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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
Wow. Just … wow. I was so glad to be able to go straight into this after Wake of Vultures. The game changed entirely at the end of that first book – is it still a cliffhanger if the main character jumps off the cliff? And here the times they just keep a–changing. Nettie determines once and for all to shed the parts of her she despises, insofar as she can, and adapts to this whole new part of her which I never saw coming.
Once again, the writing is intimate, gritty, and completely believable. Nettie's – or rather Rhett's loyalties are tested, his abilities are stretched and expanded, and his affections are tested. As if there hadn't been enough changes in his life, the realization that hit him – and hit him hard – at the end of Wake of Vultures turns into the biggest change at all. It leads him to a new friend – or, well, a new companion, anyway, both reluctant mentor and counter-irritant, and to a new quest – there's trouble surrounding a moving camp, laying track across the country – big trouble, and no one to deal with it but Rhett and his companions. So Rhett basically goes undercover to try to start its destruction from the inside.
There is at least as much action as in the first book – probably more, actually – but this is even more character-driven than that first book. Here Rhett has left behind any vestiges of femininity, as though the first shape-shifting burned it away. But he still carries a torch for his friend, and keeps finding himself in strange conjunctions with the sister of his other friend, and like other reviewers I found this a weak spot, a distraction in the plot.
But when all's said and done it's still a truly remarkable bit of world-building and character-building. I look forward to more.
The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.
Once again, the writing is intimate, gritty, and completely believable. Nettie's – or rather Rhett's loyalties are tested, his abilities are stretched and expanded, and his affections are tested. As if there hadn't been enough changes in his life, the realization that hit him – and hit him hard – at the end of Wake of Vultures turns into the biggest change at all. It leads him to a new friend – or, well, a new companion, anyway, both reluctant mentor and counter-irritant, and to a new quest – there's trouble surrounding a moving camp, laying track across the country – big trouble, and no one to deal with it but Rhett and his companions. So Rhett basically goes undercover to try to start its destruction from the inside.
There is at least as much action as in the first book – probably more, actually – but this is even more character-driven than that first book. Here Rhett has left behind any vestiges of femininity, as though the first shape-shifting burned it away. But he still carries a torch for his friend, and keeps finding himself in strange conjunctions with the sister of his other friend, and like other reviewers I found this a weak spot, a distraction in the plot.
But when all's said and done it's still a truly remarkable bit of world-building and character-building. I look forward to more.
The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
More breakneck madness in Durango as newly-minted Ranger Rhett Hennessy (Shadow) fights monsters and wizards and explores his own multiple identies. The story is remarkably romantic, witty and gritty. It picks up immediately from the cliff-hanger ending of Wake of Vultures and don't even think about starting it without the first book. (And embrace the knowledge that there are two more adventures after this one.)
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I summed up my response to this series in my review of the first book, Wake of Vultures.
I enjoyed this book for all the same reasons I enjoyed "Wake of Vulture"; primarily because Nettie/Rhett is a great character.
This book is full of people that are complex. And when you jumble them up with vampire, shape-shifters and other mythological creatures, throw them in a post-war "wild west", you get a hearty story. Another fabulous read.
This book is full of people that are complex. And when you jumble them up with vampire, shape-shifters and other mythological creatures, throw them in a post-war "wild west", you get a hearty story. Another fabulous read.
See my review of the first book. I'm a therapist, more than half of my clients are trans. Thank you for a clear insight into this process and the emotional turmoil, dysphoria, and joy of self actualization.
I'm still left with one question and I'll keep reading to see if it answers itself - Knowing what he knows about the way monsters heal, that the skin just heals over, why hasn't he removed the bits that don't belong so he can stop binding? Yeah, he might look weird with no nipples but what does a bird need with nipples?
I'm still left with one question and I'll keep reading to see if it answers itself - Knowing what he knows about the way monsters heal, that the skin just heals over, why hasn't he removed the bits that don't belong so he can stop binding? Yeah, he might look weird with no nipples but what does a bird need with nipples?
