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A review by shandyt
The Black Prism by Brent Weeks
4.0
4.5 stars. Lots of fun in a Brandon Sanderson-style magic system, with a more adult tone and complex, interesting characters.
Kip and Gavin are both compelling protagonists; particularly Gavin. Normally I shy away from god-king ubermensch male protagonists, but although Gavin ticks some of those boxes, he remains human, fallible, and relatable. I've been thinking about why I've enjoyed Gavin so much, when other super-powerful protags like Rand Al'Thor were grating to me, and have decided that a lot of it comes down to the way the author handles the character's flaws. For example, Rand's flaws are mostly external. The world expects much of him, demands much of him, and why won't those stinking Aes Sedai just be nice to him? Meanwhile, Gavin is a man who commands and expects adoration in much the same way, but suffers from sometimes crushing anxiety, who has had to sacrifice his ideals and work within the system with the hand he was given, whose secrets could tear the world apart. When it comes down to it, he's just a lot more interesting than Rand. He's a protagonist, but is he a "good guy?" It's hard to say—and I like that. He reminds me favorably of Dalinor from Stormlight Archives.
As for Kip, his constant self-deprecation is a little jarring at first, particularly when listening to the audiobook, and grates a bit after a while. However, it's nice to read about a protagonist who has a sense of humor about his situation. He's not like many young fantasy protagonists—he's overweight, cowardly, and awkward, and he knows it. And, particularly refreshing, he's not white (regardless of what some fanartists would have you believe). In fact, most of the characters are dark-skinned or mixed, with only one major protagonist explicitly described to be pale. I appreciated the diversity, as well as the way the author didn't shy away from describing the advantages and disadvantages certain skin tones provided magical drafters.
Not everything about this book was perfect, of course. Others have brought up the author's issues with writing women, and his tendency to fall back on silly interjections like "oops", which I think are fair. A lengthy diversion about periods was pretty interesting, not something you see every day, but the "man shoulders" thing was a bit... eh. Personally, I'd have liked another 2-3 hours (I listened to the audiobook) for some deeper explorations of the events of the last third of the book. Some things felt like they got skimmed over, or were poorly-explained. More time in the Chromeria would also have been nice, before we got yanked out to Big Plot Stuff, though I expect I'll get to see that in the later books.
On to The Blinding Knife!
Kip and Gavin are both compelling protagonists; particularly Gavin. Normally I shy away from god-king ubermensch male protagonists, but although Gavin ticks some of those boxes, he remains human, fallible, and relatable. I've been thinking about why I've enjoyed Gavin so much, when other super-powerful protags like Rand Al'Thor were grating to me, and have decided that a lot of it comes down to the way the author handles the character's flaws. For example, Rand's flaws are mostly external. The world expects much of him, demands much of him, and why won't those stinking Aes Sedai just be nice to him? Meanwhile, Gavin is a man who commands and expects adoration in much the same way, but suffers from sometimes crushing anxiety, who has had to sacrifice his ideals and work within the system with the hand he was given, whose secrets could tear the world apart. When it comes down to it, he's just a lot more interesting than Rand. He's a protagonist, but is he a "good guy?" It's hard to say—and I like that. He reminds me favorably of Dalinor from Stormlight Archives.
As for Kip, his constant self-deprecation is a little jarring at first, particularly when listening to the audiobook, and grates a bit after a while. However, it's nice to read about a protagonist who has a sense of humor about his situation. He's not like many young fantasy protagonists—he's overweight, cowardly, and awkward, and he knows it. And, particularly refreshing, he's not white (regardless of what some fanartists would have you believe). In fact, most of the characters are dark-skinned or mixed, with only one major protagonist explicitly described to be pale. I appreciated the diversity, as well as the way the author didn't shy away from describing the advantages and disadvantages certain skin tones provided magical drafters.
Not everything about this book was perfect, of course. Others have brought up the author's issues with writing women, and his tendency to fall back on silly interjections like "oops", which I think are fair. A lengthy diversion about periods was pretty interesting, not something you see every day, but the "man shoulders" thing was a bit... eh. Personally, I'd have liked another 2-3 hours (I listened to the audiobook) for some deeper explorations of the events of the last third of the book. Some things felt like they got skimmed over, or were poorly-explained. More time in the Chromeria would also have been nice, before we got yanked out to Big Plot Stuff, though I expect I'll get to see that in the later books.
On to The Blinding Knife!