Suzi
I saw a few reviews saying this was an ToG rip off/fan fic and whilst there are a few similar names/places there's definitely enough here to be viewed separately from SJM and it was a good start to the series.
It was a little predictable at times and I rolled my eyes at a few moments but there's a good story underneath and I'm interested enough to carry on.
I picked this up when I was sick for a few days and my brain needed something it didn't need to work hard for and was pleasant surprised.
Expected a run of the mill domestic thriller but was so into it I read the first half in a night. I thought I had it all figured out early on so smug me was actually shocked by the ending!
Definitely have to suspend your disbelief for this one, as some parts are just plan stupid, but it was entertaining for what it was.
I'd listen to the history of the teaspoon if it was written by Dan Jones, so it's safe to say I enjoyed it this a lot.
I tend to stick to post-Middle Ages history but I'm so glad I listened to this and got an amazing overview of a huge swathe of history before the 1500s. The Middle Ages covers so much more than I originally thought and it's absolutely fascinating.
This was mind blowing - I knew a tiny bit about this but the sheer amount of information and research it must have taken to produce this book is immense. It was long but it covered a lot of people and a lot of information so was worth it. I did listen to this one on audio (which is read by the author) which was a great choice, it was a hard listen content wise but it was well written, well presented and digestible. I'll definitely be looking at her other books.
I went into this not liking stories set on boats or seafaring related, I can safely say I feel exactly the same after finishing it as this was an absolute slog to get through.
If this wasn't a Hobb and part of the larger universe I would have DNFd in a heartbeat, but I persevered for the sake of reading the full series of the RotE.
As with the Farseer trilogy, Hobb's characters are well written but with this book I did find some parts about those characters just went on and on, like the chapters about Malta were mind numbing, not only is she an awful brat, it's tedious to read about her wanting a dress and going to a ball for so long and then the repetitive arguments about it all. A total snooze.
I had to switch to audio towards the end as it was just dragging so much, and I agree with others that the audio isn't the best. It took a little while to get used to the narrator but the worst part was the terrible editing, so many words and sentences were cut short so it was jarring and effected the pacing and flow. Not the author's fault, but worth a mention.
This was a great novella, unrelated to but set in the same world as Elantris.
The magic system and the characters were really interesting and I do hope we see more of Shai and Ashravan in the Cosmere.
The issue I had with this was Shai's constant inner monologue, it just grated on me so much and was unnecessary to the story.
I've been reading so much dark, epic fantasy and horror recently that this was such a refreshing change.
Yes it's YA and it definitely read like YA at times, but I still really enjoyed it. The world and story were rich and immersive, although I do wish we'd had a bit more time in the competition at the start.
I love it when I find a good, interesting non-fiction book about something I've never heard about...and this fits perfectly.
As I live in the UK, I hadn't heard about the sub-prime mortgage crises or the awful situation in East New York during these years and how the two were intertwined.
Well written and well narrated, I'll definitely look for more from this author.
This was great! Amazing characters and brilliant horror scenes.
I did have some gripes in that there were some loose ends which weren't tied up so I still had some questions by the end, and I felt like the kids should have been aged up a bit. It felt a bit unbelievable that these kids doing all these things are only 11.
The writing was easy and comfortable, it was paced well so quite a quick read for a 600+ pages horror book.
It took me a little while to get used to the 2 different POVs of Gormflaith and Fodla - very different women (one a queen, one a healer), but both trying to survive in a bleak and brutal world of men, kings and Vikings.
Historical fantasy is definitely one of my favourite sub-genres, and this hit a lot of high points for me - I loved the setting and the politics with all of the clans and kings over Ireland. I enjoyed the characters, although I did get them mixed up at times. The pacing and writing were great, and I especially enjoyed listening to this one on audio, to hear the Irish names pronounced correctly (instead of being butchered in my head!).
I'll be reading book 2 very soon.
I wasn't quite as connected to this instalment as I was with the previous two but I did really enjoy the direction this has taken after the Scrimmage.
I also like how we see how Paige isn't the shiny infallible chosen one, yes she's in a position of power but she's still young, impulsive and isn't immortal so does actually have to work for their goals.
Definitely one of the strongest instalments in the series.
This follows the progression of Henry VIII from a young and promising Prince, to the brutal, paranoid despot he ended up, all told through the life of Margaret Pole.
I always like that these stories are often told from the point of view of someone outside of the immediate royal family, so we get a sense of the goings on of a household, political maneuvering and drama but also the family life of those in the court.
I've always had a bit of an up and down relationship with King's books - at the core they are great stories, but they're often long, meandering and bloated with unnecessary tangents.
This book did have some of those things, but compared to others it was nearly as bad and I ended up really enjoying it. I even teared up a little at the end!
Definitely my favourite King to date.
After loving books 1 and 2 in this series, I struggled with the first 200 or so pages of this one. I felt like there were a lot of new people and places introduced too quickly, especially after 2 books without them. It felt a bit messy and hard to get into.
The book definitely picked up towards the half way mark and it felt more cohesive with the earlier books.
Overall I did really enjoy the series and do recommend it, but I was a little disappointed to not love this last book.
