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A review by fulltimefiction
The Gutter Prayer by Gareth Ryder-Hanrahan
3.0
In this review, I will try to explain my 3 stars rating.
The book took me over a week to finish, which is okay if I had work or school but I didn’t. Instead, I finished several other books while reading it. Up until the 80% mark, I was bored, extremely so. An interesting chapter pops now and then but still, I found myself avoiding reading The Gutter Prayer.
As most reviews explained, the world-building was nothing short of stunning. Mr. Gareth did prove that you can be still innovative in the fantasy genre and introduced completely new creatures like Tallowmen aka candle men, and crawling ones, basically creatures made up of worms. I found myself seeing the city as if I was there. I also liked the concept of godswar and I really really really want to know more about it. BUT. I don’t think I’ll be able to make it through the second book. Although I liked the concept of having one of the main characters a ghoul and another a stoneman and the diverse characterization, their chapters did not interest. Or rather their perspective? For example, the scene at the docks (told from Rat/the ghoul’s pov) made me struggle a lot to finish its chapter (around 40% of the book), I knew what was happening was obviously aiming for something bigger, yet I couldn’t stay focused on the sentences I was reading.
This is one of the rare cases when the overall idea of the book which is very smart and genuinely interesting yet, the execution of some parts of the story such as the pace and the characters failed to impress me. I’m all for gray characters but in this book, I simply did not care about them. At all. I want to know what will happen next but you see, not to our characters but to the world as a whole. Mr. Gareth was a genius in that regard, I can’t name many books whose worlds captivated me so much that I’m curious if not worried about their future. Sadly, we read a story from characters povs, and not even the best of world-buildings can make me continue a series if I couldn’t care about their characters, not asking for memorable ones nor likable ones even. I wasn’t concerned about what might happen to Cari but rather about what will happen if she did or didn’t do something to Guerdon.
But here’s another problem. The boredom. Yes, I was intrigued by the world and definitely impressed by its originally but I wasn’t fascinated in the first 75-80%, and this isn’t a short book. The allure of the book only came later with the plot twists and revelations. I have a feeling, no I know, I will have the same experience with the Shadow Saint and I really cannot tell you how painful this is. I know I’ve said it many times but the war, the alchemists, the bizarre creatures, the magic, I want more of these, a lot more. But dull characterization cancels the rest, unfortunately.
No matter how impressed I am but the author’s creativeness and imagination, the fact remains that I read to enjoy myself. Finishing some chapters felt more like a chore and other than the very last part of the story and the handful of chapters now and then, I wasn’t having fun. There are several books that I only enjoyed at the climax and I am fond of and read the sequels because at the end of the day, what brings me back to a series to finish it, is its characters.
Briefly said, this book is something new if you’re bored of the same usual fantasy. You might not face the same issues that I had with the characters because this is something subjective since they weren't "annoying" or stupid. So give it a try and hopefully, you’ll have a better time reading this.
The book took me over a week to finish, which is okay if I had work or school but I didn’t. Instead, I finished several other books while reading it. Up until the 80% mark, I was bored, extremely so. An interesting chapter pops now and then but still, I found myself avoiding reading The Gutter Prayer.
As most reviews explained, the world-building was nothing short of stunning. Mr. Gareth did prove that you can be still innovative in the fantasy genre and introduced completely new creatures like Tallowmen aka candle men, and crawling ones, basically creatures made up of worms. I found myself seeing the city as if I was there. I also liked the concept of godswar and I really really really want to know more about it. BUT. I don’t think I’ll be able to make it through the second book. Although I liked the concept of having one of the main characters a ghoul and another a stoneman and the diverse characterization, their chapters did not interest. Or rather their perspective? For example, the scene at the docks (told from Rat/the ghoul’s pov) made me struggle a lot to finish its chapter (around 40% of the book), I knew what was happening was obviously aiming for something bigger, yet I couldn’t stay focused on the sentences I was reading.
This is one of the rare cases when the overall idea of the book which is very smart and genuinely interesting yet, the execution of some parts of the story such as the pace and the characters failed to impress me. I’m all for gray characters but in this book, I simply did not care about them. At all. I want to know what will happen next but you see, not to our characters but to the world as a whole. Mr. Gareth was a genius in that regard, I can’t name many books whose worlds captivated me so much that I’m curious if not worried about their future. Sadly, we read a story from characters povs, and not even the best of world-buildings can make me continue a series if I couldn’t care about their characters, not asking for memorable ones nor likable ones even. I wasn’t concerned about what might happen to Cari but rather about what will happen if she did or didn’t do something to Guerdon.
But here’s another problem. The boredom. Yes, I was intrigued by the world and definitely impressed by its originally but I wasn’t fascinated in the first 75-80%, and this isn’t a short book. The allure of the book only came later with the plot twists and revelations. I have a feeling, no I know, I will have the same experience with the Shadow Saint and I really cannot tell you how painful this is. I know I’ve said it many times but the war, the alchemists, the bizarre creatures, the magic, I want more of these, a lot more. But dull characterization cancels the rest, unfortunately.
No matter how impressed I am but the author’s creativeness and imagination, the fact remains that I read to enjoy myself. Finishing some chapters felt more like a chore and other than the very last part of the story and the handful of chapters now and then, I wasn’t having fun. There are several books that I only enjoyed at the climax and I am fond of and read the sequels because at the end of the day, what brings me back to a series to finish it, is its characters.
Briefly said, this book is something new if you’re bored of the same usual fantasy. You might not face the same issues that I had with the characters because this is something subjective since they weren't "annoying" or stupid. So give it a try and hopefully, you’ll have a better time reading this.