jayecard's reviews
171 reviews

you know it isn't actually forbidden to write couples with actual chemistry. how am I supposed to root for a love interest that flirts, then goes "no!!! we can't!! it's not allowed!!!" then continues flirting. this book started with a taylor competition that was solid and fun and then suddenly they're on a journey with fairy tale like trials and somehow these trials manage to be boring and dull. I am so disappointed.

I picked this book up after seeing a lot of reviews calling it super cozy, wholesome and comforting. Those reviews are correct, but in my opinion, sell the book short.

Viv is an orc looking to leave the warrior life expected of her as a big monster, and pursue her new found passion for coffee. While some people are making this complicated, we are mostly following her tale of building up the coffeeshop from scratch.

And that tale is very cozy and wholesome, but I would never think to reduce it to that. Viv searches for a new life, a life that will give her the kind of happiness and fulfillment that her old life never could. She's genuinely passionate about coffee, and despite her rugged appearance and violent background, is so so gentle. And the book doesn't sell her struggles short at all: Starting a new life, forming a new self, that isn't easy, and it takes Viv time and understanding.

It also didn't go past me that the main characters are all creatures with some negative connotations: Viv is an orc, Tandri is a succubus, and two more protagonists not pictured on the cover are a Hob (which I imagine stands for Hobgoblin) and a rattkin. Everyone has their own story and their own struggles, but they all in some way or another don't quite fit into the expectations of others and have to fight prejudice, and they come together to build a place where they can follow their passions and find happiness without being judged for who they are. There are multiple moments where Viv struggles with other's perceptions of her, and the story is also her story of leaving what is expected of an orc - by orcs and non-orcs - for a life that is wholly hers.

All of this adds so much depth to this already amazing story. The cover says "high fantasy and low stakes", but the stakes never felt so low, they felt higher than some battles over entire kingdoms or worlds that I've read, because in every conflict, we understand what is at stake: The coffeeshop, the people around it, and Viv's entire new life and identity - her possibility to change and make her life hers.

The long and short of it is that this book is so much more than a cozy read. It's an amazing story of creating the life you want, in spite of everything. The world is described so vividly, and the cast is instantly endearing. I will marry Viv, by the way. If you like the part in D&D where you all start out meeting in a tavern, this is the book for you.

[Netgalley - Rezensionsexemplar]

In "Das Zeitalter der Drachen" geht es um Nireka, die ihre Stadt verlässt, weil ein Drache hinter ihr her ist, und um Aylen, die vor langer Zeit das Geheimnis der Drachen entdeckt hat, und jetzt selber einer ist.

Interessantes Konzept. Wenn das Buch nur...gut wäre.

Die Handlung ist orientierungslos, und der Stil indirekt. Wir verbringen die meiste Zeit in Aylens Vergangenheit, die uns ohne viel Persönlichkeit, Gefühl, oder Detail gebracht wird. Es liest sich, als würde man alles aus 100m Entfernung betrachten: Man kriegt alles mit, aber man ist nicht wirklich dabei. Gerade die Flashbacks klingen eher wie Berichte: X tat dieses und dann jenes. Daraufhin geschah Y. Und sehr wenig Dialog.

Eine der grundlegenden Aspekte des Geschichtenschreibens ist, dass man die Szenen zeigt, die relevant sind, und die auslässt, die irrelevant sind. Dieses Buch macht es die meiste Zeit genau umgekehrt. Auf dem Weg zu einem großen Ziel kommt Aylen von Hindernis zu Hindernis und löst alles mit Magie, ohne dass man als LeserIn das Gefühl kriegt, dass wirklich was weitergeht. Die Aufgaben füllen die Zeit, aber sie tragen nichts bei zu Charakter und Welt. Und als Aylen zu ihrem großen Ziel kommt...wird DIESE Szene übersprungen. Wieso???

Ich habe mich irgendwann nur noch durch "Aylen kommt zu magischem Hindernis x und löst es mit Magie" Szene um Szene geschleppt. Dadurch sind alle positiven Punkte auch verblasst, die paar Momente, die gut waren, sind im ganzen Morast untergegangen. Wenn dieses Buch das einzige High Fantasy-Buch oder das einzige Buch mit Drachen ist, dass man zur Verfügung hat, kann man es lesen, aber empfehlen kann ich es leider nicht.