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A review by wilt
Dark Heir by C.S. Pacat
dark
mysterious
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
criticisms aside for a moment, pacat's writing is phenomenal. the way she builds narrative tension and twists a story until you dont know which way is up or down anymore, leaving you entirely at its mercy, speaks of skill and effort and care and has driven me to be a loyal reader. but that loyalty isn't blind. and reading this felt like skimming the surface of a vast lake. in which its depths lurked the true story that could have been told if pacat was writing without limit. and maybe she always wanted to write this story in the bodies of children. there are points where it makes sense; the possibility of growth, when you arent yet an adult. the sheer bravery of adolescence. but i couldnt shake the feeling of being held back on a tight leash from ever dipping deeper past the surface of this lake. and trying to pull just made me tired.
i can say a hundred times that i wish this wasnt YA, but that won't make it true. whats true is that this book was a lot better than the first. a lot stronger and coherent and focused. the knife was already plunged in during book one, and book two only twisted it deeper. but its impossible to get past the age thing. when we are given scraps of their adult selves. when adults keep coming on to these kids. when there is a 10,000 year old creature living in the body of a 15 year old boy. when the writing itself, at times, feels watered down for a younger audience. either through repetition, or stating the obvious, or dumbing down explanations. its impressive what pacat has managed to create even with these limitations. there are real gems of dialogue, and tension, and word play. of narrative structure, and romance. but with a full cast of children, there's only so far you can push these points for it to be believable or compelling.
i'll still preorder book 3 as soon as i can. but i'll never be able to shake this sad, sour taste from my mouth, at what this could have been.
i can say a hundred times that i wish this wasnt YA, but that won't make it true. whats true is that this book was a lot better than the first. a lot stronger and coherent and focused. the knife was already plunged in during book one, and book two only twisted it deeper. but its impossible to get past the age thing. when we are given scraps of their adult selves. when adults keep coming on to these kids. when there is a 10,000 year old creature living in the body of a 15 year old boy. when the writing itself, at times, feels watered down for a younger audience. either through repetition, or stating the obvious, or dumbing down explanations. its impressive what pacat has managed to create even with these limitations. there are real gems of dialogue, and tension, and word play. of narrative structure, and romance. but with a full cast of children, there's only so far you can push these points for it to be believable or compelling.
i'll still preorder book 3 as soon as i can. but i'll never be able to shake this sad, sour taste from my mouth, at what this could have been.