Sunday, May 3, 2020

Seven Endless Forests by April Genevieve Tucholke

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0374307091/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&SubscriptionId=1MGPYB6YW3HWK55XCGG2&linkCode=ll1&tag=doyoudogear-20&linkId=0fa1f7964e09ebf6e28ac7060d34a14a&language=en_US
Synopsis (via Goodreads): In this gorgeous standalone companion to the critically acclaimed fantasy, The Boneless Mercies, April Tucholke spins a bold and blood-hungry retelling of the King Arthur legend that is perfect for fans of Naomi Novik, Garth Nix, and Laini Taylor.

On the heels of a devastating plague, Torvi’s sister, Morgunn, is stolen from the family farm by Uther, a flame-loving Fremish wolf-priest who leads a pack of ragged, starving girls. Torvi leaves the only home she’s ever known, and joins a shaven-skulled druid and a band of roaming Elsh artists known as the Butcher Bards. They set out on a quest to rescue Torvi’s sister, and find a mythical sword.

On their travels, Torvi and her companions will encounter magical night wilds and mystical Drakes who trade in young men. They will sing rowdy Elshland ballads in a tree-town tavern, and find a mysterious black tower in an Endless Forest. They will fight alongside famous Vorseland archers and barter with Fremish wizards. They will feast with rogue Jade Fell children in a Skal Mountain cave, and seek the help of a Pig Witch. They will face wild, dangerous magic that leads to love, joy, tragedy, and death.

Torvi set out to rescue a sister, but she may find it’s merely the first step toward a life that is grander and more glorious than anything she could have imagined.


๐‘‹๐‘‹๐‘‹

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product.

The cover and world-building were lovely, but that's really all this book has going for it. The characters were flat and frustrating, and the plot was nearly nonexistent. We spend most of the book walking from one place to the next, and very few exciting things happen along the way. However, the descriptions of the world were stellar and provided a clear view into Tucholke's world. (Although, I would have liked to learn more about the giant trolls.)

Torvi was like a piece a bread. It's useful and can provide sustenance, but there's nothing really remarkable about it. Where was her passion? Her drive? What did she love? I felt as if I barely knew her, and we essentially traveled together for months. The author drops crumbs about her family and their history, but it's never really expanded on. (I wanted to know more about her father and his side of the family, and why her mother favored Morgunn.)

Honestly, Seven Endless Forests felt more like an outline than an actual book. If something exciting happened, it was over after a page. The conflicts were brief and they were resolved with little-to-no struggle or hardship. There was a really interesting tower in one of the forests that required them to "fly" to the top and enter through a window (think Rapunzel, but with trippy mushrooms), which sounded promising. I was looking forward to what would happen once they were inside, but it was over before it could really start (don't even get me started on how they figured out how to access the tower). The ghost of a witch forms from the dust and grime, and then they jump out of the tower to safety. Boom. Over. There was no battle, no plan to fight the witch and rid the tower of her evil presence, just them taking what they wanted and leaving.

It was also weird how quickly they became friends and lovers. They'll meet someone, and suddenly they're BFFs or kissing in a corner. It was equally hard to believe that people were always so incredibly welcoming and easygoing. Taverns are notoriously boisterous places, yet the ones they visited were uneventful. Were they lively and merry? Yes. However, there were no brawls, and no shady dealings transpired under dirty tables. They were ran by pretty men and women, groups of siblings, and everyone was happy. I'm not saying it's impossible, but there was just something lacking from all of their adventures. I didn't feel like they were on a quest, merely walking around in an eerily beautiful world. They talk about the dangers, and tell stories about past atrocities, but never experience them for themselves.

Most of what they did was simply unbelievable. I doubt Torvi and Gyda would have picked up on the Butcher Bards' knife fighting as quickly as they did. I also rolled my eyes whenever something conveniently happened, or information fell into their laps. They never had to work for anything. They sang their songs, told their stories, and moved on. Even when they are given specific instructions, and warned what would happen if they veered from the path, no one listened. Torvi went into the one tent she was supposed to avoid, and they left the tunnel when they heard children's laughter behind fallen rocks. Both events proved beneficial to the group, so why were they given ominous warnings? It didn't make sense. If they were told bad things would happen, then I feel like something bad should've happened.

When Torvi and team finally reach Esca's Hall, they talk about being the first people to set foot inside since the sagas (I think that's supposed to translate into centuries). However, I found that hard to believe. If Uther knew about it, surely others did too. From what I could tell, there were plenty of Vorse who would've loved the jarldom. It seemed unrealistic for their journey to have been so easy. Long, but ultimately not difficult. People died, but no one we knew or cared about (sounds harsh, but it's true). To be honest, I didn't really care for any of the characters๐‘‹main or secondary๐‘‹they were simply there.

My favorite part? Torvi tells a wizard she'll never have children when he asks for her firstborn, but then she seeks him out in the middle of the night for sex. She then goes on and on about how magical it was. Duh? He's a wizard? But also... what the hell is wrong with you? Then she wants to know if Madoc is upset (someone she's grown close to), but he's not. He understands, and she thinks he's great for it. Wonderful!

Everything that happened between Torvi and her sister was just too much. It was too unbelievable. It was sad at first, but then finding Morgunn became less important to her, because the journey was suddenly what mattered. She was REALLY LIVING with her found family, and having a meaningful quest is what life's all about! Right? Right! Then Torvi finds her sister, doesn't like what she sees, and simply stops wanting to help her. She's just lost now? I hated that aspect of the story, and how the sword was eventually pulled from the tree. What the hell is up with that anyways? What purpose did it serve?

Basically, if they needed help or an answer to a question, one would present itself. There was hardly any fighting, the grief was minimal and short-lived, and the bad guys were almost always helpful. It was all very frustrating. I kept reading because I thought there would be some sort of satisfying conclusion at the end, but it just made me angry. I wish it had been a physical copy so I could have tossed it across the room. In the end, the story was simply too convenient and lacked substance, and the characters were too dull to warrant any emotion or concern on my part. (★★⋆☆☆)

32 comments:

  1. I think I had trouble getting into Boneless Mercies, so I don't know if I'd try this one. Although once again this has a beautiful cover! Guess it didn't work for you though. Thanks for the honest review!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have a copy of Boneless Mercies (don't ask me why I didn't read it fist, haha), and now I'm not sure if I want to read it. Both covers are lovely, but the character development in this one was severely lacking. I have to care what happens to the people I'm reading about!

      Delete
  2. Wow.. this cover looks stunning. I love is so unique, I'm sad to hear that you didn't like it though.

    Beena @ Beena Khan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I liked the concept! I'm not sure I would classify it as a King Arthur retelling (the similarities were small and vague), but the world-building was fantastic. It just felt more like an outline than a fleshed-out story.

      Delete
  3. The cover is pretty. Sorry to hear that the story was disappointing, though. I need character development, not just great world-building, and for things to be believable. Great honest review, Lindsi.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I like character-driven books, which is one of the reasons I really struggled with this one. The world-building alone was enough to keep me turning the pages, but I was still disappointed in the end. It lacked believability and I wanted to see the characters grow and evolve. The cover is STUNNING! It's what initially drew me to the book. :)

      Delete
  4. Aww, man! I'm sorry you didn't enjoy this one. It definitely sounds like an amazing concept, but not executed all that well. It seems like the story was almost surface-level. I hope you have better luck with your next read!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My next several reads have been about the same, which makes me sad. I don't have a lot of time to read these days, and it's been ages since a book was unputdownable. I want something worth devouring and losing sleep over! ;)

      Delete
  5. I saw the cover and was thinking how much I'd love to read it! Unfortunately, as you've proven, covers don't always align with quality of the story. I'm so sorry this one was disappointing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. This is the second time this week that a cover has deceived me! If this book had been as detailed as its cover, I might have enjoyed it more. The characters just felt too flat and the conflicts were either too simple, or easily averted.

      Delete
  6. I once read this artcle about fantasy taverns and what they would be like so yes when I read your thoughts, haha, exactly. Those taverns sounds way too nice

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Right?? I'm not saying it's impossible... just HIGHLY unlikely! Everyone was friendly, they all shared stories and songs, and no one was stabbed or robbed. They simply introduced themselves to strangers, who were all too happy to help them with their quests.

      Delete
  7. The summary had me getting excited about this one, but it seems like the book just doesn't work. As its a spinoff, I wonder if the author was obligated to write it for the publisher. It doesn't sounds like her heart was really in it, and that impacted the characters too.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The cover alone had me excited for this one! ;) I don't know if the author was contractually obligated to write a second book, but I've heard that people had similar issues with the first one.

      Delete
  8. Just when I was all excited it was a King Arthur variation. This sounds pitiful. Thanks for the heads up, Lindsi.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I know! I love King Arthur retellings (or even when a book is just loosely based on the story). The Sword in the Stone was one of my favorite animated movies growing up. :)

      Delete
  9. Boneless Mercies was very atmospheric and light on plot-- but I did like it. It's also a walking from place to place book- but it was short, so it got to the point fairly quick. Even though I liked it, I don't know if I want to read another book like it. It wasn't the funnest book to read.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That sounds a lot like this one–VERY atmospheric with little else. I didn't like all of the walking around, especially since nothing really happened to them on their journey. I don't think Torvi ends up having to kill anyone, even though her companions had to, and she was trained to defend herself. She seemed to slip by unscathed every time, which was frustrating. A lot of the story simply didn't make sense, or happened too seamlessly to be believable. Huge letdown!

      Delete
  10. Well, bummer, because I love this cover.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Aww that's a bummer about this one. I love love the cover and I was hoping this one would be good, I was thinking of picking it up. I might just wait now a bit... I'm not usually a fan either when the romance is too fast, which seems to be a trend sometimes lately in some of these books.

    "think Rapunzel, but with trippy mushrooms)," haha that made me laugh. That definitely has promise!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you could really call it a romance... EVERYONE loved EVERYONE. Sometimes romantically, but it was mostly platonic relationships that were formed. When people do turn into couples, it was vague and happened out of nowhere.

      Right??? The tower scene had so much promise, but it was massively disappointing.

      Delete
  12. That is sad. The world sounds lovely too bad the story felt more like an outline.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's a world I can definitely see myself living in! You just have to find the right questing companions. ;)

      Delete
  13. I'm sorry you didn't enjoy this one more!
    I loved your analogy about Torvi though - it's great writing. It's pretty weird how she says she'll never have kids, then looks to the wizard for sex o_O
    Thank you for sharing the review!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha, thanks! I know, right? "Sure you can have my firstborn, because I'm never having kids!" *15 minutes later* "Yo! Wizard! Let's bone!" How did she not see that coming???

      Delete
  14. I am pretty sure that this one would not be for me. I have read one of her books and just didn't care for it and have wondered if I should give her another try. I don't think I will be rushing to read more of her work anytime soon.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I actually have a copy of Boneless Mercies, but I'm hesitant to pick it up. After reading several reviews, people seemed to have similar complaints about the characters and plot. It's really sad, since both stories had so much potential.

      Delete
  15. Yep, think I'll be giving this one a miss. ;-) Loved reading your review, of course, Lindsi. x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! I wish this one had been a more enjoyable read. :)

      Delete
  16. I love the cover, but it doesn't sound like a book I'd spend time with. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. ๐Ÿ‘✨

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The cover is LOVELY. I would frame it. The story was... not as lovely. ;)

      Delete

Click the "Notify me" box if you want to be notified when someone responds!

“Stuff and nonsense. Nonsense and stuff and much of a muchness and nonsense all over again. We are all mad here, don't you know?”
― Marissa Meyer, Heartless