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A review by jmboff
The Library of Legends by Janie Chang
3.0
When I read the synopsis of this book I was enthralled! Some fantasy aspects, some history, some romance. Sign. Me. Up!
However, it fell FLAT. The writing was monotonous and repetitive, especially for the first 250 pages. I felt like I was reading the same thing every chapter. The character development fell flat for me and I was not invested in the characters or their journeys. Every time I thought I was starting to get invested, the narrative went right back to being monotonous and repetitive. If the author would have had less irrelevant characters and focused this attention into the main characters development, it could've been better. I feel like there were too many very minor characters.
On the aspect of fantasy, it was hardly even there. Every, maybe, 10 chapters, there would be a fleeting paragraph about the Legends. The most I feel like I know about the library of legends is that they're books. There wasn't any insight into the legends, into the books, or into the stories. Which, whatever, if this wasn't literally the name of the book.
If the rest of this book was like the last 50 pages, I would've maybe enjoyed it more. Even though the ending felt rushed to be wrapped up, even though there wasn't much to wrap up anyways. Overall, this was a chore to read and finish, and while the cover is gorgeous and the premise was promising, this was a big let down for me.
I'm thinking this is a 2.5⭐, rounded up to 3.
However, it fell FLAT. The writing was monotonous and repetitive, especially for the first 250 pages. I felt like I was reading the same thing every chapter. The character development fell flat for me and I was not invested in the characters or their journeys. Every time I thought I was starting to get invested, the narrative went right back to being monotonous and repetitive. If the author would have had less irrelevant characters and focused this attention into the main characters development, it could've been better. I feel like there were too many very minor characters.
On the aspect of fantasy, it was hardly even there. Every, maybe, 10 chapters, there would be a fleeting paragraph about the Legends. The most I feel like I know about the library of legends is that they're books. There wasn't any insight into the legends, into the books, or into the stories. Which, whatever, if this wasn't literally the name of the book.
If the rest of this book was like the last 50 pages, I would've maybe enjoyed it more. Even though the ending felt rushed to be wrapped up, even though there wasn't much to wrap up anyways. Overall, this was a chore to read and finish, and while the cover is gorgeous and the premise was promising, this was a big let down for me.
I'm thinking this is a 2.5⭐, rounded up to 3.