Reviews

Iskari: de laatste Namsara by Kristen Ciccarelli

readandwander's review against another edition

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5.0

Where has this book been all my life? I feel like it breathed fire into my soul. I absolutely adore this book and immediately wanted to reread which is so unusual for me. Hands down The Last Namsara was one of my favorite YA fantasy debuts, from start to finish. From the stories to the characters and the dragons, it was a breathtaking, heart pounding experience from start to finish. I loved Asha and Torwin but I am also to see what is going on with Dax and Roa in the next book! I also want more of Safire... JUST GIVE ME MORE. This is a new favorite for sure. Now off to go reread some of my favorite stories from the book. 😍

yasmaglasi's review against another edition

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2.0

Las historias son la esencia del mundo. Olvidarlas solo sería un error y es el tema principal de Iskari.
La verdad es que empecé esta novela atraída por los dragones. Hacía tiempo que no leía algo de fantasía clásica y tenía ganas de volver a sumergirme en un mundo lleno de ellos.
Iskari nos cuenta la historia de Asha, una princesa que ha consagrado su vida a la caza de dragones después de que uno le abrasase la mitad de la cara y el cuerpo tras contarle una historia, ya que estas atraen a los dragones. En este mundo, contar historias está prohibido, pues hacen enfermar a la gente y por ello deben acabar con el Primer Dragón, Kozu, el origen de todas las historias. Sin embargo, no todo es lo que parece.
No sabría muy bien cómo hablar de esta novela. Por un lado, me ha gustado porque es idéntica a otras novelas que leía cuando era una niña, pero eso mismo hace que la trama sea predecible. Lo adivinaba todo, lo que hizo que no terminase de disfrutarla.
Además, me ha faltado ver una chispa en los personajes. La mayoría son muy planos y estereotipados. Asha es la princesa guerrera, Torwin el esclavo inteligente, Dax el príncipe que parece tonto pero después es un gran estratega... Arquetipos que ya hemos visto en todas las historias. Y nunca se salen de su línea, salvo Asha en contadas ocasiones.
Lo único que me ha llamado la atención es el mensaje.
Tal vez de haberla leído con catorce años la habría disfrutado más. Ahora, veo este libro como algo para disfrutar después de muchas emociones, esa historia a la que acudes cuando no tienes ánimo para pensar demasiado.
Si queréis darle una oportunidad, adelante. Aunque no he conectado del todo con la historia reconozco que tiene sus puntos entretenidos y seguro que un lector menos exigente sabría disfrutarla. Es una lástima que no haya conseguido convencerme.

lunabookaddict's review against another edition

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4.0

L’histoire est vraiment sympa entre dragon et personnage badass même si le plot est prévisible à mon sens ! :)

larawernsen's review against another edition

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4.0

4 out of 5 stars

renateees's review against another edition

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3.0

Actual rating is a 3.5

I'm still a bit conflicted with this book. I don't know what it is with books that I like in the beginning and then not so much the further I get that was the case with this book as well. I thought the world and the way it was built up were so unlike anything I've read before. I loved how the stories within this story helped you to understand the world and its history. I just loved how these old stories were a part of this world, with the dragons, with the storytellers and everything.

When I was about halfway through that love kinda changed. A lot of the plot turned form unique to things I've read before just a little different. I wasn't surprised anymore, but found myself rolling my eyes (which isn't a good thing). The constant climaxes really threw me off. I felt like there were like 4 points where the story could've stopped and a sequel would've made sense. But now this book wanted to wrap up the entire main plot line. I think I would've enjoyed it more if the story was a little slower paced and therefore more developed.

I did enjoy reading it and the way the story was told really stood out to me. But the rest of the book just wasn't what I hoped it would've been.

latad_books's review against another edition

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4.0

I liked this story of dragonkiller Asha (known as the Iskari) who's ordered to kill THE dragon, Kozu. She and Kozu have a history, as he burned her when she was young and learning to deal with dragons. Asha's father, the king, assures her that she will not have to marry his head general if she kills Kozu. And she really, really doesn't want to marry the man, as he's pretty much awful.
Asha is determined to kill Kozu, but incident after incident conspire to keep her from her target. They also serve to slowly show Asha that there are many things she hasn't been told by her father, and that she's been manipulated constantly from a very early age into believing and committing acts that will actually deeply harm her kingdom.
I ended up opening this book because my child was reading it, and though I found Asha frequently ridiculously stubborn, I liked her and her relationship with her cousin, and loved the idea of dragons needing stories. Though this story wasn't groundbreaking or hugely different from others I've read, I did enjoy it.

lexireadshappy's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful mysterious reflective 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? No

5.0

goldilor's review against another edition

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This had so much promise. Pretty much a sucker for all things dragons but this fell short. It read like a second or even a third book and not the first.

I liked the stories, but I wanted to see more of the dragons and some (more) world building.

As always, the “instant love” came out of left field, even though I could see it coming.

I really really wanted to like it, alas!

thelibraryofminds's review against another edition

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4.0

Tbh, I liked this more than I expected! Plus dragons.

i_amwanderlust's review against another edition

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5.0

Dragons, magical old stories, rebellions, romance (slow-burning kind ;] )

What more could you ask for?