Reviews

I love this fantasy noir book - it was lovely to be back into this world after Maia to be back again with
Celahar who can be very simliar. He very much undersells his work and accomplishments - and though he always focuses on his work he is not above making a sly comment here and there. It's nice to read him interacting with others and his compassion and hard work being recognized. His relationship with Pel-Thenhior was very sweet and I can't wait to continue to read and see how his relationships develop further.

skycrane's review

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5.0

I liked The Goblin Emperor, but I didn't love it. This book I did love. Much of the book is about a murder mystery, but it's broader than that, a portrait of a man's life with particular focus on the place he lives in. Celehar (a relatively minor character in The Goblin Emperor) is a Witness for the Dead, a sort of religio-judicial position. He can commune with the souls of the dead, and his position in the city of Amalo has him available for petitioners to make requests of. He verifies wills, identifies bodies, and investigates suspicious deaths. And all that is very interesting, but what really elevated this book for me was the way it brought me into his life. You really get a sense for who Celehar is, what drives him, the regrets never far from his mind and the hopes he doesn't dare even acknowledge. And on top of that, the portrait of the city itself is just beautifully intricate. The author describes directions and locations in detail many times, so much that I could picture the mixture of modern broad boulevards with their tram lines and old narrow lanes meeting at odd angles much better than if the book had instead included a map. Amalo is a city in the midst of a change. The nobility have fled to the countryside, replaced by merchants and industrialists. The poor work in vast dirty, dangerous factories. The city's government by confused and overlapping jurisdictions of court bureaucrats, administrative officials, and religious orders is never explained, but expertly conveyed by the complex way the characters move through it. That's what's great about this book. It brings its characters and world to life not by explaining them, but by fully immersing the reader in them.

stellarian's review

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4.0

There was a lot of murder solving action, and I really liked it! The main character evolved a little too, which is nice. A lot of tea and some possibility of more healing for main character in the future!

saintburns's review

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5.0

Being back in the world of the Goblin Emperor books was a delightful breath of fresh air. This was a new perspective, as the main character of this book is about as far from being an emperor as one can get. Thara Celehar serves as a witness for the dead. This book is his journey as he struggles to find answers to several different questions. As with all mysteries it does seem that those questions seem to have intertwining answers. As with the previous book in the series, Witness for the Dead is a detailed look at a wonderful fantasy world. Thara is an amazingly fleshed out character, struggling to make his way in a world that doesn't necessarily want him there. He takes us all over the city of Amalo to find answers. I love his characterization and honestly all I wanted was for him to be able to get a good night's rest and a filling meal. I would read a thousand more pages of these simple adventures. It does have a bit of a different feeling from the first book in the world, but that's to be expected. I had a wonderful time reading this and I expect returning to the world will fill like a comforting hug for many readers. It's definitely something I'm going to reread.

a_ab's review against another edition

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mysterious slow-paced

5.0

This book is a conundrum. It's full of elements I should have disliked, yet I loved it.

On the surface, this is a fairly nondescript, almost disjointed set of mysteries from the 'month in a life' of a special investigator. But I absolutely loved this book, including its very linear but plot-line-wise disjointed narrative style. The world building is both rich and barely-there sketched. The characters — vivid despite appearing for very short scenes and disappearing, some — never to be seen again.
The pace is slow and stumbles a lot, and yet I couldn't put the book down. And never once was I tempted to skip ahead — not even when the most intriguing plotline was abandoned for what seemed like chapters on end!

I just finished the book and already I want to read it again, — just to experience the joy of stepping into its world again. And I didn't even particularly like that world!

What magic is this?

This book left me thoroughly perplexed, yet fully satisfied.

flexmentallo's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.5

This is a essentially a 'shaggy dog' mystery in a fantasy world. Thara Celehar, an intriguing bit player in The Goblin Emperor, leads this as a 'Witness of the Dead,' a priest who tries to help settle the affairs of the recently deceased. The core story follows from being called in when a mysterious woman washes up on a riverbank, dead. He must investigate her murder, find out who killed her, and bring them to justice in her name.

Like all shaggy dog mysteries, a great deal of the story is more about character and setting than specifically about solving the mysteries. Thara Celehar is a gentle, sweet protagonist, and watching him try to solve a mystery is a delightful change of pace from the gritty mystery protagonists I'm used to. Beyond that, Katherine Addison expands considerably on the world of The Goblin Emperor here, using that as a base for what has become a fascinating and dense setting. This is a little too dark to really be called a 'cozy mystery', but it skirts that line in fascinating ways.

betharanova's review

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4.0

This book asks, "Would you like to spend some quiet, contemplative time in the world of The Goblin Emperor?" Of course, I said yes. In that way, this book fits in the same realm as Rothfuss's The Slow Regard of Silent Things. It's in the setting of the main series, and it's best to read the first book for the worldbuilding and context. But it's separate.

Far from the emperor we know and love, Thara Celehar follows a holy but unpopular duty in speaking on behalf of the dead. Grief and guilt have made him weary, but he perseveres nonetheless. And then—you know what you're in for. Hope, sadness, selfishness, unexpected kindness. A protagonist who tries and fails and tries again, endearing himself to the reader all the way. And that's what the book is about!

I really enjoyed my time here. It's good for the soul. Less a star because Min Addison continuously kills me with these endings. It's hard to wrap things up in her books because of her particular pacing. Even so, the endings feel so abrupt, and I still want to hang out. :(

laurasullivan's review against another edition

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mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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