Scan barcode
nuevecuervos's review against another edition
1.0
I read this book some years ago on the recommendation of some website or another based on my enjoyment of fantasy and scifi books, and I'm sorry to say that I really disliked it. I had already ordered the second book in the series and I ended up paperbackswapping them both away before I even bothered reading the second.
It's serviceable enough to some extent, though somewhat flat, and the plot is extremely creative at times, but my main bitch is and will remain that it suffers from the Bad Guy is So Bad, omfg. So Bad. They are SO BAD that they rape, torture and murder children, and that's how you can tell they're irredeemably evil.
No, I'm neither kidding nor exaggerating; this is a main plot point, regularly visited when we visit the bad guy. If this is triggering and bothers you, I apologize, but that's also good, because that means you haven't yet read this book, and really should not.
I can handle that bad things happen; hell, I enjoy ASOIF (or perhaps it's stockholm syndrome at this point, but that's beside the point). What I despise deeply about this book is that the brutal rape and murder of children is used as a device to show you PRECISELY JUST HOW BAD OMG SO BAD this guy is. Listen, if you as an author have to rely on what is generally considered beyond the fucking pale to let us know your bad guys are bad, you are pointedly NOT doing a very good job of characterization otherwise. It really is cartoonishly terrible, if you can apply a label of 'cartoonish' to the atrocities we're discussing here. I understand this was the author's first foray into the world of adult fiction (versus YA) and I don't know if he was swinging heavily into taboo territory to make clear that he was really hard-hitting, and I don't care. It's lazy and poorly done.
It's serviceable enough to some extent, though somewhat flat, and the plot is extremely creative at times, but my main bitch is and will remain that it suffers from the Bad Guy is So Bad, omfg. So Bad. They are SO BAD that they rape, torture and murder children, and that's how you can tell they're irredeemably evil.
No, I'm neither kidding nor exaggerating; this is a main plot point, regularly visited when we visit the bad guy. If this is triggering and bothers you, I apologize, but that's also good, because that means you haven't yet read this book, and really should not.
I can handle that bad things happen; hell, I enjoy ASOIF (or perhaps it's stockholm syndrome at this point, but that's beside the point). What I despise deeply about this book is that the brutal rape and murder of children is used as a device to show you PRECISELY JUST HOW BAD OMG SO BAD this guy is. Listen, if you as an author have to rely on what is generally considered beyond the fucking pale to let us know your bad guys are bad, you are pointedly NOT doing a very good job of characterization otherwise. It really is cartoonishly terrible, if you can apply a label of 'cartoonish' to the atrocities we're discussing here. I understand this was the author's first foray into the world of adult fiction (versus YA) and I don't know if he was swinging heavily into taboo territory to make clear that he was really hard-hitting, and I don't care. It's lazy and poorly done.
stijn's review against another edition
First of all, I like the two magic systems, especially the Weaving. I would have loved for them to exist in a compelling story.
However, the world fell flat because of the writing style of the author. Chapters began with pages of descriptions of history or places, which are all irrelevant and just boring. The abundance of POV's doesn't allow you to feel for any of the characters. After 25%, the author had his chance.
However, the world fell flat because of the writing style of the author. Chapters began with pages of descriptions of history or places, which are all irrelevant and just boring. The abundance of POV's doesn't allow you to feel for any of the characters. After 25%, the author had his chance.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Child abuse
thechronicknitter's review against another edition
4.0
This book had fairly strong world building with a lot of oriental influence. There are many strong female characters which is nice to see, but all of them are described as "beautiful" which is rather unrealistic and of course makes it seem like for women to have worth (or to not be too intimidating to men) they are beautiful as well as strong.
The main characters live in a country that is slowly being invaded by demons and Aberrants, which are extreme genetic mutations, this includes the citizens themselves. They discover that these mutations are occurring because of the "witchstone" which is what gives their Weavers, which are magical men who can manipulate "the weave" (they are kind of sorcerer-like which might make Wooding want to strangle me but whatever). The Weavers want to gain control over the country and the group of Aberrants, including the Blood-Heiress, who is a child, are working to try to stop this from happening. Particularly now that they know the Weavers are responsible for the mutations of people, crops, soil, plant life, and animals etc. they want to make sure that the Weavers do not succeed.
This is the first book in the trilogy and I am very interested to see where Wooding takes this story as well as his characters.
The main characters live in a country that is slowly being invaded by demons and Aberrants, which are extreme genetic mutations, this includes the citizens themselves. They discover that these mutations are occurring because of the "witchstone" which is what gives their Weavers, which are magical men who can manipulate "the weave" (they are kind of sorcerer-like which might make Wooding want to strangle me but whatever). The Weavers want to gain control over the country and the group of Aberrants, including the Blood-Heiress, who is a child, are working to try to stop this from happening. Particularly now that they know the Weavers are responsible for the mutations of people, crops, soil, plant life, and animals etc. they want to make sure that the Weavers do not succeed.
This is the first book in the trilogy and I am very interested to see where Wooding takes this story as well as his characters.
gilsayan's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
caw34's review against another edition
2.0
I was rather confused throughout this whole book. The premise is interesting, as were the characters but mainly I found his language childish and plain. There was nothing in it that captivated me, and I found myself skimming page after page. The plot wasn't difficult enough to warrant reading every word.
ekfmef's review
2.0
Ik heb de laatste tijd weinig geluk met de fantasy die ik lees. Dit boek begon qua verhaalidee nog wel leuk maar 1) de personages zijn zo vlak en hetzelfde als maar enigszins kan 2) teveel cliches 3) teveel opeens heel erg beeldende beschrijvingen van geweld op een manier die totaal niet bij het verhaal past. Aan de andere kant is het wel soort van spannend en blijf je wel lezen.
Natuurlijk ga ik de rest van de serie wel uit lezen maar ik ben benieuwd of het veel beter wordt...
Natuurlijk ga ik de rest van de serie wel uit lezen maar ik ben benieuwd of het veel beter wordt...
glasgowdave's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
book_grinch's review against another edition
Trigger warnings..
I read it too young, and didn't have the stomach to continue reading it...
I read it too young, and didn't have the stomach to continue reading it...
sebastien's review
2.0
Enjoyed the overarching story but the writing wasn't very good and used a few too many stereotypes
kerveros's review
5.0
When I first read this book it was a five star read, since then I have re-read it so many times it is probably a four star read - but as this is the first time reading whilst on this site it gets the full five stars.
I think Chris Wooding was one of my favourite authors as a teenager, I really like his writing style though I can see why, in this book, people dislike it because it can be almost overly descriptive. The best way to describe this books setting is as a kind of feudal Japan or China with 'magic'. Considering how many books or shows take Asian influence to give a touch of the exotic this book never seems to use it in that light. The mythos within the book reminds me of the little I have heard of Asian and even Greek/Roman mythology - it is perhaps not necessary in some places (such as explaining about the abandoned incestuous goddess) but it helps to shape the world.
I really like the way this book (well the series) twists and turns, the major twists are memorable but the minor ones tend to slip your mind meaning re-reads are still interesting. The characters are quite realistic, I think my favourite has to be Mishani - the way her character develops seems to be the most natural, though Asara is by far the most interesting.
I think Chris Wooding was one of my favourite authors as a teenager, I really like his writing style though I can see why, in this book, people dislike it because it can be almost overly descriptive. The best way to describe this books setting is as a kind of feudal Japan or China with 'magic'. Considering how many books or shows take Asian influence to give a touch of the exotic this book never seems to use it in that light. The mythos within the book reminds me of the little I have heard of Asian and even Greek/Roman mythology - it is perhaps not necessary in some places (such as explaining about the abandoned incestuous goddess) but it helps to shape the world.
I really like the way this book (well the series) twists and turns, the major twists are memorable but the minor ones tend to slip your mind meaning re-reads are still interesting. The characters are quite realistic, I think my favourite has to be Mishani - the way her character develops seems to be the most natural, though Asara is by far the most interesting.