Kristen
4 1/2 stars
I absolutely loved Red Sister, and it's currently not just my favorite 2017 release but my favorite new-to-me book read this year (I reread some pretty fantastic books). The highlight of the novel is the main protagonist, Nona, who is brought to train in a convent after nearly having been hanged for murder. She's compelling from the very beginning due to her fierceness and drive to protect her friends, and she's made all the more captivating because of her reticence when it comes to her past and her abilities. In addition to Nona herself, I also enjoyed the friendships, the dialogue, the badass nuns, the setting, and the writing. It could be a little slow paced due to classes filled with exposition, but this wasn't a huge problem for me since the world was interesting and the dialogue sharp rather than rote and bland.
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Tomorrow's Kin is the first novel in a new trilogy expanding upon Nancy Kress' excellent Nebula Award-winning novella Yesterday's Kin. The first third is the previously published story, and the rest of the novel follows what happens after the end of the original novella. Though I did think the novella was the strongest part, I found the novel as a whole to be smart and engaging. I also enjoyed following the main protagonist, Dr. Marianne Jenner, a mother, grandmother, and geneticist who makes an interesting–but fairly unremarkable–scientific discovery that leads to her being among the first to meet alien visitors to Earth. Kress seamlessly blends science and fiction in this novel, and I'm looking forward to finding out what happens next.
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The Magicians and Mrs. Quent is one of the most thoroughly engrossing novels I've read lately, though I did think it relied too much on characters not providing as much helpful information as they could have in order to control the plot or draw out mysteries. However, the first thing I did after finishing it was order the next two books because I really want to know what happens next!
It's split into three books that are connected but distinctly different from each other in style and/or focus. The first is a fantasy of manners reminiscent of Jane Austen with a focus on society, relationships, and class inequality. The next part is Gothic fantasy reminiscent of Jane Eyre told entirely from Ivy's first person perspective rather than following three different protagonists like the other parts, and the last has more in common with traditional high fantasy with magick and political focus.
Though the book follows three main protagonists, it's primarily Ivy's story and I loved reading about her most of all. I knew I was going to like her from the very first line:
It was generally held knowledge among the people who lived on Whitward Street that the eldest of the three Miss Lockwells had a peculiar habit of reading while walking.
In addition to being a reader, Ivy is clever, courageous, and determined–and I can't wait to continue her story in the next book!
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The Waking Land had potential to be a captivating novel, and though I did enjoy reading parts of it, my interest waned in the last quarter. Despite a strong opening, I had some difficulty getting into it due to being written in first person present tense, but I did find Elanna's internal war with herself added some interesting dimension to the protagonist and mainly kept reading because of that.
However, it was a fairly standard, predictable story in the end, and I did not find the prose, characters, and world compelling enough to make it a memorable novel.
My Rating: 5/10 - It's ok
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The House of Shattered Wings is a beautifully written book set in a fascinating world, but I was on the fence about reading the standalone sequel since it was also bogged down by so much narrative introspection that didn't add much to the story or characterization. However, I decided to continue after discovering The House of Binding Thorns had more Asmodeus–and I'm so glad I did because it's a far superior novel with more Asmodeus and more of the dragon kingdom!
Like its predecessor, the characters aren't quite as “alive” or in possession of distinct personalities/narrations as I would have liked, but I thought they were more compelling than in the previous novel. It's gorgeously written and atmospheric, and it's a standout novel with some unique qualities that I enjoyed very much.
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Nimona is incredibly entertaining with great characters–I loved it! It begins with Nimona convincing renowned villain Lord Blackheart that a shapeshifter sidekick would be useful in carrying out diabolical plans. However, she's not really the type to obey orders and scoffs at Lord Blackheart's rules about not murdering people–and brings complete chaos into his life.
From the start, Nimona is fun with a sense of humor, and it develops more depth as it delves into the characters and their pasts and examines heroism and villainy. The artistic style didn't entirely work for me and I would have liked to know a little more about the world/certain lore, but the characters and story more than made up for that.
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The Floating Islands is one of those novels I wasn't quite sure how to rate: I LOVED the setting and story but also found the characters' narrative voices, dialogue, and pacing didn't entirely work for me. It's largely an uplifting, hopeful story (though there is grief and loss, it's more focused on moving forward) about two cousins: Trei, a fourteen-year-old boy forced to leave his homeland to live with his mother's family in the Floating Islands, and Araen??, a girl who sneaks out of the house dressed as a boy in order to attend lectures about cooking. It's at once familiar and unique and features magic, air and fire dragons, and food references (do not read while hungry). Though I had some reservations, I'm still very likely to read the eventual sequel since it did have so many strengths and parts that I thought were wonderful!
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3 1/2 stars
Robin Hobb is one of my favorite writers of epic fantasy, and Assassin's Fate was one of my most anticipated books of 2017–I love the Realm of the Elderlings and I also loved the first two books in the Fitz and the Fool trilogy. Even though Fool's Assassin was a slowly paced novel, it kept me riveted because of the characters, and Fool's Quest was even better.
So it took me by surprise when I started reading this and found it all too easy to put down for more than half the book. Though a couple of interesting things happened, it just seemed to drag on and on until around the 60% point. After that, it picked up and was difficult to put down, but I ended up feeling like too many more interesting things were glossed over quickly after reading so many pages that, frankly, weren't all that compelling for the most part. The characters and their interactions are usually my favorite aspects of these books, and they also didn't seem as vivid in this installment.
I wouldn't have wanted to miss the conclusion to this trilogy, and there were some great parts (and I loved the dragons!). However, I don't think it is as strong as most of the other books in the Realm of the Elderlings.
Longer Review on My Website
The False Prince is the tale of a nearly fifteen-year-old boy, Sage, who is purchased from an orphanage by a nobleman looking for boys who could pose as the missing Prince Jaron. Sage's rebellious, intractable nature is both a point in his favor and a point against him: it's this personality that made him a potential false prince in the first place, but the nobleman would prefer a prince who was a bit more agreeable. And Sage's life depends on being selected as the prince since the nobleman will kill to keep his secret...
Though I personally tend to prefer books with less straightforward prose and more complexity than The False Prince, I also found it to be an entertaining, readable book with amusing dialogue and a narrative voice with personality. I expected the ending but it was still quite satisfying, especially since I do enjoy stories about rogue-like characters who are steps ahead of everyone else. It may not have surprised me or stood out as particularly unique, but I thought the author did a wonderful job of keeping the book engaging and above all fun.
3 1/2 stars
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Miranda and Caliban is inspired by Shakespeare's The Tempest and is largely a prequel, though the ending follows events in the play. The plot from the story is embellished more than changed, and it flips perspectives so Prospero is the villain. It's beautifully written, atmospheric, and one of the better books I've read this year, although I would have liked a little more original in-depth characterization.
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Gilded Cage is set in an alternate version of Great Britain in which the monarchy was overthrown by people with “magic” calling themselves Equals. This revolution led to the creation of the Slavedays Compact, which requires that each citizen spend 10 years of their life as a slave, leaving the Equals free to govern.
This novel follows a teenage boy working in a slavetown and several other characters in/around a prominent Equal family, include the boy's sister Abi (who is a slave working for this family). Given its relatively short length, Gilded Cage follows a LOT of characters–even the character in a coma gets a viewpoint! None of the characters had a lot of depth, but some of them were interesting, especially one whose motivations are mysterious.
This was just interesting enough (and short enough) that I finished it, but it did have slow pacing, lots of exposition, (mostly) unremarkable prose, and bland dialogue. However, it also had a strong beginning and ending and a few characters who are at least somewhat interesting (even if their narratives seemed rather dull at times).
Rating: 5/10 (It's ok)
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The House of Shattered Wings started strong: it has some beautifully written passages, the characters were intriguing, and I loved that it blended different fantasy elements together. However, it also had a lot of narrative introspection that bogged the book down and did not advance the characterization (which became particularly tedious in the second half since it often seemed as though it was making the same points repeatedly).
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The Invisible Library series is so much fun. It follows the adventures of Irene, a spy/book thief working for an organization existing outside of time and space known as the Library. She's a great heroine: practical, resourceful, and competent, and she handles the absurd situations in which she tends to find herself with aplomb.
The Burning Page picks up some of the dangling threads from the first book: the former-Librarian-turned-traitor Alberich is back and determined to destroy the Library since its members refuse to surrender it to him. My favorite parts of this installment were Irene's interactions with Alberich, as well as reading about Kai and Irene working together on more orderly worlds that resist the Language (used by Librarians to change reality). It also gives Irene cause to question something she's always taken for granted, and I can't wait to find out how this is addressed in future installments!
Rating: 8/10
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Katherine Arden's debut novel, a Slavic-folktale-inspired historical fantasy set in Rus' in the fourteenth century, is phenomenal. It's the first book I read in 2017 and one of my two favorite new releases, but it's taken me a long time to review it since I don't feel that I can adequately describe this wonderful book and all that it encompasses. The writing is lovely with small details that bring the setting alive, the fairy tale aspects are enchanting, and the characters (especially the main protagonist) are well drawn. It's slow paced and it seemed to take a long time to build to the end, but I very much enjoyed the journey and am looking forward to reading the recently released sequel!
4 1/2 stars
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Though I didn't find it as compelling as Storm Constantine's Wraeththu books, Sign for the Sacred is a memorable novel about journeys, power, and perception. A couple of the storylines were slow at times, but I did enjoy reading Lucien's story since it revealed more about the central figure, the prophet Resenance Jeopardy.
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Like The Invisible Library, The Masked City is absolutely delightful! The series follows the adventures of Irene, a spy for an organization existing outside of time and space known as the Library. Though this installment didn't build on the first as much as I had hoped or have as much Kai as I would have liked, it made up for this in other ways: a plot revolving around the power of stories, the introduction of Zayanna, and especially Irene herself. She's a wonderful heroine–competent, practical, quick-thinking, and all-around difficult to unnerve–and the highlight of the novel.
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Patricia McKillip's writing is lovely, and “The Gorgon in the Cupboard” is a thoughtful, impactful story–easily my favorite in this collection and the only one I found particularly memorable, although I did appreciate the rest on some level. The longest tale, the novella “Something Rich and Strange” had some beautiful writing and a great character, but I thought it was much too long for the story being told. The other stories were much shorter than these two, and my favorite after “Gorgon” was “Mer,” in which a witch just wants to sleep but ends up getting caught up in events involving a stolen wooden mermaid and a religious order of women dedicated to protecting cormorants.
3 1/2 stars
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This was a strange book but definitely a memorable one. I didn't think I liked it at first and I definitely didn't love it, but I did find my thoughts returning to it after I'd read it. It will be staying on my bookshelf for that reason (plus admittedly, I'd be loath to get rid of it even so due to the lovely Kinuko Craft cover!).
Full Review: http://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2016/11/review-of-biting-the-sun-by-tanith-lee/
Six of Crows is a solid book but not one that wowed me. It took me awhile to get into even though it had some fun dialogue and intriguing characters, but even at its best I didn't enjoy it as much as a lot of other books with a similar focus. However, I did like some of the characters (especially Inej... and Kaz... and Nina) and I do want to find out what happens to them in the second half of this duology!
Rating: 7/10
Full Review: http://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2016/10/review-of-six-of-crows-by-leigh-bardugo/
It took a little while for me to get into Tooth and Claw, but after the first two or three chapters I found it quite thoroughly engaging. It can be difficult to envision dragons riding trains and writing letters and it is a VERY literal book, but it is absolutely delightful with endearing characters!
8.5/10 - Highly Recommended
Full Review: http://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2016/09/review-of-tooth-and-claw-by-jo-walton/
Honestly, I have no idea how to rate this book. I had a wonderful time reading it and this may very well be the most FUN I've had reading a book lately, but it also doesn't hold together very well in a lot of ways. Getting the characters into amusing situations seemed to come before logic and characterization and the characters are one note... And yet, I could hardly put it down even though I had a lot of issues with it!
The part of me that loved how entertaining it was wants to give it 4-4.5 stars. The part of me that feels there were a lot of problems wants to give it 1.5-2 stars. So I compromised on 3 stars.
Full Review: http://www.fantasybookcafe.com/2016/10/mini-review-crosstalk-by-connie-willis/