I received this book from the Apex Book Minions program for an honest review.

TRIGGER WARNING: Talk of rape, Romani slurs, abuse



Honestly this book was a confusing mess to me. It jumps around in time and between people on occasion to where I just couldn't put the pieces together.
FIrst of all I don't really know who the main character is. I think her name is Zhan, but I'm not sure. I think she might be white, still not sure. Maybe Adel was?

As for diversity this book feels like it was using a checklist.
"Brown person - check
Gypsy - check
Red head - check
Autistic person - check"

Even so lots of people in this book are described as having dark or black skin, however it seems to be different than brown skin. As lots of the bad people are described as having dark skin and being cannibals.
There are even these types of descriptions "People with "nut brown" skin that speak like "frogs and chimpanzees" and have "slanted eyes". That's not the first time that description was used.
I also hope you like your Romani slurs as the word "gypsy" appears constantly when Staf Sru Korinyes shows up and then after that. Oh and she's infested with ants. I shit you not. It's why the 'gypsies' can sing so good is that they are a literal hive mind.
Then there is Partridge. Yeah that's his name. He's the autistic one that is constantly called "fool" and is beaten mercilessly into silence. Don't worry, they are both dead before the book is out. The book doesn't even describe Partridge all that much because "he was Seth's problem". Which is a damn cop out from the author considering how long this book is.
Next is Korinyes who is sexually assaulted into submission by Seth. Then they are suddenly totally soulmates or something. It was disgusting to read.
Adel is supposed to be a "strong warrior woman" but she's also threatened with rape from a "dark skinned mercenary" and needs saving by a man. She also breaks down and cries and then needs help from a man.

All this time I have no real idea what's going on in the book other than they are on some trek to somewhere. In the meantime the narrative jumps about like a stream of consciousness, first the characters are talking about one thing, then they are hungry. Damn if the characters aren't always starving and hungry. Many words are used to tell us this fact, and the fact they are freezing in the cold and how people are always puking all over the place and how gross and ugly everything is. This definitely want to be a GRIMDARK book. I do not like grimdark books.

Overall this book was a disjointed confusing mess and I really didn't understand what was going on as it jumped around between time, places and people. ( )

The premise: ganked from BN.com: An intricate web of stories weave together to tell a tale of revenge, justice, ambition, and power. Zhan has been sent to find her grandfather, a man accused of killing not only Zhan's family, but every man, woman, and child in their village. What she finds is a shell of a man, and a web of deceit that will test the very foundations of a world she thought she understood.

My Rating

Must Have: if you want a book that defines the phrase "literary, adventure fantasy," then look no further, and I can't stress that enough. It's narrative structure is such that the book engages the reader on an intellectual level, and where the novel might lack in immersion into a secondary world, it makes up for the fact that it's really fun and something of a joy to piece the story together. McDermott's writing, while at times a little too declarative (a function of the narrator rather than a writing style issue, I believe), is both engaging and fast-paced, and the sections allow for quick, brisk reading without compromising its own literary style or characterization. To be honest, this book was an excellent surprise. Let's face it, there's an unfortunate assumption that if it's a debut writer getting published by a small press, then the book just won't be any good. That's an unfortunate and WRONG assumption, and this isn't the first book I've read that proves that assumption horribly, horribly wrong. It's truly a memorable book, the kind you want to go back and read again because once you get all of the pieces of the puzzle, you want to see if you can glean anything new to make the piece fit together in a new or better way. That's not to say the book isn't without its flaws, because it is. It's not perfect, but what promise! And truly, how memorable! I'm thoroughly impressed with this debut, and look forward to whatever offerings McDermott might provide in the future. Fans of fantasy who are looking for something unique and different from the traditional, epic fantasy quest need to look no further, because this is the book you need to get your hands on. Make no mistake, the book makes you think, it forces you to pay attention and put the story together on your own, but that's just part of the joy of reading this book. Definitely not a beach read, and definitely not a read for anyone who just wants to shut their brain off. The sad thing is, though, that this book is out of print, but you've got some options: used book stores (like the online abebooks.com), paperback swaps or you can get it as an eBook (which I praise Apex Publications for making it available). At any rate, this is a book that's not worth missing, especially if you're looking for something both different and intellectually engaging.

Review style: this is a difficult book to spoil, but I may give away details that some people might think is a spoiler, so consider this your warning. However, considering the nature of the narrative, the book spoils you as you go. At any rate, if you're still uncomfortable, there's no need to click the link below. If spoilers don't bother you, click away! The full review is in my LJ, and comments and discussion are always welcome.

REVIEW: J.M. McDermott's LAST DRAGON

Happy Reading! ( )

a bit hard to get into at first, and often feels like it only appears to appeal to a very specific audience, maybe that's because its published by "wizards" - might be better the second time

I received an ARC of J.M. McDermott's Last Dragon through LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program. Unfortunately this book confirmed that I should stop requesting things from that program without knowing more about them. "Hey, a fantasy novel, why not?" is insufficient reason to get a book, especially since flipping through it in the store would have made it clear that this was not a book for me.

So this is not really a review, because I only made it through the first chapter. The dealbreaker was that all the dialogue is in italics, which as a practical matter I found too much work to read. If the book had grabbed me right away, I might have been able to push through regardless, but it didn't. The prose and narration are deliberately fractured, as the opening paragraph indicates:

My fingers are like spiders drifting over memories in my webbed brain. The husks of the dead gaze up at me, and my teeth sink in and I speak their ghosts. But it's all mixed up in my head. I can't separate lines from lines, or people from people. Everything is in this web, Esumi. Even you. Even me. Slowly the meat falls from the bones until only sunken cheeks and empty space between the filaments remind me that a person was there, in my head. The ghosts all fade the same way. They fade together. Your face fades into the face of my husband and the dying screams of my daughter. Esumi, your face is Seth's face, and the face of the golem.

And then the narrator is remembering being a young woman in a strange city, and an unpleasant story her uncle told her, and for some reason even though she is very pale-skinned and from the far north, her teacher was called sensei, and I just couldn't get any traction.

I just couldn't get through this book. It has promise, but the alternating viewpoints were disconcerting, and it seemed like things just didn't make sense. I read fantasy, so I'm used to reading something I don't understand and trusting that the author will make it clear in the end, but too much of that, and the book got shelved. ( )