The Gods Must Burn

Look, I'll confess, giving a dark forest fantasy a comp to Princess Mononoke is a surefire way to snag my interest. There are so many fantastical threads woven into this book that absolutely can tie me into a story, but even with all those pieces I struggled to hold on with this one.

I think at the end of the day, I just wasn't invested. The world felt flat, the side-characters read like props, and the protagonist's PTSD lacked emotional depth. Normally even with all those pulled threads, I can find something in a story that catches me. I will finish almost any book no matter its flaws but I had to convince myself not to DNF. Glad I did finish it in the end because the redeeming final quarter was perfect and did so much heavy lifting for the book. I just wish the first half had had more of that magic.