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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
I really liked this short story; it provided some great context around the Darkling's backstory and his motivations.
Rating: 6 out of 10
A good novella overall, but loads more enjoyable if one knows this one thing going into it: this is not the entire Darkling backstory, just a very small piece of it. As a short story, it is nothing short of delightful, well-written and impactful for such few pages.
However, if you, like me, were actually expecting to see a more in-depth examination of the Darkling’s character and motives, you might be a little underwhelmed by this book. All in all, I think it’s fine taking into account it was written just as a companion to a special edition of Ruin and Rising, but as an ebook, it lacks the strength (and a little bit of length) to stand on its own.
A good novella overall, but loads more enjoyable if one knows this one thing going into it: this is not the entire Darkling backstory, just a very small piece of it. As a short story, it is nothing short of delightful, well-written and impactful for such few pages.
However, if you, like me, were actually expecting to see a more in-depth examination of the Darkling’s character and motives, you might be a little underwhelmed by this book. All in all, I think it’s fine taking into account it was written just as a companion to a special edition of Ruin and Rising, but as an ebook, it lacks the strength (and a little bit of length) to stand on its own.
With 'King of Scars' release approaching, I thought I should read the Shadow and Bone Trilogy. This is a Good start!
Ahhhh i was tricked by the kindle percentage, I thought this was longer!!! It was soooo good though, I want more. I'd read an entire prequel book about The Darkling.
10000000 x better than the first book, and I'm not even a Darkling stan. He's just actually interesting.
This story acts a prequel story to the Darkling, though since The Darkling has lived... many lives, it is more of an anecdote from his much longer life. This story chronicles The Darkling, under the guise of a young southern Ravkan boy named Eryk, and how he is attempting to live life as an 14-15 year old.
This story honestly did make me sympathize just a tiny bit with The Darkling, but mainly for the person he used to be before he became... what he became. This story was really fucking sad and I'm not going to pretend it wasn't. I like that this story specifically doesn't justify what he does, but it gives a sense of understanding as to why he is the way he is.
Overall, a really solid short story that I think should've been a part of the original Grisha trilogy. I still wouldn't have liked The Darkling, but I might've been able to understand him and his character a bit better.
This story honestly did make me sympathize just a tiny bit with The Darkling, but mainly for the person he used to be before he became... what he became. This story was really fucking sad and I'm not going to pretend it wasn't. I like that this story specifically doesn't justify what he does, but it gives a sense of understanding as to why he is the way he is.
Overall, a really solid short story that I think should've been a part of the original Grisha trilogy. I still wouldn't have liked The Darkling, but I might've been able to understand him and his character a bit better.