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acleary_1963's review against another edition
4.0
Every author makes choices about their books and writing, and those choices are always going to have positives and negatives for various readers. I think Abraham executes the choices that he makes very well; it's that the choices he made aren't the right ones *for me*. So my rating kind of combines the fact that what he writes isn't really my favorite with my judgment that he's very good at what he does.
If you're read Abraham before, I'm not going to tell you something you don't know: he is not a plot driven author. He is much more interested in telling human stories that happen to be set in a somewhat fantasy setting that he is in telling a fantasy story that is populated by people. And that's great, but I find myself growing bored and a little disinterested after a while... There's only so much I need to know about the weather on a day to day basis in a story in which very little is happening. More story, less weather, at least for my taste.
But Abraham can certainly write some prose, from his worldbuilding descriptions (yes including the weather), to character development and inner voice, to philosophical nugget, the prose is rich in skill. I dabble a bit in writing and Abraham does in every paragraph what I mostly fail to do at all. But lost in that for me is much *more* than that. It's more form and less substance. You could summarize the actual plot points in the two books of this series in a pretty short paragraph I suspect. And even then, the plot isn't particularly interesting, and on the few occasions it does get interesting, if you take a moment and step back, those moments kind of seem to come out of nowhere, almost as if Abraham wanted to write a book that described a city and some characters and oh wait let's glom on some improbably things... "Gods" of some sort just form out of, umm, like people's thoughts or something, we don't need to be too clear about that. The crime boss just happens to have constructed some sort of mechanized subway under the river that comes in handy sort of during a climactic scene but this construction seems completely out of character with the rest of the state of technology in the world. Oh and no one ever noticed this tunnel, or leaked its secret. Throwing one lit lamp over a wall burns down an entire religious complex, even though as far as I can tell it's mostly made of stone. And if it isn't and can burn so easily, somehow never did over many, many years.
There's good stuff here and I've read these two books quickly end to end, so that means it passes the "I enjoy reading these test." I'll read the 3rd when it comes out. But if you're someone that loses patience quickly with a slowburn read, you probably ought to look elsewhere... Though that's my general impression of Abraham's work.
If you're read Abraham before, I'm not going to tell you something you don't know: he is not a plot driven author. He is much more interested in telling human stories that happen to be set in a somewhat fantasy setting that he is in telling a fantasy story that is populated by people. And that's great, but I find myself growing bored and a little disinterested after a while... There's only so much I need to know about the weather on a day to day basis in a story in which very little is happening. More story, less weather, at least for my taste.
But Abraham can certainly write some prose, from his worldbuilding descriptions (yes including the weather), to character development and inner voice, to philosophical nugget, the prose is rich in skill. I dabble a bit in writing and Abraham does in every paragraph what I mostly fail to do at all. But lost in that for me is much *more* than that. It's more form and less substance. You could summarize the actual plot points in the two books of this series in a pretty short paragraph I suspect. And even then, the plot isn't particularly interesting, and on the few occasions it does get interesting, if you take a moment and step back, those moments kind of seem to come out of nowhere, almost as if Abraham wanted to write a book that described a city and some characters and oh wait let's glom on some improbably things... "Gods" of some sort just form out of, umm, like people's thoughts or something, we don't need to be too clear about that. The crime boss just happens to have constructed some sort of mechanized subway under the river that comes in handy sort of during a climactic scene but this construction seems completely out of character with the rest of the state of technology in the world. Oh and no one ever noticed this tunnel, or leaked its secret. Throwing one lit lamp over a wall burns down an entire religious complex, even though as far as I can tell it's mostly made of stone. And if it isn't and can burn so easily, somehow never did over many, many years.
There's good stuff here and I've read these two books quickly end to end, so that means it passes the "I enjoy reading these test." I'll read the 3rd when it comes out. But if you're someone that loses patience quickly with a slowburn read, you probably ought to look elsewhere... Though that's my general impression of Abraham's work.
chrisinjapan's review
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jbird7's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
pilebythebed's review
4.0
Daniel Abraham’s Kithamar series is based on a fascinating premise. His plan is to deliver three books set over the same period of time in the same place. That place is the medieval fantasy city of Kithamar. The first book, Age of Ash centred around a thief who gets tangled up in a conspiracy. The follow up Blade of Dream, covers the same period but from different perspectives – in this case it is predominantly the disaffected son of a merchant family and the heir to the throne of Kithamar.
The book opens at the end – the funeral procession of the prince and the knowledge that his daughter Elaine will be installed as the new prince of Kithamar. Abraham then returns to the year before and the character of Gareth Left, heir to a family merchant business that has fallen on hard times. In order to reverse their fortunes, his parents have organised a strategic marriage but after a night in which he unkowingly meets and falls for Elaine a Sal, Gareth bucks his destiny and decides to forge his own path. Meanwhile, Elaine finds that her father being prince is not all it’s cracked up to be and moreover that he is keeping secrets from her.
Blade of Dream packs some surprises in but this is not its main aim. Readers of the first book will know some of what is going on in the background and the positioning of some of the minor characters of this book who were more central to the last one. And the fates of its central characters is known from page one. What it does well is fill out more strata of the complex inhabitants of Kithamar. In this case the merchants and the city Guard as well as some more insight into the city’s religions and aristocracy. And once again, the city of Kithamar is a central character, a fully realised and complex city-organism brought to life through its characters and Abraham’s vivid descriptions of the various locales through changing seasons. And as the action of the first book weaves in and out, plenty of easter eggs for those who remember the detail of that volume.
Abraham, one of the co-writers of the incredibly addictive space opera series The Expanse knowns how to spin an engaging tale centred on slightly grey but entirely likeable characters. And he does this again in Blade of Dream. So that those who either do not remember the ins and outs of Age of Ash, or those who pick this up as a standalone (or as the first book in a series which feels designed to be read in any order) will still find a complete tale and plenty to enjoy.
While after two books it feels like Abraham has covered every possible angle of what is an eventful year in the history of Kithamar it will be fascinating to see where he comes from (and how he potentially pulls all of the threads together) in the final volume.
The book opens at the end – the funeral procession of the prince and the knowledge that his daughter Elaine will be installed as the new prince of Kithamar. Abraham then returns to the year before and the character of Gareth Left, heir to a family merchant business that has fallen on hard times. In order to reverse their fortunes, his parents have organised a strategic marriage but after a night in which he unkowingly meets and falls for Elaine a Sal, Gareth bucks his destiny and decides to forge his own path. Meanwhile, Elaine finds that her father being prince is not all it’s cracked up to be and moreover that he is keeping secrets from her.
Blade of Dream packs some surprises in but this is not its main aim. Readers of the first book will know some of what is going on in the background and the positioning of some of the minor characters of this book who were more central to the last one. And the fates of its central characters is known from page one. What it does well is fill out more strata of the complex inhabitants of Kithamar. In this case the merchants and the city Guard as well as some more insight into the city’s religions and aristocracy. And once again, the city of Kithamar is a central character, a fully realised and complex city-organism brought to life through its characters and Abraham’s vivid descriptions of the various locales through changing seasons. And as the action of the first book weaves in and out, plenty of easter eggs for those who remember the detail of that volume.
Abraham, one of the co-writers of the incredibly addictive space opera series The Expanse knowns how to spin an engaging tale centred on slightly grey but entirely likeable characters. And he does this again in Blade of Dream. So that those who either do not remember the ins and outs of Age of Ash, or those who pick this up as a standalone (or as the first book in a series which feels designed to be read in any order) will still find a complete tale and plenty to enjoy.
While after two books it feels like Abraham has covered every possible angle of what is an eventful year in the history of Kithamar it will be fascinating to see where he comes from (and how he potentially pulls all of the threads together) in the final volume.
stegofreak's review
lighthearted
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
siavahda's review against another edition
4.0
I have officially have NO idea where the third book is going to go, and/but I will definitely be reading it. As with book one, I enjoyed the prose more than the story - there's really very little story, although what there is is excellent - but I still couldn't put it down! Abraham continues to be an auto-buy author for me and I don't see that changing.
ergative's review
3.25
http://www.nerds-feather.com/2023/10/review-age-of-ash-kithamar-1-and-blade.html
lauralauralaura's review against another edition
4.0
This book displays the confident, competent world building and character development I expect from Daniel Abraham. I enjoyed this book, found it easy to immerse myself into it, and was able to exit the world without feeling stuck in it. Enjoyable, workmanlike, but not world shattering for me.
trashthatmatters's review
4.0
It was very much "boys in blue" which was a shame given he's a good writer. But so hard to believe that most of the cops were good esp as they were quite violent.
I honestly don't know where this series will end and who the third book will focus on. It feels like everything is answered?
I honestly don't know where this series will end and who the third book will focus on. It feels like everything is answered?