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booksthatburn's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
THE SORCERER OF THE WILDEEPS is lyrical and fantastic, with excellent prose made somehow even better by the audiobook narrator's performance. This falls into a particular category of story for me, one where it feels so good to read on a sentence-by-sentence level that I'm fine being confused by the overall story. The focus jumps around suddenly and unpredictably, with the narrative shifting more often as the ending nears.
The worldbuilding is immersive, conveying the language barrier in the gap between what Demane thinks and how stilted his speech is with the rest of the caravan. I love the way AAVE is used by the caravan brothers, forming a blend between casual speech and Demane's smatterings of technical knowledge that he keeps trying to apply to what's happening. It creates a visceral sense of the language barrier he experiences, wanting to say so much more but not having the words, or frustrated that the closest words don't carry the meanings he intends.
The ending is ambiguous, but it's clearly meant to be unresolved rather than a teaser or cliffhanger. There is a sequel, but it seems to be an indirect follow-up.
The worldbuilding is immersive, conveying the language barrier in the gap between what Demane thinks and how stilted his speech is with the rest of the caravan. I love the way AAVE is used by the caravan brothers, forming a blend between casual speech and Demane's smatterings of technical knowledge that he keeps trying to apply to what's happening. It creates a visceral sense of the language barrier he experiences, wanting to say so much more but not having the words, or frustrated that the closest words don't carry the meanings he intends.
The ending is ambiguous, but it's clearly meant to be unresolved rather than a teaser or cliffhanger. There is a sequel, but it seems to be an indirect follow-up.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Colonisation, Cursing, Racial slurs, Homophobia, Animal death, War, Grief, Slavery, Racism, Sexism, Misogyny, and Vomit
Minor: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Rape, and Excrement
erebus53's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I wasn't sure what to expect from this book. It chucks you in the deep end a bit at the start but any fantasy or science fiction reader would find a footing pretty quickly, as it leans in hard to it's show-don't-tell ways.
I see some similarities to (of all things?!) Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir. In both we are immersed in a world explained by scientific and theoretic under underpinnings that we know we know little of, with queer love, and anime-style hyper-violent action fight scenes. I've never really been one for fight scenes or battles so the splurt and slice does little for me, and leaves me feeling a little like hardly anything relevant has happened.
The descriptions are sumptuous and creative. The author has a real handle on simile and metaphor that can make seemingly bland things seem visceral and organic. The best things in the way the story is told though, are the dialogue and the world. This is probably even more striking in the Audiobook performance. The "brothers" feel like Black American soldiers...
... kinda want to understand where those soldiers are going and what for though. The whole book feels like it left off at the end of the first chapter and you've come to your first crossing, but nowhere near the end of your journey.
I see some similarities to (of all things?!) Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir. In both we are immersed in a world explained by scientific and theoretic under underpinnings that we know we know little of, with queer love, and anime-style hyper-violent action fight scenes. I've never really been one for fight scenes or battles so the splurt and slice does little for me, and leaves me feeling a little like hardly anything relevant has happened.
The descriptions are sumptuous and creative. The author has a real handle on simile and metaphor that can make seemingly bland things seem visceral and organic. The best things in the way the story is told though, are the dialogue and the world. This is probably even more striking in the Audiobook performance. The "brothers" feel like Black American soldiers...
... kinda want to understand where those soldiers are going and what for though. The whole book feels like it left off at the end of the first chapter and you've come to your first crossing, but nowhere near the end of your journey.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Gore, Grief, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Cursing, Medical content, Murder, and Sexual content
rorikae's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
'The Sorcerer of the Wildeeps' by Kai Ashante Wilson is a fantasy novella that follows the 'sorcerer of the wildeeps' as he protects a caravan travelling to a distant city. Wilson's writing is evocative and it's easy to find yourself in the story with the characters. I did find the worldbuilding a bit frustrating, mostly because the novella format doesn't allow a lot of time to do the amount of worldbuilding that I believe is needed. This is a fantastical world that we get bits and pieces of throughout the story but I left the book at the end a little bit confused as to the full picture. The travels of the caravan and Demane's work to protect them fit well within the novella length but I wanted more about his past and the world that surrounds him. Some of this may have been lost in my listening to the audiobook and it may help to return to this book in the physical form in the future. I am interested in the sequel as it is clear that Wilson has created an engaging world, even if I found it a little bit hard to grasp the full scope.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore, Blood, Cursing, Death, Homophobia, and Racial slurs
maximauve's review
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, and Blood
Moderate: Homophobia
therese_nook68's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
I had high hopes for this novella and was really disappointed.
Let me start off with the things I did like: I liked the use of AAVE in a high fantasy novel. I thought it was a novel and unique idea. I liked the way that the world is so expansive and so huge.
Unfortunately, the latter reason why I liked it was also the reason why I ended up disliking the novel. While the world is so expansive, it’s almost too expansive for a novella. There was so much to absorb and I couldn’t figure out the world, couldn’t figure out what it meant to be a demigod, who the gods are, etc. What other things I could have enjoyed from the book, such as the romance, the characters, the tension and fear as they get to the Wildeeps, got overshadowed by this huge world that I couldn’t begin to visualize.
Let me start off with the things I did like: I liked the use of AAVE in a high fantasy novel. I thought it was a novel and unique idea. I liked the way that the world is so expansive and so huge.
Unfortunately, the latter reason why I liked it was also the reason why I ended up disliking the novel. While the world is so expansive, it’s almost too expansive for a novella. There was so much to absorb and I couldn’t figure out the world, couldn’t figure out what it meant to be a demigod, who the gods are, etc. What other things I could have enjoyed from the book, such as the romance, the characters, the tension and fear as they get to the Wildeeps, got overshadowed by this huge world that I couldn’t begin to visualize.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Body horror, Gore, Slavery, Child abuse, and Blood
bex_knighthunterbooks's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
slow-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? No
3.0
This worldbuilding and perspective felt quite original and as such I probably won't forget this easily. However, the heavily stylised writing didn't work for me and it felt too much like hard work to follow what was going on. The plot was also limited and the characters to me never came to life (possibly because I couldn't see them through the writing style). There were some highlights that worked better for me, such as the more action-filled part towards the end and the various flashbacks, but overall it was not for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, and Blood
Minor: Vomit
jwells's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
I wrongfully avoided reading this book for a long time, because so many of the reviews talked about the beautiful poetic language. Often when books get reviewed that way, I can find them tiring to read, as if I have to wade through every artfully constructed sentence in order to get to the story. I'm glad I picked this book up, because it isn't like that at all. The language varies from very colloquial to very formal, but it's never stiff or self-conscious. The different levels of language formality are used skillfully to the story's advantage.
The book description about Captain's "song for a voice and hair that drinks the sunlight" added to my concern, I have to say, since it sounds like cringy romantic poetry. Intriguingly, this is a literal description of Captain, a complex and mysterious love interest.
For such a short book, it builds a really vivid world, with lifelike characters and intriguing "magic."
The ending is rather abrupt and I am not sure whether I missed something or whether it's meant to be a bit of a cliffhanger.
The book description about Captain's "song for a voice and hair that drinks the sunlight" added to my concern, I have to say, since it sounds like cringy romantic poetry. Intriguingly, this is a literal description of Captain, a complex and mysterious love interest.
For such a short book, it builds a really vivid world, with lifelike characters and intriguing "magic."
The ending is rather abrupt and I am not sure whether I missed something or whether it's meant to be a bit of a cliffhanger.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, and Gore
Minor: Homophobia
clarabooksit's review
challenging
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I feel unequal to rating this story let alone reviewing it. Parts of this I loved: the use of language—(though not always—why describe a tongue as a mollusk while its in the act of kissing?)—the romanticism threaded throughout, and the glimpses of magic, theology, power and love that built snapshots of a lush, tantalizing world. But I also found so much confusing—(what is this world? where is Demane from and what brought him here? was this also sci-fi?)—the world-building was more of a tease than a fulfillment, and it wasn’t until the very end that this novella gains any kind of momentum.
In addition, for all the high praises women receive from the narrator, where were they on page and why did one of the few brief scenes with a female have to be a child prostitute?
The real kicker, for me, is that I think that this is meant to be a love story but the reader has no idea until the very, very end, by which point the reader hasn’t been given enough to be invested in it. There was so much potential here and I wanted more.
Again though, I’m not sure I fully comprehended this story and perhaps am not the best person to be reviewing it. I definitely think reading rather than listening to the audiobook would have served me better here. A reread might be in order as I think a lot of the confusion was with me, though I also think the nonlinear storytelling didn’t quite work, especially as it isn’t a consistent part of the storytelling.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Death, Gore, and Violence
Moderate: Misogyny and Sexism
Minor: Homophobia, Pedophilia, and Drug use
catapocalypse's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
This is a bumpy ride through time and space, first and foremost warning. I'm pretty good at staying oriented through time hops, and I still had to double check a couple threads and generally feel I'd benefit from a reread. And while the last chunk of it was the real action-packed part, the whole read felt like an adventure for me. I enjoyed the lush worldbuilding and the relationship between Demane and Captain Isa.
The story follows Demane, a man descended from the gods who have since departed the world, after he takes up a mercenary job to escort a merchant caravan safely to its destination in a southern kingdom. The Captain of this escort is a man descended from another divine family. They both do their best to serve the caravan while hiding their demigod qualities--and their passion for each other. Meanwhile, a rare and exceptionally dangerous force is defying the protections on the Road through the Wildeeps, which is the path their caravan must take. Demane and the Captain's abilities are tested when they must pursue this foe while navigating the volatile Wildeeps itself.
The book ends with some ambiguity, and honestly felt like a cliffhanger to me. I feel more could have been explored there, and even in the events after. There's also only one woman with any significant role in the story in the whole book (and she isn't referred to with an actual name). This could have warranted 3 or 3.5 stars, but I'd say my personal enjoyment was at 4 stars.
The story follows Demane, a man descended from the gods who have since departed the world, after he takes up a mercenary job to escort a merchant caravan safely to its destination in a southern kingdom. The Captain of this escort is a man descended from another divine family. They both do their best to serve the caravan while hiding their demigod qualities--and their passion for each other. Meanwhile, a rare and exceptionally dangerous force is defying the protections on the Road through the Wildeeps, which is the path their caravan must take. Demane and the Captain's abilities are tested when they must pursue this foe while navigating the volatile Wildeeps itself.
The book ends with some ambiguity, and honestly felt like a cliffhanger to me. I feel more could have been explored there, and even in the events after. There's also only one woman with any significant role in the story in the whole book (and she isn't referred to with an actual name). This could have warranted 3 or 3.5 stars, but I'd say my personal enjoyment was at 4 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Animal death
Minor: Drug use, Excrement, Grief, Homophobia, and Sexual content
karinh's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Death, Gore, Grief, and Violence
Moderate: Homophobia
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual assault, Rape, Sexual content, Slavery, and Vomit
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