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A review by laelyn
In a Garden Burning Gold by Rory Power
3.0
This is such a hard book to review, to be honest. It's very different from Power's former novels, which is what intrigued me the most. The writing is exquisite once again, and there is so much creativity, so much potential in this first part of a new series that I just really really wanted to love it.
The setting is unique, high fantasy with lots of Greek culture and (which I ALWAYS adore) a good dash of political intrigue. The god-like magic system is fascinating and the characters want to be complex but don't quite manage. Honestly, there is a lot to like and a lot to be intrigued by, and the ending sets up a really exciting sequel. But there were just too many things that make it most likely that I won't pick said sequel up after all.
For one, the whole world building is very convoluted and, honestly, confusing. I don't think I really get all the magical powers, even after rereading part of the novel to understand them better. They just aren't explained very well, and that's a bit of a problem with most of the lore, really. Written beautifully, but in a very distracting kind of way that distances the reader from the world.
The characters are definitely interesting and fleshed out, but they are not as complex as they are obviously intended to be. Rhea, for example, changed certain convictions way too easily, and Lexos was, in the end, pretty one-dimensional. Nitsos is probably the most interesting one of the siblings (the fourth one is just there to be there, she has no bearing on the story at all) but his development is also very predictable. The relationships aren't as fleshed out as they need to be in order to get me to feel invested in them, especially the twin relationship between Rhea and Lexos - There is a whole lot of telling, but no real showing of just how close they are and I simply didn't feel it.
The plot itself is nothing new, the twists aren't really surprising, but it's still an enjoyable read. I think the book could have been improved by condensing the plotline a bit more, because the pacing is rather slow and invited me to skim-read through entire pages at times, especially in the beginning.
All in all this is an okay start to a new series and I know it'll have many fans, and it is written really beautifully. I can't give it more than 3 stars. it's probably closer to a 2,5 for me personally.
The setting is unique, high fantasy with lots of Greek culture and (which I ALWAYS adore) a good dash of political intrigue. The god-like magic system is fascinating and the characters want to be complex but don't quite manage. Honestly, there is a lot to like and a lot to be intrigued by, and the ending sets up a really exciting sequel. But there were just too many things that make it most likely that I won't pick said sequel up after all.
For one, the whole world building is very convoluted and, honestly, confusing. I don't think I really get all the magical powers, even after rereading part of the novel to understand them better. They just aren't explained very well, and that's a bit of a problem with most of the lore, really. Written beautifully, but in a very distracting kind of way that distances the reader from the world.
The characters are definitely interesting and fleshed out, but they are not as complex as they are obviously intended to be. Rhea, for example, changed certain convictions way too easily, and Lexos was, in the end, pretty one-dimensional. Nitsos is probably the most interesting one of the siblings (the fourth one is just there to be there, she has no bearing on the story at all) but his development is also very predictable. The relationships aren't as fleshed out as they need to be in order to get me to feel invested in them, especially the twin relationship between Rhea and Lexos - There is a whole lot of telling, but no real showing of just how close they are and I simply didn't feel it.
The plot itself is nothing new, the twists aren't really surprising, but it's still an enjoyable read. I think the book could have been improved by condensing the plotline a bit more, because the pacing is rather slow and invited me to skim-read through entire pages at times, especially in the beginning.
All in all this is an okay start to a new series and I know it'll have many fans, and it is written really beautifully. I can't give it more than 3 stars. it's probably closer to a 2,5 for me personally.