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Inda
Indevan Algara-Vayir was born the second son of a powerful prince, destined to stay at home and defend his family's castle. But when war threatens, Inda is sent to the Royal Academy where he learns the art of war and finds that danger and intrigue don't only come from outside the kingdom.
576 pages, Hardcover
First published August 1, 2006
About the author
Sherwood Smith
155 books37.5k followersI am a writer,( Patreon here) but I'm on Goodreads to talk about books, as I've been a passionate reader as long as I've been a writer--since early childhood.
I'm not going to rate books--there are too many variables. I'd rather talk about the reading experience. My 'reviews' of my books are confined to the writing process.
I'm not going to rate books--there are too many variables. I'd rather talk about the reading experience. My 'reviews' of my books are confined to the writing process.
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August 18, 2024
“Power begets politics, and politics are more dangerous than war because there are fewer rules.”
May I present you one of the best hidden gems under the radar of Goodreads hype I have ever discovered? Inda brings the best of traditional high fantasy: the best tropes and arcs reworked in a very imaginative way, magnificent world-building and several fresh ideas that some contemporary celebrated authors pretend to have just discovered themselves. I offer you this review with my most sincere recommendation.
Depending on where you start, Inda will be for you a coming of age tale set in a military academy with all the perks that only “the special school” trope can bring. A tale of friendship, and loyalty, and trust between two boys young and naive enough to refuse to play the roles written for them by others. A family saga cleverly wrapped in political intrigues, and a tale of magic transcending the mundane squabbles between the empires.
In terms of structure, the book is divided into two parts. It starts with Inda being sent to the military academy where so far only first sons have been educated in the ways of war. King’s second son, called Sponge, is in his class and a bond is formed between the two boys. King’s heir (and Inda’s sister future husband), Sierlaef, hates his brother. King’s brother, Sierandalel, the second most important person in the kingdom, hates Sponge too. He also hates Inda’s family with singular vehemence even though the reasons for his grudge remain mysterious. Thus, it is not surprising that friendship and trust that forms between Inda and Sponge is an invitation for disaster. This part brings you to the royal city and immerses you in the academy life, with its masters and students, bullying and competition, learning how to win and how to lose. It also provides the necessary background for the wider intrigue, but the exposition is balanced, neither too cryptic nor too obvious or info-dumpy. I really love how Ms Smith plays with the concept that second son is expected to be second best and how she shows it completely untrue. But also with the lines drawn and the group mentality already in place, I appreciate that not everything is black and white and that even those supposedly on the mean side are not brute and stupid by default and that they have their own internal struggles.
The second part picks the story up after the first significant plot twist and tries to seduce the reader with pirate shenanigans. Yes, I did write “tries to seduce” because, as I have said before, throwing pirates at Mayim de Vries is about as effective as throwing lettuce at sharks. It doesn’t mean that the second half of the book is weaker objectively, only that it does not cater precisely to my personal tastes. I need to admit that Ms Smith writes the sea very skilfully, keeps her pacing, and reigns the plot in so it doesn’t fall apart and manages to hang on the cliff (well, several cliffs to be honest). Having said this, I feel obliged to point out that for me the frolics at the sea were protracted (even if logical in terms of plot) and because main protagonists discover sex somewhere in the middle, it moves the very promising tale too deep into the YA waters. .
I have no doubts that if Inda was to be marketed today it would hit YA bestselling list in a moment with its coming-of-age arc set in a military school and sporting an assortment of young males and females to root for. But back in the days when it was released, I assume it was way too mature for kids and had too many kids for adults (even though it's anything but juvenile!). Still, I urge you not to be dissuaded by the slight YA flavour of this book. It gives you a wonderful cast, with many interesting characters both adult and teenage, male and female, and a tale that is not entirely character-driven or focused exclusively on the single protagonist. Of course, Inda is the axis in the turning wheel of the story but he doesn’t overshadow the others.
What I like about Inda the most is his unassuming sincerity. In between Harry Potter and Vaelin al Sorna he is neither of them. There is not an ounce of specialsowflakedness to him (in this Inda reminds me a bit the young Locke Lamora before Mr Lynch carelessly backtracked on his own design). He is smart, scratch that, he can be frighteningly intelligent and intuitive but nobody would say the very same thing that has been raised against Kaz Brekker so many times: that he is an adult in a teenage package. Inda remains a boy in how he thinks and in what he does and how he reacts, even if it is a boy in a very martially-oriented society and an extremely warrior-centred culture. Finally, even though life does not spare Inda, he does not become a jaded, cynical individual on the road to become a psychopath justifying his own cruelty in what has been done to him (right, Jorg?) and doesn't aim to outbid his enemies in brutal ruthlessness (tut, tut, Jarvi).
I liked the writing and the cadences of the narrative. The setting is surprisingly complex. The Marlovans are a hierarchical, military-oriented nation. While they conquered a much more culturally advanced nation and mellowed down a bit, they still keeping the austere ways of their ancestors. What I like a lot is the fact that whereas males are the might, women are brains in this book. Inda's mother, sister and betrothed, these are all impressive figures. Smart, cunning, versed in the silent ways of power, espionage, and diplomacy. Females in Inda are simply stupendous, learning from their earliest years how to navigate the deadly riptides of power politics in all stations of life, princesses and courtesans alike.
In addition to India being a fantastic feminist read, here is my shoutout to all the diversity fans: why have you allowed this book to vanish into oblivion?! This book is going to be a real treat for you with loads of non-normative characters, including gay, bisexual and asexual protagonists. It deserves the same hype train that The Raven Boys and the Six of Crows received. Make it so!
You should be warned that while the world-building is superb because it is so intricate, it also requires reader’s cooperation. Ms Smith gives you the whole alien civilisation to digest, with culture and language and history down to the tiniest detail. It is a lot to take. Foreign words are confusing, especially that all these formal titles and functions are flung around frequently without an explanation (or an explanation comes a little bit late). The multitude of names and honorifics reminds me a bit The Goblin Emperor. I remember I was equally lost with all the family and court relations when reading it. My version of Inda had a dictionary at the end, it should have been placed at the beginning to ease my journey.
Nevertheless, I’m very happy I gave Inda the chance because I did enjoy it immensely. Ms Smith did a great job offering perspectives: not one, but many. Everyone has their own rationale for doing or not doing certain things. You can hate some of the characters for their deeds and decisions, but nothing is clear-cut in a black-and-white pattern of square tiles. For me, the tale is definitely plot-driven and the fact that there are many perspectives blending in enforces this feeling. It would be much more boring if it was only about Inda growing up and conquering the world. In this sense, the book veers away from the classic arc and I love it this way even more.
Also in the series:
2. The Fox ★★★★★
3. King's Shield ★★★★☆
4. Treason's Shore ★★☆☆☆
May I present you one of the best hidden gems under the radar of Goodreads hype I have ever discovered? Inda brings the best of traditional high fantasy: the best tropes and arcs reworked in a very imaginative way, magnificent world-building and several fresh ideas that some contemporary celebrated authors pretend to have just discovered themselves. I offer you this review with my most sincere recommendation.
Depending on where you start, Inda will be for you a coming of age tale set in a military academy with all the perks that only “the special school” trope can bring. A tale of friendship, and loyalty, and trust between two boys young and naive enough to refuse to play the roles written for them by others. A family saga cleverly wrapped in political intrigues, and a tale of magic transcending the mundane squabbles between the empires.
In terms of structure, the book is divided into two parts. It starts with Inda being sent to the military academy where so far only first sons have been educated in the ways of war. King’s second son, called Sponge, is in his class and a bond is formed between the two boys. King’s heir (and Inda’s sister future husband), Sierlaef, hates his brother. King’s brother, Sierandalel, the second most important person in the kingdom, hates Sponge too. He also hates Inda’s family with singular vehemence even though the reasons for his grudge remain mysterious. Thus, it is not surprising that friendship and trust that forms between Inda and Sponge is an invitation for disaster. This part brings you to the royal city and immerses you in the academy life, with its masters and students, bullying and competition, learning how to win and how to lose. It also provides the necessary background for the wider intrigue, but the exposition is balanced, neither too cryptic nor too obvious or info-dumpy. I really love how Ms Smith plays with the concept that second son is expected to be second best and how she shows it completely untrue. But also with the lines drawn and the group mentality already in place, I appreciate that not everything is black and white and that even those supposedly on the mean side are not brute and stupid by default and that they have their own internal struggles.
The second part picks the story up after the first significant plot twist and tries to seduce the reader with pirate shenanigans. Yes, I did write “tries to seduce” because, as I have said before, throwing pirates at Mayim de Vries is about as effective as throwing lettuce at sharks. It doesn’t mean that the second half of the book is weaker objectively, only that it does not cater precisely to my personal tastes. I need to admit that Ms Smith writes the sea very skilfully, keeps her pacing, and reigns the plot in so it doesn’t fall apart and manages to hang on the cliff (well, several cliffs to be honest). Having said this, I feel obliged to point out that for me the frolics at the sea were protracted (even if logical in terms of plot) and because main protagonists discover sex somewhere in the middle, it moves the very promising tale too deep into the YA waters. .
I have no doubts that if Inda was to be marketed today it would hit YA bestselling list in a moment with its coming-of-age arc set in a military school and sporting an assortment of young males and females to root for. But back in the days when it was released, I assume it was way too mature for kids and had too many kids for adults (even though it's anything but juvenile!). Still, I urge you not to be dissuaded by the slight YA flavour of this book. It gives you a wonderful cast, with many interesting characters both adult and teenage, male and female, and a tale that is not entirely character-driven or focused exclusively on the single protagonist. Of course, Inda is the axis in the turning wheel of the story but he doesn’t overshadow the others.
What I like about Inda the most is his unassuming sincerity. In between Harry Potter and Vaelin al Sorna he is neither of them. There is not an ounce of specialsowflakedness to him (in this Inda reminds me a bit the young Locke Lamora before Mr Lynch carelessly backtracked on his own design). He is smart, scratch that, he can be frighteningly intelligent and intuitive but nobody would say the very same thing that has been raised against Kaz Brekker so many times: that he is an adult in a teenage package. Inda remains a boy in how he thinks and in what he does and how he reacts, even if it is a boy in a very martially-oriented society and an extremely warrior-centred culture. Finally, even though life does not spare Inda, he does not become a jaded, cynical individual on the road to become a psychopath justifying his own cruelty in what has been done to him (right, Jorg?) and doesn't aim to outbid his enemies in brutal ruthlessness (tut, tut, Jarvi).
I liked the writing and the cadences of the narrative. The setting is surprisingly complex. The Marlovans are a hierarchical, military-oriented nation. While they conquered a much more culturally advanced nation and mellowed down a bit, they still keeping the austere ways of their ancestors. What I like a lot is the fact that whereas males are the might, women are brains in this book. Inda's mother, sister and betrothed, these are all impressive figures. Smart, cunning, versed in the silent ways of power, espionage, and diplomacy. Females in Inda are simply stupendous, learning from their earliest years how to navigate the deadly riptides of power politics in all stations of life, princesses and courtesans alike.
In addition to India being a fantastic feminist read, here is my shoutout to all the diversity fans: why have you allowed this book to vanish into oblivion?! This book is going to be a real treat for you with loads of non-normative characters, including gay, bisexual and asexual protagonists. It deserves the same hype train that The Raven Boys and the Six of Crows received. Make it so!
You should be warned that while the world-building is superb because it is so intricate, it also requires reader’s cooperation. Ms Smith gives you the whole alien civilisation to digest, with culture and language and history down to the tiniest detail. It is a lot to take. Foreign words are confusing, especially that all these formal titles and functions are flung around frequently without an explanation (or an explanation comes a little bit late). The multitude of names and honorifics reminds me a bit The Goblin Emperor. I remember I was equally lost with all the family and court relations when reading it. My version of Inda had a dictionary at the end, it should have been placed at the beginning to ease my journey.
Nevertheless, I’m very happy I gave Inda the chance because I did enjoy it immensely. Ms Smith did a great job offering perspectives: not one, but many. Everyone has their own rationale for doing or not doing certain things. You can hate some of the characters for their deeds and decisions, but nothing is clear-cut in a black-and-white pattern of square tiles. For me, the tale is definitely plot-driven and the fact that there are many perspectives blending in enforces this feeling. It would be much more boring if it was only about Inda growing up and conquering the world. In this sense, the book veers away from the classic arc and I love it this way even more.
Also in the series:
2. The Fox ★★★★★
3. King's Shield ★★★★☆
4. Treason's Shore ★★☆☆☆
Read
August 22, 2023I got the first glimmers of this story forty years ago, and began writing it ten years ago. It's a bit of a long arc, fitting into the past of contemporary times and lives in Sartorias-deles, laying down threads that become important later on.
January 24, 2018
Book one of this series was unexpectedly a coming of age story. It's very hard to do this genre well at this point for me having read so much within it. I think the reason why I liked it so much was there wasn't the over the top, smothering, oppressive.............angst which dominates these stories ubiquitously in today's literature.
The second thing which made the book for me was that it was character driven. You got point and counterpoint instantly in the author's style. At first this style was a bit odd. The author with no more than a new paragraph would flip from one character perspective to another giving a real time feel to the conflicts. Usually there's at least a double spaced new paragraph as the line of demarcation.
The court and school politics read a little like Robin Hobb however for me this was much better. I liked Inda so much more than Fitz who has to be one of the least likeable protagonists in the genre. Even the villains I liked much more than Hobb's. The politics and backstabbing very much reminded me of her writing though.
The world and the story were both good and easy to follow but the characters and the empathy drove this one for me.
I look forward to the rest of the story.
The second thing which made the book for me was that it was character driven. You got point and counterpoint instantly in the author's style. At first this style was a bit odd. The author with no more than a new paragraph would flip from one character perspective to another giving a real time feel to the conflicts. Usually there's at least a double spaced new paragraph as the line of demarcation.
The court and school politics read a little like Robin Hobb however for me this was much better. I liked Inda so much more than Fitz who has to be one of the least likeable protagonists in the genre. Even the villains I liked much more than Hobb's. The politics and backstabbing very much reminded me of her writing though.
The world and the story were both good and easy to follow but the characters and the empathy drove this one for me.
I look forward to the rest of the story.
January 31, 2018
I'm giving Inda five stars despite a few minor complaints, simply because the ending made me well up. I'll definitely continue with this series. There's a total of four books.
Let's get the minor complaints out of the way first.
Most characters have an official name and a nickname plus a honorific. The honorific is different depending on which language the characters use, which means there's at least four different ways a character can be referred to. It took me a long time to be able to keep everyone straight in my head, and I spent a lot of time flicking back and forth to verify I'm indeed thinking of the right character.
The other complaint is a bit more peculiar. Smith uses an omniscient narrator to tell the story and sometimes switches POV character in the middle of a paragraph. There are chapters where the POV shifts through several characters on a single page. Basically this is a novel for people who are fully awake and are paying attention.
The world building is ambitious, detailed and intricate. The prose takes a while to get used to, but once you get into the book it flows beautifully. I really enjoyed Smith's narration throughout the book.
The characters are diverse, well developed, and I especially enjoyed the depiction of different sexualities. Plus: realistic women! The first book, Inda, is basically a coming of age story. It has everything: betrayal, a military academy, pirates and magic.
There's a steep learning curve, but it's already worth it by the end of the first book.
I recommend everyone who loves fantasy to give this a try.
Let's get the minor complaints out of the way first.
Most characters have an official name and a nickname plus a honorific. The honorific is different depending on which language the characters use, which means there's at least four different ways a character can be referred to. It took me a long time to be able to keep everyone straight in my head, and I spent a lot of time flicking back and forth to verify I'm indeed thinking of the right character.
The other complaint is a bit more peculiar. Smith uses an omniscient narrator to tell the story and sometimes switches POV character in the middle of a paragraph. There are chapters where the POV shifts through several characters on a single page. Basically this is a novel for people who are fully awake and are paying attention.
The world building is ambitious, detailed and intricate. The prose takes a while to get used to, but once you get into the book it flows beautifully. I really enjoyed Smith's narration throughout the book.
The characters are diverse, well developed, and I especially enjoyed the depiction of different sexualities. Plus: realistic women! The first book, Inda, is basically a coming of age story. It has everything: betrayal, a military academy, pirates and magic.
There's a steep learning curve, but it's already worth it by the end of the first book.
I recommend everyone who loves fantasy to give this a try.
Read
February 7, 2022“Nothing is ‘always,’ my dear. Except the greater truths, one of which is that power begets politics, and politics are more dangerous than war because there are fewer rules.”
So What’s It About?
Indevan Algara-Vayir was born the second son of a powerful prince, destined to stay at home and defend his family’s castle. But when war threatens, Inda is sent to the Royal Academy where he learns the art of war and finds that danger and intrigue don’t only come from outside the kingdom.
What I Thought
Now joining the ranks of The Broken Crown and King’s Dragon, we have before us another case of a perfectly solid epic fantasy that I struggled with because I’m simply terrible at remembering large amounts of world-building. It’s not you, epic fantasy! It’s me! The specific form that my struggle took with this book was an utter inability to keep all the boys of the Academy straight. You guys, there are just so many boys. And you have to remember their nicknames, their family names, their family allegiances and why they’re constantly fighting with each other! If you have a dumb brain like I do, the sheer multitude of boys and boy fights may pose a challenge in enjoying the first half of Inda.
The good news is that the second half of the book largely takes place away from the Academy, and I ended up enjoying and understanding the book much more when it wasn’t exclusively focused on the politics of the Academy. And while I struggled with the family politics, I can absolutely say that the world-building shines in this book. It’s a fully realized world full of meticulous history, societal structures and some truly fascinating little touches. I particularly loved the commonplace, practical uses of magic such as birth and waste spells, which respectively allow you to get pregnant without sleeping with anyone and magically vanish your waste without having to go to the bathroom. I also loved the hints of wildness and magic that have to do with the deadly magical realm of Norsunder and creatures that live in caves and under the sea.
Inda also shines as an examination of the effects of a militarized society. We see the way that the Sierdanael is obsessed with achieving his own personal glory and victory and is willing to drag the entire country into war just to achieve it. We see the ways that Dogpiss’ and Inda’s lives are entirely destroyed because they represent a threat to the Sierdanael’s power, and because two boys’ lives are expendable in the pursuit of consolidated power. We see the way that boys are raised constantly getting beaten by their older siblings as though it is perfectly natural:
“It’s a bad way to train,” Dun said, his tone serious. “I didn’t see it until I got away. This tradition of boys beating boys in the families of rank, one day it’s going to cause big problems.”
Finally, that devaluation of life is apparent in the Sierlaef’s belief that he can simply kill Tanrid to get what he wants (namely, Joret). I think the Sierlaef is one of the most interesting characters I’ve encountered in a long time, because you can so clearly see how his cruelty and frustration stem from his learning and speech disabilities and how incapable he feels as a prince – and he is so clearly manipulated into his misdeeds and further entitlement by his uncle.
What is really interesting about the situation with the Sierlaef and Joret is that it’s ultimately revealed that generations ago women with magic selectively killed sexual predators:
“They killed sexual predators until that instinct was eliminated from humankind…”
I’m not sure how I feel about this. I don’t agree with the idea that being a sexual predator is simply an instinctive trait that could ever be bred out of people – I don’t know that we can ever separate “instinct” from the cultural mores that facilitate and encourage sexual aggression and entitlement in some people and not others, and the way that sexual violence is an expression of power and control. And if these women could breed out sexually predatory behavior, why would they not also breed out the Marlovans’ instincts for the other kinds of abuse that are still perpetuated in the present day? In addition, I don’t understand how the Sierlaef’s behavior could be coded as anything other than sexually predatory – he murders Joret’s fiance so that he can marry her instead!!! What else could you possibly call that!? Maybe there’s something I’m not understanding here, or something that is clarified in later books? If so, I’d be super grateful for an explanation.
Another really interesting aspect of Inda‘s world-building is the diversity of sexualities that are present in its cast of characters. Sponge is gay, as is his father the king, and I think it’s pretty apparent that Joret and Ndara are both asexual. The challenges that they face because of this are really well-presented. While Sponge would not necessarily be outcast or denounced because he is gay, he still struggles with the thought of people knowing about it because of the possibility of the other boys using his sexuality as a way of vying for power and favor. My heart went out to Joret because of the agony she faces due to the attention she receives for her beauty when the entire thing is a source of revulsion and dread for her.
I think you could make the argument that Inda’s world is still a patriarchal one, where men seem to be the main rulers and the ones who go out to war in a society where these seem to be the most important signifiers of power. We see several women contend with the difficulties that accompany being married off into unhappy marriages that they had no say in, and they struggle with the way that their society hurts and endangers the children they love. In addition, it was absolutely fascinating to see the ways that women developed their own secret forms of communication and agency by more or less sneaking through the shadows and engaging in subtle manipulations:
“If they had to make men stand down from violence, they needed to know skills that the men did not know.”
So What’s It About?
Indevan Algara-Vayir was born the second son of a powerful prince, destined to stay at home and defend his family’s castle. But when war threatens, Inda is sent to the Royal Academy where he learns the art of war and finds that danger and intrigue don’t only come from outside the kingdom.
What I Thought
Now joining the ranks of The Broken Crown and King’s Dragon, we have before us another case of a perfectly solid epic fantasy that I struggled with because I’m simply terrible at remembering large amounts of world-building. It’s not you, epic fantasy! It’s me! The specific form that my struggle took with this book was an utter inability to keep all the boys of the Academy straight. You guys, there are just so many boys. And you have to remember their nicknames, their family names, their family allegiances and why they’re constantly fighting with each other! If you have a dumb brain like I do, the sheer multitude of boys and boy fights may pose a challenge in enjoying the first half of Inda.
The good news is that the second half of the book largely takes place away from the Academy, and I ended up enjoying and understanding the book much more when it wasn’t exclusively focused on the politics of the Academy. And while I struggled with the family politics, I can absolutely say that the world-building shines in this book. It’s a fully realized world full of meticulous history, societal structures and some truly fascinating little touches. I particularly loved the commonplace, practical uses of magic such as birth and waste spells, which respectively allow you to get pregnant without sleeping with anyone and magically vanish your waste without having to go to the bathroom. I also loved the hints of wildness and magic that have to do with the deadly magical realm of Norsunder and creatures that live in caves and under the sea.
Inda also shines as an examination of the effects of a militarized society. We see the way that the Sierdanael is obsessed with achieving his own personal glory and victory and is willing to drag the entire country into war just to achieve it. We see the ways that Dogpiss’ and Inda’s lives are entirely destroyed because they represent a threat to the Sierdanael’s power, and because two boys’ lives are expendable in the pursuit of consolidated power. We see the way that boys are raised constantly getting beaten by their older siblings as though it is perfectly natural:
“It’s a bad way to train,” Dun said, his tone serious. “I didn’t see it until I got away. This tradition of boys beating boys in the families of rank, one day it’s going to cause big problems.”
Finally, that devaluation of life is apparent in the Sierlaef’s belief that he can simply kill Tanrid to get what he wants (namely, Joret). I think the Sierlaef is one of the most interesting characters I’ve encountered in a long time, because you can so clearly see how his cruelty and frustration stem from his learning and speech disabilities and how incapable he feels as a prince – and he is so clearly manipulated into his misdeeds and further entitlement by his uncle.
What is really interesting about the situation with the Sierlaef and Joret is that it’s ultimately revealed that generations ago women with magic selectively killed sexual predators:
“They killed sexual predators until that instinct was eliminated from humankind…”
I’m not sure how I feel about this. I don’t agree with the idea that being a sexual predator is simply an instinctive trait that could ever be bred out of people – I don’t know that we can ever separate “instinct” from the cultural mores that facilitate and encourage sexual aggression and entitlement in some people and not others, and the way that sexual violence is an expression of power and control. And if these women could breed out sexually predatory behavior, why would they not also breed out the Marlovans’ instincts for the other kinds of abuse that are still perpetuated in the present day? In addition, I don’t understand how the Sierlaef’s behavior could be coded as anything other than sexually predatory – he murders Joret’s fiance so that he can marry her instead!!! What else could you possibly call that!? Maybe there’s something I’m not understanding here, or something that is clarified in later books? If so, I’d be super grateful for an explanation.
Another really interesting aspect of Inda‘s world-building is the diversity of sexualities that are present in its cast of characters. Sponge is gay, as is his father the king, and I think it’s pretty apparent that Joret and Ndara are both asexual. The challenges that they face because of this are really well-presented. While Sponge would not necessarily be outcast or denounced because he is gay, he still struggles with the thought of people knowing about it because of the possibility of the other boys using his sexuality as a way of vying for power and favor. My heart went out to Joret because of the agony she faces due to the attention she receives for her beauty when the entire thing is a source of revulsion and dread for her.
I think you could make the argument that Inda’s world is still a patriarchal one, where men seem to be the main rulers and the ones who go out to war in a society where these seem to be the most important signifiers of power. We see several women contend with the difficulties that accompany being married off into unhappy marriages that they had no say in, and they struggle with the way that their society hurts and endangers the children they love. In addition, it was absolutely fascinating to see the ways that women developed their own secret forms of communication and agency by more or less sneaking through the shadows and engaging in subtle manipulations:
“If they had to make men stand down from violence, they needed to know skills that the men did not know.”
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 21, 2015
I'm too tired to write a proper review at the moment, but this was a brilliant book with an amount of complexity I really appreciated. A great main character and very well written prose make that an easy 5 star rating.
January 25, 2018
Indevan-Dal is the second son of the Prince and Princess of Choraed Elgaer, destined to become his elder brother Tanrid's Shield Arm-his military champion. Like all second sons, he is to be privately trained at home by Tanrid, the brother whose lands he will one day protect.
When the King's Voice comes to summon Inda to the Military Academy, he might well feel foreboding, or even fear-war is imminent-yet youthful Inda feels only excitement. But there are things that Tanrid hadn't prepared him for, and Inda will soon learn that the greatest threats to his safety will not come from foreign enemies, but from supposed allies within his own country.
DNF at 48%. This was the first book I've tried by Sherwood Smith and I have some mixed feelings about it. To begin with, military fantasy isn't really a favorite genre of mine. The writing style took a little getting used to and all the hard to pronounce names and honorifics were annoying.
There were some things about the book that I liked. The political intrigue was interesting, and I really liked reading the parts about the different women and how they fit into the world. I also really liked Inda and some of the other boys at the academy, but I did get tired of all the bullying that was going on and that the adults did nothing to stop.
This book started out slow for me and I didn't really get into it until well into the story. It did start to pick up toward the end of part one, but I feel like this series is just not for me. There are three more books in the series after this one, and after looking into all of them I decided I'm not feeling the series enough to invest that much of my reading time into it. There are a couple of reasons for this. One is that the world is not interesting enough to me, another is that I prefer books with monogamous relationships in them, and it appears this series incorporates a lot of casualness in that regard, so I will not be continuing on with this series. I'm not sure if I will try reading anything else by this author.
Review also posted at Writings of a Reader
When the King's Voice comes to summon Inda to the Military Academy, he might well feel foreboding, or even fear-war is imminent-yet youthful Inda feels only excitement. But there are things that Tanrid hadn't prepared him for, and Inda will soon learn that the greatest threats to his safety will not come from foreign enemies, but from supposed allies within his own country.
DNF at 48%. This was the first book I've tried by Sherwood Smith and I have some mixed feelings about it. To begin with, military fantasy isn't really a favorite genre of mine. The writing style took a little getting used to and all the hard to pronounce names and honorifics were annoying.
There were some things about the book that I liked. The political intrigue was interesting, and I really liked reading the parts about the different women and how they fit into the world. I also really liked Inda and some of the other boys at the academy, but I did get tired of all the bullying that was going on and that the adults did nothing to stop.
This book started out slow for me and I didn't really get into it until well into the story. It did start to pick up toward the end of part one, but I feel like this series is just not for me. There are three more books in the series after this one, and after looking into all of them I decided I'm not feeling the series enough to invest that much of my reading time into it. There are a couple of reasons for this. One is that the world is not interesting enough to me, another is that I prefer books with monogamous relationships in them, and it appears this series incorporates a lot of casualness in that regard, so I will not be continuing on with this series. I'm not sure if I will try reading anything else by this author.
Review also posted at Writings of a Reader
April 2, 2019
I have to say up-front that I found two things about this book off-putting. First and foremost, Smith uses a third-person omniscient voice; I think it's fair to say that this POV is rarely used today, and there's a good reason for that. We get plenty of third person limited omniscient in which the point of view shifts between various characters but only changes perspective from one scene to another. I found Smith's jumping around mid-scene to be, at times, hard to follow.
Likewise hard to follow, at least at first, were the names. The problem is that each character typically is referred to in three different ways: a common name, a nickname, and a title. Particularly as the scope widened and more characters were brought in, this could be confusing as I at times found myself desperately searching my brain to remember whether so-and-so was the same as such-and-such or someone else entirely. A lot of epic fantasy has started offering a dramatis personae listing the main characters with a description that is brief enough to avoid giving away the plot yet descriptive enough to help the reader follow along easily.
Now, those things said, Sherwood Smith does an excellent job of telling a story. I could hardly put the book down while I was reading it (that was several weeks ago, when I still had time on my hands somehow) and I'm desperately looking forward to having time to read the next volume in the series.
First and foremost, it's the characters and relationships that carry the novel. Smith does an excellent job of creating a variety of characters about whom we care and in whom we take an interest. The characters interactions are often complex. For that matter, so is the world of political intrigue and varied cultures, all of which have a distinct foreignness about them in their values, yet they are drawn so skillfully that we absolutely believe their reality and want to explore their complexity.
For better or for worse, Smith is not afraid to kill off major characters. I'm torn on this: on the one hand, as a reader, you hate to lose characters in whom you have invested; on the other, one sometimes gets a feeling of unreality when huge battles are happening or dangerous political intrigues are underway and all the characters you like make it through unscathed. The end result is both a narrative that feels more real and a narrative in which something is really at stake. In some (particularly fantasy) novels, one gets the sense that all the main characters are virtually immortal: oh, they may have some setbacks and difficulties accomplishing their goals, but in the end everything will turn out all right and the good guys will live happily ever after. Well, not in the world of Inda they don't. We get the sense that the title character might, and a few others seem like they'll have to make it through to the end, but then again, Smith has set things up such that every character seems vulnerable, and thus the danger always seems real. It's a good effect she's got going there.
It occurs to me that I didn't say anything about the plot or subject matter. The obvious comparison that came to mind was to say that it is Ender's Game in a fantasy milieu, but that's a gross oversimplification. The title character, Inda, is a natural leader and strategic thinker who goes off to his country's military academy. However, he's not the same sort of raw genius that Ender is, nor is the story confined to his experience in the academy, though that makes up a significant part of the action. There is, inherent in Inda, a coming-of-age story, but it's also more than that. Inda goes from innocence to experience, and the narrative builds in a similar fashion, as the political and cultural complexity of Smith's world gradually unfolds.
In short, it was good. I liked it, despite the flaws noted above.
Likewise hard to follow, at least at first, were the names. The problem is that each character typically is referred to in three different ways: a common name, a nickname, and a title. Particularly as the scope widened and more characters were brought in, this could be confusing as I at times found myself desperately searching my brain to remember whether so-and-so was the same as such-and-such or someone else entirely. A lot of epic fantasy has started offering a dramatis personae listing the main characters with a description that is brief enough to avoid giving away the plot yet descriptive enough to help the reader follow along easily.
Now, those things said, Sherwood Smith does an excellent job of telling a story. I could hardly put the book down while I was reading it (that was several weeks ago, when I still had time on my hands somehow) and I'm desperately looking forward to having time to read the next volume in the series.
First and foremost, it's the characters and relationships that carry the novel. Smith does an excellent job of creating a variety of characters about whom we care and in whom we take an interest. The characters interactions are often complex. For that matter, so is the world of political intrigue and varied cultures, all of which have a distinct foreignness about them in their values, yet they are drawn so skillfully that we absolutely believe their reality and want to explore their complexity.
For better or for worse, Smith is not afraid to kill off major characters. I'm torn on this: on the one hand, as a reader, you hate to lose characters in whom you have invested; on the other, one sometimes gets a feeling of unreality when huge battles are happening or dangerous political intrigues are underway and all the characters you like make it through unscathed. The end result is both a narrative that feels more real and a narrative in which something is really at stake. In some (particularly fantasy) novels, one gets the sense that all the main characters are virtually immortal: oh, they may have some setbacks and difficulties accomplishing their goals, but in the end everything will turn out all right and the good guys will live happily ever after. Well, not in the world of Inda they don't. We get the sense that the title character might, and a few others seem like they'll have to make it through to the end, but then again, Smith has set things up such that every character seems vulnerable, and thus the danger always seems real. It's a good effect she's got going there.
It occurs to me that I didn't say anything about the plot or subject matter. The obvious comparison that came to mind was to say that it is Ender's Game in a fantasy milieu, but that's a gross oversimplification. The title character, Inda, is a natural leader and strategic thinker who goes off to his country's military academy. However, he's not the same sort of raw genius that Ender is, nor is the story confined to his experience in the academy, though that makes up a significant part of the action. There is, inherent in Inda, a coming-of-age story, but it's also more than that. Inda goes from innocence to experience, and the narrative builds in a similar fashion, as the political and cultural complexity of Smith's world gradually unfolds.
In short, it was good. I liked it, despite the flaws noted above.
February 28, 2017
I love this book. People who follow me on reddit probably know that. And it's hard for me to write a review of it, because it's so dear to me, but I'm going to say basically the same things I do over there when I recommend it to people. My reviews for the rest of the series will probably be more nuanced...
Inda is perfect for fans of Game of Thrones or the Kushiel books- it has plenty of political intrigue, complex characters with a variety of sexual preferences, worldbuilding that is incredibly deep, a military academy, pirates, and more. It throws you directly into the action with no hand holding or explaining about the world or terms or lineages or anything of the sort, you know exactly what the character does whose head you're in at the time does. It can be disorienting, but the learning curve mostly levels out by the end of Part 1 in this first book, and the payoff is so worth it.
Mostly, though, if you love epic fantasy and you haven't read this yet, you need to get yourself a copy and make the time. It should be considered one of the greatest series in the genre.
Inda is perfect for fans of Game of Thrones or the Kushiel books- it has plenty of political intrigue, complex characters with a variety of sexual preferences, worldbuilding that is incredibly deep, a military academy, pirates, and more. It throws you directly into the action with no hand holding or explaining about the world or terms or lineages or anything of the sort, you know exactly what the character does whose head you're in at the time does. It can be disorienting, but the learning curve mostly levels out by the end of Part 1 in this first book, and the payoff is so worth it.
Mostly, though, if you love epic fantasy and you haven't read this yet, you need to get yourself a copy and make the time. It should be considered one of the greatest series in the genre.
May 5, 2015
This is my first time reading anything by Sherwood Smith and I picked this up largely due to Sam's (Novels and Nonsense) recommendation. I didn't have a clue what this was about and from looking at the cover I actually thought that the main character was a girl named Inda, however it's a young boy named Inda who we follow in this book, and his tale is certainly an interesting one.
One thing that this book does excellently is craft a unique, complex yet intriguing world. In this world we have multiple races of people and multiple languages being spoken not only by different races, but by our main characters. The Iascans are the race that we follow a lot of the characters from and they live in the Sartoran Continent in the Iasca Leror's Empire. They speak Iascan by day and when socialising with one another, but the royalty and nobility also have another language called Marlovan and this is considered the language of war. Thus some of the characters within this are considered Marlovan even though they're also Iascan (a little confusing at first but it makes sense as you go through). Within the book the two languages spoken give different meanings to certain things. For example, during times of war the King takes on a Marlovan title which indicates that it is a time of war. This aspect of the story and world was one that I thoroughly enjoyed learning, understanding and adjusting to as it was so unique and exciting.
As for the characters the main character is clearly Inda whom we meet as a young boy of 8 and follow over a fair few years of his life. He's the son of a Prince and Princess and therefore, although not the heir to the throne exactly, he's very important politically. He's a sweet young boy who has to go into some tricky situations, and he deals well with them. I thought that Sherwood Smith handled the ageing and maturing of Inda truly very well, and it had a very realistic feeling to the character which I loved. Inda was by far one of the best characters and most memorable as he's at the centre of a fair amount of the action, however we also follow other storylines too.
Other characters worth noting are Dogpiss; a joker and comedian who gives everyone a laugh and a good time and who's storyline is rocky ups and downs (in a good way); Tandrid; the older brother to Inda and a seemingly nasty character to begin, but one who grows on you (the customs of older/younger brother relationships within this book are very interesting so he's not all bad or good); Tdor; who is a young girl destined to marry Inda and betrothed to him from birth, she's a feisty and wilful character with a strong sense for truth about her and I liked her clear-headed thinking; Sponge; second son of the King and a very enticing character with a wonderful head for books and scrolls, he's a charm from the start and another character who's development was excellent; Hadand; sister to Tanrid and Inda and another level-headed and kind-hearted soul; and finally (although I could mention many more) Tau; whom we meet in the second half of the book and who is a very likeable and mysterious character.
The plot of this story is not too dissimilar from that of Blood Song by Anthony Ryan (at least at the beginning) and so maybe this was a source of inspiration for that, and if you like the relationships and format of that you'll probably also enjoy this. I'd certainly say it has very similar vibes to that, and if you like it I'd recommend this.
One thing to mention quickly is that this has an omniscient narrator which means some sections switch perspective in the middle of a large chunk of text so you do need to check you're still following the right person. I didn't find this to be a major problem much, but on occasion I needed to skim back to double check I was following the right character. I liked the outside perspective on this and whilst the plot wasn't fantastically fast-paced a lot of very interesting stuff happen both politically and in terms of character development.
I will be picking up book 2 in the future whenever I get the chance too as I'm intrigued by the ending and I want to know more about Inda. Overall this was a very enjoyable and somewhat unique read so I would say a solid 4*s and a book I'd recommend.
As always let me know what you thought of the book!
One thing that this book does excellently is craft a unique, complex yet intriguing world. In this world we have multiple races of people and multiple languages being spoken not only by different races, but by our main characters. The Iascans are the race that we follow a lot of the characters from and they live in the Sartoran Continent in the Iasca Leror's Empire. They speak Iascan by day and when socialising with one another, but the royalty and nobility also have another language called Marlovan and this is considered the language of war. Thus some of the characters within this are considered Marlovan even though they're also Iascan (a little confusing at first but it makes sense as you go through). Within the book the two languages spoken give different meanings to certain things. For example, during times of war the King takes on a Marlovan title which indicates that it is a time of war. This aspect of the story and world was one that I thoroughly enjoyed learning, understanding and adjusting to as it was so unique and exciting.
As for the characters the main character is clearly Inda whom we meet as a young boy of 8 and follow over a fair few years of his life. He's the son of a Prince and Princess and therefore, although not the heir to the throne exactly, he's very important politically. He's a sweet young boy who has to go into some tricky situations, and he deals well with them. I thought that Sherwood Smith handled the ageing and maturing of Inda truly very well, and it had a very realistic feeling to the character which I loved. Inda was by far one of the best characters and most memorable as he's at the centre of a fair amount of the action, however we also follow other storylines too.
Other characters worth noting are Dogpiss; a joker and comedian who gives everyone a laugh and a good time and who's storyline is rocky ups and downs (in a good way); Tandrid; the older brother to Inda and a seemingly nasty character to begin, but one who grows on you (the customs of older/younger brother relationships within this book are very interesting so he's not all bad or good); Tdor; who is a young girl destined to marry Inda and betrothed to him from birth, she's a feisty and wilful character with a strong sense for truth about her and I liked her clear-headed thinking; Sponge; second son of the King and a very enticing character with a wonderful head for books and scrolls, he's a charm from the start and another character who's development was excellent; Hadand; sister to Tanrid and Inda and another level-headed and kind-hearted soul; and finally (although I could mention many more) Tau; whom we meet in the second half of the book and who is a very likeable and mysterious character.
The plot of this story is not too dissimilar from that of Blood Song by Anthony Ryan (at least at the beginning) and so maybe this was a source of inspiration for that, and if you like the relationships and format of that you'll probably also enjoy this. I'd certainly say it has very similar vibes to that, and if you like it I'd recommend this.
One thing to mention quickly is that this has an omniscient narrator which means some sections switch perspective in the middle of a large chunk of text so you do need to check you're still following the right person. I didn't find this to be a major problem much, but on occasion I needed to skim back to double check I was following the right character. I liked the outside perspective on this and whilst the plot wasn't fantastically fast-paced a lot of very interesting stuff happen both politically and in terms of character development.
I will be picking up book 2 in the future whenever I get the chance too as I'm intrigued by the ending and I want to know more about Inda. Overall this was a very enjoyable and somewhat unique read so I would say a solid 4*s and a book I'd recommend.
As always let me know what you thought of the book!
November 2, 2013
I was and for that matter still am a bit hesitant about my rating here. This book is one of the (for me somewhat dreaded) coming of age school. We meet a young man, slated from birth to fill a certain roll, marry a certain girl and live his life as his forebears had.
But things don't go that way. (Well if they had of course we wouldn't have had a story.) Politics and family collide here for our protagonist as they do for every other character.
Inda suddenly gets sent to a school for warriors/knights (these are the Nobility of the kingdom) where he was never supposed to go as his roll was to be that of a second son. He was the support so to speak for his older brother who went to said school. Once there through friendships (and a certain amount of innocence and "thickness") Inda and others are hip (actually more like nose) deep in a deadly political maneuvering and coming war.
The book is a well written one with an interesting story. Yes you've seen the plot points and character types here in other books if you've read much but that's not a problem story-wise. I wasn't as happy with the viewpoint changes and the parallel stories but it's not a deal breaker. As often happens different readers will probably get interested in different points of view.
While the book ends in a cliffhanger I haven't run out and grabbed the next. That means that while I think I need to round up to 4 stars as the book is interesting and engaging I have to say this is a low 4...maybe 3.5.
Will I follow it up? Maybe. It depends on mood and holes in my reading lineup. Maybe the urge will overcome me sometime when I can't find a good fantasy.
But things don't go that way. (Well if they had of course we wouldn't have had a story.) Politics and family collide here for our protagonist as they do for every other character.
Inda suddenly gets sent to a school for warriors/knights (these are the Nobility of the kingdom) where he was never supposed to go as his roll was to be that of a second son. He was the support so to speak for his older brother who went to said school. Once there through friendships (and a certain amount of innocence and "thickness") Inda and others are hip (actually more like nose) deep in a deadly political maneuvering and coming war.
The book is a well written one with an interesting story. Yes you've seen the plot points and character types here in other books if you've read much but that's not a problem story-wise. I wasn't as happy with the viewpoint changes and the parallel stories but it's not a deal breaker. As often happens different readers will probably get interested in different points of view.
While the book ends in a cliffhanger I haven't run out and grabbed the next. That means that while I think I need to round up to 4 stars as the book is interesting and engaging I have to say this is a low 4...maybe 3.5.
Will I follow it up? Maybe. It depends on mood and holes in my reading lineup. Maybe the urge will overcome me sometime when I can't find a good fantasy.
May 10, 2022
Very, very good coming-of-age tale, laying the foundations for much more to explore. Great writing and interesting characters, the ending tied a few loose ends conveniently but its open and it’s not a standalone so by reading the second book of the series (which I’ve just started) I’m following the natural progression of the tale.
Custom and habit were two of the strongest legs of order, besides law and plenty. Take any of them away, and what was left was imbalance.
Custom and habit were two of the strongest legs of order, besides law and plenty. Take any of them away, and what was left was imbalance.
April 11, 2013
This series is an acquired taste for some, though I've read it multiple times. I especially enjoy this first book which is incredibly strong. Smith writes about a world that seems to have always existed, complete with political intrigue, age-old family feuds, old wars, new wars, and a back story for EVERYTHING. This makes the world rich and vibrant.
The only problem is that I think Smith is a little immune to how difficult her character names are to deal with. The main characters all have names you can remember (including their nicknames, which are fantastic). But the family names, the titles (that EVERYONE seems to have) and all the suffixes that change whether it's wartime or peace time...those were all a little too similar to one another. I've heard from several folks that try to read these books that they had to give up because the names were so confusing. I powered through when I read it the first time (because the book came so highly recommended) but I definitely see what they mean. I still have to think hard when I'm rereading the book a 3rd, 4th, or even 5th time. (I think this was the 5th time.)
That being said, the book is wonderful. Sherwood Smith is the ONLY writer I know of who writes women realistically. She writes a plot where women are central, but not necessarily badass (some of the time they are, of course). In fact, she centers a lot of the plot of this first book (and all the intrigue in the second book) on the fact that the women have been doing their own thing for years, and disguising it as 'woman stuff' to fool all the macho meatheads around them. It's pretty cool.
All of her characters are multi-faceted and real and DIFFERENT from one another, which is excellent. The plot is pretty fantastic and halfway through the book Smith whisks you away from the plains and lands you on a pirate ship. And then it starts to get real! I loved it.
While the rest of the books in this series aren't quite as strong as this first one, it's still and excellent series and one of my go-to rereads for fun. I highly recommend at least this first book, if you can get into your high fantasy frame of mind.
The only problem is that I think Smith is a little immune to how difficult her character names are to deal with. The main characters all have names you can remember (including their nicknames, which are fantastic). But the family names, the titles (that EVERYONE seems to have) and all the suffixes that change whether it's wartime or peace time...those were all a little too similar to one another. I've heard from several folks that try to read these books that they had to give up because the names were so confusing. I powered through when I read it the first time (because the book came so highly recommended) but I definitely see what they mean. I still have to think hard when I'm rereading the book a 3rd, 4th, or even 5th time. (I think this was the 5th time.)
That being said, the book is wonderful. Sherwood Smith is the ONLY writer I know of who writes women realistically. She writes a plot where women are central, but not necessarily badass (some of the time they are, of course). In fact, she centers a lot of the plot of this first book (and all the intrigue in the second book) on the fact that the women have been doing their own thing for years, and disguising it as 'woman stuff' to fool all the macho meatheads around them. It's pretty cool.
All of her characters are multi-faceted and real and DIFFERENT from one another, which is excellent. The plot is pretty fantastic and halfway through the book Smith whisks you away from the plains and lands you on a pirate ship. And then it starts to get real! I loved it.
While the rest of the books in this series aren't quite as strong as this first one, it's still and excellent series and one of my go-to rereads for fun. I highly recommend at least this first book, if you can get into your high fantasy frame of mind.
February 4, 2018
DNF at 27%. I wish I had enjoyed the beginning of this book more because I've been told it changes pace halfway through. But I had such a difficult time caring about the characters because the world building was a bit too complicated for me. I don't love political machinations - only occasionally. This story had too many alliances that I could not keep straight. I didn't get attached to any of the characters. I am interested in learning more about the world, but not enough to keep slogging through this first volume.
June 1, 2015
This was an interesting read, I really liked the first half of this book but the second half was not really my style. Overall it was good.
September 30, 2017
Too high expectations? Probably. But when a book offers so many new words and titles and nicknames, including very close names depending on being war or peace, then it have to be more than normally interesting. And - honestly - it isn't.
"Up in the royal wing Hadand sat with Queen Wisthia, who insisted on the Sartoan word for queen, Sarias, which was put before her name, the way it was done in civilized kingdoms. Twice a year she endured the Marlocan word for queen, Gunvear [...]." And it just continues that way.
The book is either extremely slow-paced or incredibly fast-paced. Unfortunately, a lot of the areas that could have been more exiting or at least a way for the reader to get to know one of the quite huge cast a little better are storytelling after-the-event. E.g.
""After our win." No one had won a break-in since last year, and that had been a superb ruse, led by [...] herself." How dull.
Inda's family.
Plotlines
There are some interesting areas and a few surprises, so hopefully the next one is better.
EDIT: And the world building is very good.
"Up in the royal wing Hadand sat with Queen Wisthia, who insisted on the Sartoan word for queen, Sarias, which was put before her name, the way it was done in civilized kingdoms. Twice a year she endured the Marlocan word for queen, Gunvear [...]." And it just continues that way.
The book is either extremely slow-paced or incredibly fast-paced. Unfortunately, a lot of the areas that could have been more exiting or at least a way for the reader to get to know one of the quite huge cast a little better are storytelling after-the-event. E.g.
""After our win." No one had won a break-in since last year, and that had been a superb ruse, led by [...] herself." How dull.
Inda's family.
Plotlines
There are some interesting areas and a few surprises, so hopefully the next one is better.
EDIT: And the world building is very good.
April 23, 2017
This book is going right into the favorites folder. It took a bit to get used to the third-person omniscient point of view, considering most things I read are limited or first person, but Smith really made it work well for this book. After the initial weirdness, it settled in my mind and I didn't think much of it after that.
I started off feeling I knew where this book was going: a coming of age tale with some fantasy school trope thrown in and a bit of intrigue. What I got was so much more than that. As soon as I felt I knew where the book was going, it got turned upside down and I had to try and catch up.
I'll probably jump right into the next book in the series; it was that good.
I started off feeling I knew where this book was going: a coming of age tale with some fantasy school trope thrown in and a bit of intrigue. What I got was so much more than that. As soon as I felt I knew where the book was going, it got turned upside down and I had to try and catch up.
I'll probably jump right into the next book in the series; it was that good.
September 3, 2011
"Inda" is a fantasy novel. This author's young adult novels are some of my favorite stories because they have an innocence and earnestness about them even when bad things are happening. This book is so different in writing style and tone from those stories that I wouldn't have even guessed it came from the same author if her name wasn't on the cover.
Each character had a nickname, a title, another title, and all of these frequently changed. The titles were often very similar, adding to my difficulty in keep straight who was being talked about. The author also switched viewpoints from character to character from one paragraph to the next, so it was even harder to keep track of what was going on. This also meant that I never really got to know any one of the huge cast of characters.
It also seemed like every time we got to a scene where Inda could have charmed us (like all the characters) with his natural leadership skills, the author jumped over the scene and had two adults talking over what a brilliant, natural leader he was. I wanted to see it, not just hear it.
Another problem I had was that the story was about teen boys beating up pre-teen boys and forcing them to badly beat each other up. Not surprising, due to all the verbal and physical abuse, Inda tended to show little emotion in most of his scenes. Honor is not rewarded. Inda isn't even given an explanation for how the adults treat him (referring to part 2 of this book) when they could have told him. It was not fun reading.
While the world was well-developed and unique, it was also a confusing one due to the writing style and a depressing one due to the content. I didn't even find the characters interesting. Since the action mostly occurred "off scene," there wasn't much suspense most of the time. Basically, I was very disappointed.
There was some explicit bad language. There were no sex scenes, but unmarried sex was encouraged and homosexual relationships were normal there. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book, especially not to those who enjoy Sherwood Smith's previous novels.
Each character had a nickname, a title, another title, and all of these frequently changed. The titles were often very similar, adding to my difficulty in keep straight who was being talked about. The author also switched viewpoints from character to character from one paragraph to the next, so it was even harder to keep track of what was going on. This also meant that I never really got to know any one of the huge cast of characters.
It also seemed like every time we got to a scene where Inda could have charmed us (like all the characters) with his natural leadership skills, the author jumped over the scene and had two adults talking over what a brilliant, natural leader he was. I wanted to see it, not just hear it.
Another problem I had was that the story was about teen boys beating up pre-teen boys and forcing them to badly beat each other up. Not surprising, due to all the verbal and physical abuse, Inda tended to show little emotion in most of his scenes. Honor is not rewarded. Inda isn't even given an explanation for how the adults treat him (referring to part 2 of this book) when they could have told him. It was not fun reading.
While the world was well-developed and unique, it was also a confusing one due to the writing style and a depressing one due to the content. I didn't even find the characters interesting. Since the action mostly occurred "off scene," there wasn't much suspense most of the time. Basically, I was very disappointed.
There was some explicit bad language. There were no sex scenes, but unmarried sex was encouraged and homosexual relationships were normal there. Overall, I wouldn't recommend this book, especially not to those who enjoy Sherwood Smith's previous novels.
March 26, 2015
It's been a while since I dnf a book, but this book's writing was just not my cup of tea. The characterd and plot was really great, and I had no problem, but this was one of the first time I felt like the writing was slow in pace. This might be because it feels like she is telling the story rather than showing. So I stopped after about 200 pages.
Also this series feels a lot like Robin Hobb's Soldier and Son Trilogy in the premise, especially the 1st book, Shaman's Crossing, which a lot of people hated, but I loved.
Now I see why the book is maybe unpopular, have only about 2000 rating, and why most people have never heard of or seen the book.
Also this series feels a lot like Robin Hobb's Soldier and Son Trilogy in the premise, especially the 1st book, Shaman's Crossing, which a lot of people hated, but I loved.
Now I see why the book is maybe unpopular, have only about 2000 rating, and why most people have never heard of or seen the book.
March 18, 2020
So I finally finished this. It was a bit of a rough start because there are so many names and titles...and since there are two languages used in this culture, one for peacetime and the other for periods of war, it means that there are two words for every title. It doesn't help that a lot of the noble families have 'Vayir' tacked onto their names so keeping track of which family was aligned with or hated which other family was initially daunting. And I've read the Malazan books! This all kept me from being able to fully sink into the story at first but eventually things started to settle into place and I was able to finally focus on the story itself.
I'm not sure if the POV is third person limited or third person omniscient, all I know is that sometimes the POV switches from one paragraph to the next making it hard at times to know who was thinking or saying what. I got accustomed to it by the end but even then I'd sometimes have to backtrack a few lines to figure out who was speaking and who was listening/reacting. An unfortunate side effect, at least for me, with this narrative choice is that I felt distanced from the characters and the action. There were some deaths but at most I only felt slightly bummed about them. There wasn't anything that happened that I really had any strong feelings about.
The story itself centers mostly around Inda, the second son of a powerful and old noble family in the Kingdom of Iasca Leror. This is a society that is geared highly towards the martial arts, where the children begin training in warfare (for the males) and defense of the homestead (for the females) almost as soon as they can start to walk. Noble marriage are all arranged, often before the parties involved have even been conceived in the womb. Daughters are sent away to the family into which they will marry at the age of two ensuring that their loyalty will be to that family instead of the one into which they're born. All in all, there wasn't much about this society that I liked. And I find it hard to believe that not a single one of the many, many young characters in the story chafe at the notion that their entire lives are scripted for them. Not a single one.
At the start of the story, Inda is only ten years old which was a surprise to me. I wasn't expecting such a young main character. A good portion of the book is therefore dedicated to juvenile shenanigans. There are some adult plots going on and, frankly, I was most interested in the adult time. That said, I can't say that this ever inspired a must-read-it-every-spare-moment-I-get reaction from me. I would like it as I was reading it but I found it easy to put down and I'd often have to remind myself to pick it back up. I think a large part of this is because of that distancing that I felt from the action and characters. Another part is just Inda himself. He's thoroughly likable, honorable...all that good stuff. Which is part of the problem. He's 100% perfectly perfect in every way. I like him, I just don't buy him as real. He's more of an avatar than a real character. When your character starts off perfectly perfect there's not really anywhere for him to go, developmentally speaking. I guess that's why of all the characters introduced in the story, I was most drawn to Sponge, aka Evred - the King's second son. I'm not sure if I'll be continuing on with this series but if I do, it'll be only because of him.
I'm not sure if the POV is third person limited or third person omniscient, all I know is that sometimes the POV switches from one paragraph to the next making it hard at times to know who was thinking or saying what. I got accustomed to it by the end but even then I'd sometimes have to backtrack a few lines to figure out who was speaking and who was listening/reacting. An unfortunate side effect, at least for me, with this narrative choice is that I felt distanced from the characters and the action. There were some deaths but at most I only felt slightly bummed about them. There wasn't anything that happened that I really had any strong feelings about.
The story itself centers mostly around Inda, the second son of a powerful and old noble family in the Kingdom of Iasca Leror. This is a society that is geared highly towards the martial arts, where the children begin training in warfare (for the males) and defense of the homestead (for the females) almost as soon as they can start to walk. Noble marriage are all arranged, often before the parties involved have even been conceived in the womb. Daughters are sent away to the family into which they will marry at the age of two ensuring that their loyalty will be to that family instead of the one into which they're born. All in all, there wasn't much about this society that I liked. And I find it hard to believe that not a single one of the many, many young characters in the story chafe at the notion that their entire lives are scripted for them. Not a single one.
At the start of the story, Inda is only ten years old which was a surprise to me. I wasn't expecting such a young main character. A good portion of the book is therefore dedicated to juvenile shenanigans. There are some adult plots going on and, frankly, I was most interested in the adult time. That said, I can't say that this ever inspired a must-read-it-every-spare-moment-I-get reaction from me. I would like it as I was reading it but I found it easy to put down and I'd often have to remind myself to pick it back up. I think a large part of this is because of that distancing that I felt from the action and characters. Another part is just Inda himself. He's thoroughly likable, honorable...all that good stuff. Which is part of the problem. He's 100% perfectly perfect in every way. I like him, I just don't buy him as real. He's more of an avatar than a real character. When your character starts off perfectly perfect there's not really anywhere for him to go, developmentally speaking. I guess that's why of all the characters introduced in the story, I was most drawn to Sponge, aka Evred - the King's second son. I'm not sure if I'll be continuing on with this series but if I do, it'll be only because of him.
October 27, 2024
I began this book thinking 'oh no.' Another story about a military school for aristocratic, pre-teen brats complete with bullies and the family politics forced on the students. Fortunately, Sherwood Smith created a situation that whisked our young hero off to sea to be hidden from circumstances that he was not responsible for. And there are a lot of circumstances that many are not responsible for in this tale, save the devious, spoiled heir to the throne and his powerful uncle, brother to the king.
Lots of names to get a handle on. Nefarious doings and an interesting enemy we know about, but have yet to meet. Beware the Venn.
Three stars because of the slow start and my 'oh no' first impression. I've started the second book in the series The Fox
and so far it is a winner.
Lots of names to get a handle on. Nefarious doings and an interesting enemy we know about, but have yet to meet. Beware the Venn.
Three stars because of the slow start and my 'oh no' first impression. I've started the second book in the series The Fox
and so far it is a winner.
June 5, 2018
4.5 *
All the things that I love are in this book: schooling, intrigues, betrayal, interesting writing style, round characters, very detailed society and of course lots of action.
Do not be deterred from the many names and those noble titles, I love it when it's very confusing in the beginning but page by page you figure it out - imo it's part of enjoyment in reading a book is that first you straggle to figure it out, beside to plot, but when you get it it's like you conquered a new language. I think I know from where Katherine Addison was inspired when she wrote the goblin emperor (I mean to all those names and titles).
It may show some resemblances to ASOIAF - in the society structure (houses) and the shift of power between them (of corse Inda will be STARK)
Although the MC is a male, i loved the females characters in this book. while the males role is to protect the land from the enemy outside on the borders the females have to protect their homes. Both males and females learn how to fight but in a different style. The males with sword and the women – ninja styleand the they plot a lo mainly to protect their sons.
All the things that I love are in this book: schooling, intrigues, betrayal, interesting writing style, round characters, very detailed society and of course lots of action.
Do not be deterred from the many names and those noble titles, I love it when it's very confusing in the beginning but page by page you figure it out - imo it's part of enjoyment in reading a book is that first you straggle to figure it out, beside to plot, but when you get it it's like you conquered a new language. I think I know from where Katherine Addison was inspired when she wrote the goblin emperor (I mean to all those names and titles).
It may show some resemblances to ASOIAF - in the society structure (houses) and the shift of power between them (of corse Inda will be STARK)
Although the MC is a male, i loved the females characters in this book. while the males role is to protect the land from the enemy outside on the borders the females have to protect their homes. Both males and females learn how to fight but in a different style. The males with sword and the women – ninja styleand the they plot a lo mainly to protect their sons.
March 8, 2024
Does a great job building a complex world and then sweeping the reader up in the lives of the characters. I'll definitely continue the series, I need to know what everyone does next!
November 11, 2011
http://www.rantingdragon.com/inda-ind...
Inda is the first of four novels in the series of the same name by American author Sherwood Smith. It tells the story of the titular young noble, Inda, in a time of war and crisis in the world of Sartorias-Deles, a setting for a number of her other works. It establishes the background and history of the world for the chronologically later but earlier written works.
A rich and robust world
On her website, Smith reveals that she’s been writing in the world of Sartorias-Deles for over 40 years and has generated atlases, encyclopedias and notebooks numbering in the hundreds dedicated to this world, and it shows. The cultures and societies are thorough, well-developed, internally consistent, and presented in a way that makes sense. You can see how the cultures would have developed in the way that they did up to that point.
As a historian myself, I appreciate the visible effort that has gone into shaping the world of Sartorias-Deles. When you consider that Inda the series was written as prequels for books taking place in the comparatively far distant future, it becomes even more of an accomplishment. Smith has written books that both don’t contradict any historical details written into the older books that took place later, and that don’t cause contradictions after the fact. The foresight and planning that must have gone into creating the world is incredible.
The kids aren’t all right
While characterized by the author as being decidedly not a young adult novel, the majority of the main characters are young teenagers at the outside. While there’s certainly nothing wrong with an adult-focused novel about children and teens, the culture is at least a little discomfiting by today’s standards of child-rearing. The culture Inda grows up in is intensely martial. The children train from prepubescence for war, taking part in attack/defend games centered around the family keep. The eldest son goes to the capital to train in their officer school, and then in turn trains the second son. The women are as involved as the men and train to defend their castles and keeps.
Entirely aside from the fact that training six-year-olds to fight and kill is a little uncomfortable, throughout the course of the novel, the death toll at the hands of people who in our world wouldn’t be allowed to even enlist in the reserves mounts up fairly high. The martiality of the society doesn’t cross the line into abuse by modern standards, but it skirts a little close for comfort if you happen to be of delicate sensibilities. Smith again does an excellent job in setting up the culture in a way where this level of military preparedness makes sense, yet there’s a certain assumed cultural maturity from the kids that I’m not sure is entirely realistic.
The problem of language
It must always be a temptation for authors who create such robust worlds to consider the possibility of accompanying them with an original language, and Inda is no different. But you have to be careful how much you put in and how complicated it gets in order for your readers to pick it up easily, and Inda falls slightly short in that regard. The main culture seems to have two distinct languages of titles and names, depending on whether they are speaking in the context of war or peace, and naturally enough you need to learn both sets of terms fairly early on. As well, a large portion of the story takes place at a military academy where basically all the characters have an academy nickname separate from their family name.
That said, it still only takes a few chapters to start to get the hang of things, and another few more to feel like you’re successfully tracking everybody. However, just about the time I got to that point, the main character goes off to sea, where they have an entirely new and distinct slang to learn. It is a little frustrating, but it doesn’t detract too much from the story. If you have a hard time keeping up with fictional languages, though, it might be slow going. I have read the second book in the series, The Fox, and having made it through the first, had no further problems at all with the slang and language, as Smith didn’t introduce anything new beyond the first book. It is still all there in The Fox, so it’s a worthwhile investment to get the hang of it rather than try to muddle through.
Why should you read this book?
If you’re a fan of large and well-developed world building, this book will not disappoint in the slightest. Smith has been working on this world longer than the majority of her core reader demographic has been literate. If you enjoy a coming-of-age story and the trials and tribulations of growing up in a world where sweeping events threaten to overtake you, this is also an excellent choice.
Well-designed characters with distinct personalities and a great deal of growth as they age and experience, an interesting tale of war and politics, and a completely stunning world combine to make this an interesting read.
Inda is the first of four novels in the series of the same name by American author Sherwood Smith. It tells the story of the titular young noble, Inda, in a time of war and crisis in the world of Sartorias-Deles, a setting for a number of her other works. It establishes the background and history of the world for the chronologically later but earlier written works.
A rich and robust world
On her website, Smith reveals that she’s been writing in the world of Sartorias-Deles for over 40 years and has generated atlases, encyclopedias and notebooks numbering in the hundreds dedicated to this world, and it shows. The cultures and societies are thorough, well-developed, internally consistent, and presented in a way that makes sense. You can see how the cultures would have developed in the way that they did up to that point.
As a historian myself, I appreciate the visible effort that has gone into shaping the world of Sartorias-Deles. When you consider that Inda the series was written as prequels for books taking place in the comparatively far distant future, it becomes even more of an accomplishment. Smith has written books that both don’t contradict any historical details written into the older books that took place later, and that don’t cause contradictions after the fact. The foresight and planning that must have gone into creating the world is incredible.
The kids aren’t all right
While characterized by the author as being decidedly not a young adult novel, the majority of the main characters are young teenagers at the outside. While there’s certainly nothing wrong with an adult-focused novel about children and teens, the culture is at least a little discomfiting by today’s standards of child-rearing. The culture Inda grows up in is intensely martial. The children train from prepubescence for war, taking part in attack/defend games centered around the family keep. The eldest son goes to the capital to train in their officer school, and then in turn trains the second son. The women are as involved as the men and train to defend their castles and keeps.
Entirely aside from the fact that training six-year-olds to fight and kill is a little uncomfortable, throughout the course of the novel, the death toll at the hands of people who in our world wouldn’t be allowed to even enlist in the reserves mounts up fairly high. The martiality of the society doesn’t cross the line into abuse by modern standards, but it skirts a little close for comfort if you happen to be of delicate sensibilities. Smith again does an excellent job in setting up the culture in a way where this level of military preparedness makes sense, yet there’s a certain assumed cultural maturity from the kids that I’m not sure is entirely realistic.
The problem of language
It must always be a temptation for authors who create such robust worlds to consider the possibility of accompanying them with an original language, and Inda is no different. But you have to be careful how much you put in and how complicated it gets in order for your readers to pick it up easily, and Inda falls slightly short in that regard. The main culture seems to have two distinct languages of titles and names, depending on whether they are speaking in the context of war or peace, and naturally enough you need to learn both sets of terms fairly early on. As well, a large portion of the story takes place at a military academy where basically all the characters have an academy nickname separate from their family name.
That said, it still only takes a few chapters to start to get the hang of things, and another few more to feel like you’re successfully tracking everybody. However, just about the time I got to that point, the main character goes off to sea, where they have an entirely new and distinct slang to learn. It is a little frustrating, but it doesn’t detract too much from the story. If you have a hard time keeping up with fictional languages, though, it might be slow going. I have read the second book in the series, The Fox, and having made it through the first, had no further problems at all with the slang and language, as Smith didn’t introduce anything new beyond the first book. It is still all there in The Fox, so it’s a worthwhile investment to get the hang of it rather than try to muddle through.
Why should you read this book?
If you’re a fan of large and well-developed world building, this book will not disappoint in the slightest. Smith has been working on this world longer than the majority of her core reader demographic has been literate. If you enjoy a coming-of-age story and the trials and tribulations of growing up in a world where sweeping events threaten to overtake you, this is also an excellent choice.
Well-designed characters with distinct personalities and a great deal of growth as they age and experience, an interesting tale of war and politics, and a completely stunning world combine to make this an interesting read.
December 2, 2016
On the story level, this is an exciting, immersive story of ambition and treachery: we follow young Inda, a prince in a warlike kingdom, and his friends and rivals as they grow into their strength--and come to realize just how dangerous the web of politics surrounding them is. At that level, it's a delight: Sherwood Smith develops characters in an intimate way, both inside (you're treated to the thoughts--the hopes, fears, resentments--of the characters) and out.
But I liked some of the more broad-scale things she's doing as she tells this story. Inda has a gift for strategy and command--a fact that surprises those around him and that he himself isn't entirely aware of--and Smith shows us this from the *inside*. For me, this felt like receiving a new sense to accompany sight, sound, etc. I could get a sense of the field, of what it means to mobilize people, of what it feels like to notice significant details--experiences I've never had. This was exhilarating, and it meant that when people were awed by Inda, I could understand why in a visceral way.
Equally or perhaps even more impressive to me was how she got into the heads of antagonists. Sometimes the effect was to make you empathize with them (for instance, if you found out about their overbearing older brother and the mockery and bullying they'd experienced). Other times, it gave you a chilling insight into how a person can lie to themselves, how they can look events and evidence and take entirely the wrong message from it. For some of the antagonists, events break through their blinkers, and they change; others just retrench in their awfulness. It was fascinating.
If you're going to have rulers and people who are powerful, you're also going to have people who are powerless, and another thing I loved about this book was how Smith showed us the workarounds and sub rosa means people employ to get around the powerful, and how even those with the most power can be powerless in certain situations, because the consequences if they act as they want will be too great.
Three scenes especially affected me, though they're hard to talk about without spoilers, but here goes. At one point Hadand, Inda's older sister, betrays an ancient secret by teaching her brother "women's fighting." Her reasons are all good, and indeed, it really helps him. But when you tell a secret, even for good reasons, it has consequences, and the unintended consequences of Hadand's betrayal were poignant and powerful. Much later in the book, Hadand helps a character who is gay but feels inhibited to act on his instincts (not because of societal norms--the society is accepting of all types of sexuality) become sexually active. The way this was handled was really touching. The last scene is a terribly moving scene between Inda and his brother Tanrid. I can't say more about it, but you'll know it when you come to it.
Inda is book one in a four book series. It doesn't end with a cliffhanger, but you'll definitely want to move right along to the next book. And fortunately all the books are out.
But I liked some of the more broad-scale things she's doing as she tells this story. Inda has a gift for strategy and command--a fact that surprises those around him and that he himself isn't entirely aware of--and Smith shows us this from the *inside*. For me, this felt like receiving a new sense to accompany sight, sound, etc. I could get a sense of the field, of what it means to mobilize people, of what it feels like to notice significant details--experiences I've never had. This was exhilarating, and it meant that when people were awed by Inda, I could understand why in a visceral way.
Equally or perhaps even more impressive to me was how she got into the heads of antagonists. Sometimes the effect was to make you empathize with them (for instance, if you found out about their overbearing older brother and the mockery and bullying they'd experienced). Other times, it gave you a chilling insight into how a person can lie to themselves, how they can look events and evidence and take entirely the wrong message from it. For some of the antagonists, events break through their blinkers, and they change; others just retrench in their awfulness. It was fascinating.
If you're going to have rulers and people who are powerful, you're also going to have people who are powerless, and another thing I loved about this book was how Smith showed us the workarounds and sub rosa means people employ to get around the powerful, and how even those with the most power can be powerless in certain situations, because the consequences if they act as they want will be too great.
Three scenes especially affected me, though they're hard to talk about without spoilers, but here goes. At one point Hadand, Inda's older sister, betrays an ancient secret by teaching her brother "women's fighting." Her reasons are all good, and indeed, it really helps him. But when you tell a secret, even for good reasons, it has consequences, and the unintended consequences of Hadand's betrayal were poignant and powerful. Much later in the book, Hadand helps a character who is gay but feels inhibited to act on his instincts (not because of societal norms--the society is accepting of all types of sexuality) become sexually active. The way this was handled was really touching. The last scene is a terribly moving scene between Inda and his brother Tanrid. I can't say more about it, but you'll know it when you come to it.
Inda is book one in a four book series. It doesn't end with a cliffhanger, but you'll definitely want to move right along to the next book. And fortunately all the books are out.
April 10, 2012
Inda is the second son of a prince. When old traditions are thrown aside, Inda and other second sons are eligible to attend the King's military academy. What the impetuous ten-year-old boy deems an honor is really something more insidious within the political tangles of the royal family. He immediately befriends the second son of the king, nicknamed Sponge, and discovers all is not what it seems. Sponge is loathed by his older brother, the heir, and anyone close to him will suffer for it. Even worse, Inda shows a natural flair for command. That is not in the interests if the future king, and must be remedied.[return][return]Don't be fooled by the ages of the characters - this is no young adult or middle grade book. Inda is over 600-pages, and I'll admit, the first hundred or so were a struggle. There is a large cast of characters, and they all have multiple names in different languages. It was quite confusing for me. Once I got sucked into the book, it went very fast. Inda is a very likeable yet flawed character, as are the other main characters such as Jorel, Tdor, Sponge and Tanrid. The action is very well written, including many battles at sea that must have involved intense research. I'll be adding the sequel to my wish list. I really want to see some justice delivered.
November 7, 2016
I found out about Inda thanks to the combination of a kindle deal and posts on r/fantasy. I joined in on a group read (late) without knowing much about the story, and am sure glad I did!
Inda is a coming of age story in a complex world full of political intrigue. I particularly enjoyed the characters and the author's writing style as I found myself easily visualizing the events throughout the story and quite emotional at times.
Early on some effort is required to learn the Marlovan language and titles for characters. I didn't feel the need to search out external references and was fine. The writing is great, in particular the subtle changes of POV added depth to the characters.
The story is fast-paced with twists and turns along the way and I had A LOT of trouble stopping every 3 chapters to stick with the group read schedule (after I caught up it was hard to slow down!) The book ends with quite a bit left unresolved, so I will definitely be returning to continue with this series.
Inda is a coming of age story in a complex world full of political intrigue. I particularly enjoyed the characters and the author's writing style as I found myself easily visualizing the events throughout the story and quite emotional at times.
Early on some effort is required to learn the Marlovan language and titles for characters. I didn't feel the need to search out external references and was fine. The writing is great, in particular the subtle changes of POV added depth to the characters.
The story is fast-paced with twists and turns along the way and I had A LOT of trouble stopping every 3 chapters to stick with the group read schedule (after I caught up it was hard to slow down!) The book ends with quite a bit left unresolved, so I will definitely be returning to continue with this series.
January 22, 2024
nada como um livro com um worldbuilding deliciosamente complexo
a história é bem padrão, segue um ritmo conhecido de livros de fantasia, mas não tira do quão bem feito foi escrita a história, e teve momentos que até me surpreendeu, tipo a metade, mudou completamente o rumo e gente, esse worldbuilding, é tão minucioso e tem tanta coisa ainda pra ser descoberta (tipo eu casualmente lendo o glossário após terminar o livro e descobrir um negócio ???? no glossário assim, sem mais nem mesmos)
é uma história introdutória, colocando as peças nos tabuleiros seguindo um ritmo conhecido, mas te dando aquele gostinho que tem mais coisa por trás e mais loucuras pra acontecer
"He didn’t understand the desire to leave home forever, but he could sympathize with the wish for justice that would never come."
a história é bem padrão, segue um ritmo conhecido de livros de fantasia, mas não tira do quão bem feito foi escrita a história, e teve momentos que até me surpreendeu, tipo a metade, mudou completamente o rumo e gente, esse worldbuilding, é tão minucioso e tem tanta coisa ainda pra ser descoberta (tipo eu casualmente lendo o glossário após terminar o livro e descobrir um negócio ???? no glossário assim, sem mais nem mesmos)
é uma história introdutória, colocando as peças nos tabuleiros seguindo um ritmo conhecido, mas te dando aquele gostinho que tem mais coisa por trás e mais loucuras pra acontecer
"He didn’t understand the desire to leave home forever, but he could sympathize with the wish for justice that would never come."
February 22, 2014
I liked this book. I thought it was well written, and I absolutely loved Inda's character. The plot can be a bit slow at times, but for the most part it is well paced and exciting. I recommend this series to anyone that loves epic fantasy.
September 17, 2016
This was a hard book to get into, but once you get past the onslaught of strange names and settle into the omnipresent pov it really grabs you. I was supposed to read this a few chapters a week for a group read but I failed completely and devoured it until it was done.
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