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A review by greymalkin
A House of Rage and Sorrow by Sangu Mandanna
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Very enjoyable! I like that Esmae is growing up and we can see the forces and events that are shaping her choices and view of the world.
I wasn't sure I liked the whole reveal about Max but in the end I think I warmed to it, if only because it made all the God/Goddess stuff more engaging. Giving them a reason why they can't interfere is fine and dandy if you don't want them solving every problem with a gesture, but it also makes it hard to really care much about what happens to them. So this kind of plot stuff helps with that.
I also finally see why Titania was a "talking spaceship". It seemed weird in the first book, somewhat like a fairytale talking horse, but now I see the advantage is that she can be brought in as narrative perspective to talk about scenes that Esmae could not "see" and provide some more objective perspective on events.
I also finally see why Titania was a "talking spaceship". It seemed weird in the first book, somewhat like a fairytale talking horse, but now I see the advantage is that she can be brought in as narrative perspective to talk about scenes that Esmae could not "see" and provide some more objective perspective on events.