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A review by asreadbykat
A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown
Did not finish book.
3.0
Note: DNF'd at page 320.
True Rating: 3/5 Stars
Content/Trigger Warnings: Violence, racism and prejudice, panic attacks, animal death. Read the warnings at the beginning of the book for more.
My Thoughts
I considered not writing a review since I did, technically, not finish reading the book. However, I also felt that at 320 out of about 460 pages, I had read enough that I can give insight into WHY I decided to drop the book.
Plot-wise, the book was fine. I was extremely interested in the world the author was crafting, how the kingdom of Ziran was started and how it came to be as discriminatory as it is, despite it's own history. I liked that the book was very plot-focused, because it was giving me hope. So many books focus more on the relationship than the plot, and it was a breath of fresh air to see this first book doing the opposite.
Unfortunately, the author went too far in that opposite direction. Of our two main characters, the only one I felt I really knew was Malik. We learn way more about him than about our female lead, Karina, and to be honest I really liked Malik more. He's forced into a situation that terrifies him, and against all odds and what everyone says, he IS trying. In 300 pages, we learn more about Malik and his pain, motivations, and inner workings than our heroine.
Unfortunately, what made me drop the book is that I couldn't bring myself to care much about Karina. Given the time this book was published, I wasn't expecting to get yet another story about a princess who "doesn't want to be a princess, and who wants to run away and be free." I felt no sympathy for the problems Karina finds herself facing after her mother's death because, ultimately, Karina brought it on herself by acting as she did growing up. And she even continues to act in a similar way after her mother's death, and expects everyone to treat her differently and take her seriously. Honestly, any time a chapter was from her POV I was impatient to get through it and back to Malik.
So, yeah. This book just wasn't for me, and I will leave the duology to the people that do enjoy it.
True Rating: 3/5 Stars
Content/Trigger Warnings: Violence, racism and prejudice, panic attacks, animal death. Read the warnings at the beginning of the book for more.
My Thoughts
I considered not writing a review since I did, technically, not finish reading the book. However, I also felt that at 320 out of about 460 pages, I had read enough that I can give insight into WHY I decided to drop the book.
Plot-wise, the book was fine. I was extremely interested in the world the author was crafting, how the kingdom of Ziran was started and how it came to be as discriminatory as it is, despite it's own history. I liked that the book was very plot-focused, because it was giving me hope. So many books focus more on the relationship than the plot, and it was a breath of fresh air to see this first book doing the opposite.
Unfortunately, the author went too far in that opposite direction. Of our two main characters, the only one I felt I really knew was Malik. We learn way more about him than about our female lead, Karina, and to be honest I really liked Malik more. He's forced into a situation that terrifies him, and against all odds and what everyone says, he IS trying. In 300 pages, we learn more about Malik and his pain, motivations, and inner workings than our heroine.
Unfortunately, what made me drop the book is that I couldn't bring myself to care much about Karina. Given the time this book was published, I wasn't expecting to get yet another story about a princess who "doesn't want to be a princess, and who wants to run away and be free." I felt no sympathy for the problems Karina finds herself facing after her mother's death because, ultimately, Karina brought it on herself by acting as she did growing up. And she even continues to act in a similar way after her mother's death, and expects everyone to treat her differently and take her seriously. Honestly, any time a chapter was from her POV I was impatient to get through it and back to Malik.
So, yeah. This book just wasn't for me, and I will leave the duology to the people that do enjoy it.