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A review by dbguide2
City of Broken Magic by Mirah Bolender
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I think a lot of times I’ll read so much modern world fantasy or low fantasy that I’ll forget how fun a full fantasy with a heavy emphasis on the world-building and the magic system is. I know this happened with The Unspoken Name and definitely was the case with this book. I’ll admit (quite easily) that magic systems can and do confuse me and that was present here. I didn’t understand much of it so I hope that’ll be different when I return to it. Or I just enjoy the book and not understand everything! I’m good with that too.
I thought the characters were interesting but the emphasis in this book clearly was on the world-building and the plots. Not that the characters didn’t develop, but I could tell it will be gradual development. I think with series; characters can be introduced and developed over the series but most of the world-building and magic systems should be introduced and explained in the first book. And that’s what Bolender did here!
I liked Clae. He had a fun, dry sense of humour and he kept a lot of his personality closed off, though you were still able to get a feel for his personality. I liked Okane too. He has an incredibly difficult backstory and trauma that they haven’t explored enough. I also think he has more power than he realises and I’d like to see that improve.
I liked Laura as a narrator, though I probably would’ve preferred Clae as that spot but that’s because I liked him more. I hope in the next book she’s able to fully come into her personality and then I’ll like her some more. I hope that Laura and Okane don’t get into a relationship over the series. I just really don’t see them as a romantic couple. Friends, absolutely. Confidants. Even Laura essentially being a pseudo-mentor to him. We’ll see what the author does.
I liked Clae. He had a fun, dry sense of humour and he kept a lot of his personality closed off, though you were still able to get a feel for his personality. I liked Okane too. He has an incredibly difficult backstory and trauma that they haven’t explored enough. I also think he has more power than he realises and I’d like to see that improve.
I liked Laura as a narrator, though I probably would’ve preferred Clae as that spot but that’s because I liked him more. I hope in the next book she’s able to fully come into her personality and then I’ll like her some more. I hope that Laura and Okane don’t get into a relationship over the series. I just really don’t see them as a romantic couple. Friends, absolutely. Confidants. Even Laura essentially being a pseudo-mentor to him. We’ll see what the author does.