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nightstitch96's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- 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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Body horror, and Violence
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Gun violence
Minor: Animal cruelty and Suicide
daffodilcherry's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I really enjoyed this queer, Māori, solarpunk sci-fi & fantasy adventure. As a sci-fi with fantasy elements, this book would be a good bridge for anyone looking to move into either genre from the other. I've had this book on my TBR for ages, but always found it difficult to start, partially because the first chapter is more of a prologue with a POV we don't see again. But the narrator, Anna Coddington, absolutely blew me away and heightened my enjoyment of this series with her New Zealand accent. I love an audiobook I try to listen to as much as possible. I loved the kiwi-isms as well, which gave the worldbuilding a refreshing twist.
My one gripe with the book is that the action and plot is a little choppy due to its pace. This might be exasperated by reading this book as an audiobook. My only wish was that Stronach took a little more time to flesh out the world and to let the action happen over a longer period of time, the book's timeline takes over the place of a week (emphasised in the final chapters) which just jam packs all of the action. Maybe pacing the book over a month would have helped with the choppy feeling, if not for this aspect this book would have been a total 5 stars.
Wheelhouses: queer main character (bisexual woman) who actively has sexual attraction for other ladies, complex and complicated main character, main character development arc, homophobia that is actually woven into the worldbuilding as opposed to being the assumed normal (not that I like homophobia), cop characterwho has to reckon with that ACAB , ACAB, fantasy/sci-fi that tackles systemic oppression issues, pirates!!!!, gay lady pirates!!!!, mushroom based horror elements.
My one gripe with the book is that the action and plot is a little choppy due to its pace. This might be exasperated by reading this book as an audiobook. My only wish was that Stronach took a little more time to flesh out the world and to let the action happen over a longer period of time, the book's timeline takes over the place of a week (emphasised in the final chapters) which just jam packs all of the action. Maybe pacing the book over a month would have helped with the choppy feeling, if not for this aspect this book would have been a total 5 stars.
Wheelhouses: queer main character (bisexual woman) who actively has sexual attraction for other ladies, complex and complicated main character, main character development arc, homophobia that is actually woven into the worldbuilding as opposed to being the assumed normal (not that I like homophobia), cop character
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Biphobia, Drug use, Homophobia, Violence, and Lesbophobia
sophiesmallhands's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Gun violence, Death, Police brutality, and Body horror
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Classism, Sexual content, Vomit, Sexism, Lesbophobia, Blood, and Misogyny
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Outing, War, Alcohol, Addiction, Forced institutionalization, Drug use, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Pregnancy, and Grief
coatpocketcreature's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror and Violence
catsandbookspluspup's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Lesbophobia, Gun violence, Body horror, Homophobia, Biphobia, and Violence
bibliomania_express's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The Dawnhounds by Sascha Stronach mixes fantasy, murder, political intrigue, and mythology to create a unique world.
This book sucked me in, confused me, intrigued me, and made me keep reading. Yat is a bisexual constable living in a world where any queerness is punished. She is demoted and drugging herself to dull the pain and protect herself from her own memories. Then she ends up stumbling upon a sinister plot, murdered, resurrected by a god, and given new powers to see and interact with life threads. But there's still that sinister, government corrupting, spore-wielding plot to stop, so she doesn't have much time to figure anything out.
At times I found myself confused by exactly what was happening. The narration became purposefully disjointed, with snippets of dialogue breaking in. This was something Yat was experiencing, but since it was so hard to know what was happening, it pulled me out of the story.
I did like that the narrative moved betwern Yat and Sen, with a bit from Ajet and Sibbi to give some of the broader scope. There are also some direct-to-reader style chapters from one of the gods, which were intriguing but also mystifying. This book explores systems of power, corruption, sexism, homophobia, religious zealotry, police brutality, poverty, and what it means to be a hero. It's not subtle about its themes, but it weaves them together well.
I do wish there had been a bit more of Yat and Sen working together, and a bit more of the worldbuilding, especially the religion/magic system, explained up front. A lot of the book rushes along at a breakneck pace, so that coupled with the narrative style made it hard to absorb all the worldbuilding.
The setting, however, was fantastic. I loved the whole botanical engineering aspect, and how it tied into the Weaving magic and the dangerous spores.
This book sucked me in, confused me, intrigued me, and made me keep reading. Yat is a bisexual constable living in a world where any queerness is punished. She is demoted and drugging herself to dull the pain and protect herself from her own memories. Then she ends up stumbling upon a sinister plot, murdered, resurrected by a god, and given new powers to see and interact with life threads. But there's still that sinister, government corrupting, spore-wielding plot to stop, so she doesn't have much time to figure anything out.
At times I found myself confused by exactly what was happening. The narration became purposefully disjointed, with snippets of dialogue breaking in. This was something Yat was experiencing, but since it was so hard to know what was happening, it pulled me out of the story.
I did like that the narrative moved betwern Yat and Sen, with a bit from Ajet and Sibbi to give some of the broader scope. There are also some direct-to-reader style chapters from one of the gods, which were intriguing but also mystifying. This book explores systems of power, corruption, sexism, homophobia, religious zealotry, police brutality, poverty, and what it means to be a hero. It's not subtle about its themes, but it weaves them together well.
I do wish there had been a bit more of Yat and Sen working together, and a bit more of the worldbuilding, especially the religion/magic system, explained up front. A lot of the book rushes along at a breakneck pace, so that coupled with the narrative style made it hard to absorb all the worldbuilding.
The setting, however, was fantastic. I loved the whole botanical engineering aspect, and how it tied into the Weaving magic and the dangerous spores.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Classism, Violence, Gaslighting, Drug use, Addiction, War, Xenophobia, Pandemic/Epidemic, Slavery, and Police brutality
Moderate: Child death, Bullying, Religious bigotry, Transphobia, Blood, Animal death, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, and Biphobia
Minor: Sexual harassment, Ableism, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and Self harm
nelldiaz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
fast-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
I loved the world of this book. I loved the nods to te ao Māori and other cultures. Yat starts of unsure of her place in the world and grows to be... well, a taniwha. The action was great, I could see this being an anime. The characters all had great personalities and the villans were a real threat. Can't wait to read the next one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Violence, Gun violence, Homophobia, Biphobia, and War
Moderate: Drug use and Sexual content
Minor: Animal death and Self harm
rosyapple's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, and Homophobia
Moderate: War
Minor: Blood
onegalonelife27's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
- 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
Now this is a different book than my usual taste, but I was intrigued by the premise of bio-based technology and someone coming back to life.
Yat is an former street kid turn officer, trying to help make her town a better place yet finds herself demoted for “life style choices” aka being bisexual when the head religion says no to that-bleh. However, encountering a dead body and two strange officers leads to her death and subsequent resurrection with new magical powers. Now Yat finds herself involved with pirates, ancient gods, and a conspiracy that may just lead to the destruction of her home.
The characters are all intriguing and combined with the interesting world building make for a more surreal mystery that keeps you going. I was satisfied with the end and intrigued by the epilouge given, making me eager to see how the rest of the series goes.
I do have to admit, there were some parts of the plot I’m not sure were necessary since they didn’t really move Yat’s story along. However, given that this is actually part a series, it might be setting up for things to come. I also had a bit of a hard time keeping track of the countries/factions mentioned in the series and one reveal felt a bit off since it contradicted something said earlier and there’s no information to explain the contradiction.
Also somehow I managed to read two books about corrupt police departments in the same week. Funny how that happens.
Yat is an former street kid turn officer, trying to help make her town a better place yet finds herself demoted for “life style choices” aka being bisexual when the head religion says no to that-bleh. However, encountering a dead body and two strange officers leads to her death and subsequent resurrection with new magical powers. Now Yat finds herself involved with pirates, ancient gods, and a conspiracy that may just lead to the destruction of her home.
The characters are all intriguing and combined with the interesting world building make for a more surreal mystery that keeps you going. I was satisfied with the end and intrigued by the epilouge given, making me eager to see how the rest of the series goes.
I do have to admit, there were some parts of the plot I’m not sure were necessary since they didn’t really move Yat’s story along. However, given that this is actually part a series, it might be setting up for things to come. I also had a bit of a hard time keeping track of the countries/factions mentioned in the series and one reveal felt a bit off since it contradicted something said earlier and there’s no information to explain the contradiction.
Also somehow I managed to read two books about corrupt police departments in the same week. Funny how that happens.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Police brutality, Body horror, War, and Biphobia
Moderate: Gun violence, Transphobia, Violence, and Death
Minor: Death of parent and Religious bigotry
hobbithopeful's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
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
5.0
A truly outstanding and stand out biopunk queer read, The Dawnhounds has some of the best worldbuilding I've ever seen, diverse characters, and a story that will make you cry one page and feel hopeful the next.
It's a toss-up between what I love more, the eclectic characters, or the world they live in. Wajet is my favorite character in this, I don't care that Yat didn't like him he's so damn charming. The whole premise of using plant life to live and build instead of steel or other materials is so fascinating. The mushroom houses are alive and feed off the sweat and dead skin cells of their inhabitants. My mind is just blown thinking about it.
The whole concept of immortality and losing yourself bit by bit is a trope I want to read more of. It is so well done in The Dawnhounds. The different Gods and myths meddling, there is so much symbolism and foreshadowing I want to reread it again to see what I missed.
Stronach's writing feels almost dreamlike and ethereal in certain moments. It's not so much you feel like you are transported into the world, but more so as different characters lose their minds you feel just as lost and trapped too. It is truly a book with so much heart and hope, no matter how tough it gets and how dire the situation seems, Yat never gives up.
There's also a cat in this book, so that's such a bonus.
This is a rare moment where I feel like the blurb didn't do the book justice at all. It is quite a dark and heavy book, I wish it mentioned that. (Also it's just freaking fantastic!) Yat is a drug addict, and has lost faith in literally everything, she is just basically on autopilot.
The inclusion of so many powerful queer characters is one of my favorite parts of this, called a "degeneracy" by so many, it is just so emotional. It's not often I see bisexuality depicted as well as Stronach does here.
I almost wish I had read the audiobook instead, only because I felt like I was butchering so many words in my head because I didn't know how to pronounce anything.
This is definitely not a shut-your-brain-off-and-read book. If anything with science fiction books like this you really have to pay attention to what's going on otherwise you'll get lost in descriptions, names, and people. I also put off reading this because Yat is a cop, and I was nervous it was going to be copaganda. I wish I had read it sooner.
Check your tws! There is a LOT of body horror, gore, blood, death, drugs, corruption, and homophobia!
I have so many theories for the next book! I need to discuss this for hours just to share all my theories, questions, and love for it.
I absolutely 10000% recommend this book, perfect for people who loves books you can sink your teeth into! I can't wait for the sequel to come out next year! MOSTLY BECAUSE I WANT TO MEET WAJET'SHUSBAND!
I actually like this cover better than some of the other editions. It is really cool to see what the houses look like, and it gives it such a great otherworldly scifi vibe.
It's a toss-up between what I love more, the eclectic characters, or the world they live in. Wajet is my favorite character in this, I don't care that Yat didn't like him he's so damn charming. The whole premise of using plant life to live and build instead of steel or other materials is so fascinating. The mushroom houses are alive and feed off the sweat and dead skin cells of their inhabitants. My mind is just blown thinking about it.
The whole concept of immortality and losing yourself bit by bit is a trope I want to read more of. It is so well done in The Dawnhounds. The different Gods and myths meddling, there is so much symbolism and foreshadowing I want to reread it again to see what I missed.
Stronach's writing feels almost dreamlike and ethereal in certain moments. It's not so much you feel like you are transported into the world, but more so as different characters lose their minds you feel just as lost and trapped too. It is truly a book with so much heart and hope, no matter how tough it gets and how dire the situation seems, Yat never gives up.
There's also a cat in this book, so that's such a bonus.
This is a rare moment where I feel like the blurb didn't do the book justice at all. It is quite a dark and heavy book, I wish it mentioned that. (Also it's just freaking fantastic!) Yat is a drug addict, and has lost faith in literally everything, she is just basically on autopilot.
The inclusion of so many powerful queer characters is one of my favorite parts of this, called a "degeneracy" by so many, it is just so emotional. It's not often I see bisexuality depicted as well as Stronach does here.
I almost wish I had read the audiobook instead, only because I felt like I was butchering so many words in my head because I didn't know how to pronounce anything.
This is definitely not a shut-your-brain-off-and-read book. If anything with science fiction books like this you really have to pay attention to what's going on otherwise you'll get lost in descriptions, names, and people. I also put off reading this because Yat is a cop, and I was nervous it was going to be copaganda. I wish I had read it sooner.
Check your tws! There is a LOT of body horror, gore, blood, death, drugs, corruption, and homophobia!
I have so many theories for the next book! I need to discuss this for hours just to share all my theories, questions, and love for it.
I absolutely 10000% recommend this book, perfect for people who loves books you can sink your teeth into! I can't wait for the sequel to come out next year! MOSTLY BECAUSE I WANT TO MEET WAJET'S
I actually like this cover better than some of the other editions. It is really cool to see what the houses look like, and it gives it such a great otherworldly scifi vibe.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Vomit, Stalking, Gaslighting, Death, Classism, Animal cruelty, Blood, Bullying, Drug use, Body horror, Violence, Murder, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Drug abuse, Cursing, Grief, Alcohol, Biphobia, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Sexism, Medical content, and Gore
Minor: Death of parent