Barry's Bloody Books

Soulsmith by Will Wight

It was enjoyable but a little too chaotic.

Lindon and Yerin have escaped Sacred Valley, but now Lindon is starting to realise how backward life was in his home valley. He has the continued drive to learn and to progress and try to prevent his vision from Suriel from coming true but he and Yerin soon make enemies out of a clan of Golds in a crazy kind of frontier town with ancient mines close by.

I did struggle a little with this book. Lindon basically has no personality to speak of other than perseverance and Yerin is pretty much just to attack anything or anybody. There is a core storyline but there just seemed like a lot of random fights and things happened just for the plot’s sake. There are a few interesting characters introduced that play a bigger part as the story progresses but the highlight is that we meet Eithan for the first time. He’s an enigma here but his unique perspective is at least interesting and different to everyone else which is refreshing.

Again this is a quick read and there was enough here to make me want to continue the series as there were a few parts here that I thought if it continued like this I probably wouldn’t.

3 stars

Unsouled by Will Wight

Pretty confusing at the start but it does start to come together before the end.

Lindon is an unsouled. Amongst his clan, he is the only one who cannot practice the sacred arts, which allows people to manipulate the world around them. He can process sacred elements but he has no path to follow that will allow him to develop and progress through the various stages of the sacred arts. However at a meeting of the tribes, Lindon’s fate is changed and he sets out to forge his own path.

I had not really read anything like this before, I believe it’s called progression fantasy based off of a form of Chinese writing. It’s definitely a little rough around the edges. I found it hard to relate to Lindon and his family, they appeared a bit cold to each other maybe? Though to be fair that did change as the book progressed. I also had no idea about sacred paths and what the various levels meant and the fact that both flora and fauna could also progress along paths.

It only really got interesting once Lindon met Suriel and we got a glimpse of the wider world. This set him on the path to meeting Yerin which is his ticket out of sacred valley. The end was pretty much non stop and now feels like we’ll see what the world of Cradle is really all about. It was a quick read as it’s quite short but I am definitely intrigued by this world and this form of book.

A generous 4 stars

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu

A brilliant premise but a very unrelatable main character.

Wang Miao is a researcher into nano-materials and up to now his life has been relatively ordinary. One day however, a few police officers come to his home and bring him to a meeting where he learns that scientists, particularly theoretical scientists, are being targeted somehow and taking their own lives. His life is gradually upended as he comes to realise that all of humanity is in danger.

Honestly the whole book is great except for the main character Wang. Now it could be argued quite successfully that Ye Wenjie is the main character as most of the flashbacks are from her perspective, but almost all of the main plot is from Wang’s PoV. He’s just completely blank and uninteresting, a foil for the main plot and almost everyone around him is more interesting. He’s even provided a wife and child but he never once thinks about them, it would have made much more sense for him to have been single.

Other than that though I really enjoyed this. The flashbacks were particularly tense and was really enlightening, especially for someone like myself who only has a very superficial understanding of what happened during the Chinese cultural revolution. Everything within the game was also very cool and once I had a real understanding of what was really going on, well that made everything even better.

It was quite scientific in places but I don’t feel like it was too bad. I definitely didn’t understand everything that was explained but it didn’t affect my understanding of the story. As I said, except for Wang, all the other main characters were great, Ye Wenjie especially. She was fairly cold but you still had a lot of sympathy for her. There’s a good end here but obviously still a lot more to go. I’ve been completely distracted by another series but looking forward to the next volume once I’m done with it.

4 stars

The Hyena and the Hawk by Adrian Tchaikovsky

A brilliant conclusion to a really engaging series.

The conflict between the siblings of the Sun River nation may be over but the threat of the Plague people is growing and all the nations could be at threat. It will require all the knowledge and skill of Hesbrec, Maniye and the others if they have any hope to survive the coming battles.

This kept me at the edge of my seat the whole book. There were times I honestly wondered if there was going to be a logical (in world of course) reason that explains how the clans survived. Or if they survived. However I should have trusted in the author as I feel he nailed the ending. It definitely got pretty bad towards the end and it also made me really intrigued about the author’s first series as I think there are connections there.

There was so much cool stuff here, from Hesbrec’s encounters with the Pale Shadow people (who I confess thought were the same as the Plague people) to some of the other clans we met such as the bat and the hyena. There was also the whole subplot with the Rat cult which was both disgusting and intriguing. There were great battles and great interactions. I really enjoyed everything with Kailovela but Galethea’s arc, though small in the greater scheme of things, was one of my favourites. Asman I felt actually got short shrift here but Maniye’s was great, her captivity was hard to read.

All in all this was a great series. The first book still feels a bit of an anomaly in relation to the series as a whole, though it was still a good read itself. I’m finding that I sometimes struggle with Adrian’s series at the start but generally loving them by the end so I need to keep that in mind the next time I start a new one. This was the first fantasy series of his I’ve read after a couple of sci-fi ones and on this basis it won’t be the last.

4.5 rounded up

The Bear and the Serpent by Adrian Tchaikovsky

A change of tone compared to the first book but all the better for it.

Maniye has finally overcome her enemies but now she finds herself at a crossroads as the North no longer know what to make of her. So she decides to help Asmander with his quest down south, bringing with her a crew of other outcasts and misfits to help in the potential conflict between the Sun River Nation ruler siblings. Asmander himself will have to negotiate his feelings for each of the siblings while Loud Thunder is needs to finally accept the leadership of the North and deal with a potential existential threat to all of the nations.

I really enjoyed the last book but my main complaint was that it was a bit repetitive. Maniye just went from one disaster to another with random help and if this book had been the same I may have stopped the series. However it was completely different, the main plot only really seems to kick off here. Maniye is probably still the main character but Asmander and Loud Thunder get nearly as much screen time with Hesprec and Kalameshli also getting a few chapters.

The world just really feels much bigger here. I did love the cold barren North from the first book but the history and other tribes that we encounter just adds a lot more depth to the world. We also have the first interactions with the Plague people, a seemingly much more advanced race technologically speaking, that appears to be main antagonists of the series.

Things get tidied up fairly well by the end but it seems to have all been setup for the next book where I imagine things are going to escalate fairly rapidly. Very much looking forward to the concluding volume.

4.5 rounded down.

The Tiger and the Wolf by Adrian Tchaikovsky

Great setting that definitely lets it stand out from the usual fantasy medieval-esqe one.

Maniye is the daughter of a Wolf chief and the captured queen of the Tigers. Her childhood has been lonely and hard, facing the antagonism and indifference of her father and the whole tribe. She is about to go through the tribe’s right of passage into adulthood and must give up one of her animal spirits but she feels equally of both. Then a Serpent priest is captured that sets in motion events she hadn’t planned. In conjunction with this, Asmander has been sent by his father up to the North to try to get mercenaries to help fight in a potential war in the rich South in the Crocodile nation of which he is part.

I’d originally tried reading this a few years ago and just wasn’t feeling it at the time. However this time around I ended up enjoying it even though there are a few issues with it. One of the big plus points is the setting. These are very primitive societies, think late bronze age, early iron age and you’ll get the idea. People don’t have much and being part of a tribe is literally usually a matter of life and death. The fantasy element here is the ability to shapeshift in the animal of your people. I like the way they have to learn to encompass their armour and weapons into their animal shape, so if you have an iron knive, your teeth or claws might have an iron covering etc. People with a parent from more than one totem animal need to choose one or the other, otherwise the competing animal spirits will drive them mad.

Maniye is a fairly stereotypical teen protagonist being honest. I’m not against this trope but a fair warning here. She basically spends the book running from one problem to another, while being helped out by people on her way. She’s a very sympathetic character but the random strangers constantly helping her out is my main peeve with the book as it does seem pretty out of keeping with this harsh world. Asmander doesn’t get quite as much screen time but he is definitely the more interesting of the two and even by the end of book his motivation is not entirely opaque. The other main POV is Maniye’s father, a pretty cruel and ambitious ruler, and I always enjoy a POV from the ‘antagonists’ side.

The first half of the story is great, and though I did enjoy the second half as well, it did get a little repetitive as Maniye went from one disaster to another. There were a few kind of curveballs towards the end, one I saw coming almost from the start but the other I didn’t see at all which was cool. I’m glad I eventually got to finish this book and I’m looking forward to the next book which sounds like we’ll get to explore more of the world.

4 stars

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

An enjoyable book but I did have a few issues with it.

Miryem and her family are living a poor and harsh life in a small village in Russia. Her father is a moneylender, but a very bad one, and one day she decides to take over from her father as she feels she can do a better job. She quickly turns their fortunes around, as well as that of Wanda, the daughter of an abusive father who is even in worse straits then she is. She gains a reputation for making gold and gains the attention of a Staryk lord and also unwittingly draws in the faith of the entire kingdom.

By far the best parts of the book are to do with the Russian winter. I’m unsure what century this is supposed to be but I’d imagine late medieval. It seems brutal, and the thoughts of having to live your life like that really brings into focus how the world has changed in the last century or so. Novic really sells how cold it is and that hunger is ever present during the winter months, even for the relatively well off.

It is also a book of two halves. I loved the first part which had little to no supernatural elements to it. I wasn’t even sure initially if the Staryc, think of the Tuath de Danaan in Irish folklore, were real but as the story progresses it becomes obvious they are along with a few other things. Even when Miryem goes to the Staryc kingdom initially I was still really intrigued but then a choice was made, which seemed so completely out of character and seemed to happen to just serve the plot, that I almost stopped reading then and there. I did continue on but I didn’t enjoy it as much after.

It is still a good story. I liked how careful Miryem and her family have to be just because they are Jewish, it’s even harder for them in an already hard world. I also really felt for Irina’s governess Magreta, her whole life dependent on the whims and being seeing to be useful to the nobility. The Tsar seemed interesting initially but turned out to be a bit superficial in the end. It’s a real pity about that decision that somewhat ruined my enjoyment of it (I know this is pretty arbitrary but it is what it is), but there were still really enjoyable parts to this and I would recommend it to others.

3.5 stars rounded up

A Crown of Swords by Robert Jordan

A little slow but still a great read.

So I’ve always felt this is where the series really starts to bloat, though I’m sure other’s may disagree. This is where we start to get more and more POV’s from minor characters such as Morgase, Galina or Seaine, to fairly major ones such as Elaida, Sevanna and the Forsaken. It definitely adds more texture and scope to the story but does take away focus from the main characters, especially considering there are quite a lot of main characters as is.

As for the story itself, as there are so many threads going on, it does start to slow down. A lot of the book, and in particular the first half, is all about the consequences of Dumai’s Wells. It changes Rand profoundly as well as a lot of other people’s opinions and attitudes towards the Aes Sedai. I find it very interesting and is my favourite part of this book apart from the Mat chapters. He’s with Elayne and Nynaeve in Ebou Dar still looking for the bowl of the winds. Perrin and Egwene have fairly small parts to play in this book and is all set up for their next arcs.

I suppose we need to talk about Mat and Tylin a little. When I first read this, and even after, I found the whole thing quite amusing which I think was Jordan’s purpose. Being honest I still do a little. However I can see where people have issues with it and I know if we reversed genders I would have much more of an issue with it. This hasn’t aged well I suppose but I don’t think it was meant in a bad way and it’s all from Mat’s POV anyway who is famously unreliable. I love all his comments on wondering where Olver gets his bad habits towards women from.

Not quite as many legendary moments in this one but there are still quite a few. Rand coming back to Cairhien after Dumai’s Wells, the arrival of Cadsuane, Rand meeting the rebels, Mat and Birgitte, Elayne and Nynaeve’s apology, Nynaeve on the boat, Elaida when she finds out about Dumai’s Wells. As usual there are probably more I’ve forgotten about. I did find the end a little anti-climatic but it’s not bad as such. Roll on book 8.

4 stars

Lord of Chaos by Robert Jordan

Still one of the most epic endings I have ever read in a book.

This starts fairly slow but does gather momentum. In some ways this is one of the most significant books in the series considering it’s where Rand and the Aes Sedai really come into contact properly for the first time since he has been publicly acknowledged as the Dragon Reborn. It’s also where Egwene goes back and begins her journey properly. It also sees Mazrim Taim and the Black Tower come into existence. All these are huge and have massive inputs on the whole rest of the series.

Rand again has the majority of this book. He’s manoeuvring the pieces around him, and making the play on Sammael, but in a lot of ways this is one of the last times he’s relatively at peace. He’s basically just hanging around Caemlyn and Cairhien, and once Min arrives back on the scene it’s all fun and games. It’s definitely all pretty bittersweet, particularly his interactions with Mat and Perrin.

Mat doesn’t have too major a part here but it’s setting up his major arc which is to come. Perrin is back on the scene but it’s only towards the end and for most of it it concerns the whole Faile/Berelain thing which I dislike intensely. Still not sure what it adds to the overall narrative, other than some character exploration.

For our other main characters, they are all pretty much based in Salidar and the rebels. It’s interesting but half of the narrative is just about standings/rankings and who can make another person do what they want. The Wheel of Time is supposed to be fairly strong with its feminist credentials but I find the preoccupation with clothing and rank fairly stereotyping. I also really disliked how they all treated Mat, for two of them at least he is supposed to be a friend.

There are definitely a few things off putting here, and most of these will get worse before it gets better but this book also has some of my favourite scenes in the whole series. We have Mazrim Taim’s arrival, and everything on the Farm. Rand and the Maidens. Both embassies first meetings. Avienda and Elayne. The meeting in the inn in Caemlyn. Fire and Spirit. Rand and Min. And of course Dumai’s Well, which as I’ve mentioned already, is one of the most epic things I have ever read. I’m probably missing others. A huge but very entertaining book, and we’re not even at the half way point yet.

5 stars

The Fires of Heaven by Robert Jordan

Another amazing entry.

So there’s no Perrin in this book. The first time I read it I found it quite strange but he had such a big part to play in the last book that it kind of makes sense. We also had basically no Rand in the third book so it balances out. However we did have a load of Mat so it worked out well.

So Rand is basically just reacting in this book. He first moves because of what the Shaido do and then when word reaches him about Morgase. However he is learning, both through Moiraine once they come to their arrangement and then from Natael, and we are starting to see the Dragon Reborn as the ruler/conqueror more than Rand Al’Thor who are becoming more distinct personas now. The affects of saiden, or just the pressure of who he is, is also starting to become more of a factor. At this stage it’s still hard to tell.

Mat also has a brilliant arc in this book, him coming to terms about what happened to him in Rhuidean and everyone around him starting to suspect is one of the best arcs of the whole series. When he tried to flee the battle but his own better instincts getting in the way sums his character to a tee. Just thinking about where he started in that to where he ends up always brings a smile to my face.

Nynaeve’s and Elayne’s arc in this book is pretty bizarre. More so now on this read than others but I always found it slightly odd. The whole circus thing just doesn’t seem to provide anything and it probably one of the reasons people bounce off the two characters in this book. Neither comes off well and the plot adds nothing apart from one bit. The Brigitte/Moghedien subplot could have been done anywhere.

Saying that there are so many brilliant moments in this book. We have the battle with Couladin in Cairhien and every arc in there. There is the far snows, the docks and one of the saddest moments in the series. There is Caemlyn, as well as Nynaeve meeting both the Prophet and Galad and starting a war. There is the Min and Salidar as well as the whole Brigitte part. The quality and speed in which these first books were written is still pretty astonishing. These first five book came out in the space of three to four years which is hard to believe considering their size, it spoiled me for years. Great book and really enjoying the series again.

5 stars