Stormdancer

I somewhat regret listening to the audiobook version of this. I found the narration to be not great, leaning heavily on some cultural stereotype for the accents used - a little bit offensive to listen to. The story itself is set in a clever take on a steampunk world, with vast machinery powered by blood lotus, a plant that has ‘particular' needs to grow and produces a vast amount of pollution when used. The military industrial complex that it powers forms the backbone of the society - a scarily believable allegory for modern capitalism and hydrocarbons. The world building here is well done.

The story mostly follows the daughter of the chief tracker of the emperor, being sent to capture a thunder tiger - a griffon like beast. Some characters are a bit one dimensional - I found the childlike petulance of the emperor somewhat grating. The motivations are a bit confused as well. However, they are all distinctive and interesting. The plot is somewhat generic, with its main distinction being the world and the female lead. Kristoff writes with a very accessible and conversational style which is fun and easy to follow and this book is no exception to that.

Overall a fun fantasy romp. Avoid the audiobook though.

Stormdancer..................................what to write, what to do, what am I thinking!!!!!

If this is a YA, Mr. Kristoff you just made me eat my word, I don't like YA, never did never will, upon the first 100 pages or so REDEMPTION!!!!! Ha!!!! Take that YA, I knew you would be so full of endless descriptions, monotonous storytelling Yucky Adolescent!!!!

Then Buruu the arashitora arrived, and upon Buruu's flickering lightning ability, everything changed, the story became faster, characters evolved, and the story!!!! Suffice to say I can't stop reading!!!!!

This one is like a lightning bolt, takes forever to come, but once it arrives, you better be ready!!!!

On to book two!!!!

P.s. your characters truly have short lifespan............ehhhh, Mr. Kristoff!!!!!

This book was slow to start, but once I got into it and really got to know the characters and their plight, I adored this book. Jay Kristoff has this very descriptive elegant writing style that at first can be off-putting. However, once I got used to it in the first 100 pages or so, I grew to really enjoy the level of description.

The only other thing I wish to comment on is how complete this book felt. I assume it was done this way in case the rest of the trilogy was never published, but I have no idea where the story and the characters will go after how Stormdancer ended.

It's probably one of the most anticipated books coming out in September 2012. And I recommend you buy and read it. While it wasn't perfect, I did fall in love with the world Jay Kristoff has created. I look forward to the second book in the series and hope the author will show us more of this original world and bring us closer to his heroine. Read my full review on SFF Book Review

Buddy read with the awesome : Buddies Books and Baubles Group starting on 8th August.

I hope I'll love it because Japan-inspired Fantasy shall be epic.

Tomorrow I'm leaving to go on holiday and I don't know if the B&B provides Wi-Fi access or if I can access the internet, so if you don't hear from me, that's why.

3.5 stars.
Rtc

nem megy. három napomba telt, míg nyolc százalékig jutottam és nem bírom tovább. a negyedik fejezet közepe táján járhatok, de esküszöm, eddig úgy a háromnegyedét nem értettem annak, amit olvasok. meg is ijedtem, hogy az én angoltudásom lett valahogy mínusz nulla, de aztán a meglehetős szenvedéseimet megszakítván ránéztem az egycsillagos értekelésekre, elolvastam, amit emily may írt és arra jöttem rá, hogy mégsem én vagyok a hülye, hanem a könyv irtózatosan túlírt, és a végeláthatatlan japán szódobálásokkal sem tudok marhára mit kezdeni, mivel sem japánul nem tudok, sem a japán kultúráról nincs túl sok fogalmam. bár utóbbi állítólag amúgy is csapnivaló utánajarással lett vázolva, úgyhogy ebből a szempontból mindegy lett volna, csak hát ettől még ugyanúgy nem értettem, miről van szó. nem vagyok rá büszke, de nem is vagyok hajlandó a google mellett ücsörögve két mondat/nap sebességgel haladni egy regénnyel, ami lehet, hogy amúgy sem érné meg a fáradozást.

rettentő szomorú vagyok, mert nekem amúgy nagyon szimpatikus ez a faszi, meg az illuminae-t nagyon csíptem, de most sanda gyanúm támadt, hogy az igazából nem tőle lett jó, hanem inkább amie kaufmantől.

ugyan a közelmúltig mély meggyőződéssel vallottam, hogy könyvet nem hagyok félbe, csak ha tényleg nyomós indokom van rá, de nemrég úgy döntöttem, hogy nekem bizony túl rövid az életem, hogy saját magam ellensége legyek, úgyhogy a stormdancerrel megnyitom a dnf-korszakomat. nem lesz lelkifurkám, leszarom.

Wow. Seriously, just wow. Like many have said, they had me at “Japanese steampunk.” But really, it's not all that steampunk-y. It's more about Japanese mythology and political/environmental commentary in an alt-historical setting.

And, ick, I've done a lousy job of selling it. At its core, it's a story about a girl and a mythical creature forming a bond–a story told a bazillion times. But when it's told as well as this one is, who cares how well trod this path is?

The sequel can't come fast enough.

A Japanese-infused steampunk fantasy novel...how could I resist?! Japanese influenced Magic, mythical creatures and a totally unique world were definitely selling points and enjoyable aspects of Stormdancer, but I also stayed for the characters. They are flawed, but not unlikable and their struggles both internal and on their outward journey were very interesting. I also REALLY enjoyed Jay Kristoff's writing. Others complained a lot about it, but I loved the word heavy, lyrical nature of it. It is very descriptive and I'm sure others may find it hard to slog through, but I adored the writing. It felt like the pollution of the world was seeping right into me or I could hear the gears and cogs whirling just out of earshot or that I could smell what the characters were smelling. As a word lover, this book is high on my list for wonderfully written books, as well as a great story and is what would have otherwise maybe been a four star on story alone into a five star for the amazing writing.
It may be worth noting, as others have, that the use of Japanese terms does seem a bit off. I am not super familiar with the Japanese language, only what I know from manga, anime, music and TV dramas, but even I winced at the overuse of terms like ‘hai' in places that didn't quite fit with how it is actually used in the Japanese language. Honorifics seemed a bit off too. Having said that, for myself it didn't detract from the story or the world, but it may be off-putting for others.
Overall I found it completely unique both in world building and writing, fresh in comparison to a lot of YA fantasy and a worthwhile read if you enjoy steampunk, fantasy and Japanese myth - highly recommend it.