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The Goblin Emperor Katherine Addison 0884810158898 Books

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The Goblin Emperor Katherine Addison 0884810158898 Books

A lot of people have been talking about this book, so while it was on sale I picked it up.

The main complaint I'd heard was that it was boring, but I'd also heard that it was excellently written, and sometimes books with a lot of depth get dismissed as "boring" by people who are used to shallow action. What I found was that it was dull sometimes, but I still wanted to keep reading.

I think what people are reacting to is that there's not a lot of conflict, and what conflict there is is often over quickly, and frequently the main character wins the conflict without a lot of struggle. This is the opposite of how to write a fast-moving thriller. It wouldn't be true to say that nothing happens in the book; plenty of things happen, it's full of things happening, but most of them aren't conflicts. It's rich with worldbuilding and description, there are dozens and dozens of characters with long, confusing names (I stopped trying to keep track and just let them wash over me in the end), and even the solving of the murder mystery happens offstage. This last is inevitable, since the viewpoint stays with the title character throughout, and he is stuck in the palace while other people do things like solve murder mysteries on his behalf.

The overall feeling I got from this book was similar to the main character's situation: overwhelmed with the complexities of the court and its denizens, occasionally bored, but wanting to press forward anyway.

Someone, I suspect the editor, has wisely given it very short chapters, so at least there are frequent breaks and more of a sense of progress.

So far I've damned it with faint praise, but it is a beautifully written novel by someone with considerable command of her craft. It's heartening to me to see that something that isn't filled with conflict can get published and command an audience. The book is like an enormous tapestry, every stitch intricate and precise. It's not exciting, but I don't think it's meant to be. It's meant to be beautiful, and it is.


Tags : The Goblin Emperor [Katherine Addison] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The youngest, half-goblin son of the Emperor has lived his entire life in exile, distant from the Imperial Court and the deadly intrigue that suffuses it. But when his father and three sons in line for the throne are killed in an accident,Katherine Addison,The Goblin Emperor,Tor Books,076532699X,Fantasy - General,Fantasy fiction.,AMERICAN SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY,Fantasy,Fantasy fiction,Fiction,Fiction - Fantasy,Fiction Fantasy General,Fiction-Fantasy,GENERAL,General Adult,Literary,United States

The Goblin Emperor Katherine Addison 0884810158898 Books Reviews

Emperor Varenechibel can't stand the sight of his fourth wife. Everything about her, from her dark goblin skin, to her peculiar religious practice grates against him. But, being the emperor of all the Elflands, he had to marry the woman for political reasons. Shortly after she bares him a son, the emperor banishes her and the boy to some remote corner of the empire, where she eventually dies. The boy, now eight, is placed in the care of a distant cousin, also banished from court.

The youngest and least loved of the Emperor's sons, Maia Drazhar knows life with his sadistic cousin is the only one he will ever lead. Born with dark gray skin and all but forgotten, he will never be welcome at court.

Until a horrible accident leaves the emperor and all his sons dead, except Maia.

Unschooled in the complexities of court life, Maia is thrust into the world of power and intrigue. Everyone wants something. Everyone has an ulterior motive. No one is his friend. He must decide quickly who he can trust, and who he can rely upon. Should he rule with aloof indifference to protect his own emotional well-being, as other emperors have done, or forge a new path? Will he even be allowed to become a knowledgeable and just leader for the people of this vast and diverse empire?

Beautiful prose and extraordinary world building, complete with several invented languages and cultures, make this book a joy to read. Imagine mixing Paul Atreides of Dune with Octavia Butler's Kindered in a Steampunk Downton Abby and throwing in Elves and Goblins. The novel is filled with wonderful, funny characters, each brought to life by Addison's loving hand. The protagonist, Maia, is instantly likable and carries much of the success of this novel. You can't help but root for him. Although some criticize the novel as being plotless, the story is heavily character driven and so the movements of the book are mostly about internal struggle. For me, the plot is very present.

The reading is light and hopeful but Addison touches on many of the darker issues of our time. She includes racism, sexist, homophobia, economic justice and class struggle, but she does not dwell on any of them. She is a little heavy handed with the theme but the nature of power is a theme worth considering.

Addison said during an interview on the Sword and Laser Podcast that The Goblin Emperor will not have a sequel, but I hope she reconsiders. I would be more than happy to revisit the Unthelenase court and see how my favorite characters fared.
I finished it a few hours ago and I am still giddy with pleasure. Go buy this immediately.

The book is about the unwanted, exiled half-goblin fourth son of an elven emperor who, after his father and first three sons die in a not-Hindenburg airship crash, becomes the emperor and has to deal with court politics, angry relatives, attempts on his life and exhausting fashion. This probably already sounds fun to you, but what's so special about this book, what elevates it above most of the other books I've recently read is how fundamentally positive and full of hope it is. Maia, the protagonist, is at his core a thoughtful, decent human (well, half-elf/half-goblin) being and although he went through a lot of indignity and suffering before the book starts, he responds to every problem with a sense of compassion that I found deeply satisfying and none of it was in the least preachy or cloying.

I am so sick of the grimdark trend and this book was like stumbling upon a water truck in the middle of a desert. There are no mis-steps, no false notes. Everything works. It all comes together gorgeously. With this book Katherine Addison has hit a storytelling hole in one and she is wizard and I would fear her terrible powers if I didn't know she will use them responsibly.

The only other suggestion I have is to read the section on how the elven names work in the end of the book before you start. I didn't and I figured everything out on my own, but I think it would be easier if I read it for.
A lot of people have been talking about this book, so while it was on sale I picked it up.

The main complaint I'd heard was that it was boring, but I'd also heard that it was excellently written, and sometimes books with a lot of depth get dismissed as "boring" by people who are used to shallow action. What I found was that it was dull sometimes, but I still wanted to keep reading.

I think what people are reacting to is that there's not a lot of conflict, and what conflict there is is often over quickly, and frequently the main character wins the conflict without a lot of struggle. This is the opposite of how to write a fast-moving thriller. It wouldn't be true to say that nothing happens in the book; plenty of things happen, it's full of things happening, but most of them aren't conflicts. It's rich with worldbuilding and description, there are dozens and dozens of characters with long, confusing names (I stopped trying to keep track and just let them wash over me in the end), and even the solving of the murder mystery happens offstage. This last is inevitable, since the viewpoint stays with the title character throughout, and he is stuck in the palace while other people do things like solve murder mysteries on his behalf.

The overall feeling I got from this book was similar to the main character's situation overwhelmed with the complexities of the court and its denizens, occasionally bored, but wanting to press forward anyway.

Someone, I suspect the editor, has wisely given it very short chapters, so at least there are frequent breaks and more of a sense of progress.

So far I've damned it with faint praise, but it is a beautifully written novel by someone with considerable command of her craft. It's heartening to me to see that something that isn't filled with conflict can get published and command an audience. The book is like an enormous tapestry, every stitch intricate and precise. It's not exciting, but I don't think it's meant to be. It's meant to be beautiful, and it is.