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naro173's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
El hecho de que sea corta y autoconclusiva es un respiro en el mar de novedades actuales; y las ilustraciones del libro son sencillamente preciosas.
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder
yourbookishbff's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Sexual content, War, Alcohol, Violence, and Grief
sn03's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Sexual content, Classism, Bullying, Death, Violence, Death of parent, and Abandonment
tamara_joy's review
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Grief, Death of parent, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Violence, and Alcohol
rat_girly's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Graphic: Death and Death of parent
Moderate: Blood, Emotional abuse, Animal death, Violence, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, and Infertility
Minor: Vomit
blacksphinx's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Violence, Sexual content, Death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide
Moderate: Dementia, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Animal death, and Mental illness
Minor: Xenophobia, Homophobia, Rape, and War
deedireads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
TL;DR REVIEW:
Spear is a gender-bent, queer, Arthurian/Percival retelling that’s rich, stunning, and timely. It’s especially good on audio. I’m so glad I read it!
For you if: You like fantasy retellings that feel a little more literary, kind of like The Silence of the Girls.
FULL REVIEW:
I’d never read Nicola Griffith before, but boy am I glad that Spear was shortlisted for the Ursula K. Le Guin Prize, because now I have and she is excellent. This novella is rich, stunning, and timely — and, bonus, it has a distinct but accessible literary feeling to it.
This novella is an Arthurian retelling focused on Percival, here rendered as Peretur. It’s also (wait for it) gender-bent and sapphic. Peretur was raised by her mother in a remote cave but soon leaves to seek her fate by disguising herself as a man, earning a name for herself, (making maidens swoon,) and joining the knights of the round table. But soon it becomes clear that there are mysteries to uncover and a quest to embark on when it comes to her own history and upbringing.
Gender-bent Arthurian retellings will always catch my eye, but what makes this book so stunning is Griffith’s prose. She leaves a distance between the text and the story to give you, the reader, plenty of space to exist in between. That makes this novella-length story feel not empty, but rich and full and literary (in fact, Tor published this book but they gave her an FSG editor, soooo if that doesn’t tell you everything you need to know!). Not a single phrase is wasted, and it’s not something to rush through but definitely something to get lost in. I think if you enjoyed the vibe in The Silence of the Girls, you might like this as well. (Also: genre is marketing!)
Finally, please do yourself a favor and listen to this one on audio (or tandem read print and audio, as I did). It lends itself beautifully to the form and Griffith herself narrates.
To Nicola Griffith’s backlist I go!
Graphic: Death of parent and Blood
Moderate: Animal death and Infertility
Minor: Rape
bluedilly's review
- 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? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Blood, Murder, Death, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Suicide, Infertility, and Violence
Minor: Sexual content, War, Kidnapping, Sexual assault, Torture, Animal cruelty, Classism, Grief, Mental illness, and Rape
madzie's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Perhaps my biggest gripe is that Griffith retells this legend from a queer perspective, and yet she is acephobic. This does not mean that Griffith had to include ace characters, but she should have ensured her language was inclusive. Unfortunately, this is not unusual for queer books. However, I think it speaks to a lack of development in her queer theme. You cannot write about accepting yourself and finding where you belong as a queer person while also noting only some queer people get that; that is contradictory.
Overall, I think this book was not for me (I prefer fantasy with a little more oomph, drama, and stakes). Perfect for someone who likes and is looking for an easy, plot-driven, and atmospheric fantasy.
Graphic: Violence, Acephobia/Arophobia, and Death
Moderate: Death of parent and Blood
Minor: Sexual assault, Infertility, Sexual content, and Animal death
chalkletters's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Nicola Griffith’s prose in Spear feels magical; every sentence is gorgeously written and yet completely clear. It’s never difficult to understand what’s happening or what characters’ motivations are. The few illustrations scattered throughout the novel are also lovely and otherworldly, just right for the kind of story being told. Peretur’s magic is never really explained, but her ability to sense particulars about things she touches or smells is expressed very lyrically.
It was fun to see the Welsh influence on the naming, as well as trying to puzzle out which characters mapped to which Arthurian counterparts. Nicola Griffith’s (excellent) author’s note highlighted the importance of showing characters from multiple class and national backgrounds, which played a particularly important role in Peretur coming from more humble origins.
Spear stands out from other novellas in being particularly well-paced. All the loose threads are neatly wrapped up, but Nicola Griffith gives that part of the story just as much time as the build-up, which makes it much more satisfying than a rushed job.
For me, Spear worked on every level, and I’ll definitely look out for more of Nicola Griffith’s work.
Moderate: Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Infertility, and Blood
Minor: Animal death