chantaal's Reviews (2.32k)

Inez is a former space pilot of The Rule, a colonizing force in the galaxy that took her and her friends in before their home worlds were burned to ash. After an accident, Inez is left for dead and spends a decade stewing in resentment and hate until she is dragged back by the Rule and forced to work for them - but she wants to destroy them instead. 

Sui approaches this story from a perspective that isn't seen all too often. Yes, it is a revenge story and yes, it is about one person fighting against a larger fascist military rule, but she's no hero. She's a person barely holding it together. The story follows her as she deals with seeing her ex-girlfriend, ex-best friend (who is now sleeping with her ex-girlfriend), and the Third Sister, one of the ruling family of the Rule. Toxic relationships and bad decisions abound. 

This is more of a character study in the end; while Inez is driven by revenge in a way that you may often see in grander space opera stories, there's nothing here to be said about faciscm, about colonialism, about revolution or society. It's just Inez's story as one person facing her own demons.  That, I think is where this novella felt weak for me. The focus on the character work and the toxic relationships really took away from what I felt was a powerful story about a broken person facing her past and trying to burn it down because she has nothing left to give.

It's certainly an interesting story as a whole, though, and I liked this glimpse into the world. I wish it had done a little bit more to make the world feel more whole, but I did like how close it was to Inez as a character. 

I first read this in 2016, and as I picked it up to re-read before continuing on with the series, I realized I remembered almost nothing. And it was GREAT. Being able to re-read a book as if for the first time is always wonderful, isn't it?

Anyway, RJB is now one of my favorite authors ever. Cannot wait to continue on with this series as I wait for book 2 of the new Tainted Cup series.

This is being marketed as a dark retelling of The Goose Girl fairy tale, and while that is true in some aspects, it's also very much not. As someone who is completely over retellings as a literary trend, it feels more like The Goose Girl fairy tale was inspiration, and there are some pieces of it still embedded in this to link it to that, but it's also so much more than just a retelling or reimagining. 

This is historical fantasy set in a Regency-esque time. Our main character Cordelia is the daughter of the titular Sorceress, a cruel and narcissistic woman who'll do whatever it takes to improve their standing in society. Cordelia is a beaten down, broken young girl who does whatever her mother tells her to - literally, at times. We do get a second POV from Hester, the sister of the man that the Sorceress has her eyes on. Hester is in her fifties, has a bad knee, and a premonition that Doom has come to call.

A Sorceress Comes to Call is a delightful dark blend of a novel of manners and historical fantasy, of fairy tail whimsy and dark horror. It deals with emotional abuse and narcissism, with complex family relationships and old friendships and romances. All of the character work is a delight, but it's especially wonderful following Cordelia and Hester as they try to figure out how to undo the horrible knot that the Sorceress has tangled them all up in.

T. Kingfisher succeeds yet again with another dark fantasy, which is especially delightful for me as I didn't enjoy Thornhedge much last year.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Tor Books for the eARC! A Sorceress Comes to Call will be available on August 6th, 2024.

Gorgeous art from Stephanie Hans, which is no surprise, but overall it was missing something. 

This is the story of what happens after a rapture, when there are few people left trying to survive. There is a stoic character, a hopeful one, a trusted adult, a roving gang of awful people, and...Giants? 

While I think I can see what metaphor was being attempted here, I feel the execution did not work out. I felt little to no emotion for any of the characters, nor for the events unfolding. There wasn't enough information given about anything to make me care. 

A disappointing read from Kieron Gillen.

Thanks to NetGalley and Image Comics for the ARC. This 

DNF @ p. 139. Oh boy, what a horrible introduction to Neal Stephenson.

Had to sit with this one for a while because I wasn't sure how to feel about it. Well, almost two weeks later, the major feeling is disappointment. 

This is a decent premise that is completely bogged down by the narrative POV decision made. If it works for you, then it works, but it just kept grating at me as the book went on, and only got worse as the mysteries of the murder and the world itself began to unfold. 

Marking as a spoiler, though the POV is revealed almost immediately.

The problem with having a murder mystery set in the POV of an all knowing, all seeing AI is that the narrative itself purposefully keeps things from you, the reader. It has to, in order to keep the suspense going. It forces the writing into a certain pattern, one that very rarely works for me - and it certainly didn't here. It forces the author to create ways to justify not telling the reader information when you know the narrative voice you're in has it. There is NO mystery and NO story unless you create false suspense. It's FRUSTRATING.

There was some interesting character work and the world building was intriguing, but I think it all just kind of falls apart in the third act.  The speculative dystopian aspect had some promise but didn't feel totally fleshed out. 

I wish I liked this better, because I own the hardcover with nice orange sprayed edges. At least it looks good, I guess.