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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
OH my gosh I absolutely devoured this novel. An incredible read which once again reminded me of why I love political fantasy, plus a focus on platonic relationships and NO ROMANCE (well, I thought there was the tiniest little hint of a possible romance which I really wished hadn't been added). The characters, layers of plot, action scenes, etc. were simply fantastic and I genuinely could not stop reading - the creativity of when writing about the magical creatures/sun-cursed beasts was perhaps one of my favourite aspects of the book. I have to applaud the author for the characters of Master Dothilos and Desil, who were both so well written. Also, I loved the humour, which was subtle and appropriately timed, plus the side characters were enjoyable to read about.
More so than The Witcher (which I've never seen) or Squid Games (which I have), I would have compared this book to She Who Became The Sun for the overall vibe (quote: "Hope in times of happiness isn't hope - it's expectation."), and also because both protagonists were ambitious, relying heavily on wits and street smarts to succeed.
If I had one gripe about this book it would be that a lot was crammed in and it could've been a duology instead. Anyways a stunning debut and I was definitely the target audience.
Thank you to NetGalley and Solaris for providing a copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own.
More so than The Witcher (which I've never seen) or Squid Games (which I have), I would have compared this book to She Who Became The Sun for the overall vibe (quote: "Hope in times of happiness isn't hope - it's expectation."), and also because both protagonists were ambitious, relying heavily on wits and street smarts to succeed.
If I had one gripe about this book it would be that a lot was crammed in and it could've been a duology instead. Anyways a stunning debut and I was definitely the target audience.
Thank you to NetGalley and Solaris for providing a copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own.
Like most of the population of Southern Setgad, Lythlet is very poor and, with her friend Desil, she has to figure out a way to pay a debt that her meager salary cannot cover. Things only worsen when she has to leave her job as a bookkeeper after her employer turns violent - like many others before him.
Then, Lythlet finds a handbill promising a quick way to gain riches: conquessoring, a bloodsport which involves battling sun-cursed beasts and betting spectators. With Desil's prior experience as a brawler and Lythlet's skills with spears, they are convinced this could be the way to free themselves of the debt and make their dreams of a better life a reality.
As they successfully win their battles, Lythlet finds herself entangled in the political intrigues of Setgad and Desil finds himself at odds with the religious vows of peace he made after quitting brawling.
This book left me with really mixed feelings.
On one hand, I really enjoyed the worldbuilding and the political awareness woven throughout. A lot of Setgad's social structures mirror that of our real world and it was nice to have the characters being aware of and calling out the injustices and violence brought on by capitalism. Through Desil, we also have an interesting exploration of his relationship to religion in a context that often has him acting against the principles he believes in.
On the other hand, though I was really interested in these aspects of the book, I felt like they really fell short of my expectations.
The worldbuilding is very dense and yet never really developed. I spent a lot of time trying to really understand it and in the end, it wasn't as relevant as I'd thought it would be. Same thing with the religious system. The political aspect, though I appreciate its' being explicitly acknowledged by the characters, sometimes felt a little too on the nose.
This might be the aspect I'm most torn about because I really appreciate the way this book approaches those topics. In a world where fiction, and especially fantasy as a genre, is often mistakenly thought to be for entertainment or escapism only, this book is a reminder of how fiction is also a way to bring awareness about real social topics and can lead to reflection about them. I just feel like it would've been more impactful if some things had been less spelled out and left to the reader to reflect upon.
The plot itself, while it is fairly eventful, drags a lot in the middle which also impacted my interest in the book. There was a bit too much running in circles in between the battles and Dothilos's "lessons" for a while, and the dialogues being long-winded added to the impression of unnecessary slow-ness. The characters, while interesting, often felt flat, not because they are flat per se but I think they were just "drowned" by the complexity and heaviness of all the other aspects of the book.
In the end, I feel like this book still has its' audience, it is just unfortunately not me (though with a bit more editing I would've liked it more, much more). With that being said, I still feel like it is a debut that shows great ability to build interesting, complex intrigues, worlds and characters. I'll be looking forward to what the author comes up with next.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC.
Then, Lythlet finds a handbill promising a quick way to gain riches: conquessoring, a bloodsport which involves battling sun-cursed beasts and betting spectators. With Desil's prior experience as a brawler and Lythlet's skills with spears, they are convinced this could be the way to free themselves of the debt and make their dreams of a better life a reality.
As they successfully win their battles, Lythlet finds herself entangled in the political intrigues of Setgad and Desil finds himself at odds with the religious vows of peace he made after quitting brawling.
This book left me with really mixed feelings.
On one hand, I really enjoyed the worldbuilding and the political awareness woven throughout. A lot of Setgad's social structures mirror that of our real world and it was nice to have the characters being aware of and calling out the injustices and violence brought on by capitalism. Through Desil, we also have an interesting exploration of his relationship to religion in a context that often has him acting against the principles he believes in.
On the other hand, though I was really interested in these aspects of the book, I felt like they really fell short of my expectations.
The worldbuilding is very dense and yet never really developed. I spent a lot of time trying to really understand it and in the end, it wasn't as relevant as I'd thought it would be. Same thing with the religious system. The political aspect, though I appreciate its' being explicitly acknowledged by the characters, sometimes felt a little too on the nose.
This might be the aspect I'm most torn about because I really appreciate the way this book approaches those topics. In a world where fiction, and especially fantasy as a genre, is often mistakenly thought to be for entertainment or escapism only, this book is a reminder of how fiction is also a way to bring awareness about real social topics and can lead to reflection about them. I just feel like it would've been more impactful if some things had been less spelled out and left to the reader to reflect upon.
The plot itself, while it is fairly eventful, drags a lot in the middle which also impacted my interest in the book. There was a bit too much running in circles in between the battles and Dothilos's "lessons" for a while, and the dialogues being long-winded added to the impression of unnecessary slow-ness. The characters, while interesting, often felt flat, not because they are flat per se but I think they were just "drowned" by the complexity and heaviness of all the other aspects of the book.
In the end, I feel like this book still has its' audience, it is just unfortunately not me (though with a bit more editing I would've liked it more, much more). With that being said, I still feel like it is a debut that shows great ability to build interesting, complex intrigues, worlds and characters. I'll be looking forward to what the author comes up with next.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-ARC.
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
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
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
inspiring
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, Blood
Moderate: Pedophilia
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
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
Thank you NetGalley and publisher for a copy of this eARC for this book.
I liked the premise of this book and the idea behind it however I found the execution of this fell short for me unfortunately.
For a debut novel I thought this was a good book and I recommend anyone who is interested in it to give it a read for themselves.
In my opinion the magic system really intrigued me and I wish we had more of it teased out in the story itself. I also felt there could have been more in depth world building to grip the reader into the world more.
There was suspense, mystery & danger. I enjoyed this book however I didn’t love this book. Looking forward to seeing what the author writes next!
I liked the premise of this book and the idea behind it however I found the execution of this fell short for me unfortunately.
For a debut novel I thought this was a good book and I recommend anyone who is interested in it to give it a read for themselves.
In my opinion the magic system really intrigued me and I wish we had more of it teased out in the story itself. I also felt there could have been more in depth world building to grip the reader into the world more.
There was suspense, mystery & danger. I enjoyed this book however I didn’t love this book. Looking forward to seeing what the author writes next!
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Violence, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Moderate: Death, Gore, Physical abuse
Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Pedophilia, Fire/Fire injury