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Inda (Inda #1)

Sherwood Smith (Goodreads Author)

really liked it 4.0 · Rating details · 3,767 Ratings · 323 Reviews

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.

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Hardcover, 576 pages

Published August 1st 2006 by DAW

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Jul 14, 2017 Mayim de Vries rated it really liked it

“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 recomm “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. (view spoiler).

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). (view spoiler)

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 RTC
4. Treason's Shore RTC ...more

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Jan 24, 2018 Scott Hitchcock rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Robin Hobb fans

Recommended to Scott by: Bill

Shelves: epic-fantasy

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 w ...more

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Nov 01, 2014 Mpauli rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: orga_read-in-2015, rating_5-stars, orga_favourites

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.

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Nov 02, 2007 John rated it really liked it · review of another edition

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, 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. ...more

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Jan 30, 2018 Olivia rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

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 ever ...more

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Jan 24, 2018 Tammie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-buddy-reads, adult, adult-fantasy, fantasy, series-abandoned, abandoned

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 fo 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 ...more

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Dec 05, 2008 Michael rated it it was ok

Recommends it for: People who read very quickly

Recommended to Michael by: Grabbed it off the shelf

The first thing I have to say about this novel is that it is very much the first in a series. Absolutely nothing was resolved in the end. Nothing at all. In fact, there wasn't much of a story either, which is quite a challenge for over 500 pages.

Here's the rub: I still want to read the next one in the series. A cast of hundreds of points of view, a meandering plot that seemed to jump forward at a ridiculous pace, then slow down just as fast, as if the entire novel is one giant montage. Worked fo The first thing I have to say about this novel is that it is very much the first in a series. Absolutely nothing was resolved in the end. Nothing at all. In fact, there wasn't much of a story either, which is quite a challenge for over 500 pages.

Here's the rub: I still want to read the next one in the series. A cast of hundreds of points of view, a meandering plot that seemed to jump forward at a ridiculous pace, then slow down just as fast, as if the entire novel is one giant montage. Worked for the movie Fight Club, but does not work here.

Still, I don't want to, but I'm actually considering spending my hard earned dollars on the next in this abyssmal series, which is probably a testament to the author's particular skills.

How can I sum this up for you? There are approximately five novels in here, all summarized wonderfully, but losing their power in the summary. I don't want to spoil it for you, because I am definitely recommending this for hard-core fantasy readers, who often read so much and so fast that this novel/series would be perfect for them. Let's just say that it feels like Sherwood Smith started a novel, got bored with it, and hit the fast-forward button on her word-processor to get to the next section.

I guess that would be fine, if it weren't for the fact that the author never actually settles on a story to tell. We just keep pinging all over the place, to the effect that we, as readers, are never truly invested in what's going on in the story, and simply keep reading to see what happens next. Sherwood tries to build suspense, but I have a hard time caring because the characters have not had time to evolve in my mind, and therefore I really don't give a shit that they're in danger.

I think I've made my point, so let's move on to craft, something that makes or breaks a review for me.

As far as I can tell, Sherwood Smith has never been trained to write. At a sentence level, it's obvious that Smith is quite enamored with language, and likes to throw in volumously poetic phrases to end chapters or sections using some sort of a literary bang. But it's a gimmick: the blatant attempt at manipulation is insulting to mean. I more often roll my eyes than say, "How perfect." That's what should be the author's principle concern: not what sounds pleasant or is neat, but what fits the story. And the story is so completely barebones that these literary indulgences seem completely out of place, like Paris fashions at a PTA meeting. I stole that from a commercial.

The world does not really hold together, with its unexplainedly accepting sexual mores, its strange equality amonst the sexes. I admit that it is a refreshing change from the unremittingly masculine fantasy of most spec-fic, but it's just so polished and pretty that's it's almost passive-aggressive. The internal and external politics are less than intuitive, and constantly bashed over the reader's head. I'll let you decide on that one.

Let me reiterate the fact that NOTHING IS EVER AT STAKE. The main character(s) goals are constantly thwarted, but only as plotpoints. Inda never fails, never has to learn from his failures, is always perfect from his extreme youth through his teens. He just always succeeds. For God's sake, Horatio Hornblower suffered less success in his own storied carreer.

What saves this novel from the dismal depths of a 1 is the simple fact that, despite hating the book and never being able to read it for even the short train ride from my work to my house, I still want to find out what happens next. I must be a little masochistic. Read this if you read quickly and voraciously, as it passes the time. Bear in mind, it's definitely a book for teenagers. ...more

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Mar 08, 2016 wishforagiraffe rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2016

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 ...more

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Jul 08, 2011 Cecily rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, favorite, inda, nautical, series

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 y 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. ...more

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May 25, 2015 Sara Price. rated it really liked it

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.

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Sep 30, 2017 Lundos rated it it was ok

Shelves: fantasy

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 c 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.
(view spoiler)

Plotlines
(view spoiler)

There are some interesting areas and a few surprises, so hopefully the next one is better.
EDIT: And the world building is very good. ...more

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Jan 11, 2015 Kaitlin rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: my-sff-faves

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 mult 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! ...more

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Sep 27, 2013 Mike (the Paladin) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

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/knig ...more

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Apr 22, 2017 Scott rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, favorites

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 ...more

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Jun 05, 2018 Tamar rated it really liked it

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 ...more

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Aug 08, 2011 Ranting Dragon rated it liked it

Shelves: dan

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 ...more

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Feb 04, 2018 Amanda rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

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 throu ...more

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Dec 02, 2016 Francesca Forrest rated it it was amazing

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 broa 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. ...more

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Mar 13, 2015 Kevin Xu rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: did-not-finish

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 ...more

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May 04, 2009 Sherwood Smith added it · (Review from the author)

Shelves: my-books

It's my book. I 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.

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Jan 31, 2018 C.P. Cabaniss rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

That ending really has me conflicted. There was a lot there that seemed to promise great things ahead, but then I remember that the rest of the book was rather a slog for me. So should I continue or not? Right now I'm leaning toward not.

I was really interested in reading this book. I heard a lot of great things and it had such a promising description. Then I started it, and it wasn't that it was bad, it just didn't grab my attention. The writing was odd, and not because it used an omniscient st ...more

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Dec 02, 2014 Patti's Book Nook rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy

3.5-3.75 stars

Dislikes: Overly confusing names, vast time span and what was happening simultaneously in other parts of the Kingdom (even though it was fun to see Inda grow from a boy to a man!), some tedious/lagging sections on ship terms and battles.

Likes: The well-developed characters, the various histories of the ruling families, exploration of Homosexuality, pirate life, adventures at sea, and the super cool fighting technique the women utilized- the Odni.

I have conflicting thoughts on this 3.5-3.75 stars

Dislikes: Overly confusing names, vast time span and what was happening simultaneously in other parts of the Kingdom (even though it was fun to see Inda grow from a boy to a man!), some tedious/lagging sections on ship terms and battles.

Likes: The well-developed characters, the various histories of the ruling families, exploration of Homosexuality, pirate life, adventures at sea, and the super cool fighting technique the women utilized- the Odni.

I have conflicting thoughts on this book. There was a great deal I enjoyed, but other parts felt unnecessarily difficult to wade through. However, I appreciated the complexity and imagination Sherwood Smith used to create this world.

The first fifty pages require intense concentration due to the character names. Each person is referred to several ways depending on what region they are from, their official title, if they've been to war, and their nickname. The confusion lies in hearing them referred to by their nickname for many chapters, then reverting to their actual name when addressed formally. A glossary is quite useful to help sort this matter out. Similar to other fantasy novels with challenging names, if you are willing to make the intellectual investment, the story will flow far more smoothly. This has a slower plot and pace, which I don't mind being a literary fiction lover! The book is full of political maneuvers, infighting, and staging for battles.

The time arc in this is quite broad, spanning a little over eight years. This could be confusing since months would occasionally pass between chapters, but the character development didn't suffer for it. Any major changes were always discussed in depth. The rest of people's personalities you assumed stayed the same.

I enjoyed the book being split into two parts- this separation signified a major life change for Inda and helped take the book in a new direction. I've seen some reviews criticizing the omniscient 3rd person voice that was used through the novel, but I thought it fit the story with it's myriad of characters. I believe different chapters for all the voices would have been a tangled mess!

I have never read a book about pirates and the seafaring life. Nor have I read a book in this genre that spent time talking about homosexuality. I've read some that mention it vaguely in passing, and even then it is typically a minor character. Smith did a great job at highlighting how sexuality plays a part in one's existence and life satisfaction, without making it be the sole defining characteristic of that person. Basically, we are far more than what happens behind closed doors. Smith fleshed out her characters very well- from backgrounds, to insecurities, triumphs, and more.

I liked finding out about all the different families and their histories. I found the King's brother to be a particularly interesting person when it came to his self loathing and personal ambition.

While this novel took me longer to read than I had hoped, it is quite impressive and I will be continuing with the series. After some initial brain strain (on my part anyway!), the story took off and I felt more invested in the character's lives. I would recommend to anyone looking for a deeply intellectual, immersive Fantasy read. ...more

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Apr 10, 2012 Beth Cato rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: in, 2009, fantasy

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 w ...more

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Nov 06, 2016 Matt S rated it really liked it

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 ti ...more

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Dec 22, 2014 Jenni rated it liked it

Shelves: read-finished-in-2015

I did like this. I didn't love it. I think I went into it expecting it to be much more fast paced and action packed, but it's definitely a much slower paced book. It took me quite awhile to make sense of all the names and to get a handle on who was who and what meant what. I don't really understand the point in fantasy books to come up with insanely complicated new names for things that already have perfectly useful names that one can pronounce and doesn't need a glossary to understand. That's n ...more

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Apr 09, 2015 Tara rated it really liked it

Inda started out a little slow, but I think that really worked for it. There are a lot of characters and different plot-lines (all leading to the same point) to get to know and I think Smith did a fantastic job building everything up and getting me invested in the characters. Also, the world-building is pretty cnetralized for the moment, but there are many hints of other cultures and races elsewhere in the world and I'm looking forward to finding out more. Now that all the set-up is there, I am ...more

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May 22, 2008 Jeffrey rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: fantasy fans

Shelves: fantasy, read-in-2008

A very good fantasy, hard to put down. Finely draw characterizations, nasty evildoers. The kind of book you wish was around more often. The first book of a trilogy. The second in paper and the third in hardcover will be published in July.

A little long and a tad slow, but because of the complexity of story and characters and the huge world building.

Worth the effort.

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Sep 17, 2016 Megan rated it it was amazing

Shelves: school, military, bi-characters, bromance, epic, family-drama, female-author, gay-characters, lesbian-characters, multiple-pov

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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Feb 22, 2014 Monica rated it really liked it

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.

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Jan 04, 2010 Amanda Davies rated it really liked it

I didn't really know what to expect from this book, but in the end I enjoyed it quite a bit. It took a while for me to get into it, and I'll start by explaining why, and other things I disliked.

I am not at all a fan of fantasy authors who throw a bunch of made-up terms at you in the beginning of their novels, forcing you to 'sink or swim', memorize these terms or be confused for the rest of the book. Yes, there's a short glossary in the back, but I really don't want to be thrown out of the flow I didn't really know what to expect from this book, but in the end I enjoyed it quite a bit. It took a while for me to get into it, and I'll start by explaining why, and other things I disliked.

I am not at all a fan of fantasy authors who throw a bunch of made-up terms at you in the beginning of their novels, forcing you to 'sink or swim', memorize these terms or be confused for the rest of the book. Yes, there's a short glossary in the back, but I really don't want to be thrown out of the flow of the story because I've forgotten the author's special word for 'prince' and need to go back and check what it means. This book does that, and that was the main reason I had a hard time getting involved in the story at first.

I appreciate the world-building and thought that goes into made-up languages, but frankly, they rarely add all that much to a book. A couple words here or there would be fine, but too many and it feels like the author is asking you to learn this language before you can enjoy the story they want to tell. English already has perfectly good words to use for most terms, it'd be much easier for everyone to use them.

Also, many of the characters have two or more names used, and it's pretty annoying to have to spend a few minutes trying to figure out who a character is only to realize that they've been around the whole time, but they're usually called by a different name.

That said, I actually did really enjoy this book. Once I slogged through enough of the beginning to have somewhat of a grasp on the terms and nicknames, the story was good enough to pull me right in. I even stayed up past my bedtime, wanting to know what would happen next to the characters. I did find the omniscient POV a bit difficult to get used to, but I think it was used fairly well.

Unlike some, the author's treatment of sexuality really made me happy. I openly adore fantasy worlds that actually contain orientations other than 'so straight parallel lines would envy them', and this world definitely had that, as well as a relaxed attitude to sexuality without having everyone being pansexual and polyamorous (not that there's anything wrong with that, but as a monogamous lesbian I get tired of the seeming polarity between 'nothing but heterosexual monogamy' and 'nothing but polyamorous pansexuality' in fantasy novels, and I'm always overjoyed to see books that are on the middle path). That was one of the little things about the book that I loved, personally.

As for the plot, I felt that it started a little slowly, but once you were on the way, it just kept building steam. The characters were interesting and the author didn't flinch from putting them in real danger and even killing them, and I particularly enjoyed her use of female characters in a society that's very military-based - giving them so much to do besides raise babies.

The story isn't resolved at all at the end of the first book, but I don't expect that from the first book in a series. I've already bought the next book, though I won't be able to read it for some time, and if the series continues to be this interesting I expect I'll be buying the last two pretty soon. ...more

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Fantasy Buddy Reads: Inda [Jan 20, 2018]	95	55	Feb 02, 2018 04:39PM
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About Sherwood Smith

Sherwood Smith

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I am a writer, but I'm here 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.

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Quotes from Inda

“When you love something enough time races ahead like the wind chasing autumn leaves, sending them skipping and dancing out of reach, no matter how fast you run. But when you want something and must wait to get it, time stops” — 1 likes

“Dun came to realize that a man whose entire purpose for living is to command a war will not want to spend his life waiting for its possibility. He was going to have one, and he was going to see to it—after all, it made military sense—that he would have it on his own terms, the ones with which he expected to win” — 0 likes

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