A review by aehc
He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I’ll say it: this should have been a trilogy. The pacing is maintained at an extremely fast clip, but it picks up steam so rapidly in the back half that I was holding on with white knuckles not to get swept away. It’s a testament to Parker-Chan’s superb skills that this pace means that the book is merely very very good, as opposed to transcendant and triumphant as the first novel was. I do think that a slightly more leisurely pace and a third book would have strengthened the narrative by allowing for some more breathing room and space for the reader to sink in to the world. 

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