Reviews tagging 'Death'

Master of Poisons by Andrea Hairston

5 reviews

csemjoro's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging hopeful reflective tense slow-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

4.0


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lanid's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging mysterious
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75


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chalkletters's review against another edition

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challenging reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.75

I was excited by Master of Poisons’ promise of heroes in exile and rhythms of folklore and storytelling, and Andrea Hairston did deliver on all of those things, just not quite in the way I’d imagined. Perhaps this dreamy epic was the wrong novel to follow Inherent Vice’s psychedelic density, because I had similar difficulties trying to get to grips with both. 

Master of Poisons
’ cast felt very fluid, with motivations which were so tied to the ethereal magic of Smokeland that they became hard to pin down. Hezram was the villain, sacrificing children and bleeding transgressors to power dream gates, but it was tricky to remember what the dream gates did, and how (or if) they connected to the fiends who attacked Awa. The prose descriptions of Smokeland were beautiful, elevating Awa’s point-of-view sections above those of Djola, but the connection to the everyday world and the conflict going on there could have been clearer.

Djola’s quest was clearer and gave the story the momentum it needed for a while, but sadly fell prey to Djola’s reliance on magical drugs which left his narration unreliable and disorientated. Perhaps a sharper reader would have fared better, and not got so discombobulated that they missed the link between Awa’s friend Bal and Djola’s daughter. 

One thing which stood out amidst the confusion were the animals, both as perspective characters and as companions to the main cast. Bees are a theme throughout the novel, and Andrea Hairston uses them in a far more lifelike way than The Starless Sea. The whales (or behemoths) were also a highlight. 

The lyrical prose and fluid morally grey characters are deliberate features of Master of Poisons, but may keep some readers at a remove from the story.

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boglord's review

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challenging dark tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5


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multiplyoctopi's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional reflective tense medium-paced
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75


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