Silviya

A fantastic read!

We have the continuation of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians with an expanded cast and higher stakes (if that is even possible).

I loved the 3 main POVs we have (even more than I did the ones in Percy Jackson series). These kids are around 16, so slightly more mature and therefore a bit more easy to follow.
The mystery and the new arch-enemy of our characters were top notch.

I am so looking forward to continuing with the series.

If I could give this book more than 5 stars, I would.

Listening to other people review this book, I had been left worried that it would be a slow, tedious experience, spiced with loads of sad events. But though their reviews were not untrue, they were not correct either.
The book is masterfully written, where every sentence is a piece of art, without being too flowery. The pacing could be considered slow, but I never wanted it to be any faster - I was enjoying every moment.
The characters are vivid and easy to follow. The story is intricate and well woven (reminded me of A Song of Ice and Fire). The emotions that it evoked weren't unpleasant or dreadful. Every time I'd put the book down, I'd be looking forward to picking it up again.
Reading it was like coming home - both happy and melancholic.

Robin Hobb is now a favourite author and I can't wait to continue with the rest of her books.

Finally I read the original of this very beloved to me story. And I quite liked it!
Though I must admit that my modern smooth brain struggled a bit with all the “thou”s and “thee”s throughout the story.

I did enjoy the highly structured law of the jungle that is followed and the atmosphere was quite enveloping.
It brought back so many sweet memories of childhood and watching this same cartoon over and over again.

I am looking forward to reading the rest of Mowgli's story!

4.5 ⭐️

Another great entry in this surprisingly addictive series!

A few new characters were introduced and immediately became some of my favorite (Manon is simply fantastic)!
I love where the story went and how expanded the world became.
The ending just makes me want to pick up the next book of the series this very moment!

I have only one criticism and that is the way the resolution of the conflict between Celaena and Rowan was handled. The switch was so abrupt as though Rowan became a different person.

Regardless, I enjoyed this book so very much and am continuously impressed by the author.

When I started reading the book, I was worried it might turn out to be more of the same. And in hindsight, I should've known better, because I was worried about the same with Catching Fire and the author did not disappoint.

This was such a vast book for the amount of pages. It moves at a very quick pace, but it still finds time for quiet moments. There is a lot of devastation, plot twists, betrayal, horror, loss and realism.
I can't stop being amazed by the depth this author has managed to create. By the multilayered characters - both main and supporting. By the bold and gritty choices she has made for the plot of this book.

I loved it! It was one of the best bitter-sweet endings I have ever read!

There is a reason why this series is such a staple and why it sprung so many copycats.

3.5 ⭐️

I loved the world, and the characters and the magic system.

And I wanted to see more of them, instead of the MEGA HYPER detailed descriptions of sailing vessels and crafting, and battles. Seriously, the last battle spanned like 11 chapters (not exaggerating and that's only the second stage) and the majority of it was the author droning about random colour crafters doing random battle stuff in excruciating detail. At one point I was just considering to DNF this amazing story at 92%, just so that I don't have to read about another random person doing something that matters not one bit.

I also wished that the villain was better developed, instead of someone who is mentioned once and then shows up in the final battle to spook us.
The story was good, but didn't feel as epic as it should've.

Also, I wish the author would've kept it more vague with the sexual details. At times it felt more than slightly awkward to read this book.

Despite all that, Brent Weeks has crafted a magnificent world and obviously has a great sense of humour. I chuckled at few spots. I also liked the way the book ended.

I will continue with the series and hope for a bit better book 2.

Re-read update in 2022:
Reading this book for the second time was even better than the first. I was able to pick up on so much foreshadowing and my mind is full of theories.
One thing has changed this time around - Dalinar and Shallan are now my favorite characters. It used to be Kaladin, but now, I find myself empathising more with the other two, and I can see the genius in creating such complex characters.
I couldn't love this book more and I know for sure that I will be re-reading it many more times.

1st Read in 2019:
AMAZING!
Characters - amazing
Plot - amazing
Action - amazing
Writing - amazing
I loved this book! It started confusing, but very quickly I was so entranced by it, I couldn't put it down.
The last battle in the book is what I live for! Fantastic!
New favourite!

More than 2⭐️ but not enough to round up to 3.

Okay, am I the only one who though this book was very frustrating and uncomfortable?

It started so promising - an innocent man is betrayed by envious and jealous fake friends and ends up in a terrible prison. There was some great adventure, some nice secrets and some interesting characters. I was affected and engaged and had such high hopes.
And then it turned into this strangely sadistic tale about a guy whom I simply could not, for the life of me, understand. I am gonna say it here - the reformed Dante acted with absolutely no empathy. And not just towards his enemies. Even when he was attempting to do good, he was doing it in such a strangely sadistic way that I honestly felt uncomfortable reading through it. For example, the way he brought both the old and the young Morels to the brink of suicide before he intervened, despite his ability to do so earlier, was absolutely unnecessary and baffling. It only makes sense if he did it because he enjoyed the drama of it more than he cared for the wellbeing of his only real friends and that is nothing to admire him for. And what was even more frustrating was that the author tried to play it as "they knew the depths of despair so they could experience supreme happiness" which is simply dishonest. Indeed, overcoming troubles does help one experience higher levels of happiness, but in these cases it was unnecessarily prolonged to the point of doing irreversible damage.
Everything good Dante does is tainted by his less than respectable motives and villainous manner of execution.
The author also seems to have a strange obsession with suicide and murder as forms of preserving one's honour. I assume that it's probably dictated by the morals of the period this book was written in, but it still made me extremely uncomfortable to read about it.

Not to mention the insane amount of exposition. And while I can acknowledge that this was typical for the writing style of the time, I still found the book somewhat bloated.

I had quite high expectations of this book and I'm a wee bit disappointed.

Is this book for children - absolutely not. But is it a great book - indeed it is.

We have an intricate plot, set in a world that is our own (except that it isn't), and carried out by some of the most intriguing and duplicitous characters, that will never leave you indifferent.

The book is full adventure and whimsy and lovely winter atmosphere and I read it within a day with no desire to stop at any point.

Highly recommend.

This was spectacular!
I don't know whether I can find a better word to describe it, nor whether I need to.
This is hands down the best sci-fi book I have read so far, with the most beautiful ending.
There was not a moment of this book that I didn't enjoy.
If you haven't yet read it, please do yourself a favour and pick it up.

What a lovely story!

It features the amusing and vivid characters that are a trademark of Jane Austen's writing, the cosy atmosphere or times long gone and manners long forgotten, and most of all, the wit and clever plots which fill the reader with anticipation for the most minute events.

What amazed me the most is how Jane Austen managed to create such a multilayered and realistic protagonist in Emma. Such that is not your typical “good lady”, but a human being, sometimes affected by shameful human emotions, I am sure most of us can relate to.

I can't recommend this book enough!

Spoiler-free review
Characters: Interesting personalities with distinguishable voices. A lot of meaningful internal struggle that makes them relatable and inclines you to consider what you would do in a similar situation. They were also smart (for the most part).
Plot: The story focuses on the mystery surrounding Elantris - the events from the past that led to its current state and what caused those events. All this unravels while we follow the POV of multiple characters, who struggle to deal with the situation they've been thrown in; loss, pain and desperation.
What I liked: The plot of the book was truly intriguing. It kept me on my toes and made me anxious to turn to the next page and find out what happens next. The main characters were complex but ultimately good people, which is more and more rare these days.
What I didn't like: Maybe a bit more time could've been spent on the ending. The female main character's personality was a bit frustrating to read from.

Would I recommend> Absolutely. I am happy I read the book and would be happy to read an eventual sequel.

This book is basically The Hunger Games, but stupid.

We have a post-apocalyptic adjacent world, comprised of 2 cities, some countryside and maybe another state.

We follow a handful of placeholder characters, who are somehow badass before we meet them and go through no evolution through this whole story.

Both world and character “development” are done exclusively through exposition and boy, oh boy, was it boring to read!

The plot is so shallow and half-done, that it falls apart under the slightest scrutiny. So, if you've come for the thrill of action and discovery - don't bother.

And if you've come for the romance - still don't bother. Our characters “fall” for each other over nothing more than physical attraction and in no time at all, despite having nothing remotely gentle between each other. I couldn't see chemistry, nor proper reciprocation between the two of them. All I saw was dysfunction and that ain't cute.

But I think the worst thing about this book was its female “protagonist”, who has nothing to offer but rudeness, stupidity, selfishness and cigarette smoke. I will never understand why so many contemporary authors, who want to write strong female characters, can only imagine them as having nothing feminine about them. A woman doesn't have to be masculine to be worthy of respect. A woman doesn't have to be nasty to be worthy of fear. A woman doesn't have to be sarcastic to imply depth. Have we lost all sense of subtlety?

The sad part is that there could've been a great story here and there were a couple of nice twists. But it was like finding a couple of nice bits in a bucket of slop.

I will not be continuing with the series.

Often the middle book in a trilogy feels like a chore one has to complete in order to get to the good part. Not in this case!

The author has an immense talent to create what I like to call “cosy dread”. That feeling of anticipation of something awful just about to happen. The sense of unease that the main character goes through and the uncertainty of what's going on.

I also liked the character work, though that somewhat surprised me. Katniss' personality is not the most likeable, yet quite realistic and consistent, which I very much appreciate. And when you contrast it to that of Peeta you have this balanced and very easy to like combination.

In addition, the supporting characters - from Haymitch and Finnick to the beauty squad and Effie, were an example of turning a stereotype into a masterpiece. Placing good people on the wrong side and seeking to understand one's opponent are two things that bring a level of nuance notably absent from a lot of the modern literature.

And the way that twists were revealed was done in such a smooth way, with our main character battling it all in her head. I loved it.

The pacing was perfect - sparing enough time for quit moments and for explosions of action.

I loved every moment of reading this book and can't wait to pick up the last one in the trilogy.

I can't say that enjoyed this book.
Mostly, because it's beyond disturbing and because it scared the living hell out of me.

But I can say with absolute certainty that this is one of the best written books I have ever picked up.
What a mind - both philosophical and scientifically analytical!
In this book you'll find knowledge, foresight, debt and a lot of food for thought.

“Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two make four.”

This was just fine, but there was a bit too much romance and a bit too little of everything else.
Which I suppose was the point of a mid-series novella of this sort.
It was nice to see the characters again and the manor itself proved quite curious. It was a bit like a romantic Harry Potter.
It's not a must to read, but it was not entirely a waste of time either.

Slightly above 3 ⭐️ but not enough to be 3.5

The problem with high expectations is that it's not enough to simply enjoy something. You need to enjoy it as much as you anticipated. And let's face it, that's damn near impossible.

This book was one of my most anticipated new releases for 2023.

Did I enjoy reading it? Absolutely! There's a lot to like about it.
1. World building and atmosphere - I think this was the book's biggest asset. The author has crafted a very beautiful and cosy (if slightly gruesome) world.
2. Characters - The cast was colorful, sometimes literally (you'll see when you read Inara's pov chapters), interesting and likeable. I had a lot of fun following them around.
3. Quest - I loved the quest aspect of this story. It was nicely done with some good downtime and teamwork, with picturesque and interesting locations.

I really enjoyed reading this book and am looking forward to continuing with the series.

But there are a few things this book lacks.
1. Depth - There were many things in this book that felt unfinished. As though I was reading an abridged version of the story. From some of the vague world building and back story, to a few barely there plot lines and character motivations. Speaking of which...
2. Weak character motivation - Some of the characters had either weak, or undeveloped, or outright nonsensical motivation to be where they were or to be doing what they did.For example, the 3 old ladies' reason for going to Blenraden made no sense whatsoever. So you mean to tell me that 3 old women would risk a dangerous illegal journey, to go beg peaceful death from a bunch of unreliable gods that might be super hostile?? No good poisons in this vast magical world? Come on... Or Arren turning on the gods, specifically the ones that helped them. It made no sense to do this, considering he accepted their help initially. I'm not saying it's impossible for him to have done that, I'm saying it was not developed enough to be believable.
3. Continuity and grammar - this is not a big minus as there wasn't anything too egregious. Just a few grammatical errors and at least one instance where a character, in their thoughts, referred to a stranger by her name, before they knew it.
4. Writing style - the author seems to have a slight inclination towards opting for fancy sentences that walk the line of not making sense. Though, to be fair, considering this is her first published book, there is room to grow, just like with every author.

I honestly think this book would've benefited by being (maybe even more than) slightly longer. Though I do understand the appeal of a shorter fantasy book. So, I can't be mad.

All that being said, should you read this book? Yes! Because despite its shortcomings, it is interesting and a great first book for this author. It's also fun and I believe most people will enjoy it quite a bit.

What a spectacular ending to this most epic of stories!

It started with atmosphere of dread and high tension, went through tough battles - both on the marching fields and internally in the minds of our heroes, and concluded with one of the most thorough and meaningful endings.

“I tried to save the Shire and it has been saved, but not for me. It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: some one has to give them up, lose them, so that others may keep them.”

I cried, I rejoiced, I felt understood, and I found so much meaning.

I have loved the story of The Lord of the Rings for the vast majority of my life, but I have never respected it more and I have never understood it better.

A pretentious self centered wank.

Both main characters alternate between unbearable and slightly less unbearable.
The writing style is pompous, meandering and often meaningless-adjacent.
The romance - there were a couple of very well done scenes, but it was all tainted by cheating.

The first half of the book was a pseudo-intellectual drivel about the meaning of things and how nobody understands. Same was at the end.
The middle was a fever dream of unhealthy over-attachment, possessiveness and mania.

If I hadn't read this for a reading challenge, I would've DNF-d early on. I kinda wish I had.