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hydecircus 's review for:
Ambessa: Chosen of the Wolf
by C.L. Clark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really wanted to love this and I think ultimately I had higher expectations for this book than it was able to deliver... I was really hoping for this book to include some commentary on Noxus as an imperialist, colonialist nation, and while that aspect was certainly present in the backdrop... It never really felt as though it was anything except that. I wouldn't expect for either Ambessa nor Mel to grapple with the implications of Noxus' colonialism, especially because they directly benefit from it, but I would've liked for it to have shaped the feeling of the world and the characters who live in those colonies. The only negative positioned as such is Ambessa's sometimes copious violence, and the way she treats it as a first impluse over all else. The soft power Mel and Kino exhibit over the same colonized regions is treated as the "right" and respectable option, when I would've hoped for some criticism or acknowledge of it as a form/the result of the same violent power.
It's an aspect of a larger issue with this book -- Ambessa feels incredibly softened. A lot of this has to do with it being from her POV (of course she sees her actions as justified and righteous) but some of it just makes no sense. She didn't even cheat on her husband. You're telling me Ambessa is doing ethical non-monogamy? Okay. Whatever.
Ultimately, the best parts of this book where how well it fleshed out the world of Runeterra. It's focus on Southern Noxus and Ambessa's familiarity with the region did a lot to make the world feel lived in and I think this is where C.L. Clarke did her best work. I hesitate to blame her for a lot of the shortcomings I identified -- I really should've expected less from a YA novel based on the world's most centrist TV show targeted at League of Legends players. As least Ambessa had multiple fade to black sex scenes and we learned she sleeps naked I guess.
It's an aspect of a larger issue with this book -- Ambessa feels incredibly softened. A lot of this has to do with it being from her POV (of course she sees her actions as justified and righteous) but some of it just makes no sense. She didn't even cheat on her husband. You're telling me Ambessa is doing ethical non-monogamy? Okay. Whatever.
Ultimately, the best parts of this book where how well it fleshed out the world of Runeterra. It's focus on Southern Noxus and Ambessa's familiarity with the region did a lot to make the world feel lived in and I think this is where C.L. Clarke did her best work. I hesitate to blame her for a lot of the shortcomings I identified -- I really should've expected less from a YA novel based on the world's most centrist TV show targeted at League of Legends players. As least Ambessa had multiple fade to black sex scenes and we learned she sleeps naked I guess.