Reviews

City of Last Chances by Adrian Tchaikovsky

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sarrahchang's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

zickcantkill's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense medium-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

lskywalker918's review against another edition

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4.0

Someone said this was like Les Mis but with magic. Well, they weren't wrong. The story was intriguing. The characters memorable. However, this read like a history book, albeit the exciting part of a history book. The chapters were long and my ADHD brain staying on track.

If you pushed through this epic fantasy, you would discover the genius that is Adrian Tchaikovsky. His worldbuilding was superb. There was no awkard info dump. Yes, things were confusing at first when we first entered this world. There were strange jargons, unfamiliar titles, and unique magic. As we continued deeper into the story, we picked up on how things were in this strange land of Ilmar. Tchaikovsky's vivid imagery further built on this steange new world.

Despite the large cast of characters and the many POVs that were confusing at first, you somehow became invested in each character's story. By the end, all the loose threads come together to create a beautiful tapestry that told the many nuances of a revolution sparked by the theft of a magic artifact. There were many players in a revolution and everyone had their own motivation beyond the altruistic rising against the oppressor.

Some of the plot points (like the journey into the Reproach) would also make for a good DnD campaign.

nightmareeve's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

mrshuisman's review

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tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

First Tchaikovsky book I’ve read and my expectations were sky high. To me, this book was a bit too chaotic and busy with too many POVs and personal details. But it did still make me curious about his other works

allcapspyrex's review

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dark mysterious 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

4.5

Tchaikovsky is very good at writing in ways you've never seen before, and that comes to the fore here. City of Last Chances is a story told through a dozen different perspectives, which still manages to keep a plot running which is not only cohesive, but enthralling. There's all sorts of magic and fantasy elements in the world that's beautifully built up throughout this book, but all of it works, and the reader always gets just enough to satisfy without removing the desire to know more. I could see this book not being for everyone, but personally I loved it, and I highly recommend it.

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