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A review by gabs_myfullbookshelf
Dreamstrider by Lindsay Smith
2.0
2.5 stars
I was a little apprehensive when starting this book-it's a lot at first, with political intrigue and espionage mixed with fantasy. I haven't read anything like this in a while and it took a bit to adjust to the pacing that such a book tends to have. That's ultimately why it's getting the rating it has. While I ended this book with an appreciation for the overall story, it took until about halfway through for me to really get engrossed.
There were other quibbles I had with the story. The other spies aside from Livia that are mentioned in the story didn't feel well developed enough for me to care about them at all. They were mentioned often enough but I kind of view them with the same indifference you would view an NPC in a video game. I would have liked them, and Livia's relationship with them, to be more fleshed out, as I think the dynamics there could have been very interesting.
Livia herself, honestly, could have been more fleshed out-we get multiple mentions of her family (her half siblings, her mother) but that's it. We don't get to see those relationships play out-they're just offhand thoughts she has throughout the book. Her backstory does not get explored in the manner that I think it deserved. This society that she lives in is really tragic and exploitative for anyone not in its upper echelons, and she has experienced that firsthand. While that isn't fully ignored it's not dealt with in a way that I think really matches the severity of what the world-building of the story lays out.
Ultimately, I do appreciate that this is a standalone and the full plot was able to get wrapped up in one book. It's intriguing, but I don't know that I would have continued had everything not been resolved.
I was a little apprehensive when starting this book-it's a lot at first, with political intrigue and espionage mixed with fantasy. I haven't read anything like this in a while and it took a bit to adjust to the pacing that such a book tends to have. That's ultimately why it's getting the rating it has. While I ended this book with an appreciation for the overall story, it took until about halfway through for me to really get engrossed.
There were other quibbles I had with the story. The other spies aside from Livia that are mentioned in the story didn't feel well developed enough for me to care about them at all. They were mentioned often enough but I kind of view them with the same indifference you would view an NPC in a video game. I would have liked them, and Livia's relationship with them, to be more fleshed out, as I think the dynamics there could have been very interesting.
Livia herself, honestly, could have been more fleshed out-we get multiple mentions of her family (her half siblings, her mother) but that's it. We don't get to see those relationships play out-they're just offhand thoughts she has throughout the book. Her backstory does not get explored in the manner that I think it deserved. This society that she lives in is really tragic and exploitative for anyone not in its upper echelons, and she has experienced that firsthand. While that isn't fully ignored it's not dealt with in a way that I think really matches the severity of what the world-building of the story lays out.
Ultimately, I do appreciate that this is a standalone and the full plot was able to get wrapped up in one book. It's intriguing, but I don't know that I would have continued had everything not been resolved.