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theinquisitxor's Reviews (804)
This was...eh. Too much purple prose, actually so much purple prose it made parts difficult to read. Characters fell flat and I have some issues with some stuff. But I thought the world building and Indian mythology was great! So nice to read books that sit outside the Western tradition.
Some other thing I didn’t like
1. The slut shaming/ women shaming.
2. Instant love obsession. Kind was creepy tbh
3. The stupidity of the main character, Maya.
The only good things:
1. Demon horse. She was cool
2. World building
3. Indian mythology
I read this because it was on my TBR for a while and I usually like books with similar tropes. Maybe if I had read it when it was released my 16 year old self would’ve liked it much better, but I have higher standards now. The sequel book actually does look interesting despite how I feel about this one, but I don’t think I’m going to read it. However, I do plan on reading her newest book, the Gilded Wolves because I hear it is much better.
Some other thing I didn’t like
1. The slut shaming/ women shaming.
2. Instant love obsession. Kind was creepy tbh
3. The stupidity of the main character, Maya.
The only good things:
1. Demon horse. She was cool
2. World building
3. Indian mythology
I read this because it was on my TBR for a while and I usually like books with similar tropes. Maybe if I had read it when it was released my 16 year old self would’ve liked it much better, but I have higher standards now. The sequel book actually does look interesting despite how I feel about this one, but I don’t think I’m going to read it. However, I do plan on reading her newest book, the Gilded Wolves because I hear it is much better.
I really enjoyed this. For the questions it posed, the history it dealt with and the story it told. I'm always wary of classical music in fiction and there have only been a few cases where I think it's well done. And this is definitely one of these cases. I can tell the influence from Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own. This is definitely a book that will be on my mind for quite a while.
“There is music in your soul. A wild and untamed sort
of music that speaks to me. It defies all the rules and laws you humans set upon it. It grows from
inside you, and I have a wish to set that music free.”
Oh, how I love, love this book. I first read it last January, and immediately fell in love with almost every aspect of the story. The sequel had just been released, and I quickly read that as well. This book contains so many of my favorite tropes and themes. It contains themes from Labyrinth, La Belle et la Béte, Phantom of the Opera, Hades and Persephone and The Little Mermaid. At its base, it is a Labyrinth retelling, but contains so much more. The first half of the book is more like Labyrinth, as our protagonist (a nineteen year old Bavarian girl growing up in the 19th century) goes to retrieve her sister who has been taken by the Goblin King to be his bride. And then it changes to be a different sort of story in the second half of the book.
The mythology that Jae-Jones spins is incredible.
The Goblin King. The Underground. Der Erlkönig.
The music. That is probably my favorite part. I am a classical musician, I love music, it is what I do and I could not imagine my life without it. I have yet to read a book that describes music in the way this book does, or describes the impact of music on the characters. Or contains so many musical references. Der Erlkönig is a Goethe poem that was put to music by Schubert (I recommend you listen to it). There are too many references to count, from chapter titles, such as Death and the Maiden (a string quartet piece also of Schubert, and one of my favorites) to just general music terms used in the writing. I eat these parts of the book up. I wish there were more novels about classical music and musicians (we really are interesting people, I promise).
Is is definitely more of a character driven book. Elisabeth, or Liesel is such a complex character and she is annoying and frustrating sometimes. While there is plenty of romance, this book (and its sequel) is mostly about Elisabeth and her growth. She begins the book as a poor innkeepers daughter who composes music in secret and bears the responsibility of her siblings. She never got any of the attention she deserved and does not have a very high opinion of herself. Over the course of this book she grows so much. She begins to see herself as a musician and embraces her honesty and femininity.
Then there is the Goblin King. He is many faces at once. He is the Lord of Mischief, der Erlkönig and the nameless young man all at the same time. He becomes much more than the mischievous anti-hero of the first half. We learn that he his just as trapped in the Underground as Liesel is. He remembers his past life, but had to give up his identity.
S. Jae-Jone's writing is fabulous. It is full of dark romanticism where nothing is as it seems. It is also dense, and slow-paced. The first half is darker- even though much of it takes place above ground. Liesel's first visit to the Underground to rescue her sister is full of dark twisting tunnels, terrifying creatures and deception. The Lorelei and the Underground lake are also added themes from other works and myths. This entire novel is a fairy tale of magic, darkness, dreams, love and music. It is such a good book to read in January, and I will probably continue to re-read it in years to come.
of music that speaks to me. It defies all the rules and laws you humans set upon it. It grows from
inside you, and I have a wish to set that music free.”
Oh, how I love, love this book. I first read it last January, and immediately fell in love with almost every aspect of the story. The sequel had just been released, and I quickly read that as well. This book contains so many of my favorite tropes and themes. It contains themes from Labyrinth, La Belle et la Béte, Phantom of the Opera, Hades and Persephone and The Little Mermaid. At its base, it is a Labyrinth retelling, but contains so much more. The first half of the book is more like Labyrinth, as our protagonist (a nineteen year old Bavarian girl growing up in the 19th century) goes to retrieve her sister who has been taken by the Goblin King to be his bride. And then it changes to be a different sort of story in the second half of the book.
The mythology that Jae-Jones spins is incredible.
The Goblin King. The Underground. Der Erlkönig.
The music. That is probably my favorite part. I am a classical musician, I love music, it is what I do and I could not imagine my life without it. I have yet to read a book that describes music in the way this book does, or describes the impact of music on the characters. Or contains so many musical references. Der Erlkönig is a Goethe poem that was put to music by Schubert (I recommend you listen to it). There are too many references to count, from chapter titles, such as Death and the Maiden (a string quartet piece also of Schubert, and one of my favorites) to just general music terms used in the writing. I eat these parts of the book up. I wish there were more novels about classical music and musicians (we really are interesting people, I promise).
Is is definitely more of a character driven book. Elisabeth, or Liesel is such a complex character and she is annoying and frustrating sometimes. While there is plenty of romance, this book (and its sequel) is mostly about Elisabeth and her growth. She begins the book as a poor innkeepers daughter who composes music in secret and bears the responsibility of her siblings. She never got any of the attention she deserved and does not have a very high opinion of herself. Over the course of this book she grows so much. She begins to see herself as a musician and embraces her honesty and femininity.
Then there is the Goblin King. He is many faces at once. He is the Lord of Mischief, der Erlkönig and the nameless young man all at the same time. He becomes much more than the mischievous anti-hero of the first half. We learn that he his just as trapped in the Underground as Liesel is. He remembers his past life, but had to give up his identity.
S. Jae-Jone's writing is fabulous. It is full of dark romanticism where nothing is as it seems. It is also dense, and slow-paced. The first half is darker- even though much of it takes place above ground. Liesel's first visit to the Underground to rescue her sister is full of dark twisting tunnels, terrifying creatures and deception. The Lorelei and the Underground lake are also added themes from other works and myths. This entire novel is a fairy tale of magic, darkness, dreams, love and music. It is such a good book to read in January, and I will probably continue to re-read it in years to come.