altheaann

Picked this up because of high ratings on goodreads.

I will say this: it's a quick read. it didn't feel like 650+ pages. Unfortunately, at no time did I really find myself absorbed in the book. I found the colloquial, simplistic writing style very distancing. This may be a personal preference, but I like fantasy writing to have a certain timelessness; I don't want the characters to sound like people hanging out on the corner down the block. References to "having a crush on someone," worries about "whether he's cheating on me," and "tits" just sound contemporary in a way that draws me out of the story.

It might work in a different setting, but the setting here is 100% generic. It's the world where there is a feudal system of royalty in place, a thieves' guild, with apprenticeships, brothels, gutter orphans, magic and Magical Artifacts... you know the one. The worldbuilding is completely rudimentary to the point of being skipped over, because the reader is expected to already know this scenario and take it for granted.

I have to admit, I LIKE this world. I like this sort of story. And I did feel there was an enjoyable story lurking in here. But the execution just didn't do it for me. I love twisty-turny plots, but when there's a big revelation, the reader should be able to go: "OH! That explains x, y & z!" Here, you just go, "What? He's really x? Huh? Wait a minute. Why?"