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cassidychivers's review
3.0
* I was sent an Advanced copy of this book by the Author in exchange for an honest review *
I gave this book a very low 3 stars.
It honestly had SO much potential, that I was frustrated at the end.
The world was incredibly interesting to me. And is why it got higher then a 2. The magic system was really cool but I was always slightly confused by it wanting to know more about how it works. I prefer a very hard magic system in fantasy books, where the rules are laid out early on in the book. So I think that was the main con for me in this book.
Since it does have a soft magic system. You are learning as you go and the rules of the magic are changing. Which often leads to plot conveniences... "all of a sudden we are in a bind we can now do this and save us" ... This is an issue I have with almost ALL soft magic systems though, so if you don't have this issue. Please try this book. As it was really intriguing.
Another issue I had is I really wanted to love the characters but I was really never given the chance too. We'd have a group of characters around for like 5-10 chapters and then something would happen and we'd be with another group. I wasn't given time with the characters besides our protagonist to love them. I really wanted to love Pipene and Cal, but they were always only around for fleeting moments. (Also it annoyed me that we always had to talk about how nice Cal looked... after the first scene I understood there was physical attraction it didn't need to be pointed out again and again)
If there is another book however, where they left off would have me interested to see if on this adventure we got more time with them. As again the three of them had a lot of potential to be characters I loved.
The climax scenes which were battle scenes were amazing. I loved seeing how the magic could be used in a battle. I got a better idea of the magic system in these. However for climax's of the book.... they lasted only a couple pages if that.
Again though this could be personal preference as I LOVE long chunky books. (500+) Short books always seem to just not give me enough. So maybe the flaw is with me. But I just felt like we had worked up to this big battle and then .... it was over. I just wanted more.
But me wanting more is not a bad thing in terms of review because I would have read another 100 pages easily. And that means I liked something!
So although I didn't overly love this book, it has potential. And I would love to read where the author goes next !
Thank you to Holly for sending me a copy to review
I gave this book a very low 3 stars.
It honestly had SO much potential, that I was frustrated at the end.
The world was incredibly interesting to me. And is why it got higher then a 2. The magic system was really cool but I was always slightly confused by it wanting to know more about how it works. I prefer a very hard magic system in fantasy books, where the rules are laid out early on in the book. So I think that was the main con for me in this book.
Since it does have a soft magic system. You are learning as you go and the rules of the magic are changing. Which often leads to plot conveniences... "all of a sudden we are in a bind we can now do this and save us" ... This is an issue I have with almost ALL soft magic systems though, so if you don't have this issue. Please try this book. As it was really intriguing.
Another issue I had is I really wanted to love the characters but I was really never given the chance too. We'd have a group of characters around for like 5-10 chapters and then something would happen and we'd be with another group. I wasn't given time with the characters besides our protagonist to love them. I really wanted to love Pipene and Cal, but they were always only around for fleeting moments. (Also it annoyed me that we always had to talk about how nice Cal looked... after the first scene I understood there was physical attraction it didn't need to be pointed out again and again)
If there is another book however, where they left off would have me interested to see if on this adventure we got more time with them. As again the three of them had a lot of potential to be characters I loved.
The climax scenes which were battle scenes were amazing. I loved seeing how the magic could be used in a battle. I got a better idea of the magic system in these. However for climax's of the book.... they lasted only a couple pages if that.
Again though this could be personal preference as I LOVE long chunky books. (500+) Short books always seem to just not give me enough. So maybe the flaw is with me. But I just felt like we had worked up to this big battle and then .... it was over. I just wanted more.
But me wanting more is not a bad thing in terms of review because I would have read another 100 pages easily. And that means I liked something!
So although I didn't overly love this book, it has potential. And I would love to read where the author goes next !
Thank you to Holly for sending me a copy to review
kitvaria_sarene's review
medium-paced
4.0
Kingdom of Essence by Holly Karlsson is an easier epic fantasy that I quickly devoured.
A woman who is quite good at her job on hunting down people who illegally use "relics" and starts to wonder if she has grown too callous. She is really good at her job, but she's just a normal person, not the best fighter, not the most beautiful, not the extra special one - which I enjoyed. This way it feels like the problems she faces are actually challenging, and not just put aside. A bit awkward at times, her voice was on the more matter of fact side, and as much as I love a sarcastic tone, I felt this was a nice change in pace, and made me immediately like the character.
The world building was interesting and I liked the politics and scheming. Again - this is on the easy side, so if you want a super complex story that you won't be able to predict at all, this might not be your book. If you feel like a book with mysteries and betrayals, but something that you can still read after a long day at work, then it is a great choice!
Plus points for LGBT inclusion with a happy f/f couple in the side characters, strong friendships, and very little romance, if you can call the super slow burn sprinkle there is romance at all.
A woman who is quite good at her job on hunting down people who illegally use "relics" and starts to wonder if she has grown too callous. She is really good at her job, but she's just a normal person, not the best fighter, not the most beautiful, not the extra special one - which I enjoyed. This way it feels like the problems she faces are actually challenging, and not just put aside. A bit awkward at times, her voice was on the more matter of fact side, and as much as I love a sarcastic tone, I felt this was a nice change in pace, and made me immediately like the character.
The world building was interesting and I liked the politics and scheming. Again - this is on the easy side, so if you want a super complex story that you won't be able to predict at all, this might not be your book. If you feel like a book with mysteries and betrayals, but something that you can still read after a long day at work, then it is a great choice!
Plus points for LGBT inclusion with a happy f/f couple in the side characters, strong friendships, and very little romance, if you can call the super slow burn sprinkle there is romance at all.
lindsey_reads_books's review
5.0
This book surprised me! The cover is beautiful and the synopsis hooked me. But every few chapters I was like ooooooh ooooooh and it kept getting better and better! I really enjoyed the story and I really hope for a book 2.
angelaann88's review
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
wolfie_larue's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
A solid 3,5 stars! Which means I quite enjoyed this story but it wasn't anything special to me personally.
It had some really fun and good idea's and certain parts were done really well.
Other parts weren't done as good in my opinion.. I feel like it had all this potential but it didn't come together.
I am interested in reading the sequel and if you are interested in this book I would say definetely give it a try
It had some really fun and good idea's and certain parts were done really well.
Other parts weren't done as good in my opinion.. I feel like it had all this potential but it didn't come together.
I am interested in reading the sequel and if you are interested in this book I would say definetely give it a try
strawberrypinch's review
1.0
I wanted to DNF this one around chapter 3 but since I won a free copy through a Goodreads Giveaway I felt obliged to finish the whole thing. There is a severe lack of tension - any problems the main character faces are resolved pretty much immediately & nothing of real consequence happens until the end. Then, we suddenly get a bunch of new plot points to tie in to the sequel (which I will not be reading). I might not have minded so much if the world building & character development hasn't also been so flimsy. The whole thing is just flat.
million_pages's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
tense
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
5.0
I received this book in exchange for a honest review. I really enjoyed Kingdom of Essence and I’m really excited for what comes next. Fans of fantasy and adventure will surely enjoy it too.
bookish_heidi's review
fast-paced
5.0
What a fantastic read! Fierce and badass MC, adorable side characters (Cas I'm looking at you!), and a fascinating magic system! There's nada in the romance department and I still adored this book! If you're looking for a fast paced YA Fantasy with little to no romance, then look no further. I've seen it compared to Mistborn but I haven't read that so don't quote me there... All in all, an unforgettable story!
hckilgour's review
adventurous
medium-paced
3.0
I listened to this as an audio book.
I think the narrator did a great job. Her pacing was good and she did change her voice for certain characters.
As far as the writing style goes, it’s good. It’s god heavy world building and description. But that was also a pitfall at times. I noticed the author liked to in depth describe every character met and what they were wearing. For the minor characters I think many of those descriptions could’ve been glossed over.
As far as the magic system goes, it’s very unique. And the stuff discovered about it at the end had me questioning and needing to read the next book.
The beginning was a bit long winded for me. But it did very well characterize Elitza. There were many exciting bits but the lulls between them could be a bit of a drag.
The book was also much… longer that I expected. There came a point where I was convinced we’d hit the climax. But nope. There was still a major battle to come. Then the last chapter seemed to me like it’d have been better served as the starting point of the next book.
I think the narrator did a great job. Her pacing was good and she did change her voice for certain characters.
As far as the writing style goes, it’s good. It’s god heavy world building and description. But that was also a pitfall at times. I noticed the author liked to in depth describe every character met and what they were wearing. For the minor characters I think many of those descriptions could’ve been glossed over.
As far as the magic system goes, it’s very unique. And the stuff discovered about it at the end had me questioning and needing to read the next book.
The beginning was a bit long winded for me. But it did very well characterize Elitza. There were many exciting bits but the lulls between them could be a bit of a drag.
The book was also much… longer that I expected. There came a point where I was convinced we’d hit the climax. But nope. There was still a major battle to come. Then the last chapter seemed to me like it’d have been better served as the starting point of the next book.
coverswithcassidy's review
3.0
* I was sent an Advanced copy of this book by the Author in exchange for an honest review *
I gave this book a very low 3 stars.
It honestly had SO much potential, that I was frustrated at the end.
The world was incredibly interesting to me. And is why it got higher then a 2. The magic system was really cool but I was always slightly confused by it wanting to know more about how it works. I prefer a very hard magic system in fantasy books, where the rules are laid out early on in the book. So I think that was the main con for me in this book.
Since it does have a soft magic system. You are learning as you go and the rules of the magic are changing. Which often leads to plot conveniences... "all of a sudden we are in a bind we can now do this and save us" ... This is an issue I have with almost ALL soft magic systems though, so if you don't have this issue. Please try this book. As it was really intriguing.
Another issue I had is I really wanted to love the characters but I was really never given the chance too. We'd have a group of characters around for like 5-10 chapters and then something would happen and we'd be with another group. I wasn't given time with the characters besides our protagonist to love them. I really wanted to love Pipene and Cal, but they were always only around for fleeting moments. (Also it annoyed me that we always had to talk about how nice Cal looked... after the first scene I understood there was physical attraction it didn't need to be pointed out again and again)
If there is another book however, where they left off would have me interested to see if on this adventure we got more time with them. As again the three of them had a lot of potential to be characters I loved.
The climax scenes which were battle scenes were amazing. I loved seeing how the magic could be used in a battle. I got a better idea of the magic system in these. However for climax's of the book.... they lasted only a couple pages if that.
Again though this could be personal preference as I LOVE long chunky books. (500+) Short books always seem to just not give me enough. So maybe the flaw is with me. But I just felt like we had worked up to this big battle and then .... it was over. I just wanted more.
But me wanting more is not a bad thing in terms of review because I would have read another 100 pages easily. And that means I liked something!
So although I didn't overly love this book, it has potential. And I would love to read where the author goes next !
Thank you to Holly for sending me a copy to review
I gave this book a very low 3 stars.
It honestly had SO much potential, that I was frustrated at the end.
The world was incredibly interesting to me. And is why it got higher then a 2. The magic system was really cool but I was always slightly confused by it wanting to know more about how it works. I prefer a very hard magic system in fantasy books, where the rules are laid out early on in the book. So I think that was the main con for me in this book.
Since it does have a soft magic system. You are learning as you go and the rules of the magic are changing. Which often leads to plot conveniences... "all of a sudden we are in a bind we can now do this and save us" ... This is an issue I have with almost ALL soft magic systems though, so if you don't have this issue. Please try this book. As it was really intriguing.
Another issue I had is I really wanted to love the characters but I was really never given the chance too. We'd have a group of characters around for like 5-10 chapters and then something would happen and we'd be with another group. I wasn't given time with the characters besides our protagonist to love them. I really wanted to love Pipene and Cal, but they were always only around for fleeting moments. (Also it annoyed me that we always had to talk about how nice Cal looked... after the first scene I understood there was physical attraction it didn't need to be pointed out again and again)
If there is another book however, where they left off would have me interested to see if on this adventure we got more time with them. As again the three of them had a lot of potential to be characters I loved.
The climax scenes which were battle scenes were amazing. I loved seeing how the magic could be used in a battle. I got a better idea of the magic system in these. However for climax's of the book.... they lasted only a couple pages if that.
Again though this could be personal preference as I LOVE long chunky books. (500+) Short books always seem to just not give me enough. So maybe the flaw is with me. But I just felt like we had worked up to this big battle and then .... it was over. I just wanted more.
But me wanting more is not a bad thing in terms of review because I would have read another 100 pages easily. And that means I liked something!
So although I didn't overly love this book, it has potential. And I would love to read where the author goes next !
Thank you to Holly for sending me a copy to review
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