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A review by abbajane
The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book really sets the bar for sci-fi/fantasy for me. I only hate that I waited so long to get to it.
The world of the Fifth Season is completely unlike anything I've ever read before -- which is part of the reason I'm unsure if it is science-fiction or fantasy... I hope as I continue through the trilogy I will be able to decide. Not only is the world of the novel lushly, carefully, and fully built, but the characters are diverse, complicated, and complex. The narrative style of this book is really incredible -- I didn't figure out what was going on until about 2/3 of the way through, and it was such a satisfying realization as I finally figured out how the three seemingly disparate stories wove into one. This book really ticks every box for me -- it was beautifully written, had great and diverse characters, a really scary and cool world, solid mythology and psychology, and overall said something really important about how we humans treat one another. This is a must read for any sci-fi/fantasy fan, or anyone trying to add some richness to their reading world.
The world of the Fifth Season is completely unlike anything I've ever read before -- which is part of the reason I'm unsure if it is science-fiction or fantasy... I hope as I continue through the trilogy I will be able to decide. Not only is the world of the novel lushly, carefully, and fully built, but the characters are diverse, complicated, and complex. The narrative style of this book is really incredible -- I didn't figure out what was going on until about 2/3 of the way through, and it was such a satisfying realization as I finally figured out how the three seemingly disparate stories wove into one. This book really ticks every box for me -- it was beautifully written, had great and diverse characters, a really scary and cool world, solid mythology and psychology, and overall said something really important about how we humans treat one another. This is a must read for any sci-fi/fantasy fan, or anyone trying to add some richness to their reading world.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Slavery, Grief, Death, Child death, and Bullying
Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Sexual content, and Slavery