Scan barcode
bridge_enginerd's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
tense
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? No
4.0
It was the romance that made me like Seraphina, but it was the friendships that shone in this sequel.
lesserjoke's review against another edition
3.0
I adored Rachel Hartman's earlier novel Seraphina, and this sequel coasts by on a lot of borrowed good will from that. Unfortunately, Hartman has jettisoned the parts of Seraphina that I found most engaging (namely the cultural differences between humans and dragons, her heroine's secret status as a mixed child of both species, and the ensuing court intrigue and interpersonal drama) and built this next book largely around the parts that I liked the least (namely the magical mental powers of her characters and the protagonist's quest to find people from her dreams).
The ensuing book is fine if a little aimless -- and I do appreciate the added diversity of characters -- but it's a disappointing follow-up to the wonder of Seraphina.
The ensuing book is fine if a little aimless -- and I do appreciate the added diversity of characters -- but it's a disappointing follow-up to the wonder of Seraphina.
carissatheluca's review against another edition
4.0
I wish I could say what I want to: that Shadow Scale is a fantastic sequel, a beautifully written book, and explores new corners of Seraphina’s delightful world. This is all true.
However, I have never had to force myself through a book I’m enjoying like this one. The main conflict, the crux of the book, was so stupidly obvious that I regularly found myself poised to throw the book at a wall. For a protagonist that began her story as clever and ended the first half as a growing, more confident woman… she sure did backslide all the way into muck. Sure, Seraphina was in over her head. Does that mean she has to be a moron to boot? Was it really so easy for her to ignore the personal growth we’d just witnessed?
Perhaps I could understand a backslide like this in real life, but in fiction it made whole swaths of the book nearly unbearable. I can deal with second-hand embarrassment. I cannot deal with characters who regularly make stupid, nonsensical decisions and fail to see the most obvious fucking answer to their problem for 558/587 pages. Where’s the satisfaction in a story that ends the moment a character actually owns her own life? Why was the final conflict so disgustingly rushed after edging me through a thicker book than it ought to have been?
As beautiful as Hartman’s prose is, and as nostalgic as Seraphina is for me, I resent her. Her characters are wonderful. I loved them each so dearly that I actually bothered memorizing the ten thousand important ones tossed around despite how god-awfully mouthy Hartman’s made up names and languages are. All that aside, I can’t forgive her for making me hate Seraphina.
I could live with it if she just weren’t so STUPID!!!
However, I have never had to force myself through a book I’m enjoying like this one. The main conflict, the crux of the book, was so stupidly obvious that I regularly found myself poised to throw the book at a wall. For a protagonist that began her story as clever and ended the first half as a growing, more confident woman… she sure did backslide all the way into muck. Sure, Seraphina was in over her head. Does that mean she has to be a moron to boot? Was it really so easy for her to ignore the personal growth we’d just witnessed?
Perhaps I could understand a backslide like this in real life, but in fiction it made whole swaths of the book nearly unbearable. I can deal with second-hand embarrassment. I cannot deal with characters who regularly make stupid, nonsensical decisions and fail to see the most obvious fucking answer to their problem for 558/587 pages. Where’s the satisfaction in a story that ends the moment a character actually owns her own life? Why was the final conflict so disgustingly rushed after edging me through a thicker book than it ought to have been?
As beautiful as Hartman’s prose is, and as nostalgic as Seraphina is for me, I resent her. Her characters are wonderful. I loved them each so dearly that I actually bothered memorizing the ten thousand important ones tossed around despite how god-awfully mouthy Hartman’s made up names and languages are. All that aside, I can’t forgive her for making me hate Seraphina.
I could live with it if she just weren’t so STUPID!!!
superseashell's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
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
shinysquares's review against another edition
4.0
I can’t even remember the plot but YES for representation!!
tjwallace04's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
smorkin's review against another edition
5.0
Why am I giving this 5 stars when I "only" gave 4 starts to the first book?
Well, it isn't because the book is better per se; it's just that I now see clearer why I like these books so much. Apart from the prose itself (very good) and the story (also very good), the books have some unusual qualities which were not clear to me earlier:
- The theme of how different beings can be, but still somewhere underneath being similar, is an obvious theme, but I marveled how Hartman managed to get this across in different ways. It's been a long time since I've truly been surprised so many times by a book; all small surprises, i.e. not surprises which have a big impact on the story, but surprises nonetheless. If you excuse a trite comparison, it sometimes reminded me of the best parts of "Frozen", when you realize the genre is actually being subverted without this being a big deal.
- A detail, but one close to my heart: The intellectual happiness of Comonot when he realizes that emotion and intellect can come to the same conclusions, despite their big differences. For example, I believe you can, using reason, arrive at empathy in a similar way as you can by feeling, but it isn't exactly something which you read bout a lot, but here you do.
- Overall, the personalities are fantastic: Varied, funny, irritating, stimulating, often all at the same time. No good/bad dichotomies, or silly stuff like that.
Strongly recommended to everyone (yes, it is formally a YA novel about dragons, but so what?)!
Well, it isn't because the book is better per se; it's just that I now see clearer why I like these books so much. Apart from the prose itself (very good) and the story (also very good), the books have some unusual qualities which were not clear to me earlier:
- The theme of how different beings can be, but still somewhere underneath being similar, is an obvious theme, but I marveled how Hartman managed to get this across in different ways. It's been a long time since I've truly been surprised so many times by a book; all small surprises, i.e. not surprises which have a big impact on the story, but surprises nonetheless. If you excuse a trite comparison, it sometimes reminded me of the best parts of "Frozen", when you realize the genre is actually being subverted without this being a big deal.
- A detail, but one close to my heart: The intellectual happiness of Comonot when he realizes that emotion and intellect can come to the same conclusions, despite their big differences. For example, I believe you can, using reason, arrive at empathy in a similar way as you can by feeling, but it isn't exactly something which you read bout a lot, but here you do.
- Overall, the personalities are fantastic: Varied, funny, irritating, stimulating, often all at the same time. No good/bad dichotomies, or silly stuff like that.
Strongly recommended to everyone (yes, it is formally a YA novel about dragons, but so what?)!
jgelmini's review against another edition
4.0
Not as good as Seraphina but I still really enjoyed it. Great pacing for a long book.
peytonm's review against another edition
4.0
I greatly enjoyed this book. Abdo continued to be wonderful, and I loved meeting all of the half-dragons as well as the travel adventures. The villain was great, and learning the truth behind the Saints resolved the mystery well. Grisselda deserves her own love story though! I can't wait to read more from this author.
Spoiler: In one smooth move, Grisselda became my favorite character of this series. Good work, Rachel Hartman! Surprise lesbians are THE BEST.
Spoiler: In one smooth move, Grisselda became my favorite character of this series. Good work, Rachel Hartman! Surprise lesbians are THE BEST.