A review by eecee
The Sapphire Rose by David Eddings

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

Review below is for the whole series. Pretty sure none of the below is really a spoiler, but skip it if you want to make sure to avoid them!

These books are a fun romp. But, I will caveat that with saying that you have to turn off most of your brain to enjoy it. And if you're a woman, a person with disability, someone not tall and strong, or someone who isn't white, you'll have to turn off even more of your brain to get through it.

Enjoyed

• If you can ignore the glaring flaws, the book feels like a fast paced D&D or computer game style adventure - lots of side quests, a party with different skills (debatably), witty comments interspersed with plenty of action, and a clear end goal that the characters are unquestionably going to attain.

Didn't like
I'll try to confine myself to the essentials...

• It's so racist. The main characters are almost all clearly written as a stand in for western Europeans, are almost all white, and are constantly fighting people of other races and cultures - mostly for just existing. Anyone who isn't one of the main characters is described as stupid - including all their adversaries from their own country, but also entire nations of other people. Absolutely jarring and weird - were the 80s really this bad?! But this also brings us to...
• The main characters are not smart! I wondered a few times if this whole series was a satire on fantasy tropes, except I think this IS the trope that is now mocked. They run around talking about how all their enemies are stupid, while constantly messing up themselves, never facing any real setbacks, and solving all their problems with violence. Which brings me to...
• Are we meant to hate the main characters for being bullies?! They are constantly hitting, maiming and murdering people, some of whom did nothing to them and many of whom were ordinary people following orders (the artisan Sparhawk pushes off a wall?! All the church soldiers?)
• And do not get me started on Ehlana. WTAF is with the whole 'the main character raised his wife from being a small child then married her once she turned 18' thing? Ick ick ick. Super gross to read the way Eddings writes young girls and women as all being out to 'trap' men into marriage, and saying that this literal child wanted to marry this older man so got what she wanted.