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vampyrsoul's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
schwarmgiven's review against another edition
3.0
Solid book--way more planer travel then I was expecting. Good characters. Solid structure. Exciting combat.
But overall mostly forgettable--the Pathfinder Tales just never seem to capture some of the real magic of D&D for me for some reason.
I will keep trying but I have yet to find my Pathfinder Dark Elf, if you know what I mean.
But overall mostly forgettable--the Pathfinder Tales just never seem to capture some of the real magic of D&D for me for some reason.
I will keep trying but I have yet to find my Pathfinder Dark Elf, if you know what I mean.
ericbuscemi's review against another edition
4.0
I was only made aware of this audiobook -- and the Pathfinder Tales series in general -- because Pathfinder publisher Paizo emailed me letting me know it was available for free on Audible.
Well, their promotional strategy was a definite success, as I really enjoyed this novel, and would definitely read another Pathfinder Tales novel -- especially another audiobook from the creative team of author James Sutter and narrator Ray Porter. Seriously, Porter's narration is among the best I've ever heard, and especially chilling when he's voicing angels and demons.
Speaking to this novel, it is set in the Pathfinder role-playing universe, in a very specific land with a distinct Arabian flavor. This made the novel both familiar enough to be accessible and differentiated enough to be interesting. Anyone who has enjoyed the DragonLance and/or Forgotten Realms novels from the Dungeons & Dragons universe will likely enjoy this a great deal.
Well, their promotional strategy was a definite success, as I really enjoyed this novel, and would definitely read another Pathfinder Tales novel -- especially another audiobook from the creative team of author James Sutter and narrator Ray Porter. Seriously, Porter's narration is among the best I've ever heard, and especially chilling when he's voicing angels and demons.
Speaking to this novel, it is set in the Pathfinder role-playing universe, in a very specific land with a distinct Arabian flavor. This made the novel both familiar enough to be accessible and differentiated enough to be interesting. Anyone who has enjoyed the DragonLance and/or Forgotten Realms novels from the Dungeons & Dragons universe will likely enjoy this a great deal.
paladintodd's review
1.0
The book gets three stars for being fairly rote fantasy. Nothing great, nothing awful about it. There is a problem with the main character in that he works for a church, but has a disregard for religion. We’re not told why this is. I suppose it’s supposed to make our hero, Salim, seem mysterious. For me, it just made him out to be a petulant snot. By the time we learn why, 3/4ths of the way through the book, I certainly didn’t care.
The book portrays itself as a mystery story, but there are no clues and we are eventually straight-out told whodunnit by an NPC. “You’re looking for the maltese falcon? Joe’s got it in his trunk.” Down to two stars.
The huge problem of the book though, earning it it’s one star rating, is the juvenile sexism throughout.
First up, the Bechdel test: There are only two major women in the book and they never talk. There are a couple minor women in the book: a naked nymph, a naked dryad, and serving women (not busboy, waiter, or servants - serving women).
The first of these women is a stunningly beautiful half-elf, former prostitute, and now the respected and desired owner of the town’s most esteemed brothel - how original. Her office is of course a bedroom, our hero sees many salacious sights on the way to speaking with her, and - after a mere 30 seconds of conversation - she offers herself to the hero for absolutely no reason whatsoever. She then disappears completely from the book.
The second woman in the book is our heroine, Neila, a stereotypical young, beautiful noblewoman - a facade of strength and resolve on the outside, but unsure and vulnerable on the inside (if only she had a man to help her out!). Not only does she pensively bite her lip, but our hero has to take her by the wrist and lead her out of danger as if she’s a dumb, panicked horse - not once, but twice. If only the author had had Neila faint at some point, he could have completed the helpless woman trifecta. He does give us this gem: “she would have overbalanced and fallen from the sudden vertigo if Salim hadn’t grabbed her hand to steady her” -- for a woman, the act of looking up at a tall tower requires the assistance of a man.
Or consider these lines:
“when he saw she didn’t understand, he sighed”
“Do you trust me?” (I don’t have to explain myself to you)
“without giving her the time for further questions”
“Just keep quiet and let me do the talking”
“Nobles had all sorts of manners, but never the ones that actually mattered”
“but surely the trial? … This time Salim couldn’t help it. He laughed once, hard and without humor.”
There’s nothing wrong with portraying a female as young, perhaps naive, and inexperienced. When the hero though treats this with disdain and open contempt, that’s sexist. Perhaps the author means to show Salim as an asshole? No, he’s the unflawed hero. The kicker for this is that Salim comes up with a plan to trade away Neila’s land to a bunch of fey to get their support. Does the man discuss with the woman if it’s OK to give away her property? Nope. He goes to fey and makes the offer directly to them without consulting her.
“her hair and blouse were damp with sweat and clung to her becomingly”
“she stretched out her legs, shapely in the traveling leathers that were just too fitted to be practical”
Nothing automatically egregious about those lines - it could be describing a building sexual tension, it could be two lines of many in a salacious book. In this book though, it’s neither of those. Those lines come out of nowhere early in the book, plop down on the page like wet turds, and lay there. They are a writer’s version of a construction worker’s wolf-whistle.
We’ve also got a lecherous satyr making frequent suggestions to the heroine, but never to the man. Salim, our hero, asks if Neila “would like to stay and enjoy the festivities?” in reference to an orgy.
So if you like a very vanilla fantasy story, with the answers to a mystery being spoon-fed to the reader, interspersed with frequently stopping and asking yourself “did the author really just say something that sexist?” -- then this book is for you.
The book portrays itself as a mystery story, but there are no clues and we are eventually straight-out told whodunnit by an NPC. “You’re looking for the maltese falcon? Joe’s got it in his trunk.” Down to two stars.
The huge problem of the book though, earning it it’s one star rating, is the juvenile sexism throughout.
First up, the Bechdel test: There are only two major women in the book and they never talk. There are a couple minor women in the book: a naked nymph, a naked dryad, and serving women (not busboy, waiter, or servants - serving women).
The first of these women is a stunningly beautiful half-elf, former prostitute, and now the respected and desired owner of the town’s most esteemed brothel - how original. Her office is of course a bedroom, our hero sees many salacious sights on the way to speaking with her, and - after a mere 30 seconds of conversation - she offers herself to the hero for absolutely no reason whatsoever. She then disappears completely from the book.
The second woman in the book is our heroine, Neila, a stereotypical young, beautiful noblewoman - a facade of strength and resolve on the outside, but unsure and vulnerable on the inside (if only she had a man to help her out!). Not only does she pensively bite her lip, but our hero has to take her by the wrist and lead her out of danger as if she’s a dumb, panicked horse - not once, but twice. If only the author had had Neila faint at some point, he could have completed the helpless woman trifecta. He does give us this gem: “she would have overbalanced and fallen from the sudden vertigo if Salim hadn’t grabbed her hand to steady her” -- for a woman, the act of looking up at a tall tower requires the assistance of a man.
Or consider these lines:
“when he saw she didn’t understand, he sighed”
“Do you trust me?” (I don’t have to explain myself to you)
“without giving her the time for further questions”
“Just keep quiet and let me do the talking”
“Nobles had all sorts of manners, but never the ones that actually mattered”
“but surely the trial? … This time Salim couldn’t help it. He laughed once, hard and without humor.”
There’s nothing wrong with portraying a female as young, perhaps naive, and inexperienced. When the hero though treats this with disdain and open contempt, that’s sexist. Perhaps the author means to show Salim as an asshole? No, he’s the unflawed hero. The kicker for this is that Salim comes up with a plan to trade away Neila’s land to a bunch of fey to get their support. Does the man discuss with the woman if it’s OK to give away her property? Nope. He goes to fey and makes the offer directly to them without consulting her.
“her hair and blouse were damp with sweat and clung to her becomingly”
“she stretched out her legs, shapely in the traveling leathers that were just too fitted to be practical”
Nothing automatically egregious about those lines - it could be describing a building sexual tension, it could be two lines of many in a salacious book. In this book though, it’s neither of those. Those lines come out of nowhere early in the book, plop down on the page like wet turds, and lay there. They are a writer’s version of a construction worker’s wolf-whistle.
We’ve also got a lecherous satyr making frequent suggestions to the heroine, but never to the man. Salim, our hero, asks if Neila “would like to stay and enjoy the festivities?” in reference to an orgy.
So if you like a very vanilla fantasy story, with the answers to a mystery being spoon-fed to the reader, interspersed with frequently stopping and asking yourself “did the author really just say something that sexist?” -- then this book is for you.
beholderess's review
adventurous
fast-paced
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, and Violence
anna_graham's review
adventurous
mysterious
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
This was a fun, adventurous novel set in the Pathfinder universe. It had an added bonus of being a murder mystery. I'm taking away 1 star purely for 1) the number of times I had to read the word groin and 2) the wholly unnecessary sexualization that kept creeping back into it, which is a common pitfall of this genre. Overall, a quick, easy, and enjoyable read!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide and Violence
Minor: Rape
peter_xxx's review
3.0
I imagine that the editor in chief of the pathfinders tales fiction line called James L. sutter in his office one day and told him:" we need a pathfinder tale that takes the readers on a tour across the planes of existence of Golarion." And James L sutter answered: " I have just the idea for a story like that. My roleplaygroup had an adventure that took us there. I'll make that into a novel."
And that is what this book feels like. It feels like a^pathfinder adventure where the gamemaster just bought a book about the planes and is eager to exploit them. And that is a good thing when you are reading pathfinder tie-in fiction. You want it to feel like a pathfinder adventure.
Death's heretic is a detective story with all the classic ingredients. A tough detective with a good heart and a dark past, a girl in trouble who turnes out to be stronger than she thinks, betrayal, romance and adventure. As an added bonus you get the wonders of other planes and the alien mindset of creatures living there.
I trully enjoyed it.
And that is what this book feels like. It feels like a^pathfinder adventure where the gamemaster just bought a book about the planes and is eager to exploit them. And that is a good thing when you are reading pathfinder tie-in fiction. You want it to feel like a pathfinder adventure.
Death's heretic is a detective story with all the classic ingredients. A tough detective with a good heart and a dark past, a girl in trouble who turnes out to be stronger than she thinks, betrayal, romance and adventure. As an added bonus you get the wonders of other planes and the alien mindset of creatures living there.
I trully enjoyed it.
old_man_niemand's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
librarydanielle's review against another edition
4.0
I really liked this one. it's full of theoretical questions and non answers phrased carefully as an adventure fantasy. the biggest questions it touches on, in addition to honor, fidelity, and faith, is death. as suggested in the title. we as humans fear death, and in this pathfinder novel one race has discovered a way to stave off death. with the sun flower elixir, a magical potion that reverts a person to youth giving them an opportunity for immortality. the elixir is up for grabs to the highest bidder, and in this case is won by a merchant who is immediately murdered for his prize and his soul held for ransom. salim, an unwilling servant of the goddess of death is sent to discover who is behind the abomination and deliver justice.