Eric Stone
While the resolution was decent enough, the story felt incredibly disjointed. At times, it felt like the author literally lost the plot.
The pacing was all over the place. We would get deep, atmospheric descriptions of some planes of hell, while others were essentially skipped entirely. This inconsistency extended to the character development as well - new, "important" characters would be introduced, but it wouldn't be until hundreds of pages later that we’d learn the protagonist had a childhood affinity for them. It made the emotional stakes feel bizarre and unearned.
I did enjoy the ending and the way the main character finally reclaimed her power. That scene was a highlight, especially since she spent the majority of the book as a "woe-is-me" sad sack. I found her arrogance and self-centered nature deeply annoying, and unfortunately, she doesn't actually grow out of it; she stays that way right through the resolution. I just wasn't made to feel anything for her.
I wouldn’t reread this or recommend it. I was actually urged away from this book by people saying Babel is much better - I’ll likely give that one a shot eventually to see if the structure holds up better than it did here.
While the resolution was decent enough, the story felt incredibly disjointed. At times, it felt like the author literally lost the plot.
The pacing was all over the place. We would get deep, atmospheric descriptions of some planes of hell, while others were essentially skipped entirely. This inconsistency extended to the character development as well - new, "important" characters would be introduced, but it wouldn't be until hundreds of pages later that we’d learn the protagonist had a childhood affinity for them. It made the emotional stakes feel bizarre and unearned.
I did enjoy the ending and the way the main character finally reclaimed her power. That scene was a highlight, especially since she spent the majority of the book as a "woe-is-me" sad sack. I found her arrogance and self-centered nature deeply annoying, and unfortunately, she doesn't actually grow out of it; she stays that way right through the resolution. I just wasn't made to feel anything for her.
I wouldn’t reread this or recommend it. I was actually urged away from this book by people saying Babel is much better - I’ll likely give that one a shot eventually to see if the structure holds up better than it did here.