this book that it took me some time to truly appreciate it all.
The Element of Fire is split into multiple perspectives. The primary two are Thomas Boniface and Kade (half-fae daughter of the late king). Thomas' side provides politics, investigations, battles, and more. Meanwhile, Kade provides a different perspective on the same world. It's fascinating.
This world is a complex one. We have sorcerers, kingdoms, fae, and different noble families (which means loads of different goals and schemes). It took me a bit to get into the swing of things – probably at least three chapters before I was well and truly invested. But it's worth the time spent, I promise!
It's worth noting that The Element of Fire is Martha Wells' debut novel. So, obviously, we know that Wells has grown a lot as a writer since this book. However, I need to find out how much it's changed for this reprinted version. I thoroughly enjoyed The Element of Fire, regardless.
I would read another dozen books set in Ile-Rien, which is good because there are five in total, plus short stories. However, I'll have to decide if I want to wait for the rest (three and onward) to be republished or if I want to just dive right in.
Highlights:
High Fantasy
Complex World Building
Politics & Magic
Heist Vibes
You Can Also Find Me On:
Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks | Quirky Cat's Comics | The Book Review Crew | Monkeys Fighting Robots | Storygraph | Bookhype | Bookstagram | Twitter | Tumblr | Reedsy
teri_b's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
Intricately woven, the story draws you in and never really lets you go.
Loved how the story unfolded and how each moment felt specifically created within the story.
Loved how the story unfolded and how each moment felt specifically created within the story.
spacepenguin22's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
themanfromdelmonte's review against another edition
3.0
This is a story of fantasy palace intrigue. You could lose the first hundred pages as most of it is spent in needless exposition and scene setting. I'm guessing that the author has drawn a very intricate map of the palace as much is made of getting from place to place within it. I nearly put the book down because it's not nearly atmospheric enough, there's lots of descriptions of buildings and weapons but it reads more like a mundane travelogue than a novel. However, the pace picks after this (thank goodness) and the novel starts to (slowly) redeem itself. The anti-hero and anti heroine are quite good fun and reasonably well developed. One niggle was Kade's reception at the palace given the nature of some of the things she did while in exile. Surely someone capable of creating a decapitating necklace wouldn't be allowed anywhere near the palace? Another niggle is the late attention paid to the King. He hardly figures in the first two thirds and then suddenly discovers some long dormant sense of purpose in the last part. Thank goodness for 99p offers on Kindle because I would be very cross if I'd spent £14 on the paperback. If you want to how this should be done then try The Curse of Chalion by the master of the format, Lois McMaster Bujold.