A review by baknata
The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty

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

5.0

This book took me on such a journey. From the first moments of the book I was thoroughly invested, an uncommon occurrence for me. To begin, I found the world that was created absolutely fascinating. The main character, Nahri, is new to the fantasy world in the story, which allows us to learn about it as she does. This makes what we learn feel organic and not simply expository. The world is complex and well thought out, making it feel like a real place. It isn't just a complex world, it has an in-depth history with political and social issues that are rooted in that history. Every element of the world was considered, from clothing to language to special abilities and traditions, each race is complete and well rounded. The creatures are based on middle eastern stories, which I am not familiar with, but give the story a unique perspective. 
The characters are just as well thought out as the world. What I found most compelling about the story is that, save for Nahri who doesn't share the preexisting prejudices and political foreknowledge, there are no truly good characters. Nahri herself swindles people to get by, which shows she isn't fully good. But every other character believes strongly that their position is the correct one, so much so that it is hard to tell who is truly in the right. Each side of the political tension has committed atrocities, not only that, but they each have questionable parts to their position. One side wants equality between the races, meanwhile, they oppress the mixed-blooded people and make it impossible to survive. The other side wants to overthrow the oppressive monarchy, though they have a history of discrimination and segregation. Each character does questionable things in the name of their side. Unfortunately, the author also does a great job making them all very human. They have friends and family, they make jokes and connections and feel like real people, which makes it so hard to root against them.
When Ali and Jamshid and then Dara all were kinda fatally injured/died/turned to ash I was speechless. I didn't know whether to be upset that they died (which I was, deeply) or to be okay with it bc they all kinda were horrible (save for Jamshid he was an angel) and the same thing happened with every side character, each time I was heartbroken but also didn't know how to feel/react.
This is super evident with Nahri's relationships with the characters. As the reader, we feel similar to her where there is a lack of trust at first, then you get attached to certain characters cause "her they aren't so bad" then we learn they are so bad, but now we're attached so maybe we should forgive them? Overall hard to decide which characters to root for. 
In terms of plot, I was definitely on the edge of my seat. This was one of the few books where I genuinely could not guess a single element of what was going to happen.
save for that whole thing with Muntadir and Jamshid, I saw that one right away
Especially towards the end, I was being thrown left and right, each chapter had something new I wasn't at all expecting that totally shook me. What was cool though was that every twist and turn made sense. The characters made choices that were consistent throughout the book and with the growth that they had made. Nothing was thrown in just for the heck of it, it all had a purpose. The plot developed in a natural way and the character growth felt deserved and logical. 
Overall, this book was put together so beautifully and was a joy (though very emotional) to read. I would definitely recommend this book. 
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