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softiejace 's review for:
Die Farbe der Rache
by Cornelia Funke
adventurous
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was so excited when I learned there was a new Inkworld book, especially one focused on Dustfinger. I'm not sure that giving more space to him and Nyame, the Black Prince, necessarily had to come at the expense of most of the former cast of characters, who played essentially no role apart from victim and had no agency in this story. While magic was very much present, the darker tone of the book made it feel distinctly less fairytale-like than the previous ones.
Multiple characters are killed in this book, but their deaths happen so incidentally/are written sort of in passing without any suspense or lead-up, so that several times I found myself having to go back a few lines to even realise they had just died!
I enjoyed seeing Nardo and Nyame's friendship and appreciated the latter becoming a more fleshed-out character. All the more disappointing was Nardo's arc in comparison. While he's always been deeply flawed and an anti-hero (and that's part of his charm!), his flaws made his decisions and their consequences largely predictable. I would have loved to see Funke take this opportunity to give him some more character growth. I was left wanting more from him: more of an emotional response, more intense reactions, a deeper insight into his thoughts and feelings, more deliberate interaction with the world around him rather than simply reacting and following the story around.
Echoing what others have said, the ending felt very anticlimactic and confusing.
It might be my personal taste or that I've grown out of enjoying Funke's writing style, but I also found myself irritated by her constant use of comparisons and the lack of distinct character voices - everyone seemed to speak and think in a very similar way.
Overall, I'm left a little disappointed with this particular book, but also with an appetite to return to the previous three and experience their magic anew.
Multiple characters are killed in this book, but their deaths happen so incidentally/are written sort of in passing without any suspense or lead-up, so that several times I found myself having to go back a few lines to even realise they had just died!
I enjoyed seeing Nardo and Nyame's friendship and appreciated the latter becoming a more fleshed-out character. All the more disappointing was Nardo's arc in comparison. While he's always been deeply flawed and an anti-hero (and that's part of his charm!), his flaws made his decisions and their consequences largely predictable. I would have loved to see Funke take this opportunity to give him some more character growth. I was left wanting more from him: more of an emotional response, more intense reactions, a deeper insight into his thoughts and feelings, more deliberate interaction with the world around him rather than simply reacting and following the story around.
Echoing what others have said, the ending felt very anticlimactic and confusing.
It might be my personal taste or that I've grown out of enjoying Funke's writing style, but I also found myself irritated by her constant use of comparisons and the lack of distinct character voices - everyone seemed to speak and think in a very similar way.
Overall, I'm left a little disappointed with this particular book, but also with an appetite to return to the previous three and experience their magic anew.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Murder
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Death, Racial slurs, Violence, Fire/Fire injury