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gemgem18's review
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
rosalind14's review against another edition
4.0
3.5.
I picked this up quite randomly from the bookstore because it was half-price and seemed intriguing. Though I'm glad I didn't pay the full price, it was surprisingly fun and original. I especially loved the world it was set in: a sort of parallel universe in a simultaneously medieval and futuristic China where technology and magic go side by side, and everyone has their own spirit animal with whom they can communicate telepathically. The plot, characters, and writing didn't exactly stand out, positively or negatively, but I'm glad I read it and hope to get ahold of the rest of the series when they follow.
I picked this up quite randomly from the bookstore because it was half-price and seemed intriguing. Though I'm glad I didn't pay the full price, it was surprisingly fun and original. I especially loved the world it was set in: a sort of parallel universe in a simultaneously medieval and futuristic China where technology and magic go side by side, and everyone has their own spirit animal with whom they can communicate telepathically. The plot, characters, and writing didn't exactly stand out, positively or negatively, but I'm glad I read it and hope to get ahold of the rest of the series when they follow.
sarahannkateri's review against another edition
3.0
Strange things are happening in the land of the Seventy Kingdoms. The magic flux that runs through the land is disappearing, there are whispers of courtly plots and machinations, and the King of Long City is dying of a suspicious disease. Sixteen-year-old Kai is no stranger to adventure...Last year he and his friends helped Princess Lian find her heart's desire, winning her friendship in the process. When a ghost dragon tells Kai he must travel to the Phoenix Empire to tell Lian about her father's sickness and bring her home, it's up to Kai and his friend Yun to once again save the day.
I looked at other reviews of this, and I am so glad I'm not the only one who was like "what the heck is going on? is this a sequel?" Apparently, although this is the first novel set in this world, it's a sequel to a short story the author published online. Although Bernobich tries to include the backstory in this book, I still had a hard time figuring out what was going on, and if I wasn't reading this for a requirement, I would have stopped reading somewhere in the first chapter.
The book does get better once the exposition is out of the way, but I never grew to love it. The character of Kai is immature and often annoying, and I never really understood why he and other characters were reacting to things like they did. Everyone seemed so histrionic - often yelling at each other and having arguments that could have been easily resolved... Although Bernobich put a lot of effort into world-building, I found the magic to be confusing. I liked that it was creative and not a typical fantasy world, and the spirit animals were pretty cool, but I couldn't get rid of the feeling that I was missing something.
This would be a good choice for traditional fantasy fans, especially those who have an interest in China or Japan. If I was recommending it to someone, I'd probably advise them to read the short story first so they knew what was going on.
I looked at other reviews of this, and I am so glad I'm not the only one who was like "what the heck is going on? is this a sequel?" Apparently, although this is the first novel set in this world, it's a sequel to a short story the author published online. Although Bernobich tries to include the backstory in this book, I still had a hard time figuring out what was going on, and if I wasn't reading this for a requirement, I would have stopped reading somewhere in the first chapter.
The book does get better once the exposition is out of the way, but I never grew to love it. The character of Kai is immature and often annoying, and I never really understood why he and other characters were reacting to things like they did. Everyone seemed so histrionic - often yelling at each other and having arguments that could have been easily resolved... Although Bernobich put a lot of effort into world-building, I found the magic to be confusing. I liked that it was creative and not a typical fantasy world, and the spirit animals were pretty cool, but I couldn't get rid of the feeling that I was missing something.
This would be a good choice for traditional fantasy fans, especially those who have an interest in China or Japan. If I was recommending it to someone, I'd probably advise them to read the short story first so they knew what was going on.
caresays's review against another edition
3.0
It'd have been four stars if it hadn't felt weirdly like I was reading book two in a series. Which, as it turns out, I was reading a book that uses previous events from a short story. Word of advice? Let your reader know that. It drove me fucking insane.
ladylondonderry's review
4.0
This book failed to mention one thing to me, which became blatantly apparent in only the first couple pages.
It is a sequel.
I used to be horrible at this. I would always pick up a book off the shelf that was a sequel to something, and not realize until I got home and either was completely confused when I started reading it, or would look inside the cover and it would say that it was a sequel to so-and-so. So I got extremely careful when choosing books. I always make sure that what I am getting does not say anywhere that it is number X in a series, or that it is a follow up to another book, or what have you. This book is a sequel. Don't let it lie to you. It doesn't say that anywhere inside the cover, front or back, or in the first couple pages. But as the action unfolds, it is extremely clear that you're missing something. It explains events that happened in the past with an odd amount of detail, enough that you know something happened, but also not quite enough, as though you are supposed to already know what went on.
It's a sequel to a short story that Beth Bernobich wrote, it's published a few places around the web if you google it. Just a warning, you'll feel much less lost if you read it first.
In general, I did like the book. Bernobich had interesting ideas for the setting, what with the magic flux and kingdoms. I would like to know where she based her world off of, because I have a feeling it's China, and I would like to know in more detail. I feel like the ending has a bit of an unresolved plot point (not a major one though), but overall it was fairly stable in terms of delivery and did a good job of tying in plenty of bits and pieces. It's a good read, really, if you are willing to look past that initial confusion of "I swear this has got to be a sequel why doesn't it just admit it already?!" (if you couldn't guess, getting past that point was a little difficult for me).
It is a sequel.
I used to be horrible at this. I would always pick up a book off the shelf that was a sequel to something, and not realize until I got home and either was completely confused when I started reading it, or would look inside the cover and it would say that it was a sequel to so-and-so. So I got extremely careful when choosing books. I always make sure that what I am getting does not say anywhere that it is number X in a series, or that it is a follow up to another book, or what have you. This book is a sequel. Don't let it lie to you. It doesn't say that anywhere inside the cover, front or back, or in the first couple pages. But as the action unfolds, it is extremely clear that you're missing something. It explains events that happened in the past with an odd amount of detail, enough that you know something happened, but also not quite enough, as though you are supposed to already know what went on.
It's a sequel to a short story that Beth Bernobich wrote, it's published a few places around the web if you google it. Just a warning, you'll feel much less lost if you read it first.
In general, I did like the book. Bernobich had interesting ideas for the setting, what with the magic flux and kingdoms. I would like to know where she based her world off of, because I have a feeling it's China, and I would like to know in more detail. I feel like the ending has a bit of an unresolved plot point (not a major one though), but overall it was fairly stable in terms of delivery and did a good job of tying in plenty of bits and pieces. It's a good read, really, if you are willing to look past that initial confusion of "I swear this has got to be a sequel why doesn't it just admit it already?!" (if you couldn't guess, getting past that point was a little difficult for me).
middlekmissie's review
3.0
Sweetly charming. My favorite part of the novel was definitely the world-building.
kyouen's review
4.0
This was another book set in a fantasy Eastern-style setting that I really enjoyed. I was disappointed that there wasn't the same amount of world building as there was in [b:Eon: Dragoneye Reborn|2986865|Eon Dragoneye Reborn (Eon, #1)|Alison Goodman|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1299076175s/2986865.jpg|3017319], however. I had to remind myself not to compare the two books too much. The book started off a tad slow, and lagged in other places, but overall I was pretty impressed. There was romance, but it was pretty straight forward and not the focus of the story.
alexiskg's review
4.0
The most interesting thing about this book is the fact that it is a stand-alone—and a debut—that operates like the second book of a series, referring from page 1 to the grand adventure had by the main characters before this story's action even begins, and which dictates how the protagonist sees and behaves with the other characters. It works, but it does make me wish the "first book" existed, so I could get a more fleshed-out sense of who everyone was, without depending on flashback/sequel-ish notes to TELL me who they were/are now.
The setting here was unique, and the pacing compelling, but I did get a bit distracted by all the vocab/technical jargon, which became disproportionately heavy in the last quarter of the book (a lot more "maybe-maybe"s and such, which hadn't been prevalent at the front). Still, worthwhile reading for any fantasy fan.
The setting here was unique, and the pacing compelling, but I did get a bit distracted by all the vocab/technical jargon, which became disproportionately heavy in the last quarter of the book (a lot more "maybe-maybe"s and such, which hadn't been prevalent at the front). Still, worthwhile reading for any fantasy fan.