A review by bluepinkfeather
Godblind by Anna Stephens

fast-paced

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

1.75

This book had some potential at the beginning, but it was sadly squandered. The worldbuilding was completely lacking (besides there being the 'evil' vs 'good'), and there were far too many characters introduced for us to care about. These characters, in my opinion, also lacked depth and were sometimes complete cliches due to a lack of proper development. 

The writing in this book, although mostly competent, at times felt like it was an adapation of some cliched medieval fantasy video game. Chapters were annoyingly short at times, which gave a bit of a disjointed reading experience. I also felt that the use of violence in this book was extremely gratitious at times. I finished reading this book, and had absolutely no desire to continue the rest of the sequels. 

For my final gripe: 
 

There is a significant plot twist in relation to a character, but I also felt that this was not adequetely addressed: the Prince doing a 180 and deciding to brutally torture his older brother as a sacrifice to who is essentially the 'dark lord'. This is something, to me, that requires a reasonable background, perhaps the brother did something awful to the Prince that warranted such brutal treatment? But in my reading, it was none. Characters simply did things as convenient for the plot, although in my opinion, a good plot is one that is driven by characters acting in believable ways. </spoilder>