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The Goblin Emperor (The Chronicles of Osreth, #1)

Katherine Addison

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Group Reads

* February - March Groupreads - Anthologies
By Stephen · 11 posts · 41 views

last updated Mar 27, 2023 09:03PM

* December Groupreads - Conan - Blood Of The Serpent
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last updated Dec 26, 2022 08:20AM

What Members Thought

Dec 27, 2015 Emily Randolph-Epstein rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

A beautifully crafted book. The action is subtle and in the hands of a less - skilled writer might have been slogging and boring, but is instead captivating. It was a wonderful change of pace to read a fantasy book that dealt with the day to day practical mechinations of an Empire, something usually left behind the scenes. And it was a relief to read a book set during a peaceful time in a peaceful place and not on the field of battle or in the midst of war. The conflict in The Goblin Emperor is ...more

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May 27, 2014 Shehreyar rated it really liked it

Shelves: master-apprentice, really-want-to-read, fae, steampunk, fantasy, 2014

I wanted to give this five stars, but I just can't. The protagonist was constantly ashamed/embarrassed/terrified or some other variation of the same throughout the story. I understand he's inexperienced and out of his depth, but it becomes tiresome when you come across evidence of his ineptitude after every few pages. Furthermore, he was often prone to dramatic exclamations - which he regretted immediately. It was a recurring mistake, one that the protagonist seemed unable to prevent throughout ...more

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Apr 06, 2015 Peter rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, steampunk

A refreshing new fantasy novel: not grimdark, no humans, no epic quests. Who could have thought that Byzantine court politics could be so much fun?

My main gripe: the numerous names were already hard enough to keep track of, adding all the weird titles for functions for which there are perfectly normal names (why maza for mage/wizard for example) made it not easier.
Sometimes I just read on instead of checking the character list at the end, hoping that the character that was mentioned was the one ...more

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Dec 30, 2017 Jon rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Fabulous and Intricate World-Building

I put off reading this for a while after I purchased this book. Yes, it had great reviews, but that doesn’t always mean a book is worth the acclaim.

Well, in this case, the acclaim is well-deserved!

In fact I haven’t encountered a fantasy both as well-written, beautifully developed, and detailed in ages. Ms. Addison has created a unique world of Goblins and Elves. Though there are no humans directly featured in the novel, I imagine they would be the nomadic Ba ...more

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Feb 11, 2016 Mark Rough rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi-book-group

At first I wasn't sure that I liked this book at all. As I progressed through the story, I did find myself grudgingly enjoying it. I never loved it, though. It's just too. . . naive. . . polite. . . shallow. . . This isn't a tale of murder and revenge. It's not an epic quest. It's a somewhat charming, gentle political drama that breaks away from the edgy, cynical tone that is so prevalent lately. It's like a fantasy(ish) version of "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" (something I very much needed aft ...more

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