A review by bzliz
The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik

adventurous dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Started out slow but picked up about halfway through, once El had a clear mission/path to take. The tone remains dark throughout; even moments of hope are cast in shadow by the unfortunate tendency of humans (wizards, in this case) to be self serving above all else. This continues right up until the end but we are left on a somewhat hopeful note. It would have felt disingenuous to end on a perfect “and El saved everyone and so they lived happily ever after.”

A major reveal that builds throughout this installment of the Scholomance trilogy could perhaps have been gleaned by only the most eagle-eyed readers but I was absolutely shocked.
Orion is part maw mouth and was made this way by his maleficer mother.
There were several moments that felt like they were meant to be shocking reveals but that was the one that really got me. 

Like the previous two books, I can’t say they rely heavily on character development. The plot itself is much more important and many characters rarely (if at all) share their knowledge freely, leaving El to puzzle out the truth of the matter in her own head. Her greatest achievement in terms of character development is
going to confront her father’s family for their role in making her an outcast and instead of destroying them as she had dreamed for years, she is able to listen to her great grandmother and begin to understand the choice she’d made. Knowing that El sees them at least once more and has the potential to build a real relationship with them is a very satisfying end to the book.
 
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