Tag: amreading

This YA book was an intense rite of passage/coming of age story. I was excited to read it based on the stellar book blurb as provided on Amazon. It was easy to read, so easy in fact that I finished it in a single afternoon. So, even if you’re pressed for time, this book is a good one to snag up and devour. In this article, we’ll go over what worked and what maybe needed some work.

The Plot

The plot was super simple and direct. In fact, it seemed so linear, and so clear, that there was little doubt that it needed to go any other way. One thing led to another, which led to another, in a simple and logical sequence. Spoilers: There weren’t any plot twists that the reader couldn’t have seen coming. And that was delightful. Many works of fiction these days have a “plot twist” for the sake of sensationalism and it comes across as not well done. So, I appreciated that this book went straight to the point without muddling up the waters.

What do you think? Does a book need a plot twist to be “good”?

Relationships and Retribution

The story deals a lot in relationships; be that father-daughter, daughter-mother, romantic, friendship, or even enemies. Basically, Warrior of the Wild has a lot to say about how we interact with other people. In fact, it comes off preachy at times with how much it has to say about interacting with others. That wasn’t a major sticking point for me, but it was an interesting thing to note.

SPOILERS

My biggest beef with the book is that the MCs father gets off scot-free. HE GETS OFF SCOT-FREE. Her mother does get a measure of punishment, but her father is the leader of the village and while the MC stands up to him, she doesn’t actually do anything to him. So, yeah. I took a bit of issue with that.

However, the rest of those that caused her grief got punishment and she also made positive relationships with other people to help her gain confidence in herself. Basically, she ends in a much healthier place than where she started and she seems much more competent in expressing her own needs.

Logic to Overcome Enemies

All of the victories the characters had felt earned which is a sticking point for many people in fantasy. Each enemy had a specific trick to overcome them and the MC and her friends had to figure out what that trick was to complete that task. In other words, it felt fulfilling every time they defeated an enemy.

The final opposition was especially fulfilling because it was a task that was assigned to the MC pretty much at the beginning of the book and it was something that had been building up until that final moment. After that, the book wrapped up quickly, so it was clear that this was the conflict’s focal point. And at no point was it clearer that the MC was the one with the skill and know-how required to defeat this enemy.

If you haven’t already, follow the page and subscribe so you can get regular updates regarding the latest reads/writes.