Red Sister (Book of the Ancestor, Band 1)

Mark Lawrence's 'Red Sister' is an absolute gem of a book that will transport you to a fascinating and intricately crafted world filled with captivating characters and an enthralling magic system. The level of detail put into the world-building is truly impressive, and Lawrence brings to life a dystopian society that feels both fresh and familiar. The fight scenes in this book are truly intense and will have you on the edge of your seat. But beyond the action, 'Red Sister' also delivers on character development, with intriguing characters that are well fleshed out and feel real. The concept of the four mystical tribes adds another layer of intrigue to the story and keeps the reader guessing. The magic system in 'Red Sister' is simply fantastic, with the shiphearts and the hinted-at star travel adding a touch of science fiction to the fantasy genre. This combination makes for a truly unique reading experience that is both exciting and thought-provoking. At its core, 'Red Sister' is a story about friendship, purpose, and belonging. These themes are woven seamlessly throughout the narrative, making for a truly captivating read that will stay with you long after you've turned the final page. In summary, 'Red Sister' is a must-read for anyone looking for a thrilling, immersive, and thought-provoking fantasy novel. Lawrence's attention to detail and masterful storytelling make for an unforgettable reading experience that I highly recommend.

I'm a little disappointed. My expectations got the better of me. I liked that Lawrence developed a multitude of diverse female characters without diving into dull stereotypes. Despite a milelong list of things that didn't work for me, I will still read the sequel. Second star for keeping me curious. In Red Sister Mark Lawrence jumps on the coming of age-bandwagon of stories like Harry Potter, The Kingkiller Chronicle and any other story that builds the narrative around schools, training and shared misery/adventures. And here is the first thing that bothered me from the beginning. I love school-stories! I really enjoy following the characters through their experiences. Our protagonist Nona, a small (mentally disturbed) peasant girl, is saved from the gallows and joins the Convent of Sweet Mercy, in order to become a trained assassin. That's what the Sisters of Sweet Mercy essentially are - trained killers. Nona is around 10 yo and has difficulties with people, because she's emotionally crippled (without a reason). She sucks with people and that is one of her prominent traits. That works for me - it's not like Jorg and Jalan were paragons when it comes to empathy. My first problem is that we don't see the training years of Nona and her handfull of friends in depth. Right from the start Lawrence skips several years. Suddenly there are new relationships between characters that I know nothing of. Why are they friends now?! Same goes for the enemies. There's supposed to be a subtle relationship between Nona and Arabella, our second protagonist. But it's so confusing I don't understand why and how they suddenly went from hating each other to being friends. Problem number 2: The protagonist. Unfortunately I can't see her development. Nona is one-dimensional. She starts out as a wary, disturbed, powerhungry kid with a narrative too old for her age and stays that way. Her superpower/magic skill or whatever her wolverine-inspired blades are is too vague for me. Nona cuts people with invisible blades. That is all the background we get. Hazy hazy. I need a bit more from a MC. I mean... it's a magic nun-school and the protagonist has weird blades. Can't stop frowning. Problem number 3: The writing style changed. Which is a good thing but unfortunately I miss the poetic craftsmanship from the previous trilogies. I'm afraid that I am losing one of my favorite authors here. It's a pity. My hopes lie with the sequel.

Vieles an Red Sister von Mark Lawrence hat mir total gut gefallen. Die Geschichte beginnt direkt super spannend. Die Protagonistin soll wegen Mord gehängt werden und wird erst in letzter Minute von einer Nonne gerettet. Danach wird sie in ein Kloster gebracht wo sie von nun an in verschiedenen Disziplinen, unter anderem Magie und Kampf, ausgebildet wird. Auch wenn das Schulsetting nicht unbedingt neu wirkte hat es mir echt gut gefallen. Eine grosse Mehrheit der Figuren in dem Buch sind weiblich und ich mochte viele der Figuren sehr. Nona ist eine super interessante Protagonistin, mit der man von der ersten Seite mitfiebert. In ihrem Dorf war sie immer eine Aussenseiterin und sie hat Mühe anderen zu vertrauen, doch wenn sie einmal Freundschaften geschlossen hat ist sie unglaublich loyal und macht alles für ihre Freundinnen. Mir haben die Freundschaften, Feindschaften und allgemein Beziehungen, ich fand auch gut gab es auch romantische Beziehungen auch wenn diese keinen grossen Stellenwert in der Geschichte einnahmen, echt gut gefallen. Insgesamt habe ich Red Sister echt gerne gelesen. Am Anfang hatte ich aber etwas Mühe in die Geschichte rein zu kommen, da es doch ziemlich viele Figuren, Arten von Magie usw. gibt. Ausserdem gibt es zwischen durch auch etwas abrupte Zeitsprünge die mir etwas Mühe bereitet haben. Doch mit der Zeit bin ich immer besser in die Geschichte rein gekommen. Besonders gegen Ende wurde es echt spannend, auch wenn ein paar Wendungen etwas vorhersehbar waren, und ich fand es toll auch etwas mehr von der Welt zu sehen, die ich sowieso super interessant fand. Auch wenn ich ein paar Kritikpunkte hatte bin ich doch sehr gespannt wie es im nächsten Teil weiter geht und bin echt froh, dass schon die ganze Trilogie erschienen ist und ich nicht warten muss bis der nächste Teil erscheint.