Take a photo of a barcode or cover
iam's reviews
1680 reviews
The Starving Saints by Caitlin Starling
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I was utterly captivated by The Starving Saints from the very first time I heard about it, and as soon as I read the first page I was entirely entranced.
Content warnings include: starvation, death, amputation, cannibalism, assault, mutilation. Mentions of: treason, beheading.
I have read all of Caitlin Starling's other books, and they all excell in atmosphere, and The Starving Saints is no different. It's oppressive from the entire beginning, both in setting and feel. It takes place in the besieged castle Aymar, food stores empty, and no sign of help arriving. Starvation is imminent, and things have gotten dire. Additionally, it's the height of summer with a sweltering heat plaguing the already starving inhabitants of the castle.
It's a stifling atmosphere, and the book makes you feel it.
The book centers around three of the women in the castle. Scattered Phosyne, the castle keeper's madwoman, tasked with creating another miracle to save everyone from starvation. Bold Ser Voyne, a battle hero frustrated by the tight leash her king keeps her on. And cunning Treila, a maid with a dark past who keeps to the shadows and who would do anything to escape the castle walls.
The three women become entangled, both by their pasts and presents.
Despite the starving, it's a delicious read. It's both a horrifying crawl and a sensual dance, of the three protagonist as well as their interactions with the Saints that miraculously arrive and offer food and pleasure, despite arriving with empty hands. Something is very wrong, and no-one seems to notice.
I loved following all three protagonists, and the tangled complexities of the respective relationships with each other, and then later how they each deal with the Saints, all dynamics that are constantly in flux. The book is not a romance, but there are some definite sensual elements, though I found them to be more driven by dangerous obsession and a need to consume, than by romantic feelings.
I also particular enjoyed how all protagonists have respective moments of absolute power and realized agency, but also deep lows and vulnerability, which are often brutally exploited - but things are never as they seem.
Consumption, bargains and careful wording are definitely big themes in general. As with almost all of the author's books, the big questions of how and why are answered, but very convoluted and not really straightfoward, and I always find it hard to put my fingers on the answers and put them into words. Rather than frustrating, in The Starving Saints I found this fit the atmosphere very well, and I got just enough answers to be satisfying.
Overall an absolutely stunning novel, though not for the faint of heart. It's brutal and raw, and does not pull any punched with its themes, it's gory, but not overly graphic, though I does not shy away from evil.
I received an ARC an reviewed honestly & voluntarily.
Content warnings include: starvation, death, amputation, cannibalism, assault, mutilation. Mentions of: treason, beheading.
I have read all of Caitlin Starling's other books, and they all excell in atmosphere, and The Starving Saints is no different. It's oppressive from the entire beginning, both in setting and feel. It takes place in the besieged castle Aymar, food stores empty, and no sign of help arriving. Starvation is imminent, and things have gotten dire. Additionally, it's the height of summer with a sweltering heat plaguing the already starving inhabitants of the castle.
It's a stifling atmosphere, and the book makes you feel it.
The book centers around three of the women in the castle. Scattered Phosyne, the castle keeper's madwoman, tasked with creating another miracle to save everyone from starvation. Bold Ser Voyne, a battle hero frustrated by the tight leash her king keeps her on. And cunning Treila, a maid with a dark past who keeps to the shadows and who would do anything to escape the castle walls.
The three women become entangled, both by their pasts and presents.
Despite the starving, it's a delicious read. It's both a horrifying crawl and a sensual dance, of the three protagonist as well as their interactions with the Saints that miraculously arrive and offer food and pleasure, despite arriving with empty hands. Something is very wrong, and no-one seems to notice.
I loved following all three protagonists, and the tangled complexities of the respective relationships with each other, and then later how they each deal with the Saints, all dynamics that are constantly in flux. The book is not a romance, but there are some definite sensual elements, though I found them to be more driven by dangerous obsession and a need to consume, than by romantic feelings.
I also particular enjoyed how all protagonists have respective moments of absolute power and realized agency, but also deep lows and vulnerability, which are often brutally exploited - but things are never as they seem.
Consumption, bargains and careful wording are definitely big themes in general. As with almost all of the author's books, the big questions of how and why are answered, but very convoluted and not really straightfoward, and I always find it hard to put my fingers on the answers and put them into words. Rather than frustrating, in The Starving Saints I found this fit the atmosphere very well, and I got just enough answers to be satisfying.
Overall an absolutely stunning novel, though not for the faint of heart. It's brutal and raw, and does not pull any punched with its themes, it's gory, but not overly graphic, though I does not shy away from evil.
I received an ARC an reviewed honestly & voluntarily.
Even The Worm Will Turn by Hailey Piper
dark
3.0
When I finished The Worm and his Kings I was baffled how there could possibly be a sequel, given its ending.
Even the Worm Will Turn makes that pretty clear, obviously - it plays 4 years after the first book and follows Donna, who is finally no longer struggling after the consequences of Monique's actions.
That is, until someone starts following her at night. Someone who knows way too much about her past.
This series is great at its depiction of cosmic horror, but it is quite hard to follow in audiobook format. Part of that makes sense - a big part of eldritch horror is, after all, supposed to be about it being beyond human comprehension. Still, a bit more clarity would have been appreciated, but part of that is also down to me, not the book's fault.
Even though this plays way after The Worm and his Kings, this answered some of the questions I had about Monique and Donna's relationship - not conclusively, as I am still not 100% convinced somehow, but I am mostly mollified.
Even the Worm Will Turn makes that pretty clear, obviously - it plays 4 years after the first book and follows Donna, who is finally no longer struggling after the consequences of Monique's actions.
That is, until someone starts following her at night. Someone who knows way too much about her past.
This series is great at its depiction of cosmic horror, but it is quite hard to follow in audiobook format. Part of that makes sense - a big part of eldritch horror is, after all, supposed to be about it being beyond human comprehension. Still, a bit more clarity would have been appreciated, but part of that is also down to me, not the book's fault.
Even though this plays way after The Worm and his Kings, this answered some of the questions I had about Monique and Donna's relationship - not conclusively, as I am still not 100% convinced somehow, but I am mostly mollified.
Greywaren by Maggie Stiefvater
4.0
I did enjoy this finale to the series, and how all of it tied together, even to stuff from The Raven Cycle.
I think my favourite part were the characters. Particularly Declan stood out to me, which I never would have expected, but the rest was fun as well.
My biggest complaint was how so much of the finale happened off-page. In the middle of it we get a flashback (kinda?) and then things are fine, and we only get to hear about the action and what everyone got up to and how people were saved (or not) afterwards in a summary. That felt like a very bizarre choice for a climax?
Still, super fun series, I loved being with Ronan again, as well as the rest of the cast that grew on me over time
I think my favourite part were the characters. Particularly Declan stood out to me, which I never would have expected, but the rest was fun as well.
My biggest complaint was how so much of the finale happened off-page. In the middle of it we get a flashback (kinda?) and then things are fine, and we only get to hear about the action and what everyone got up to and how people were saved (or not) afterwards in a summary. That felt like a very bizarre choice for a climax?
Still, super fun series, I loved being with Ronan again, as well as the rest of the cast that grew on me over time
Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor
inspiring
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Edit: Actually, now that it's been a few days that I've finished the book and talked about it with some people, I changed my mind - I'm upping my rating to full 5 stars. It took me some time and conversations for it to finally click, and that has given me a whole new appreciation for the genius of the book, and a whole new interpretation of the ending.
I also finally understand where the whole "blurring line between fiction and reality" comes from, and, yeah, I totally see that now!! And it's done masterfully.
I also found a new appreciation for the writing style - it changes completely between Zelu's chapters, the Rusted Robot chapters, and the interviews, and all of them are extremly skillfully written and engaging in their own right.
What a stunning book!
Original review: 4 stars.
I greatly enjoyed this, and I'm really glad I went into this knowing a lot of people consider it more lit fic than SciFi.
While it has some SciFi elements, I too do not really consider this a SciFi novel - but I generally really don't enjoy lit fic, so I hesitate to call it that. Contemporary fiction, then, I guess?
The book followed Zelu, a Nigerian-American aspiring writer who, one day down on her luck, starts writing a SciFi novel about robots on an earth past humanity. A SciFi book that, then, takes off and brings her fame and virality.
At the center of the plot is Zelu's rise to fame and how she deals with it, as well as her relationship with her big family. Zelu is a complicated character, who has complicated relationships, and a not straightforward history. And her story utterly captivated me!
The other part of the book is chapters of the book Zelu writes, Rusted Robots. I expected to like these parts, because hell yes, robots! But I just found them fine. I certainly didn't think they lived up to the hype they were getting Zelu in the book - I have to say, that almost broke my suspension of disbelief. Still, it was a lovely story.
The marketing of the book makes a big deal about the line between reality and fiction blurring... to be honest, I got none of that. I guess there were some vague similarities between the robot main character and Zelu? And at one point Zelu gets some cool tech to help her walk again (she's paraplegic), leading to people calling her "robot".
Mentioning the cool tech, the SciFi elements of the book (aside from Rusted Robots) were some cool tech things in the background, though they never get much of a focus. Even Rusted Robots, while about robots, was very grounded in humanity and ultimately about human problems and feelings, in my opinion.
A subplot I enjoyed was the one about Zelu as an author. It was not in detail, and almost certainly not a real depiction of how publishing works. In a way, it reminded me a bit of Yellowface, though it was way less focussed on the publishing and social media drama and #cancelling aspect of it all. That said, after hearing that there are some interesting parallel's between the author's life and Zelu's, it made me think of Yellowface even more.
I also enjoyed the glimpses into Nigerian culture, though I have no concept to compare it to or really judge its authenticty, and I hear there is some criticism for it out there.
The family drama was sometimes frustrating to read, but also felt very real, and I still enjoyed Zelu's big family greatly.
My biggest complaint was the ending - not because I hated it, but because there were plenty of retrospective interviews interspered in the book, where Zelu's family and friends talk about her life and fame from the future. In these interviews there are constant hints to a big event that I felt like the book was leading up to, hints to what happenes to Zelu... all of which lead nowhere. When I finished the book I thought I had somehow got a faulty copy that was missing a chapter. That left me feeling robbed and dissatisfied at the end, which is never a feeling I want to end a book on. It also left me very confused. What did it all mean??? I also felt like some of the events towards the end were directly contradictory to the hints given in the interview. So I am unsure what to think.
Overall I had a great time with the book, somewhat unexpectedly due to it not being nearly as SciF as advertized.
I received an ARC and reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
I also finally understand where the whole "blurring line between fiction and reality" comes from, and, yeah, I totally see that now!! And it's done masterfully.
I also found a new appreciation for the writing style - it changes completely between Zelu's chapters, the Rusted Robot chapters, and the interviews, and all of them are extremly skillfully written and engaging in their own right.
What a stunning book!
Original review: 4 stars.
I greatly enjoyed this, and I'm really glad I went into this knowing a lot of people consider it more lit fic than SciFi.
While it has some SciFi elements, I too do not really consider this a SciFi novel - but I generally really don't enjoy lit fic, so I hesitate to call it that. Contemporary fiction, then, I guess?
The book followed Zelu, a Nigerian-American aspiring writer who, one day down on her luck, starts writing a SciFi novel about robots on an earth past humanity. A SciFi book that, then, takes off and brings her fame and virality.
At the center of the plot is Zelu's rise to fame and how she deals with it, as well as her relationship with her big family. Zelu is a complicated character, who has complicated relationships, and a not straightforward history. And her story utterly captivated me!
The other part of the book is chapters of the book Zelu writes, Rusted Robots. I expected to like these parts, because hell yes, robots! But I just found them fine. I certainly didn't think they lived up to the hype they were getting Zelu in the book - I have to say, that almost broke my suspension of disbelief. Still, it was a lovely story.
The marketing of the book makes a big deal about the line between reality and fiction blurring... to be honest, I got none of that. I guess there were some vague similarities between the robot main character and Zelu? And at one point Zelu gets some cool tech to help her walk again (she's paraplegic), leading to people calling her "robot".
Mentioning the cool tech, the SciFi elements of the book (aside from Rusted Robots) were some cool tech things in the background, though they never get much of a focus. Even Rusted Robots, while about robots, was very grounded in humanity and ultimately about human problems and feelings, in my opinion.
A subplot I enjoyed was the one about Zelu as an author. It was not in detail, and almost certainly not a real depiction of how publishing works. In a way, it reminded me a bit of Yellowface, though it was way less focussed on the publishing and social media drama and #cancelling aspect of it all. That said, after hearing that there are some interesting parallel's between the author's life and Zelu's, it made me think of Yellowface even more.
I also enjoyed the glimpses into Nigerian culture, though I have no concept to compare it to or really judge its authenticty, and I hear there is some criticism for it out there.
The family drama was sometimes frustrating to read, but also felt very real, and I still enjoyed Zelu's big family greatly.
My biggest complaint was the ending - not because I hated it, but because there were plenty of retrospective interviews interspered in the book, where Zelu's family and friends talk about her life and fame from the future. In these interviews there are constant hints to a big event that I felt like the book was leading up to, hints to what happenes to Zelu... all of which lead nowhere. When I finished the book I thought I had somehow got a faulty copy that was missing a chapter. That left me feeling robbed and dissatisfied at the end, which is never a feeling I want to end a book on. It also left me very confused. What did it all mean??? I also felt like some of the events towards the end were directly contradictory to the hints given in the interview. So I am unsure what to think.
Overall I had a great time with the book, somewhat unexpectedly due to it not being nearly as SciF as advertized.
I received an ARC and reviewed honestly and voluntarily.
Mister Impossible by Maggie Stiefvater
adventurous
4.0
Cool continuation of the story about dreams, dreamers, and dreamer-killers.
I enjoyed following these characters on with their stories, even if the plot was sort of meandering. I enjoyed how their paths crossed more in the second book than the first, though there was still plenty of perspective on the same core issue.
I enjoyed following these characters on with their stories, even if the plot was sort of meandering. I enjoyed how their paths crossed more in the second book than the first, though there was still plenty of perspective on the same core issue.
The Word for World Is Forest by Ursula K. Le Guin
dark
informative
reflective
sad
3.5
Impactful Sci-Fi novella about imperialism, colonialism, and the price of resistance.
Content warnings include: violence, murder, colonialism, slavery, rape, torture, racism.
As a SciFi book, this lacked a bit of depth to me. I wanted more about the alien, the Athshean, culture, and more direct action from the characters, rather than hearing about what happens second hand from the character narrating about it after the fact. This created a bit of separation for me and I didn't entirely get as emotionally invested as I could have.
On the other hand, this was still impactful and heavy hitting, emotionally, plus I guess with at least one character I was glad to feel a bit more removed from him.
As a social commentary, specifically about the Vietnam war, this was very effective. Particularly its depiction of how the act of resistance, while entire right and justified, forever changes those resisting, and not solely in a good way. It's something I haven't come this blatant and centrally in media before, and at least to me it definitely feels relevant.
There were three POV characters: Selver, one of the oppressed Athsheans who takes and leads the first steps of violent resistance against his kinds' peaceful nature. Lyubov, a yuman scientist who tries to learn as much as possible about the Athsheans and sympathises with them. And Davidson, a Colonel who is pretty much the posterchild for toxic masculinity, and such a vile person that being in his head, following his reasonings and justifications, made me feel disgusting.
I think what I enjoyed most was the relationship (I hesitate to call it friendship) between Selver and Lyubov. Unfortunately their interactions came up pretty late in the book, and I think that did it a disservice. There also generally was very little dialogue - most of the book is told in general, a character describing or musing over things that have already happened, rather than directly being in the middle of events.
This aided in worldbuilding, though not in creating engagement, and the worldbuilding was well done, if very subtle. We only see the world through the characters' eyes, and their prejudices and what the find important, which isn't always what may be important to the reader, or at least for me. As such I am sure I missed some things here and there, though.
There are two forewords, and those definitely help with interpreting the story. I don't engage much with classical or social commentary, so I appreciated them, though I would have preferred it more to read after reading the book (as it was I just read them again after).
Content warnings include: violence, murder, colonialism, slavery, rape, torture, racism.
As a SciFi book, this lacked a bit of depth to me. I wanted more about the alien, the Athshean, culture, and more direct action from the characters, rather than hearing about what happens second hand from the character narrating about it after the fact. This created a bit of separation for me and I didn't entirely get as emotionally invested as I could have.
On the other hand, this was still impactful and heavy hitting, emotionally, plus I guess with at least one character I was glad to feel a bit more removed from him.
As a social commentary, specifically about the Vietnam war, this was very effective. Particularly its depiction of how the act of resistance, while entire right and justified, forever changes those resisting, and not solely in a good way. It's something I haven't come this blatant and centrally in media before, and at least to me it definitely feels relevant.
There were three POV characters: Selver, one of the oppressed Athsheans who takes and leads the first steps of violent resistance against his kinds' peaceful nature. Lyubov, a yuman scientist who tries to learn as much as possible about the Athsheans and sympathises with them. And Davidson, a Colonel who is pretty much the posterchild for toxic masculinity, and such a vile person that being in his head, following his reasonings and justifications, made me feel disgusting.
I think what I enjoyed most was the relationship (I hesitate to call it friendship) between Selver and Lyubov. Unfortunately their interactions came up pretty late in the book, and I think that did it a disservice. There also generally was very little dialogue - most of the book is told in general, a character describing or musing over things that have already happened, rather than directly being in the middle of events.
This aided in worldbuilding, though not in creating engagement, and the worldbuilding was well done, if very subtle. We only see the world through the characters' eyes, and their prejudices and what the find important, which isn't always what may be important to the reader, or at least for me. As such I am sure I missed some things here and there, though.
There are two forewords, and those definitely help with interpreting the story. I don't engage much with classical or social commentary, so I appreciated them, though I would have preferred it more to read after reading the book (as it was I just read them again after).
Call Down the Hawk by Maggie Stiefvater
4.0
I've read The Raven Cycle multiple times and loved it, and while I've been aware of this related series for a while now, it somehow never occurred to me to read it too. But I started it now and find it absolutel fascinating, both on its own and in relation to The Raven Cycle.
Content warnings include: murder, death, violence; Mentions of: death of parents, suicide.
To be clear, you don't need to have read The Raven Cycle to read Call Down the Hawk. It stands entirely on its own, only Ronan is a main character in both, and The Raven Cycle is in his past. Relevant events are briefly alluded to or mentioned on a surface level in a sufficient way. I actually found that hilarious, how huge events from the other series are summarized in a half sentence or downplayed - it works perfectly here, just found it amusing.
That said, I do think having read the other series gives some background information and contex to Ronan's relationship and friendships, which do not play a big role here, but which I would probably have found a bit confusing if I didn't have that context.
Call Down the Hawk is one of those stressfull reads caused by each character being on a different side of the core conflict. It's about dreams, dreams and dream(er) killers, who each have their own mundane or large-scale motivations and complications. I loved seeing how much more there was to the world of Dream(er)s in this setting, and the horror (and some joy, but mostly horror to be honest) it can cause. It opened whole new doors of worldbuilding which was fascinating.
It also opened up about some side characters from The Raven Cycle, mainly Declan and Matthew. I found both to be very captivating characters, and enjoyed seeing more from them. The new additions, Jordan, Hennessey, and Farooq-Lane were great too, each adding their own and very different vibe to the story.
It took a while for the plot to get rolling, as each character had such different things going on that it was hard to see how things would converge eventually. There were some big overarching mysteries that felt a bit too convenient - as this is a trilogy I don't mind those unanswered questions yet, but I sure hope they will be answered in the future.
Overall a promising and entertaining start to a new paranormal and magical story that perfectly captures the horror in whimsy, and the whimsy in horror.
Content warnings include: murder, death, violence; Mentions of: death of parents, suicide.
To be clear, you don't need to have read The Raven Cycle to read Call Down the Hawk. It stands entirely on its own, only Ronan is a main character in both, and The Raven Cycle is in his past. Relevant events are briefly alluded to or mentioned on a surface level in a sufficient way. I actually found that hilarious, how huge events from the other series are summarized in a half sentence or downplayed - it works perfectly here, just found it amusing.
That said, I do think having read the other series gives some background information and contex to Ronan's relationship and friendships, which do not play a big role here, but which I would probably have found a bit confusing if I didn't have that context.
Call Down the Hawk is one of those stressfull reads caused by each character being on a different side of the core conflict. It's about dreams, dreams and dream(er) killers, who each have their own mundane or large-scale motivations and complications. I loved seeing how much more there was to the world of Dream(er)s in this setting, and the horror (and some joy, but mostly horror to be honest) it can cause. It opened whole new doors of worldbuilding which was fascinating.
It also opened up about some side characters from The Raven Cycle, mainly Declan and Matthew. I found both to be very captivating characters, and enjoyed seeing more from them. The new additions, Jordan, Hennessey, and Farooq-Lane were great too, each adding their own and very different vibe to the story.
It took a while for the plot to get rolling, as each character had such different things going on that it was hard to see how things would converge eventually. There were some big overarching mysteries that felt a bit too convenient - as this is a trilogy I don't mind those unanswered questions yet, but I sure hope they will be answered in the future.
Overall a promising and entertaining start to a new paranormal and magical story that perfectly captures the horror in whimsy, and the whimsy in horror.
When the Third Moon Rises by Howl Avery
2.0
This could have been fun, but wasn't.
There were some cool ideas for the aliens, but it was all surface level and refused to add any depth or put any more than surface thoughts into the worldbuilding.
There was no emotional investment, the characters couldn't even talk for 90% of the book other than yes/no questions only one of them could ask, and they had bascially no interactions other than the initial rape (and it absolutely was rape, even if the main character convinces himself otherwise) and the non-stop cuddling afterwards.
Rex was an incredibly passive main character. He gets abducted, sold, raped, and then just lays around in bed getting cuddled and waited on by aliens. At no point does he really question anything. I usually don't mind characters that go along with the bad hands they have been dealt and try to make the best of it, I usually even really like such charactes, but Rex truly did nothing. He was such a blank.
The romance was pretty much non-existent. It, again, is based on the alien buying and raping Rex and laying eggs in him and I guess then cuddling him???
There's also the whole thing of Rex insisting he has free will, because after he finds out about the eggs WEEKS after it happened the alien offers him an abortion if he really wants it. Nevermind that he wasn't even asked for consent at any point before. There even is a whole scene at the end about Rex making a speech about how he is chosing all this. It felt bizarre.
The one thing I liked was some ideas about the aliens and their communication with light impulses on their skin. Aside from the lack of worldbuilding, this was however also ruined by the added telepathy they have.
For anyone who wants to read a well executed alien romance featuring tropes of alien abduction, tentacles, egg laying, cute alien babies, language barrier/cultural misunderstandings and such, I highly recommend to read Earth Fathers are Weird instead.
There were some cool ideas for the aliens, but it was all surface level and refused to add any depth or put any more than surface thoughts into the worldbuilding.
There was no emotional investment, the characters couldn't even talk for 90% of the book other than yes/no questions only one of them could ask, and they had bascially no interactions other than the initial rape (and it absolutely was rape, even if the main character convinces himself otherwise) and the non-stop cuddling afterwards.
Rex was an incredibly passive main character. He gets abducted, sold, raped, and then just lays around in bed getting cuddled and waited on by aliens. At no point does he really question anything. I usually don't mind characters that go along with the bad hands they have been dealt and try to make the best of it, I usually even really like such charactes, but Rex truly did nothing. He was such a blank.
The romance was pretty much non-existent. It, again, is based on the alien buying and raping Rex and laying eggs in him and I guess then cuddling him???
There's also the whole thing of Rex insisting he has free will, because after he finds out about the eggs WEEKS after it happened the alien offers him an abortion if he really wants it. Nevermind that he wasn't even asked for consent at any point before. There even is a whole scene at the end about Rex making a speech about how he is chosing all this. It felt bizarre.
The one thing I liked was some ideas about the aliens and their communication with light impulses on their skin. Aside from the lack of worldbuilding, this was however also ruined by the added telepathy they have.
For anyone who wants to read a well executed alien romance featuring tropes of alien abduction, tentacles, egg laying, cute alien babies, language barrier/cultural misunderstandings and such, I highly recommend to read Earth Fathers are Weird instead.
Bull Moon Rising by Ruby Dixon
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
4.0
Super fun and highly entertaining romantasy with a Minotaur MMC and a fun cave adventuring/training plotline!
Content warnings include: sex on-page, marriage of convenience, sex on-page, blackmail, attempted murder, corpses, misogyny; Mentions of: gambling addiction, xenophobia, sexual harassment.
I mainly bought this because I really wanted to buy a book in an Indie Bookstore I went to, and this looked pretty, plus I still have fond memories of the last Minotaur romance I read, Morning Glory Milking Farm. I also never read anything by this author before (though I have Ice Planet Barbarians on my TBR) so I went in pretty much blind.
For a book that doesn't take itself too seriously, this actually had a lot of plot. There is the main romance plot hook, the Conquest Moon, an event that happens every 5 years that is basically a mating phase for Minotaurs where they go sex-crazy for a day. This ties in with Aspeth, the FMC, the noble heir of a broke holder family (read: fancy lords) who in an attempt to safe the family wants to join the Artificeer Guild, who look for magical Artifacts in underground ruins. In order to join, she needs a Chaperone, and Hawk, a Minotaur working for the Guild, needs a group to train and someone to spend the Conquest Moon with, so they strike a marriage of convenience.
The way the convenience marriage was proposed was hilarious. Aspeth is a pretty stereotypical sheltered rich lady who is very naive, but at the same time she is very practical and pragmatic, which leads to a lot of funny situations and situational comedy. It never veered into overdramatic sitcom vibes, instead staying grounded and very, very fun. Particularly juxtaposed with Hawk's POV who doesn't always know what the heck Aspeth is thinking (or doing) it creates a lot of very fun situations and I had a lot of good laughs.
The other big plot is Aspeth and her merry band of five, the group of Guild students training to become Artificers. The entire group is a lot of fun, and I enjoyed the characters. I wish they had gotten a but more attention here and there, but that's par of the course - and with more books in the series there is a good chance at least one of them is going to get their own book in the future.
Both of these main plots have various subplots that each are fun and integrated well. There's Magpie, Aspeth's idol who is supposed to train the Five, but mysteriously absent; there's Aspeth's past as a holder heir which she is trying to keep secret; there's Hawk desperately trying to educate Aspeth about what's going to happen during the Conquest Moon, and while Aspeth isn't opposed, she is also a bit scattered. And so many more.
It's written in an easy and accessible way that flows nicely. There are plenty of emotional ups and downs and I was pretty invested in it. The worldbuilding isn't super deep, but it's clear the author put a lot of thought into it, and the world feels alive and believeable. I could have done with a bit less sexism, and more details about the non-human people of this world, but overall this was an interesting setting.
The ending was very fun and satisfying too, though there were a few details I wasn't a fan of (how all the plot point converged at the end) and some details at the end felt off to me (Aspeth's emotional reaction to the consequences), but overal, I had a great time from beginning to end.
Content warnings include: sex on-page, marriage of convenience, sex on-page, blackmail, attempted murder, corpses, misogyny; Mentions of: gambling addiction, xenophobia, sexual harassment.
I mainly bought this because I really wanted to buy a book in an Indie Bookstore I went to, and this looked pretty, plus I still have fond memories of the last Minotaur romance I read, Morning Glory Milking Farm. I also never read anything by this author before (though I have Ice Planet Barbarians on my TBR) so I went in pretty much blind.
For a book that doesn't take itself too seriously, this actually had a lot of plot. There is the main romance plot hook, the Conquest Moon, an event that happens every 5 years that is basically a mating phase for Minotaurs where they go sex-crazy for a day. This ties in with Aspeth, the FMC, the noble heir of a broke holder family (read: fancy lords) who in an attempt to safe the family wants to join the Artificeer Guild, who look for magical Artifacts in underground ruins. In order to join, she needs a Chaperone, and Hawk, a Minotaur working for the Guild, needs a group to train and someone to spend the Conquest Moon with, so they strike a marriage of convenience.
The way the convenience marriage was proposed was hilarious. Aspeth is a pretty stereotypical sheltered rich lady who is very naive, but at the same time she is very practical and pragmatic, which leads to a lot of funny situations and situational comedy. It never veered into overdramatic sitcom vibes, instead staying grounded and very, very fun. Particularly juxtaposed with Hawk's POV who doesn't always know what the heck Aspeth is thinking (or doing) it creates a lot of very fun situations and I had a lot of good laughs.
The other big plot is Aspeth and her merry band of five, the group of Guild students training to become Artificers. The entire group is a lot of fun, and I enjoyed the characters. I wish they had gotten a but more attention here and there, but that's par of the course - and with more books in the series there is a good chance at least one of them is going to get their own book in the future.
Both of these main plots have various subplots that each are fun and integrated well. There's Magpie, Aspeth's idol who is supposed to train the Five, but mysteriously absent; there's Aspeth's past as a holder heir which she is trying to keep secret; there's Hawk desperately trying to educate Aspeth about what's going to happen during the Conquest Moon, and while Aspeth isn't opposed, she is also a bit scattered. And so many more.
It's written in an easy and accessible way that flows nicely. There are plenty of emotional ups and downs and I was pretty invested in it. The worldbuilding isn't super deep, but it's clear the author put a lot of thought into it, and the world feels alive and believeable. I could have done with a bit less sexism, and more details about the non-human people of this world, but overall this was an interesting setting.
The ending was very fun and satisfying too, though there were a few details I wasn't a fan of (how all the plot point converged at the end) and some details at the end felt off to me (Aspeth's emotional reaction to the consequences), but overal, I had a great time from beginning to end.
Opal by Maggie Stiefvater
medium-paced
4.0
Sweet short story playing after the end of The Raven King, written from Opal/Orphan Girl's POV and centered mostly around Ronan trying to dream a new Cabeswater, while Adam worries about his future. Both happy and sad, both good and bad, very dream-like and grounded.
The one thing that irked me was that, in the audiobook, the narrator for some reason does a lot of mumbling?? I had to relisten several times because I could not figure out what he was saying. Which is weird because that wasn't an issue at all in the audiobooks of the other Raven Cycle books, which have the same narrator??
The one thing that irked me was that, in the audiobook, the narrator for some reason does a lot of mumbling?? I had to relisten several times because I could not figure out what he was saying. Which is weird because that wasn't an issue at all in the audiobooks of the other Raven Cycle books, which have the same narrator??