Shaman's Crossing

I liked this! It took a while to get going, but it got very easy to read as soon as Nevare arrived at the Academy.

I think it's unfair to compare this to anything from The Realm of the Elderlings, so I won't. This still has plenty of things I like from Robin Hobb - her characters, the way she introduces us to the world, and her writing in general. Those things remain my favorite to this day.

I have said it before, but everything at the Academy was my favorite. I needed Nevare to interact with friends and other people in general outside of a family setting. It reminded me a bit of Inda by Sherwood Smith, which I have also recently read, but I found it more engaging here. In the background there was also magic looming, but I found that part only interesting sometimes. I was mostly here for the camaraderie.

The only thing that I was missing was a real emotional connection. It's hard to care about our main character Nevare. He is very obedient, to a fault. Very traditional, also to a fault. He's very comfortable with the way things are and does not see a need for change, and some of his comments (especially regarding his female cousin) are very eyeroll-worthy. Luckily there are other characters there to call him on his occasional bullshit, and he does get a chance to grow. There is still more room to grow, but he has changed for the better by the end, so it's a start.

I'm very curious about what the rest of the trilogy entails. You could in theory stop reading here, as there isn't a cliffhanger or anything, and I'm not sure about what story threads still remain unsolved.
I'm gonna check out at least the sequel anyway, so guess I'll find out eventually!