A review by joaffleck
Stardust by Neil Gaiman

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

2.5

I want to stress I do understand that everything in writing is art and therefore at the end of the day - opinions will be different for each person. But, that being said, I think this is objectively not great. 
The romance between Tristran and Yvaine - loved how there was not a single hint at it until the last 5 pages. They just seemed like friends at the end there was no spark. 

The ending just fizzled out as well - why did the biggest moment of any intense stakes occur 3/5 of the way through the book?


That all being said I just don't think the characters were made loveable - I do think Gaiman can definitely come up with beautiful worlds and write them beautifully too - but this definitely felt like a lackluster story - which is a shame as he can describe such beautiful things.

And yes this might not just be for me - but what's with the random explicit sex scenes and unpleasant gore when there's literally no aspect of the book that matches it?? strange.
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