Excellent book

Empty Monsters is a standalone story about colonialism, subjugation, magic, relationships, and most of all, about people. People that you want to like, but can’t always. People that lie, to others and to themselves, and know they’re lying, and sometimes try to justify it, and sometimes don’t. People that are complex, and have bad things happen to them, and sometimes it’s their fault and sometimes it isn’t. People who are capable of great self-interest, but also guilt for it, and compassion. The writing is atmospheric, and draws one into the story and world quite well. There are occasional typos, and occasional cases of perspective flips, but these were few and easy to gloss over. The world is rich, and poor, and marshy, and hot and dry, and interesting. Magic is real, tangible and electric. In short, this book is great.

Readers who like characters that are conflicted people, who feel real and fallible will find plenty here. Those looking for a character-driven story would enjoy this one. People who enjoy stories about relationships - romantic, platonic, or familial - should check this one out. There was more romance in this book than I expected, so if that goes against your preferences, be forewarned. That said, I found it very well done; and though there are some explicit sex scenes, I didn’t find it gratuitous or overdone.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I was invested in the characters, intrigued by the magic, affronted by the injustices of the world, and engaged by the writing. I would certainly recommend this book. ( )