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nclcaitlin's reviews
1731 reviews
Butcher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver
2.5
Sloane is a killer who kills other serial killers and is rescued by Rowan - a fellow killer of killers - from a cage three days without coffee, food, and picturing the maggots from the corpse across from her as marching orzo pasta.
The audiobook:
- Dual perspectives
- Sound effects
- Rowan’s narrator is Irish!
Despite this being a confident serial killer romance, there is such depth and tragedy behind the characters.
“I didn’t gouge them out, Butcher. I plucked them. Delicately. Like a lady.”
If you are scared about the spice like I was, it only starts at 67% so it really isn’t a smit focused book! And it is also realllly easy to skip!
However, after that point, I have to say most of the plot was just them banging, soooo….
I can see why it has fished popularity and I really enjoyed the witty banter and back-and-forth. Unfortunately, when the spicy scenes took over, it really took over and lost most of the allure for me.
It was a three star until about the 70% mark.
The audiobook:
- Dual perspectives
- Sound effects
- Rowan’s narrator is Irish!
Despite this being a confident serial killer romance, there is such depth and tragedy behind the characters.
“I didn’t gouge them out, Butcher. I plucked them. Delicately. Like a lady.”
If you are scared about the spice like I was, it only starts at 67% so it really isn’t a smit focused book! And it is also realllly easy to skip!
However, after that point, I have to say most of the plot was just them banging, soooo….
I can see why it has fished popularity and I really enjoyed the witty banter and back-and-forth. Unfortunately, when the spicy scenes took over, it really took over and lost most of the allure for me.
It was a three star until about the 70% mark.
A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang
4.0
A Book to Drown Emotions.
Xishi’s unnatural beauty sees her recruited by a mysterious, beautiful stranger to become the warring kingdom’s King’s concubine. The King who had brought blood, destruction, tears, and death to her very door. She is to be a spy, glinting and shining like a treasure, but only truly because she was a weapon.
Only thing is, the stranger is Fanli, her kingdom’s political and military advisor and her heart seems to beat easier in his presence. And all the stories tell that heroes only have tragic endings.
I cannot believe how beautiful the writing is.how much gut wrenching, evocative emotion and imagery packed into the standalone that had me holding my breath from page one.
Not to mention, the slow burn, the angst, the rage, the description… all fit into one fairly short fantasy book whilst never feeling rushed?! Liang is truly magical.
The contrast of the two kingdoms are less clear as Xishi had first thought and who was truly an enemy or deserves to be named such becomes twisted and confused.
I had imagined empty, crooked streets squeezing in together like dungeons, and houses with jutting roofs like teeth, swords and skeletons lining the yards.
You may know Liang from her contemporary romances like: You Could See the Sun and I Hope this Finds You Well, but this book made me pine for the romance and the characters with a longing unable to be captured in contemporary books.
When it came down to it, the choice was this: a kingdom, or my happiness. And how many people under Heaven were really fortunate enough to know happiness? Happiness was a side dish, like the sweet, sticky rice cakes Mother made during the festivals, or the glutinous balls stuffed with rich sesame paste. But revenge that was the salt of life.
Necessary. Essential.
This book was just beautiful. In writing, content, and delivering gut-wrenching emotions!
Thank you to Tor for providing me an arc in exchange for a review!
Xishi’s unnatural beauty sees her recruited by a mysterious, beautiful stranger to become the warring kingdom’s King’s concubine. The King who had brought blood, destruction, tears, and death to her very door. She is to be a spy, glinting and shining like a treasure, but only truly because she was a weapon.
Only thing is, the stranger is Fanli, her kingdom’s political and military advisor and her heart seems to beat easier in his presence. And all the stories tell that heroes only have tragic endings.
I cannot believe how beautiful the writing is.how much gut wrenching, evocative emotion and imagery packed into the standalone that had me holding my breath from page one.
Not to mention, the slow burn, the angst, the rage, the description… all fit into one fairly short fantasy book whilst never feeling rushed?! Liang is truly magical.
The contrast of the two kingdoms are less clear as Xishi had first thought and who was truly an enemy or deserves to be named such becomes twisted and confused.
I had imagined empty, crooked streets squeezing in together like dungeons, and houses with jutting roofs like teeth, swords and skeletons lining the yards.
You may know Liang from her contemporary romances like: You Could See the Sun and I Hope this Finds You Well, but this book made me pine for the romance and the characters with a longing unable to be captured in contemporary books.
When it came down to it, the choice was this: a kingdom, or my happiness. And how many people under Heaven were really fortunate enough to know happiness? Happiness was a side dish, like the sweet, sticky rice cakes Mother made during the festivals, or the glutinous balls stuffed with rich sesame paste. But revenge that was the salt of life.
Necessary. Essential.
This book was just beautiful. In writing, content, and delivering gut-wrenching emotions!
Thank you to Tor for providing me an arc in exchange for a review!
The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas
3.5
A must read for teens!
A Mexican-inspired Young Adult fantasy novel where 10 teenage semidioses compete with each other once every decade in an event known as The Sunbearer Trials as a means to fend off the wrathful Obsidian gods.
Teo is the first Jade semidios in over a century to get chosen for the trial. A son of a lesser goddess of birds. However, he’s not the only one.
Teo and his friends must compete in five mysterious trials against opponents who are both more powerful and better trained than our them.
“No hetero, but damn, Teo, your wings!" Niya circled Teo back onto the boat. "Does this make me a furry?
Thomas explores sensitive and relevant topics such as gender identity and discrimination with such care through the plot, the dialogue and the characters themselves
There are amazing diverse characters with intriguing personalities and traits in a world full of electric and entertaining characters, including a deaf character, a neurodivergent character, and trans and nonbinary characters.
Not to mention, the relationships between the god parents and their kids was so supportive! No cold shoulder here!
However, the narrative was sometimes void of emotional impact in certain situations and instead remains lighthearted throughout. Whilst this suits the YA tone, it sometimes made it lack brevity.
This book is truly a love letter to Mexican culture!
A Mexican-inspired Young Adult fantasy novel where 10 teenage semidioses compete with each other once every decade in an event known as The Sunbearer Trials as a means to fend off the wrathful Obsidian gods.
Teo is the first Jade semidios in over a century to get chosen for the trial. A son of a lesser goddess of birds. However, he’s not the only one.
Teo and his friends must compete in five mysterious trials against opponents who are both more powerful and better trained than our them.
“No hetero, but damn, Teo, your wings!" Niya circled Teo back onto the boat. "Does this make me a furry?
Thomas explores sensitive and relevant topics such as gender identity and discrimination with such care through the plot, the dialogue and the characters themselves
There are amazing diverse characters with intriguing personalities and traits in a world full of electric and entertaining characters, including a deaf character, a neurodivergent character, and trans and nonbinary characters.
Not to mention, the relationships between the god parents and their kids was so supportive! No cold shoulder here!
However, the narrative was sometimes void of emotional impact in certain situations and instead remains lighthearted throughout. Whilst this suits the YA tone, it sometimes made it lack brevity.
This book is truly a love letter to Mexican culture!
The Scales of Balance by Tim Facciola
3.5
This is Roman-inspired fantasy, featuring gladiatorial arenas, ludi and Domiuses, and a kingdom on the verge of being broken. Whilst there is peace now, there are those plotting to overthrow the King and seize power—including the king’s own wife.
Zephyrus is presented as a Celestial Prophet, either the Wielder of the Harbinger, yet he remembers nothing about his past when we are introduced to him.
He is captured by slavers in the Temple he received his prophecy, only to be bought by Laeden, the king’s disinherited elder son. Zephyrus is sent to join a gladiator house to see if he can unmask the conspirators.
Everything is mounting as increasing tension between different factions surrounding the Treaty of 940 demanding Celestics were enslaved, mages were executed.
“You have more control over your fate than you might think. These prophecies, they're just holes in the future, waiting to be filled. If your prophecy contains elements of each of the Three, it sounds like you are destined for greatness, regardless. But what you do with that greatness is up to you."
I went into this with exceedingly high expectations as all the reviews are raving. However, this didn’t reach the heights I hoped.
There is a myriad of perspectives which was overwhelming at the start. I do enjoy multi-perspective stories to add depth and cast a wider net of motives and sides, yet perhaps this was slightly too ambitious for book one all at once.
I also found the Celestials, the Judges, the Six Gods confusing to wrap my head around as not much background information or easing of the facts are provided. Perhaps a glossary or short appendix may have helped.
I did like the Roman-esque atmosphere and how characters must grapple with slavery, glory, and bloodlust.
Surprisingly, it was the women for felt the strongest in the story. Whether they be devious, clever, compassionate… They may not have the same standing as men, but they fight for everything they want in different ways.
“I want a love that listens. A love that sacrifices."
Mother shook her head.
"There's no love like that, my sweet. Only in the songs."
Overall, I think this will appeal to fans of the action and motivations of Red Rising and the themes and environment of the A Voice in the Wind.
Zephyrus is presented as a Celestial Prophet, either the Wielder of the Harbinger, yet he remembers nothing about his past when we are introduced to him.
He is captured by slavers in the Temple he received his prophecy, only to be bought by Laeden, the king’s disinherited elder son. Zephyrus is sent to join a gladiator house to see if he can unmask the conspirators.
Everything is mounting as increasing tension between different factions surrounding the Treaty of 940 demanding Celestics were enslaved, mages were executed.
“You have more control over your fate than you might think. These prophecies, they're just holes in the future, waiting to be filled. If your prophecy contains elements of each of the Three, it sounds like you are destined for greatness, regardless. But what you do with that greatness is up to you."
I went into this with exceedingly high expectations as all the reviews are raving. However, this didn’t reach the heights I hoped.
There is a myriad of perspectives which was overwhelming at the start. I do enjoy multi-perspective stories to add depth and cast a wider net of motives and sides, yet perhaps this was slightly too ambitious for book one all at once.
I also found the Celestials, the Judges, the Six Gods confusing to wrap my head around as not much background information or easing of the facts are provided. Perhaps a glossary or short appendix may have helped.
I did like the Roman-esque atmosphere and how characters must grapple with slavery, glory, and bloodlust.
Surprisingly, it was the women for felt the strongest in the story. Whether they be devious, clever, compassionate… They may not have the same standing as men, but they fight for everything they want in different ways.
“I want a love that listens. A love that sacrifices."
Mother shook her head.
"There's no love like that, my sweet. Only in the songs."
Overall, I think this will appeal to fans of the action and motivations of Red Rising and the themes and environment of the A Voice in the Wind.
The Land of the Living and the Dead by Shauna Lawless
3.5
Satisfying book, but also unsatisfyingly ambiguous finale.
Eleven years later, and still the game of Kings is in motion in Ireland. A war on two fronts.
Gormflaith, Máelmórda, and Sitric plan to wrest the High King title from King Brian. They plan to earn his trust, win his wars, and then turn on him when the time is right.
Gormflaith can now command the witch gift she stole and knows the location of the Descendants fortress. While the battle for Ireland causes chaos amongst the mortals, the Fomorians plan to kill the Descendants.
Fódla, Broccan, and Colmon decide to rejoin the world after Broccan is sufficiently trained and they each must decide where the future leads them. Back to the fortress to warn against Tomas’s lies and deception? Back to the mortals where they made their lives?
Lawless delivers Irish history, battle scenes, and intimate character moments with such finesse that it blends genres and makes her saga extremely impactful.
”Love isn't dependent on it being returned."
The stakes are a lot higher in this book, and my distaste for certain characters boiled and raged. Whilst I had previously admired Gormflaith, even whilst I condoned her actions, this book made me hate her with a passion that rivals my disgust with Tomas.
Lawless brings in issues of gender, slavery, marriage, and motherhood and what that means. Seeing what these relationships mean, who can claim them, how this changes dynamics is fascinating in a land where family hostages, marriage alliances, and fostering is common.
Why couldn't men give their word and keep it, without needing flesh in their beds to hold them true?
The adventure isn’t over yet! The first era of history is covered; but the fight between the Fomorians and Descendants is far from over!
For this reason, I was surprised thinking this was the final instalment and did feel cheated by a rushed and sudden ending which seemed to cheat us of the slow building crescendo throughout the books so far.
However, history isn’t stagnant, and of course this isn’t the end of Irish history.
Thank you to Head of Zeus for providing me an arc in exchange for a review!
Eleven years later, and still the game of Kings is in motion in Ireland. A war on two fronts.
Gormflaith, Máelmórda, and Sitric plan to wrest the High King title from King Brian. They plan to earn his trust, win his wars, and then turn on him when the time is right.
Gormflaith can now command the witch gift she stole and knows the location of the Descendants fortress. While the battle for Ireland causes chaos amongst the mortals, the Fomorians plan to kill the Descendants.
Fódla, Broccan, and Colmon decide to rejoin the world after Broccan is sufficiently trained and they each must decide where the future leads them. Back to the fortress to warn against Tomas’s lies and deception? Back to the mortals where they made their lives?
Lawless delivers Irish history, battle scenes, and intimate character moments with such finesse that it blends genres and makes her saga extremely impactful.
”Love isn't dependent on it being returned."
The stakes are a lot higher in this book, and my distaste for certain characters boiled and raged. Whilst I had previously admired Gormflaith, even whilst I condoned her actions, this book made me hate her with a passion that rivals my disgust with Tomas.
Lawless brings in issues of gender, slavery, marriage, and motherhood and what that means. Seeing what these relationships mean, who can claim them, how this changes dynamics is fascinating in a land where family hostages, marriage alliances, and fostering is common.
Why couldn't men give their word and keep it, without needing flesh in their beds to hold them true?
The adventure isn’t over yet! The first era of history is covered; but the fight between the Fomorians and Descendants is far from over!
For this reason, I was surprised thinking this was the final instalment and did feel cheated by a rushed and sudden ending which seemed to cheat us of the slow building crescendo throughout the books so far.
However, history isn’t stagnant, and of course this isn’t the end of Irish history.
Thank you to Head of Zeus for providing me an arc in exchange for a review!
Shardless by Stephanie Fisher
3.0
Taly is one of the lucky humans. Taken in by a fey noble and his family, she's lived a good life, surrounded by people she loves. But an accidental brush with magic has deadly consequences.
This is a slowburn romantasy adventure story with a unique, steampunk-esque setting with and an interesting magical system.
The two main characters are lovable, teasing, and definitely had chemistry, but extremely bad with communication, creating a sometimes frustrating book.
It was a friends to lovers which I actually normally enjoy, but I think they were raised as siblings which ???? Also, they regularly acted like teenagers but were supposed to be in their twenties.
“Did you move? Where are you living now?”
“Nowhere,” she said immediately, still refusing to look at him.
“Really?” Skye exclaimed with feigned enthusiasm. He smiled when he saw her start in surprise. “What a coincidence! I love Nowhere. My family has business dealings with the Noones—lovely people, by the way—so I visit all the time. There’s this little bakery at the corner of None of Your Business and Uncomfortable, Stony Silence that sells the best pie. I really think you’d love it.”
Also, I just have to mention it - people being sleepy and falling asleep does not mean they will forget everything that is said and done….
This was free on audible and I enjoyed Taly’s voice, confidence, and banter, yet it doesn’t stand out. Not to mention, my constant frustration at their non-communication. Urgh!
This book was fun, but had a lot of plot holes and sadly I become quickly annoyed with characters making dumb choices continuously.
This is a slowburn romantasy adventure story with a unique, steampunk-esque setting with and an interesting magical system.
The two main characters are lovable, teasing, and definitely had chemistry, but extremely bad with communication, creating a sometimes frustrating book.
It was a friends to lovers which I actually normally enjoy, but I think they were raised as siblings which ???? Also, they regularly acted like teenagers but were supposed to be in their twenties.
“Did you move? Where are you living now?”
“Nowhere,” she said immediately, still refusing to look at him.
“Really?” Skye exclaimed with feigned enthusiasm. He smiled when he saw her start in surprise. “What a coincidence! I love Nowhere. My family has business dealings with the Noones—lovely people, by the way—so I visit all the time. There’s this little bakery at the corner of None of Your Business and Uncomfortable, Stony Silence that sells the best pie. I really think you’d love it.”
Also, I just have to mention it - people being sleepy and falling asleep does not mean they will forget everything that is said and done….
This was free on audible and I enjoyed Taly’s voice, confidence, and banter, yet it doesn’t stand out. Not to mention, my constant frustration at their non-communication. Urgh!
This book was fun, but had a lot of plot holes and sadly I become quickly annoyed with characters making dumb choices continuously.
The Words of Kings and Prophets by Shauna Lawless
3.75
Gormflaith is now unhappily married to King Brian and finds herself removed from the political power she once had.
Fódla healed Murchad even though it was against the Descendants' laws. Now she fears Tomas and her future in the fortress with her nephew.
Gormflaith is extremely astute and ruthless, yet is shackled by her sex and the society of the time. Even if she is not particularly liable, you can sympathise with her plight.
Fódla, on the other hand, is impossible not to like. She is kind and good, unselfish, and attempts to see the best in people even when people around her recoil from her burns.
“I think if you looked around, you would see bravery in many of the women here. We don't hold swords the way you do, but we are still fighting."
A main theme of this series is motherhood. Both Fódla and Gormflaith begin their journey being driven by love for the children they must protect, but their attitudes and actions are very different.
When he was a child, I would have done anything for him, for his love.
I thought he had returned it, but it wasn't true. As a child he had needed me, but need was a separate thing to love.
I hate Tomas.
As the head of the Tuatha Dé Danann, he is sowing discord as the Descendants tire of living in their fortress, many of them wishing to leave and live among the mortals once more. Yet, he craves power, to be the King of Ireland, above the mortals.
His deviousness is appalling and genially executed by Lawless.
Whilst I preferred book one, I am very excited to get started with book three!
Fódla healed Murchad even though it was against the Descendants' laws. Now she fears Tomas and her future in the fortress with her nephew.
Gormflaith is extremely astute and ruthless, yet is shackled by her sex and the society of the time. Even if she is not particularly liable, you can sympathise with her plight.
Fódla, on the other hand, is impossible not to like. She is kind and good, unselfish, and attempts to see the best in people even when people around her recoil from her burns.
“I think if you looked around, you would see bravery in many of the women here. We don't hold swords the way you do, but we are still fighting."
A main theme of this series is motherhood. Both Fódla and Gormflaith begin their journey being driven by love for the children they must protect, but their attitudes and actions are very different.
When he was a child, I would have done anything for him, for his love.
I thought he had returned it, but it wasn't true. As a child he had needed me, but need was a separate thing to love.
I hate Tomas.
As the head of the Tuatha Dé Danann, he is sowing discord as the Descendants tire of living in their fortress, many of them wishing to leave and live among the mortals once more. Yet, he craves power, to be the King of Ireland, above the mortals.
His deviousness is appalling and genially executed by Lawless.
Whilst I preferred book one, I am very excited to get started with book three!
The Gods Below by Andrea Stewart
3.75
Gods below, this was good.
The mortals broke the world. As the skies filled with ash and the air grew hot, the mortal Tolemne made his way down into the depths of the world to ask a boon of the gods.
Kluehnn could not restore all the world at once, but he could manage it one realm at a time, until the whole world was restored and the land could finally be healed.
Half of the population would be remade. Half of the population would disappear, their matter used to remake the realm.
Hakara and her younger sister Rasha are separated between borders when the restoration sweeps through their realm.
Desperate to be reunited, Hakara is an illegal refugee and aligns herself with the Unannointed who want to gather gems hoarded by Kluehnn and fight the god.
Hakara is feisty and doesn’t know when to give up. She pushes herself past breaking point and regularly also pushes away people, not willing to let herself form attachments only for them to be ripped away.
“Aren't we all here to be consumed? To be looked at, to be judged as savory or sweet, to be licked and swallowed and converted into fuel for others' ambitions?"
Rasha, left alone and changed to suit the new landscape becomes a godkiller, one of Kluehnn’s favoured to hunt down the other surviving gods.
She has always relied on her older sister but now she must fend for herself in a world where only the fittest survive.
”Saplings are always pliant before their roots dig deep, and the strongest trees grow in the harshest conditions. It has always been so."
Pitting sister against sister unknowingly was tense and fraught with anticipation.
Okay, so some of the characters felt a little flat or archetypal of the fantasy genre. However, I had such a blast and I trust that Stewart will develop them in the future.
Bearing in mind this is book one balancing five point of views, I think Stewart handled it well and had quite a firm grasp on her world’s history and how she wants it to play out.
In that sense, the secrets and peeling back slightly reminded me of The Book that Wouldn’t Burn.
Thank you to Orbit for providing me an arc in exchange for a review!
The mortals broke the world. As the skies filled with ash and the air grew hot, the mortal Tolemne made his way down into the depths of the world to ask a boon of the gods.
Kluehnn could not restore all the world at once, but he could manage it one realm at a time, until the whole world was restored and the land could finally be healed.
Half of the population would be remade. Half of the population would disappear, their matter used to remake the realm.
Hakara and her younger sister Rasha are separated between borders when the restoration sweeps through their realm.
Desperate to be reunited, Hakara is an illegal refugee and aligns herself with the Unannointed who want to gather gems hoarded by Kluehnn and fight the god.
Hakara is feisty and doesn’t know when to give up. She pushes herself past breaking point and regularly also pushes away people, not willing to let herself form attachments only for them to be ripped away.
“Aren't we all here to be consumed? To be looked at, to be judged as savory or sweet, to be licked and swallowed and converted into fuel for others' ambitions?"
Rasha, left alone and changed to suit the new landscape becomes a godkiller, one of Kluehnn’s favoured to hunt down the other surviving gods.
She has always relied on her older sister but now she must fend for herself in a world where only the fittest survive.
”Saplings are always pliant before their roots dig deep, and the strongest trees grow in the harshest conditions. It has always been so."
Pitting sister against sister unknowingly was tense and fraught with anticipation.
Okay, so some of the characters felt a little flat or archetypal of the fantasy genre. However, I had such a blast and I trust that Stewart will develop them in the future.
Bearing in mind this is book one balancing five point of views, I think Stewart handled it well and had quite a firm grasp on her world’s history and how she wants it to play out.
In that sense, the secrets and peeling back slightly reminded me of The Book that Wouldn’t Burn.
Thank you to Orbit for providing me an arc in exchange for a review!
The Mercy of Gods by James S.A. Corey
”I think some important scientific questions have finally been answered. Alien life exists, and they are assholes."
This is the hardest book to describe without giving anything away.
If anything, know it has my glowing, excited approval and don’t read anything else and just pick up this book.
The Carryx ruled the stars for epochs and they brought fire, death, and chains to Anjiin - the planet humans have made their home.
This centres around a strange, awkward, haphazard little biologist team which are chosen as the top of the crop by the Carryx to work for them.
“You're joking."
“Of course I am," Campar said. “It's how I keep from spending all day screaming. What do you do?"
This book is incredible.
It is heavy but also touches on the mundane. How life continues on even in the face of the end. People still need to eat, to pee, to wash.
The team have to reframe their circumstances. They’re not scared, they are curious. They aren’t slaves, they are achievers.
How do humans react when everything is uprooted? Violence? Madness? Depression? Humour? Sex? You see the extremes: giving in to being led like dazed animals on a slaughterhouse or mounting a doomed rebellion.
Despite this being science fiction about an alien invasion, it is also intimately humane and relevant. Spiralling thoughts, anxiety, and depression. Feeling you’re not enough. Dealing with uncertainty.
Between one step and the next, he'd had an epiphany about the vastness and strangeness of the universe and his place in it. The insignificance of one boy on a strange planet in the vastness of galaxies. For a moment, his mind had reached out to the farthest ends of the universe, and he'd felt the weight of his life, his ego, his struggles as less than a feather. Then I came back to myself and refocused on my sock, he'd said, and they'd both laughed.
I know I haven’t touched on the characters, but that’s because there are a myriad and it is hard to pin down a standout. They all bring such different outlooks which creates such a strong and fascinating dynamic.
A powerful study on human instinct, relationships, and primal tendencies.
Thank you to Orbit for providing an arc in exchange for a review!
This is the hardest book to describe without giving anything away.
If anything, know it has my glowing, excited approval and don’t read anything else and just pick up this book.
The Carryx ruled the stars for epochs and they brought fire, death, and chains to Anjiin - the planet humans have made their home.
This centres around a strange, awkward, haphazard little biologist team which are chosen as the top of the crop by the Carryx to work for them.
“You're joking."
“Of course I am," Campar said. “It's how I keep from spending all day screaming. What do you do?"
This book is incredible.
It is heavy but also touches on the mundane. How life continues on even in the face of the end. People still need to eat, to pee, to wash.
The team have to reframe their circumstances. They’re not scared, they are curious. They aren’t slaves, they are achievers.
How do humans react when everything is uprooted? Violence? Madness? Depression? Humour? Sex? You see the extremes: giving in to being led like dazed animals on a slaughterhouse or mounting a doomed rebellion.
Despite this being science fiction about an alien invasion, it is also intimately humane and relevant. Spiralling thoughts, anxiety, and depression. Feeling you’re not enough. Dealing with uncertainty.
Between one step and the next, he'd had an epiphany about the vastness and strangeness of the universe and his place in it. The insignificance of one boy on a strange planet in the vastness of galaxies. For a moment, his mind had reached out to the farthest ends of the universe, and he'd felt the weight of his life, his ego, his struggles as less than a feather. Then I came back to myself and refocused on my sock, he'd said, and they'd both laughed.
I know I haven’t touched on the characters, but that’s because there are a myriad and it is hard to pin down a standout. They all bring such different outlooks which creates such a strong and fascinating dynamic.
A powerful study on human instinct, relationships, and primal tendencies.
Thank you to Orbit for providing an arc in exchange for a review!
Dune by Frank Herbert
3.5
I was intrigued but I wasn’t blown away (by the sand storms, get it? Okay, I’ll stop!).
Dune is set in the future in a feudal interstellar society in which various Great Houses control planetary fiefs.
Paul is the ducal heir of Atreides whose family accepts the stewardship of the planet Arrakis, home to spice - a product from which a large amount of profits across the galaxy depend upon.
They are to replace their mortal enemies, the Harkonnens, who had been on Arrakis eighty years, to mine spice.
Lady Jessica, Paul’s mother, has trained him in the Bene Gesserit Way— in the minutiae of observation following her own specialised upbringing. This allows them to sense truth and ground themselves to handle tumultuous emotions.
”We've been uprooted," he said. “That's why we're uneasy.”
“And how easy it is to kill the uprooted plant," she said. "Especially when you put it down in hostile soil."
Dune is set in a universe that has a three-point civilization: the Imperial Household balanced against the Federated Great Houses of the Landsraad, and between them, the Guild with its damnable monopoly on interstellar transport.
The writing isn’t something to write home to. There are some poignant phrases, but there were other times I cringed at the clunkiness of certain sentences or paragraphs. Especially at the start with the tell instead of show. However, even in this first volume, Herbert’s writing improves.
”She asked me to tell her what it is to rule," Paul said. "And I said that one commands. And she said I had some unlearning to do."
Lady Jessica is extremely strong and she was definitely my favourite character. Her mind is always at work and she understands her inferior position throughout but knows how to wield her language, her wits, and her training to put her ahead.
Paul’s relationship with Jessica is strange - Paul refers to her as Jessica, and even as a fifteen-year old seems to take charge of her in instances and Jessica demonstrates unease around her own and her son’s formality.
”The mind commands the body and it obeys. The mind orders itself and meets resistance."
If you enjoyed this, I would the Sun Eater series (Empire of Silence), especially the latter books as I found there was similar mirroring!
Dune is set in the future in a feudal interstellar society in which various Great Houses control planetary fiefs.
Paul is the ducal heir of Atreides whose family accepts the stewardship of the planet Arrakis, home to spice - a product from which a large amount of profits across the galaxy depend upon.
They are to replace their mortal enemies, the Harkonnens, who had been on Arrakis eighty years, to mine spice.
Lady Jessica, Paul’s mother, has trained him in the Bene Gesserit Way— in the minutiae of observation following her own specialised upbringing. This allows them to sense truth and ground themselves to handle tumultuous emotions.
”We've been uprooted," he said. “That's why we're uneasy.”
“And how easy it is to kill the uprooted plant," she said. "Especially when you put it down in hostile soil."
Dune is set in a universe that has a three-point civilization: the Imperial Household balanced against the Federated Great Houses of the Landsraad, and between them, the Guild with its damnable monopoly on interstellar transport.
The writing isn’t something to write home to. There are some poignant phrases, but there were other times I cringed at the clunkiness of certain sentences or paragraphs. Especially at the start with the tell instead of show. However, even in this first volume, Herbert’s writing improves.
”She asked me to tell her what it is to rule," Paul said. "And I said that one commands. And she said I had some unlearning to do."
Lady Jessica is extremely strong and she was definitely my favourite character. Her mind is always at work and she understands her inferior position throughout but knows how to wield her language, her wits, and her training to put her ahead.
Paul’s relationship with Jessica is strange - Paul refers to her as Jessica, and even as a fifteen-year old seems to take charge of her in instances and Jessica demonstrates unease around her own and her son’s formality.
”The mind commands the body and it obeys. The mind orders itself and meets resistance."
If you enjoyed this, I would the Sun Eater series (Empire of Silence), especially the latter books as I found there was similar mirroring!