Reviews

I really liked the idea of this book -- a resetting and re-imagining of early Chinese empire power struggles, told as a story between two friends who later become bitter enemies. As you might imagine, there are a lot of names to juggle, although a cast of characters at the beginning helps figure things out.

The story shifts between three levels: the main protagonists and their families and allies, a pair of brothers who end up fighting for each, and the gods who attempt to manipulate the course of events. The first group was of most interest to me as a reader. The brothers and the gods, ultimately, didn't seem necessary.

Liu writes really well about intrigue and trust, and about power and the various ways it can be wielded. But there are so many battles that are described in a mere paragraph or two that I felt the plot was being pushed a long by a series of "and then this happened, and then that happened." Too much was crammed into one book, I think.

Not sure how I feel about it overall. I'm intrigued enough to want to read further ones in the series.

littlelynn's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.5

I got to the end of this through some combination of sunk cost fallacy and sheer bloody-mindedness.

My main complaint is that it was boring, I was bored. This is mostly due to the style of writing, an awful lot happens, empires are toppled and built and toppled again, alliances are forged and betrayed and forged over and over again, and through all of that, I didn't feel like I got to know a single character in a meaningful way.

I know a lot about Kuni, and I know a lot about Mata, but I don't think I have a single emotion towards either, except maybe annoyance. I heard about what they were doing, it was never shown to me, I never got to witness it through actions or conversations. I'd be told about a thing that happened and then essentially told how to feel about it as well. And then we'd move on. What's more, very little of what we're shown actually makes anyone likable, spoilers for why:

Mata is a horrible brute who believes the physically strong have a right to do what they like with the physically weak, Kuni starts well but eventually becomes an irritating adulterer who doesnt seem to give a single solitary toss about his children most of the time.

What dialogue there was felt over manufactured and wooden. I'd come out of passages of dialogue and my only real thought would be 'no one speaks like that' - it was more telling you what to think, rather than showing you two characters conversing and letting you make up your own mind.

I could write an entire essay on the women in the book. It takes hundreds of pages for any female characters to become remotely prominent - or frankly important to the story in the slightest. If I'm being generous then I feel like the author's heart was in the right place, but at the end of the day to me the female characters came over as flat and falling into stereotypes. I found one part particularly ironic as a female character bemoaned that she was so much more than a pretty face, while we were constantly reminded that she was absolutely beautiful and her entire storyline (which barely lastes 40 pages iirc) relies on her being so pretty she can play two men who had previously been unfailing loyal to each other off against each other (that old chestnut).

Another gripe: a huge portion of this book feels like it should be politicking, but plans are revealed to you immediately, conceived, carried out, and moved on from usually in less than five pages.

I guess mostly it boils down to endless telling and very little showing.

The worldbuilding owes what was intricate to history, and the rest felt slapdash. Also, if you're going to give me a bunch of warring states...600 pages should be enough to make me a) remember their names and b) be able to tell them apart. And I honestly could not.

I've no idea how this series has the popularity it does, my honest advice is to take the plunge and go read Malazan instead. Or, if you like history retellings with a fantasy twist, then Guy Gavriel Kay cannot be matched.

rufussnailhat's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous inspiring lighthearted 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? Yes

3.5

More...