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booksbykai09's review
4.0
A short novella that packs a punch for any adventure seeking reader, Clark creates a unique world filled with goddesses, magical contracts, and deadly assassins.
This book is so unlike anything I have ever read before and I absolutely DEVOURED it in one sitting. Undead assassins, revenge plots, and one terrifying goddess of death is everything I needed to escape into this crazy world Clark has created.
An undead assassin is contracted to kill someone. Memories of her past brought up when she shouldn’t remember anything? I know! It was crazy and sounds confusing but the author does an excellent job of weaving this one of a kind tale together and wrapping it up with a pretty bow at the end. I’ll be honest I didn’t know what I was getting into when I started this book but it is ADDICTING!
Gut twistingly strange, adventurous, violent, and insane in all the best ways, this 200 paged book will have you flying through it wondering what will happen next as you try to solve the mystery behind the assassin.
This book is so unlike anything I have ever read before and I absolutely DEVOURED it in one sitting. Undead assassins, revenge plots, and one terrifying goddess of death is everything I needed to escape into this crazy world Clark has created.
An undead assassin is contracted to kill someone. Memories of her past brought up when she shouldn’t remember anything? I know! It was crazy and sounds confusing but the author does an excellent job of weaving this one of a kind tale together and wrapping it up with a pretty bow at the end. I’ll be honest I didn’t know what I was getting into when I started this book but it is ADDICTING!
Gut twistingly strange, adventurous, violent, and insane in all the best ways, this 200 paged book will have you flying through it wondering what will happen next as you try to solve the mystery behind the assassin.
lmct16's review
adventurous
dark
funny
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? It's complicated
4.75
Assassin rule # 942, read this book. Filled with murder, mystery, mayhem and more, Clark's latest offering may be short, but oh, is it sweet. With a few deft pen strokes the world of the Dead Cat Tail Assassins comes to life. Rich, like a tapestry, the world unfurls on the pages. Sights, sounds, and flavors mix with the hijinks of unforgettable characters like Eveen and her fellow undead. This was way to short a trip to this fantastic world, but well worth it.
Thanks to NetGalley and Tordotcom for an ecopy in exchange for an honest review.
Thanks to NetGalley and Tordotcom for an ecopy in exchange for an honest review.
kathrynwarring's review
adventurous
challenging
funny
inspiring
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? Yes
4.0
quinnthemeow's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
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
5.0
First of all, I would like to thank Tordotcom Publishing for giving me an advanced readers copy of The Dead Cat Tail Assassins by P. Djèlí Clark!
Incredibly atmospheric, I was emerged in the story by the first line! Dark, mysterious, with steampunk vibes, this world draws you in immediately!
Eveen is such an interesting character that leaves you guessing about who she is, who she was, why did she give up her life to be an undead assassin? She's witty, snarky, and loves to poke fun at other people.
Not to mention; she's an absolute badass. She can take on several armed guards easily! The fight scenes were insane, fast paced, and easy to visualize (which is something I tend to struggle with visualizing)
And then she sees her own face in her next victim.
The characters are super interesting and memorable. Fennis is a guy who works with Eveen, despite being alive, and is a foodie. I absolutely adore the banter between him and Eveen!
This book left me gasping from reveals and laughing from witty quips from the main character. The world is one of my favs at this point, I love how intricate it is, with its own stories and histories woven into it.
tangiblereads's review
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
4.0
Dead Cat Tail Assassins was a wild ride with the undead, gods, intricate world building and lots of violence. The insults and trash talk during the fights was so entertaining too. The book spends a lot of the ending going over the law, which reminded me of the nuances of legal interpretation in courtrooms. Can’t say I enjoyed that part. Overall an entertaining read that I liked, but didn’t love. #netgalleyARC
chantaal's review
3.5
P. Djèlí Clark has rapidly become an author I'm always interested in. He has a great imagination that centers black characters in fantasy, and I know he's always going to come up with some cool worldbuilding and character dynamics.
The Dead Cat Tail Assassins is a ton of fun, and takes place in a fantasy world that is so richly described and built. We follow our main character Eveen, who is not a cat nor does she have a tail, but she is dead and she is an assassin. After a job goes wrong and she suddenly has memories of a past life she's not supposed to remember at all, the plot kicks off.
As I've already said, the world building is grand. Clark really knows how to build a world up around a character as they move through it and interact with other characters within it. He's fantastic at showing, not telling, and it's fun to find out about this world as Eveen's story unfolds.
Though the world building is strong, there are other aspects of the novel that didn't work as well for me. This feels like a madcap sort of story; it moves along at a strong pace that is steady but also feels very rushed at times. Additionally, I wasn't a huge fan of the humor or tongue-in-cheek character work. I never really felt totally connected to all the characters, which was unfortunate because the story itself was interesting as it unfolded.
This is a pretty fun novel, in the end. I would highly recommend this for readers who love plot driven stories, and who are looking for a fun new fantasy world with fun characters to read about.
Thanks to NetGalley and Tordotcom for providing this ARC for review. The Dead Cat Tail Assassins just had its publish date pushed back to August 6, 2024.
The Dead Cat Tail Assassins is a ton of fun, and takes place in a fantasy world that is so richly described and built. We follow our main character Eveen, who is not a cat nor does she have a tail, but she is dead and she is an assassin. After a job goes wrong and she suddenly has memories of a past life she's not supposed to remember at all, the plot kicks off.
As I've already said, the world building is grand. Clark really knows how to build a world up around a character as they move through it and interact with other characters within it. He's fantastic at showing, not telling, and it's fun to find out about this world as Eveen's story unfolds.
Though the world building is strong, there are other aspects of the novel that didn't work as well for me. This feels like a madcap sort of story; it moves along at a strong pace that is steady but also feels very rushed at times. Additionally, I wasn't a huge fan of the humor or tongue-in-cheek character work. I never really felt totally connected to all the characters, which was unfortunate because the story itself was interesting as it unfolded.
This is a pretty fun novel, in the end. I would highly recommend this for readers who love plot driven stories, and who are looking for a fun new fantasy world with fun characters to read about.
Thanks to NetGalley and Tordotcom for providing this ARC for review. The Dead Cat Tail Assassins just had its publish date pushed back to August 6, 2024.
libertyreads789's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Before I get into the review, a quick thank you to both NetGalley and the publishers over at Tor allowing me access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review. The Dead Cat Tail Assassins are not cats, nor do they have tails. But they are assassins. This story follows Eveen whose job as an assassin is put at risk when she goes to kill her mark and has a memory--the one thing no Dead Cat Tail Assassin has ever had. The problem is that once a contract is accepted the assassin must complete the contract--or else. We follow Eveen as the sands in the hourglass fall, her time running out, while she tries to get to the bottom of this memory. Can Eveen complete her contract? Or will she be the one meeting the end of a dagger? The Dead Cat Tail Assassins comes out on August 6th and is available for preorder now.
I struggled when it came to the rating for this one. I don't love shorter works because it lacks in the details I really need to feel grounded in a story. Yet this was such a fun and compulsively readable novella. There are little touches here and there that can really ground the reader while also pushing the plot forward, always forward. I did have to fill in quite a few blanks on my own based on my reading history but that's sort of to be expected when you're reading a Fantasy story that is SO short. It says the final copy should be around 200 pages which is just so, so short for a Fantasy. (I've literally written a review for an almost 800 page Fantasy novel saying it should have been longer. I LOVE some chunky Fantasy.) Yet, I feel like I knew enough about the magic to understand what was happening throughout the story. I also felt like the characters felt realistic. I would have loved more from them but they still had enough good and bad qualities to seem well rounded. I will say that I guessed a component of the plot twist very early on. Possibly because of books I've read in the past, but most likely because of a tv show I'm currently watching that had a similar-ish twist. (If I even say the title of the tv show, you'll guess the plot twist so I won't spoil that for you.) I think this would be a great pick up for people who already really enjoy this author, but also for people who don't like getting bogged down in the details of most Fantasy novels. People who don't love Tolkein spending three pages describing a tree but who still want to enjoy Fantasy will probably have a good time with this one.
Overall, this was such a fun and quick read for me. I know that P. Djèlí Clark is a beloved author on the bookish parts of the internet so I felt so lucky to get this ARC. I would love to read more from them in the future.
luverbyrd's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Child death
chroniquesdekellen's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
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
4.75
Après une Égypte alternative, une Amérique envahie par les forces lovecraftienne ou une Nouvelle Orleans steampunk, P. Djeli Clark montre une nouvelle fois que son imagination est foisonnante.
Eveen à été ressuscitée sans aucun souvenir de sa vie pour servir dans sa non-mort en tant qu'assassin la déesse Aeril. Elle fait partie d'une guilde d'assassins très encadrée, sous contrats et aux règles rigides. Dont la première est de de voir toujours mener à bout leur contrat avant l'aube. Mais lorsque sa cible s'avère être quelqu'un qu'elle reconnaît alors que cela devrait être impossible, Eveen va devoir se lancer dans une course contre la montre pour comprendre l'impossible...
Un style toujours aussi impeccable, vibrant, et avec le génie linguistique habituels de P. Djeli Clark, Dead Cat Tail Assassins est un vrai régal. Nerveux et haletant, porté par des personnages originaux et majoritairement (si ce n'est uniquement) noirs, la novella est bourrée d'humour et réussi à maintenir un excellent équilibre entre mystère et action. Une excellente porte d'entrée pour découvrir P. Djeli Clark.
Eveen à été ressuscitée sans aucun souvenir de sa vie pour servir dans sa non-mort en tant qu'assassin la déesse Aeril. Elle fait partie d'une guilde d'assassins très encadrée, sous contrats et aux règles rigides. Dont la première est de de voir toujours mener à bout leur contrat avant l'aube. Mais lorsque sa cible s'avère être quelqu'un qu'elle reconnaît alors que cela devrait être impossible, Eveen va devoir se lancer dans une course contre la montre pour comprendre l'impossible...
Un style toujours aussi impeccable, vibrant, et avec le génie linguistique habituels de P. Djeli Clark, Dead Cat Tail Assassins est un vrai régal. Nerveux et haletant, porté par des personnages originaux et majoritairement (si ce n'est uniquement) noirs, la novella est bourrée d'humour et réussi à maintenir un excellent équilibre entre mystère et action. Une excellente porte d'entrée pour découvrir P. Djeli Clark.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Death, and Murder
Minor: Torture
christinegiroux's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thank you Netgalley and Tor/Forge for this E-ARC The Dead Cat Tail Assassions by P. Djeli Clark
4 ⭐
This is my second novella from this author and I was very intrigued but also nervous as I loved Ring Shout , I will say this did not disappoint.
I had such a fun time reading this, it was serious and kickass but also light and funny.
It was so short and fast to read because it's action pact.
The humor won't be for everyone but it worked for me and the main character is unlikable but also very reliable in many ways.
This book comes out August 2024 and I can't wait to have a physical copy on my shelves. That cover is 😍
4 ⭐
This is my second novella from this author and I was very intrigued but also nervous as I loved Ring Shout , I will say this did not disappoint.
I had such a fun time reading this, it was serious and kickass but also light and funny.
It was so short and fast to read because it's action pact.
The humor won't be for everyone but it worked for me and the main character is unlikable but also very reliable in many ways.
This book comes out August 2024 and I can't wait to have a physical copy on my shelves. That cover is 😍