rating: 5/5
let's be honest, what else could i have rated this book? it deserves nothing but praises. not a single criticism comes to mind if i try to bring out any flaws, which even if there are any, must be nigh invisible. i'm writing this a day or two after finishing the book, because i'm a procrastinator like that, so i might be missing some things but i'll try my best to talk about everything.
the writing was wonderful; the imagery it evokes and the emotions it brought out were truly a feat considering the likes of me so kudos to you, fonda lee. the story itself, oh my god, where do i even begin? it is magnificent, truly sublime, and it gives me everything i never knew i could ask for. it is right up my alley, and i couldn't be more happier that my first adult fantasy read turned out to be such a good experience (thank you for recommending this book, daniel greene). the plot happens because of active choices by the characters, in a manner reminiscent of real life. all the characters are truly complex and nuanced. usually with four (now three, r.i.p. lan, i'll get to him in a bit) characters in the spotlight, at least one of them turns out to be less interesting than the others and ends up feeling like an unnecessary puff piece for the word count, but goodness gracious was i invested in every single one of them. lan's death was truly shocking, albeit not all unexpected, firstly because of my trusty prediction skills and secondly, due to me watching daniel greene's review of this book a couple years ago and remembering that someone had died (i kept thinking it was some granny lol false memories go brrr). anden's entire character and his gojo satoru level power scale astound and excite me. i couldn't believe how nerfed he was lol because most pieces of media overstate a supposedly powerful character's powers but here it was like they didn't state it enough haha. his sheer prowess, of which we barely got a taste of what he is capable of, made my jaw DROP. shae and hilo are also immensely interesting characters, and i hope to see them in the narrative until the end. and lol i got emotional and almost cried so many times while reading this book that has literally never happened before. i am now off to read the rest of the trilogy. wish me luck, i'll need it (send condolences to my eyes).
