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A review by kofolapumpkin
Flame in the Mist by Renée Ahdieh
2.0
Disappointing.. I LOVED the "The Wrath and The Dawn" series, especially the first book. But this book was not what I expected. The premise of the novel sounded great to me. A strong female lead in a story set in JAPAN. By Renee Ahdieh. Yes.
Unfortunately this book was so predictable that it wasn't even much fun to read. The love story in this book was especially predictable. "I don't like him, I HATE him... but his shoulders are muscular.. and his eyes are amazing..". Come on, we heard all this before. I'm getting Twilight flashbacks here. He smells like warm stones and wood? PLEASE. "I hate him, he tried to kill me. But he smells like warm stones". Frankly, it is ridiculous.
Which leads me to another aspect that really irritated me. Throughout the whole book Mariko's entire thought process is based on assumptions. Assumptions about her brother, assumptions about the Black Clan, assumptions about her father, assumptions about her love interest. EVERYTHING is based on Mariko assuming that someone did something or feels something or has some agenda. It's even more irritating because this novel is indeed so predictable. Because honestly, that just makes her seem thick. No common sense.
Next issue. Forced inclusivity. So, is Okami bisexual? First of all, that Mulan-ish cutting off of the hair.. Again, disappointing. I understand that this is not something only Mulan would've done or did (or whatever) but when there already exists such a famous, legendary scene (even if it is in a Disney movie) involving an Asian character.. Why imitate it? Okami is the captain and Mariko is Mulan - pretending to be a boy and the two of them slowly falling for each other. I was surprised that at the end of this book she wasn't handed the "glimmering white pearly sword" by the emperor.
Which leads me to my final point that I would like to touch on. Basically, literature, like everything else, has become more about money than about the practice of writing and reading. We see this not only in Renee's novel but actually everywhere in the community today. Books are not books anymore, they are part of a series that has to consist of as many novels as possible, stretching a good plot to the length of 3-5 (or even more) books. I don't have that amazing, accomplished feeling of having completed reading a book anymore. Because there is no resolve to the plot. There's always just MORE.
It is a pity because I miss the feeling of having read something and not feeling like I should pick up the sequel immediately. And actually not having that feeling of achievement makes me want to pick up the sequel even less.
Unfortunately this book was so predictable that it wasn't even much fun to read. The love story in this book was especially predictable. "I don't like him, I HATE him... but his shoulders are muscular.. and his eyes are amazing..". Come on, we heard all this before. I'm getting Twilight flashbacks here. He smells like warm stones and wood? PLEASE. "I hate him, he tried to kill me. But he smells like warm stones". Frankly, it is ridiculous.
Which leads me to another aspect that really irritated me. Throughout the whole book Mariko's entire thought process is based on assumptions. Assumptions about her brother, assumptions about the Black Clan, assumptions about her father, assumptions about her love interest. EVERYTHING is based on Mariko assuming that someone did something or feels something or has some agenda. It's even more irritating because this novel is indeed so predictable. Because honestly, that just makes her seem thick. No common sense.
Next issue. Forced inclusivity. So, is Okami bisexual? First of all, that Mulan-ish cutting off of the hair.. Again, disappointing. I understand that this is not something only Mulan would've done or did (or whatever) but when there already exists such a famous, legendary scene (even if it is in a Disney movie) involving an Asian character.. Why imitate it? Okami is the captain and Mariko is Mulan - pretending to be a boy and the two of them slowly falling for each other. I was surprised that at the end of this book she wasn't handed the "glimmering white pearly sword" by the emperor.
Which leads me to my final point that I would like to touch on. Basically, literature, like everything else, has become more about money than about the practice of writing and reading. We see this not only in Renee's novel but actually everywhere in the community today. Books are not books anymore, they are part of a series that has to consist of as many novels as possible, stretching a good plot to the length of 3-5 (or even more) books. I don't have that amazing, accomplished feeling of having completed reading a book anymore. Because there is no resolve to the plot. There's always just MORE.
It is a pity because I miss the feeling of having read something and not feeling like I should pick up the sequel immediately. And actually not having that feeling of achievement makes me want to pick up the sequel even less.