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A review by abby_ace_of_books
The City of Dusk by Tara Sim
3.75
The only thing I remembered about this book was that one of the characters gave Evelyn from The Incredibles 2 vibes...
I've been meaning to reread The City of Dusk for a while, the sheer size of it and the fact that I remembered basically nothing about it left me hesitant. Now I have the second one, so I'm rereading it with the intention of finishing the series this time (or at least preparing for book 3 when it comes out). Honestly, I think what really threw me off the first time was that world-building was pretty vague, meaning the readers have to scrape together an understanding of the world by themselves.
There are a dozen interweaving plotlines taking place over the course of the book, which is probably why the book is over 500 pages long. Each of the main characters has a different goal, but most of them are trying to save their world, which has begun dying after being sealed away from the other realms. My main issue with the plot was that we didn't really get to see the world actually dying, so there wasn't much of a sense of urgency. I liked the mystery elements throughout (who is behind the Conjurations, how can a ritual to save the world be performed, etc), and I'm actually super excited about the ending this time. Even though I think the book could've been a few hundred pages shorter, I just enjoyed the vibes of the world and the complexity of the plotlines.
There are way more characters in this book than I remembered, but I'm realizing that I only really like the minor characters. The story follows four noble houses, so there are four "main" characters. However, the siblings of the main characters and some specific other characters get special attention as well. Angelica was probably my least favorite of the POV characters because she was so isolated from the other main characters. I'm interested to see how her character arc goes with Cosima, but overall I didn't connect to her. I also had issues with Taesia. I get that she's morally gray, but I've seen it done enough times now that she didn't come across as intriguing, just another selfish character who manipulates people. Even though Julian interested me as a side character (who slowly grew into a more important role), I didn't like his interactions with Taesia because they came across as almost toxic to me. I much preferred Dante's chapters to Taesia's, and I wish he'd been the more important sibling. Nik was fine as a main character, but he was a bit boring. I'm embarrassed to admit I didn't remember Fin's existence at all, but in my defense, Nik has other more pressing matters. Of the main four characters, Risha was my favorite. I felt the most connection to her (maybe because she actually had morals) and I enjoyed her investigations into Conjuration. Her budding relationship with Jas is one of the few I enjoy.
Although The City of Dusk may appear daunting in length, it's a high fantasy story filled with ruthless gods, necromancy, and mystery perfect for young adults looking to branch into the world of adult fantasy.
3.75/5
I've been meaning to reread The City of Dusk for a while, the sheer size of it and the fact that I remembered basically nothing about it left me hesitant. Now I have the second one, so I'm rereading it with the intention of finishing the series this time (or at least preparing for book 3 when it comes out). Honestly, I think what really threw me off the first time was that world-building was pretty vague, meaning the readers have to scrape together an understanding of the world by themselves.
There are a dozen interweaving plotlines taking place over the course of the book, which is probably why the book is over 500 pages long. Each of the main characters has a different goal, but most of them are trying to save their world, which has begun dying after being sealed away from the other realms. My main issue with the plot was that we didn't really get to see the world actually dying, so there wasn't much of a sense of urgency. I liked the mystery elements throughout (who is behind the Conjurations, how can a ritual to save the world be performed, etc), and I'm actually super excited about the ending this time. Even though I think the book could've been a few hundred pages shorter, I just enjoyed the vibes of the world and the complexity of the plotlines.
There are way more characters in this book than I remembered, but I'm realizing that I only really like the minor characters. The story follows four noble houses, so there are four "main" characters. However, the siblings of the main characters and some specific other characters get special attention as well. Angelica was probably my least favorite of the POV characters because she was so isolated from the other main characters. I'm interested to see how her character arc goes with Cosima, but overall I didn't connect to her. I also had issues with Taesia. I get that she's morally gray, but I've seen it done enough times now that she didn't come across as intriguing, just another selfish character who manipulates people. Even though Julian interested me as a side character (who slowly grew into a more important role), I didn't like his interactions with Taesia because they came across as almost toxic to me. I much preferred Dante's chapters to Taesia's, and I wish he'd been the more important sibling. Nik was fine as a main character, but he was a bit boring. I'm embarrassed to admit I didn't remember Fin's existence at all, but in my defense, Nik has other more pressing matters. Of the main four characters, Risha was my favorite. I felt the most connection to her (maybe because she actually had morals) and I enjoyed her investigations into Conjuration. Her budding relationship with Jas is one of the few I enjoy.
Although The City of Dusk may appear daunting in length, it's a high fantasy story filled with ruthless gods, necromancy, and mystery perfect for young adults looking to branch into the world of adult fantasy.
3.75/5