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chthonicgod's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ngreads's review
....I can't tell you how sad this makes me.
As context, I really enjoyed the Shadowdance series. I found it well put together, with great characters, smooth action, and a memorable story. The world was solid, and it's one that I still gladly recommend.
So, obviously, since this is the closest book Dalglish has published to the same vibe as Shadowdance, I was excited.
I DNF'd it. It was around the 100-150 page mark, I don't remember which, and I've already removed my bookmark, so...yeah, don't feel like flipping through to find where I was.
Here's what killed it for me (There were only two, but they were big enough to make me put it down):
- I didn't care about the characters. I kind of liked Cyrus, but 100 pages in I still didn't feel connected to any of them or their struggles.
- Here's the bigger one. I have firm standards when it comes to fictional religions, and this didn't even meet one of them.
Here's what I need in a fictional religion: clear doctrine, a clear effect on the culture, and clear core values.
After 100 pages of a book FOCUSED on a religious war, with one of the POV characters being a literal paladin for one of the gods and characters who have studied their enemy (who has an opposing religion), I should be able to tell you those BASIC parts of the religions.
Instead, I can tell you just about nothing.
The worst part? The religion in the world of Shadowdance was one of the best ditheistic fantasy religions I've read. The dynamic between Karak and Asshur was clear - Judgment vs. Mercy, their paladins both having valid points and tension as they interacted. Neither was evil, neither was good, both had their flaws and issues, even if the books lean strongly toward Asshur as the preferred deity.
In this...what can I tell you about any of the gods? Endarius is...stubborn? How does that affect his worshippers and paladins? How does that affect Thanet? Who knows. I don't.
Lycaena is all about beauty? How is that a core value of the people? Why are her paladins just basic knights? Wouldn't they be more arts and healing focused? Is there a dynamic between Endarius and Lycaena outside of them being buddies?
No idea.
The God-incarnate? Well...he doesn't like gay people because he just wants everyone to reproduce? Why? How does that fit in his doctrine? Is he just a really lazy parallel for Catholics vs. Pagans?
Who knows. I don't.
This was a disappointment. I had really wanted to love this.
Alas...it goes in the DNF pile.
As context, I really enjoyed the Shadowdance series. I found it well put together, with great characters, smooth action, and a memorable story. The world was solid, and it's one that I still gladly recommend.
So, obviously, since this is the closest book Dalglish has published to the same vibe as Shadowdance, I was excited.
I DNF'd it. It was around the 100-150 page mark, I don't remember which, and I've already removed my bookmark, so...yeah, don't feel like flipping through to find where I was.
Here's what killed it for me (There were only two, but they were big enough to make me put it down):
- I didn't care about the characters. I kind of liked Cyrus, but 100 pages in I still didn't feel connected to any of them or their struggles.
- Here's the bigger one. I have firm standards when it comes to fictional religions, and this didn't even meet one of them.
Here's what I need in a fictional religion: clear doctrine, a clear effect on the culture, and clear core values.
After 100 pages of a book FOCUSED on a religious war, with one of the POV characters being a literal paladin for one of the gods and characters who have studied their enemy (who has an opposing religion), I should be able to tell you those BASIC parts of the religions.
Instead, I can tell you just about nothing.
The worst part? The religion in the world of Shadowdance was one of the best ditheistic fantasy religions I've read. The dynamic between Karak and Asshur was clear - Judgment vs. Mercy, their paladins both having valid points and tension as they interacted. Neither was evil, neither was good, both had their flaws and issues, even if the books lean strongly toward Asshur as the preferred deity.
In this...what can I tell you about any of the gods? Endarius is...stubborn? How does that affect his worshippers and paladins? How does that affect Thanet? Who knows. I don't.
Lycaena is all about beauty? How is that a core value of the people? Why are her paladins just basic knights? Wouldn't they be more arts and healing focused? Is there a dynamic between Endarius and Lycaena outside of them being buddies?
No idea.
The God-incarnate? Well...he doesn't like gay people because he just wants everyone to reproduce? Why? How does that fit in his doctrine? Is he just a really lazy parallel for Catholics vs. Pagans?
Who knows. I don't.
This was a disappointment. I had really wanted to love this.
Alas...it goes in the DNF pile.
leedolee's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
This book was insanely good and I am still processing what I just read. It's been a long while since a book last blew my mind.
Every single thing about this book is the definition of chef's kiss. The characters were all uniquely different and fun to read about. The overall plot kept me wanting to see what happened next. And just the sheer world building was absolutely beautiful.
Consider me a fan and I am excited to jump into the next book immediately!
Every single thing about this book is the definition of chef's kiss. The characters were all uniquely different and fun to read about. The overall plot kept me wanting to see what happened next. And just the sheer world building was absolutely beautiful.
Consider me a fan and I am excited to jump into the next book immediately!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Torture, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Transphobia, Confinement, Death of parent, Genocide, Violence, War, Excrement, Hate crime, Animal cruelty, Blood, Body horror, Death, Misogyny, Colonisation, Gore, Grief, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Police brutality
Moderate: Alcohol
bog_walker's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
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
4.75
wtheriac's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Fun and energetic read that was nonetheless fairly derivative. Nothing special but also what I was looking for.
kelly_copestake's review
3.0
The story and the characters were good but the pacing leaves something to be desired
jheuer95's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
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
4.0
milili's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
lezreadalot's review against another edition
4.0
“I do not want a prisoner. I have no need of a slave. I want a weapon. I want a god of death the empire one day fears. Is that you?”
There's a lot to enjoy about this book and this world, but the thing that intrigued me, the thing that got me to read it, and what I enjoyed most about it, is the worldbuilding about divinity and the gods. Reading about religion in fiction is never my absolute favourite thing, but in fantasy, it can sometimes really work for me. And especially in fantasy like this, where gods are corporeal beings that walk the earth amongst the people who worship them, and where faith can be a matter of life and death. The plot follows Cyrus, prince of a conquered nation whose gods are struck down at the behest of an invading army. Years later, he manages to escape imprisonment and ends up in the hands of the rebellion, with a benefactor who is determined to shape him into the avenging force that his island nation needs.
So I loved the setup and the world from the beginning, and even knowing very little about the gods and the country, the first chapter made me tear up a little. I do love reading about devotion and loyalty in fiction; it's probably one of my favourite things. And I've always loved paladins in fantasy, when I see them in games, etc. I'd never thought to connect those two things, but there we go. Even though they're not the focus of the story, I loved seeing the perspectives and trials of the paladins and priests of Endarius and Lycaena; their bravery, grief, all that shaking belief. All of Rayan's scenes were so good. And Keles as a character makes me FERAL. I'm so hungry for whatever's next in store for her and Lycaena (or not!) The little burgeoning romance with her and Cyrus was also cute. I tend to find a lot of male main protagonists in high fantasy insufferable, but I really liked Cyrus and his journey. I just don't know if I fully enjoyed how his rise from prisoner to Vagrant Prince was paced. The steps of his training were so detailed at first, and I really liked that. So when it came to the midway point of the book and we suddenly started skipping around a bit more, idk if I liked it that much. I feel like we should have gotten a more in-depth look at his first several missions. But I did really like his character, everything he came to symbolise, willingly or not, and those last few reveals have me pretty excited for the next book.
My favourite characters were probably the sisters. Everything I want to say about Stasia and Mari is kinda spoilery, so I'll just say that I love them and I neeeeeeed to know more. I loved the scenes where they got to fight in concert, team up together. Stasia especially. I've never been really drawn to barbarians/berserkers thematically, but everything about her fighting style and how she channelled her rage was sooooo good. And so hot. She and Clarissa were so wonderful. (I will always love a big buff woman/small tiny woman romance.) And Mari's metamorphosis also taps into several things I love in fiction. I'm so intrigued about the sisters, and everything we learnt in the latter half of the book. I've got some theories about their blood mother! As for all the other POVs, I don't usually like when we see things from the villain's perspectives, but since this is a fairly sprawling fantasy with lots of characters and things to discover, I was intrigued by the things we learnt from the enemy camp, and thankfully it didn't make things too redundant.
The author did a good job of filling us in on the history of the Empire and the God-Incarnate. I always think it's a good sign when a book tells me a little bit about the history of the world, and I almost immediately decide I want to read stories about the history, too. The worldbuilding in general was pretty solid, imo. It was also really nice that the world was populated with people of colour and queer characters. The way trans people were talked about at first was perhaps a liiiiittle bit clumsy, but I've def seen worse.
Listened to the audiobook as read by Devante Johnson and Imani Parks, and it was pretty okay. They both have great voices, but the pace of their reading wasn't the best. I don't mind slow reading, because at this point I'm used to speeding up all my audiobooks. But the cadence and tone just seemed off a lot, especially with Parks, as if they were just reading words without understanding the sentence. That did take the gravitas out of a couple of scenes, and got a liiiittle bit frustrating. I've already bought the second audiobook, so fingers crossed that it gets better. But even if it doesn't, I'm already invested in these characters and this plot, so I'm excited to read it anyway.
Content warnings:
Spoiler
death, lots of descriptions of gore, blood, grievous injuries and murder, war, PTSD, homophobia, transphobia“The Butterfly may be dead, but the moth remains.”