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A review by john_nygma
Ink & Sigil by Kevin Hearne
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
An overall 3.25 rating. This was a fun enough read, but there's honestly not that much I can say about this book. The cast or characters is definitely the strongest element of the novel. The story starts out interestingly enough and has some thrilling and funny effort, but then it starts to meander and fails to explore a satisfying fantasy mystery and ends in a rather unimaginative fashion.
I love that we have an elderly main character in Al and someone who has to rely more on his wits, connections, and mental skills rather than being physically overpowering. Nadia fulfils that fighting role, and her character being a tough and nails, charismatic goth girl with supernatural powers only makes her arguably the coolest person in the story. The fact that we have a character named Buck Foi is an excellent example of this book's rather juvenile and "adult" sense of narration. It's never too offensive, but it does borderline cringe territory at times and does feel more performative than earnest in many places.
This book has its entertaining and downright funny moments in many places. I think the colourful cast of characters and their interactions with one another ate the best parts of this book. However, the story is simplistic and lacks proper focus at times. The world building has interesting aspects, but the book never does anything too exciting with its general premise. This was a fun enough read, and I'm tempted to pick up the sequel. However, I'm in no hurry to do so right now...
I love that we have an elderly main character in Al and someone who has to rely more on his wits, connections, and mental skills rather than being physically overpowering. Nadia fulfils that fighting role, and her character being a tough and nails, charismatic goth girl with supernatural powers only makes her arguably the coolest person in the story. The fact that we have a character named Buck Foi is an excellent example of this book's rather juvenile and "adult" sense of narration. It's never too offensive, but it does borderline cringe territory at times and does feel more performative than earnest in many places.
This book has its entertaining and downright funny moments in many places. I think the colourful cast of characters and their interactions with one another ate the best parts of this book. However, the story is simplistic and lacks proper focus at times. The world building has interesting aspects, but the book never does anything too exciting with its general premise. This was a fun enough read, and I'm tempted to pick up the sequel. However, I'm in no hurry to do so right now...