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3.97 AVERAGE
3.97 AVERAGE
This reminded me of a better written, more modern, and more realistic vision of the world Laurell K. Hamilton wrote about.
At first I was hesitant to get too far into this because it takes place in a near-future where things are even more shitty than they are now, and environmental disasters and the apocalyptic results that come from that are the norm. I really dislike that type of novel now that we live in pretty much the early stages of it.
Regardless, I persevered and I’m glad I did. I liked the characters and their conflicts. I liked the Native histories and culture.
I will read the sequels, because I want to find out what happens, but because of the too-close-to-home anxious feelings the world caused me, I’ll put them lower on my to-read list so I can build up my mental walls.
At first I was hesitant to get too far into this because it takes place in a near-future where things are even more shitty than they are now, and environmental disasters and the apocalyptic results that come from that are the norm. I really dislike that type of novel now that we live in pretty much the early stages of it.
Regardless, I persevered and I’m glad I did. I liked the characters and their conflicts. I liked the Native histories and culture.
I will read the sequels, because I want to find out what happens, but because of the too-close-to-home anxious feelings the world caused me, I’ll put them lower on my to-read list so I can build up my mental walls.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I think the final battle was a little short for my liking, and the reveal of the villain could have been handled better (maybe with more detail or a better explanation of his motives). But I was kept in suspense as to the identity of the witch and enjoyed the world that I was reading about.
I plan to read the sequel.
I plan to read the sequel.
I enjoyed this one. It was paced well and I was invested in the characters. The ending was a little confusing though. I'm not entirely sure why Neizghání had to be bound to the ground. He ultimately wasn't the bad guy, so was it revenge?
LOVED this book. It reminds me a lot of Patricia Briggs' werewolf series, but better. (Sorry) There's a lot of similar themes of belonging to a pack/tribe vs being an outsider, as well as the animal/human characteristic sharing you see in most werewolf novels (men with wolf traits being the obvious). I say this series is better because it's much broader while still being entirely cohesive - instead of generic werewolf/other monsters, everything follows Navajo/Dine lore. This means an entirely new set of powers, creatures, and Gods from what I've read before. The grounding in real lore also gave the books a level of realism fantasy often lacks, or tries to obtain by being too dark and gritty. This book deals with heavy themes without being too gory or explicit, which I appreciated.
Was a 3/10 for the first half ("don't want to keep going"), ended on a grudging 6/10. It was so BLEAK and idk I just wasn't expecting that. I am interested to see where the series/story goes and will probably come back to it. was far more interested in the world-building and history and the secondary characters than I was in the main character.
Book Club Selection:
It was good enough to read the next one.
It was good enough to read the next one.
A pretty standard urban fantasy filling inside a Navajo Nation shell.
The main character is a hard bad-ass. Her maybe potential romantic interest comes across as soft in comparison. Navajo mythology is woven through the plot, along with Navajo words. I did not find the characters or the plot particularly compelling, and I'm not a fan of the "gods come to life and mingle with humans" trope.
One troubling thing about this book is that the author is Native American but not a member of the Navajo Nation. She gets a lot of positive praise for being an own voices diverse writer, but in fact some members of the Navajo Nation feel she has engaged in cultural appropriation by using their culture instead of her own.
Anyway, I am not likely to go on to book two.
I chose this for my sf-fantasy book club. It will be interesting to see how the discussion goes!
The main character is a hard bad-ass. Her maybe potential romantic interest comes across as soft in comparison. Navajo mythology is woven through the plot, along with Navajo words. I did not find the characters or the plot particularly compelling, and I'm not a fan of the "gods come to life and mingle with humans" trope.
One troubling thing about this book is that the author is Native American but not a member of the Navajo Nation. She gets a lot of positive praise for being an own voices diverse writer, but in fact some members of the Navajo Nation feel she has engaged in cultural appropriation by using their culture instead of her own.
Anyway, I am not likely to go on to book two.
I chose this for my sf-fantasy book club. It will be interesting to see how the discussion goes!
Enjoyable world building
Rebecca Roanhorse has created an entertaining post-apocalyptic Navaho world with very unique kinds of magic. I enjoyed the story with all its twists and turns. I’ll probably checkout the next book in the series.
Rebecca Roanhorse has created an entertaining post-apocalyptic Navaho world with very unique kinds of magic. I enjoyed the story with all its twists and turns. I’ll probably checkout the next book in the series.
it's a 3.5
I was very much intrigued by the setting and interested to read the book but, maybe I am not in right mood for it, it did not capture me really. No outstanding characters and no real rhythm to the book to keep me hooked. Hopefully the next books will be more to my taste, ast the setting is very original
I was very much intrigued by the setting and interested to read the book but, maybe I am not in right mood for it, it did not capture me really. No outstanding characters and no real rhythm to the book to keep me hooked. Hopefully the next books will be more to my taste, ast the setting is very original