tinyelfarcanist's Reviews (326)

adventurous funny medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Buehlman's horror background shines in his gruesome depiction of goblins, intelligent creatures bent on carnage, and the gorey description of battles' aftermath.

We follow a 20-year-old Galva dom Braga surrounded by flesh-eating creatures, seeing the dwindling numbers of friends and foes alike. It's a somewhat coming-of-age tale, so even in such an inauspicious environment her life is also made out of warm moments of friendship and love as much as loss.

From her first skirmish against the goblins, dedicating her life to a death goddess, suffering heartbreak, experiencing sexual pleasure, and dealing with men's egos, we see her becoming the woman that Kinch gets to meet.

My only grudge against it would be the romance we see in Galva's future is intriguing enough to spark an interesting story of how it came to be. It can be summarized in insta-love and a couple of sensual encounters with a tinge of grooming.

The Daughter's War expands on Buehlman's world-building in The Blacktongue Thief. It's grimmer and more gut-wrenching than its predecessor, portraying not only the glorification and violence of war but its consequences, the unplanned last words and unspoken goodbyes.

War doesn't spare the good or the brave, just the unlucky enough to carry it with them. 

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adventurous hopeful tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
challenging dark emotional tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I love feminist retellings, and Clytemnestra’s Bind is an exemplary representative, where our protagonist gets to tell her side of the story as a fully nuanced person: She is not painted as the hero, just as human.

We see her dealing with the hardships of motherhood in a hostile environment despite living in luxury. Sometimes, she seems more worried about the status and potential glory of her children than their own safety and healthy upbringing, resenting those who take after their father’s brutality. She makes sure her kids stick to gender roles (men as leaders, women as wives and childbearers) to avoid awakening her husband’s ire, in her mind guaranteeing their happiness and success.

The prose transfixed me from the start and I was instantly transported to the setting. The book elicits strong emotions with the blatant misogyny and cruelty Clytemnestra suffers, making her not justified but at least understood for her decisions. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
adventurous emotional tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark mysterious tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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emotional informative medium-paced
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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