Scan barcode
A review by writervid
Warrior of the Wild by Tricia Levenseller
2.0
2.5/5
Hmmm.
This was a nice trip for an afternoon, a fun short read with decently unique premise and some interesting questions proposed. I enjoyed the way the battle scenes were written; the prose was direct but solid. However, it fell short in a couple of ways.
While the premise of the worldbuilding was interesting, I wish there had been more depth to it. The wild didn't totally feel wild to me from the descriptions given, and the terrain, while fascinating, wasn't described very well either (I don't know what an iron boulder looks like). My main enjoyment from the world came in the discussion of religion and the beasts, which, unfortunately, weren't highlighted nearly as much as I'd like them to be. I feel like the really interesting things about this book--the questions of religion and revenge and eternal damnation--were skimmed over in order to focus on the more stereotypical YA beats that didn't hold nearly as much interest.
Another topic in the worldbuilding that felt off was how sexism was addressed. The concept of gender differs in different cultures, and I feel like, had there been more nuance to that discussion other than "girls can be feminine while still being fierce," I might have been more into it. It feels like it's been done before, though, especially with white women front and center of that.
On the note of characters: Rasmina was an interesting character, but her beats felt very surface level. Coming back from trauma isn't linear. Loving yourself isn't linear. You regress, and you hate yourself, and then you come back. Her just deciding that she'd beat Torrin's memory during a contest with Soren felt false, and more like telling than showing. Similarly, the transition to her romance with Soren felt too quick. That being said, I really enjoyed their romance when they were together, even though Soren's just a simp. My favorite character by far was Iric, even though his beats seemed rushed at times, too; I appreciated his sass, intelligence, and the value placed on his skills, especially since they weren't just direct combat.
An alright time! Not great, but not a waste of time at all.
Hmmm.
This was a nice trip for an afternoon, a fun short read with decently unique premise and some interesting questions proposed. I enjoyed the way the battle scenes were written; the prose was direct but solid. However, it fell short in a couple of ways.
While the premise of the worldbuilding was interesting, I wish there had been more depth to it. The wild didn't totally feel wild to me from the descriptions given, and the terrain, while fascinating, wasn't described very well either (I don't know what an iron boulder looks like). My main enjoyment from the world came in the discussion of religion and the beasts, which, unfortunately, weren't highlighted nearly as much as I'd like them to be. I feel like the really interesting things about this book--the questions of religion and revenge and eternal damnation--were skimmed over in order to focus on the more stereotypical YA beats that didn't hold nearly as much interest.
Another topic in the worldbuilding that felt off was how sexism was addressed. The concept of gender differs in different cultures, and I feel like, had there been more nuance to that discussion other than "girls can be feminine while still being fierce," I might have been more into it. It feels like it's been done before, though, especially with white women front and center of that.
On the note of characters: Rasmina was an interesting character, but her beats felt very surface level. Coming back from trauma isn't linear. Loving yourself isn't linear. You regress, and you hate yourself, and then you come back. Her just deciding that she'd beat Torrin's memory during a contest with Soren felt false, and more like telling than showing. Similarly, the transition to her romance with Soren felt too quick. That being said, I really enjoyed their romance when they were together, even though Soren's just a simp. My favorite character by far was Iric, even though his beats seemed rushed at times, too; I appreciated his sass, intelligence, and the value placed on his skills, especially since they weren't just direct combat.
An alright time! Not great, but not a waste of time at all.