Road Worrier's Reviews > Anackire

The deep political machinations of fantasy lands can only be so interesting, as I try to connect them to my own reality or experiences. I had to look online to find where someone had scanned the maps from paper editions, as my digital editions did not include them. The maps made it slightly easier to understand, but I'm not sure the point of all this complication.

When books go into detail on torture, if I'm reading non-fiction like Alfred McCoy's "A Question of Torture (American Empire Project)" I'll push through it because it is important for me to understand what my own government does to other people with my tax money. But when it is a fiction book, that is a good reason to Bronte the book. (Bronte = stop reading halfway through even though other people might consider the book a good book.) I made it through the torture in this one, but just barely.

The highlight of the book is this quote: “Here, I am the symbol of your will. You have the power in you to survive all this, but you’ve given the power my shape. As others give the power within them the form of Anackire. But it might be another god. Any that they credit—if the Power is there to raise that god.”
“You’re saying gods are the creatures of men?”
“No. That men themselves are gods. But, fearing their own greatness, they send it from them to a distance, and must give it other names.”

I think I'm closer to 1 1/2 stars than 2 stars -- that is I'm between "I did not like it" and "It was OK", but I'm rounding up in this case. I don't really enjoy being in this world, but I do like some of the characters enough to see what they do.

Ok, finished the last little bit, I'm now firmly at 1 star. Like the first book in the series, we leave human interpersonal narrative and go off on meaningless complicated fantasy politics and history. Since I was listening to the book, I didn't know I was on the last line when I decided : I don't think I'll bother to finish this. But then it was done!