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crimsoncor's review against another edition
4.0
Liked the book a lot, but you could cut 100 pages out of characters talking about their issues with other characters and not lose anything. Still quite good.
moerenavillasenor's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
blodeuedd's review against another edition
4.0
Book 1 was one tough cookie. I hated and feared the main character, and I was glad this one moved on to another person, cos honestly I could take no more of Hekat's crazy brutality (still one good dark book!). Book 2 is different but here something else had me all riled up. The same old thing, religion. I will explain soon enough.
Rhian is a princess in a country far far away from crazy Mijak. Her father is dying, the Church prolate is pressuring her to marry some idiot. But Rhian gets her POV stronger later on. First the book is about Dexterity, a simple toymaker who sets out to save his kingdom and the princess. Just a crazy old man who gets visions. Zandakar also shows up in this book...and I will say nothing more, but he is different now, you know after his mother Hekat killed his wife and child. These 3 come together and journey through the kingdom.
Ok can I now go off about religion? Yes? Yay. Ok Marlan, the Church prolate, grrrr, I want to smite him and tear apart his wicked soul (yes this series makes me violent). I hate, I loathe people who do bad things and make them seem right by telling people it's God's work. Marlan was a greedy man who wanted to rule the kingdom and use poor Rhian as a breeding mare. If I could go into the book and punch him I would. So yes he is one of those bad guys you just love to hate.
And while Rhian is trying to become queen the mighty army of Mijak is continuing to conquer. How on earth she will be able to save her kingdom I do not know. Hekat and her army is unstoppable. And they have their evil Scorpion gods on their side. Yes everything they do is right in the eye of God. How can one stop that?
Conclusion:
It's a book I had a hard time putting down, it made me wanna keep on reading and I really wish I had book 3 right now.
Rhian is a princess in a country far far away from crazy Mijak. Her father is dying, the Church prolate is pressuring her to marry some idiot. But Rhian gets her POV stronger later on. First the book is about Dexterity, a simple toymaker who sets out to save his kingdom and the princess. Just a crazy old man who gets visions. Zandakar also shows up in this book...and I will say nothing more, but he is different now, you know after his mother Hekat killed his wife and child. These 3 come together and journey through the kingdom.
Ok can I now go off about religion? Yes? Yay. Ok Marlan, the Church prolate, grrrr, I want to smite him and tear apart his wicked soul (yes this series makes me violent). I hate, I loathe people who do bad things and make them seem right by telling people it's God's work. Marlan was a greedy man who wanted to rule the kingdom and use poor Rhian as a breeding mare. If I could go into the book and punch him I would. So yes he is one of those bad guys you just love to hate.
And while Rhian is trying to become queen the mighty army of Mijak is continuing to conquer. How on earth she will be able to save her kingdom I do not know. Hekat and her army is unstoppable. And they have their evil Scorpion gods on their side. Yes everything they do is right in the eye of God. How can one stop that?
Conclusion:
It's a book I had a hard time putting down, it made me wanna keep on reading and I really wish I had book 3 right now.
words_and_dreams's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Second part of the Godspeaker trilogy. The book moves away from Hekat, although we get glimpses of her throughout, and moves to Ethrea. Ethrea is a more western fantasy setting and the people there have their own god and godspeakers.
We follow a Princess, the heir to the throne who is being pressured into marriage, a toy maker who starts having visions and a mysterious stranger who we find out ia connected to Mijak and Hekat.
I found the first half really slow and It took me ages to slog through it. Second half picked up a little. The story uses a lot of familiar tropes, however I felt that the white 'Christian' styled nation being the good ones and the darker 'savages' are evil a little erm....well...😬😬
We follow a Princess, the heir to the throne who is being pressured into marriage, a toy maker who starts having visions and a mysterious stranger who we find out ia connected to Mijak and Hekat.
I found the first half really slow and It took me ages to slog through it. Second half picked up a little. The story uses a lot of familiar tropes, however I felt that the white 'Christian' styled nation being the good ones and the darker 'savages' are evil a little erm....well...😬😬
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Religious bigotry and Bullying
anancientapple's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
tmikerx's review against another edition
4.0
Much better than the first one, easier to identify with the characters. I did not like the constant arguing between the characters, and that's probably my main gripe with the book. Everyone with any authority acted like squabbling children when dealing with each other, even the woman who was supposed to be a queen.
t_jenkins's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
mariexlupin's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
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
4.75
midrel's review against another edition
3.0
Depending on how much you enjoyed the first instalment in the series, you'll either be relieved or disappointed to know this second book takes place in a different setting from the first, albeit obviously in the same world. Instead of sun-blasted merciless deserts we are taken to Ethrea, a land that is much more reminiscent of all that is traditional in fantasy.
Personally, I am conflicted. While the first book had a number of flaws, the setting was nonetheless a fascinating one. In comparison to Mijak, Ethrea feels... bland, I suppose. Lacking in personality. Mijak's charm was in its harshness, in its weirdness, its fantastical monotheism in worship of a harsh but visible god. Its not something one gets to see often in fantasy.
In comparison, Ethrea felt altogether typical in pretty much everything.
As for Hekat and Rhian, they are both interesting characters in their own right, and in a way it feels like they are meant to be foils to each other, much like the settings themselves, but in the end I think I enjoyed Hekat's story so much more. Rhian by the end does not feel substantially different from Rhian at the start, which might as well be part of the point. Hekat let power, her bitterness, and her chalava change her completely, while Rhian tries to hold onto herself as much as she can, and with Dexterity's miracles this choice is made relatively easy for her.
All this is not to say the story is not un-enjoyable, though. Its certainly much more accessible than the first book, and from a strictly technical perspective maybe even better written. Every character felt really well developed, something the first book floundered pretty badly on sometimes.
I think I would have wished the miracles didnt happen. The climax felt like a foregone conclusion long before it came, and while it was still mostly satisfying to read about, I feel like it robbed the story of some further opportunity for character development.
Because of these and other gripes, I'll give it three stars just like the first book.
Personally, I am conflicted. While the first book had a number of flaws, the setting was nonetheless a fascinating one. In comparison to Mijak, Ethrea feels... bland, I suppose. Lacking in personality. Mijak's charm was in its harshness, in its weirdness, its fantastical monotheism in worship of a harsh but visible god. Its not something one gets to see often in fantasy.
In comparison, Ethrea felt altogether typical in pretty much everything.
As for Hekat and Rhian, they are both interesting characters in their own right, and in a way it feels like they are meant to be foils to each other, much like the settings themselves, but in the end I think I enjoyed Hekat's story so much more. Rhian by the end does not feel substantially different from Rhian at the start, which might as well be part of the point. Hekat let power, her bitterness, and her chalava change her completely, while Rhian tries to hold onto herself as much as she can, and with Dexterity's miracles this choice is made relatively easy for her.
All this is not to say the story is not un-enjoyable, though. Its certainly much more accessible than the first book, and from a strictly technical perspective maybe even better written. Every character felt really well developed, something the first book floundered pretty badly on sometimes.
I think I would have wished the miracles didnt happen. The climax felt like a foregone conclusion long before it came, and while it was still mostly satisfying to read about, I feel like it robbed the story of some further opportunity for character development.
Because of these and other gripes, I'll give it three stars just like the first book.