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ermingardenTwo days late, but here's day 5 of the book meme:
5. A book where you loved the premise but the execution left you cold
The Hands of the Emperor by Victoria Goddard
Here's part of the author's summary:
Cliopher Mdang is the personal secretary of the Last Emperor of Astandalas, the Lord of Rising Stars, the Lord Magus of Zunidh, the Sun-on-Earth, the god.
He has spent more time with the Emperor of Astandalas than any other person.
He has never once touched his lord.
He has never called him by name.
He has never initiated a conversation.
One day Cliopher invites the Sun-on-Earth home to the proverbially remote Vangavaye-ve for a holiday.
The mere invitation could have seen Cliopher executed for blasphemy.
The acceptance upends the world.
I love books about people forming friendships around/across status differences and social taboos, so I thought this would be right up my alley. Turns out, if it's up anyone's alley, it's one fifty miles away from me, across state lines and a major waterway.
As soon as the book started dealing with wider political issues – about 15% of the way in – it lost me. The takeaway I got was "Authoritarianism is OK as long as The Right People are in charge," which is something I fundamentally disagree with.chestnut_pod described Cliopher in their excellent post about this book as "Good Bismarck (Who Can Also Dance and Make Boats Perfectly)," which is absolutely spot on.
Plus, the worldbuilding wasn't very fleshed out, which is okay in a shorter book but becomes tiresome when something is over 900 pages long.
The remaining questions:
6. A book where you were dubious about the premise but loved the work
7. The most imaginative book you've seen lately
8. A book that feels like it was written just for you
9. A book that reminds you of someone
10. A book that belongs to a specific time in your mind, caught in amber
11. A book that came to you at exactly the right time
12. A book that came to you at the wrong time
13. A book with a premise you'd never seen before quite like that
14. A book balanced on a knife edge
15. A snuffed candle of a book
16. A book you'd take with you while you were being ferried on dark underground rivers
17. A book that taught you something about yourself
18. A book that went after its premise like an explosion
19. A book that started a pilgrimage
20. A frigid ice bath of a book
21. A warm blanket of a book
22. A book written into your psyche
23. A book that made you bleed
24. A book that asked a question you've never had an answer to
25. A book that answered a question you never asked
26. A book you recommend but cannot love
27. A book you love but cannot recommend
28. A book you adore that people are surprised by
29. A book you detest that people are surprised by
30. A book that led you home
5. A book where you loved the premise but the execution left you cold
The Hands of the Emperor by Victoria Goddard
Here's part of the author's summary:
Cliopher Mdang is the personal secretary of the Last Emperor of Astandalas, the Lord of Rising Stars, the Lord Magus of Zunidh, the Sun-on-Earth, the god.
He has spent more time with the Emperor of Astandalas than any other person.
He has never once touched his lord.
He has never called him by name.
He has never initiated a conversation.
One day Cliopher invites the Sun-on-Earth home to the proverbially remote Vangavaye-ve for a holiday.
The mere invitation could have seen Cliopher executed for blasphemy.
The acceptance upends the world.
I love books about people forming friendships around/across status differences and social taboos, so I thought this would be right up my alley. Turns out, if it's up anyone's alley, it's one fifty miles away from me, across state lines and a major waterway.
As soon as the book started dealing with wider political issues – about 15% of the way in – it lost me. The takeaway I got was "Authoritarianism is OK as long as The Right People are in charge," which is something I fundamentally disagree with.
chestnut_pod described Cliopher in their excellent post about this book as "Good Bismarck (Who Can Also Dance and Make Boats Perfectly)," which is absolutely spot on. Plus, the worldbuilding wasn't very fleshed out, which is okay in a shorter book but becomes tiresome when something is over 900 pages long.
The remaining questions:
6. A book where you were dubious about the premise but loved the work
7. The most imaginative book you've seen lately
8. A book that feels like it was written just for you
9. A book that reminds you of someone
10. A book that belongs to a specific time in your mind, caught in amber
11. A book that came to you at exactly the right time
12. A book that came to you at the wrong time
13. A book with a premise you'd never seen before quite like that
14. A book balanced on a knife edge
15. A snuffed candle of a book
16. A book you'd take with you while you were being ferried on dark underground rivers
17. A book that taught you something about yourself
18. A book that went after its premise like an explosion
19. A book that started a pilgrimage
20. A frigid ice bath of a book
21. A warm blanket of a book
22. A book written into your psyche
23. A book that made you bleed
24. A book that asked a question you've never had an answer to
25. A book that answered a question you never asked
26. A book you recommend but cannot love
27. A book you love but cannot recommend
28. A book you adore that people are surprised by
29. A book you detest that people are surprised by
30. A book that led you home
