Chapters One - Five

[Lauren, NARNMOD]

This book has 90 chapters please be patient with me as we find a good way to foster discussion without exposing people to spoilers. :)

[Kelly]

Thanks for setting this up Lauren!

I read the first five chapters last night and I'm excited to read more. The book reads really "fast" to me which I like. I'm also simultaneously reading about YA fantasy book involving magic and I think it'll be interesting to compare the two going forward.

I've read that this book has lots of West Africa influences which I feel definitely come through in the descriptions of the people and the clothing. There's a lot of exposition in these first chapters so s lot coming at you at once about different races/classes, and some new language to work through but I think that'll be easier to deal with as the book goes on.

I love the strong girl characters introduced in these chapters. The boys feel like an afterthought right now, I wonder if they'll take on larger roles.

[Lauren, NARNMOD]

I'm so happy about this book! I have struggled to find a YA series I've liked since the hunger games. But this one has pulled me in from the start. Also, I love the characters so much. Sometimes in YA they'll be snotty to pass off as cool. But I'm loving everything about this book so far.

I need to recover from the whole action sequence in chapter five. It had me wanting to scream, it was so intense. 😬💀

[Phillip]

I finished 1-5. So far, I enjoy it. An early concern is that I feel like a lot of these characters are the same person, but hopefully that will resolve itself out as the story progresses and their diversification is not evident.