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A review by laurareads87
The Final Strife by Saara El-Arifi
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
3.5 The Final Strife is an impressive, epic debut fantasy novel & I’m looking forward to the sequel. There were some aspects that didn’t really work for me, but I did like a lot about it and will happily read more by El-Arifi based on this novel.
What worked for me: The novel’s magic system is interesting, and the pacing was slow enough to allow for world- & character-building but moved enough to hold my interest. I definitely felt invested in the outcomes for some of the characters and at times couldn’t put the book down. I feel like the representation of the protagonist’s addiction struggle was well done overall. There were some compelling secondary characters and a few twists I genuinely didn’t expect.
What didn’t work for me: I feel like this book is somewhere between adult (in some of the world-building and themes) and YA (in the interpersonal relationships and, unfortunately, the politics). For some readers this may be an asset (as having adult/YA crossover appeal) but to me all the romance being omitted might’ve made the book better. It felt frustrating to read characters who were so incredibly naive about how political repression functions proceeding as though one person who ‘wants things to be better’ can obtain a powerful position within a violently oppressive colonial state and thereby revolutionize the whole rotten structure from within. There were definite opportunities to contrast radically different perspectives on revolutionary change here, but there wasn’t much depth in these aspects of the plot.
Content warnings: violence, colonialism, mutilation, confinement, addiction, death, blood, enslavement, child abuse, torture, classism, ableism, kidnapping, injury detail, mention of sexual assault, body shaming & fatphobic comments
What worked for me: The novel’s magic system is interesting, and the pacing was slow enough to allow for world- & character-building but moved enough to hold my interest. I definitely felt invested in the outcomes for some of the characters and at times couldn’t put the book down. I feel like the representation of the protagonist’s addiction struggle was well done overall. There were some compelling secondary characters and a few twists I genuinely didn’t expect.
What didn’t work for me: I feel like this book is somewhere between adult (in some of the world-building and themes) and YA (in the interpersonal relationships and, unfortunately, the politics). For some readers this may be an asset (as having adult/YA crossover appeal) but to me all the romance being omitted might’ve made the book better. It felt frustrating to read characters who were so incredibly naive about how political repression functions proceeding as though one person who ‘wants things to be better’ can obtain a powerful position within a violently oppressive colonial state and thereby revolutionize the whole rotten structure from within. There were definite opportunities to contrast radically different perspectives on revolutionary change here, but there wasn’t much depth in these aspects of the plot.
Content warnings: violence, colonialism, mutilation, confinement, addiction, death, blood, enslavement, child abuse, torture, classism, ableism, kidnapping, injury detail, mention of sexual assault, body shaming & fatphobic comments