Screw the whitespine uncaged THIS is one of the best parts of words of radiance

And I imagine Wit at this part being a whiny little child being like “do we have to go nowwwww??? I want to play a little longer!”

Honestly I'm sort of obsessed with how the Deltora anime is a case study into how even small details in adaptations can utterly obliterate how a character reads. Jasmine specifically is such a huuuge victim of this and it makes me a bit insane. Like somehow her anime version ends up reading absurdly misogynist despite most of her dialogue and most of the stuff she does being the same as in the book. Forgive me for writing essays about children's media but hear me out for a second.

Ok so to start, Book Jasmine is almost cartoonishly badass. Like she would 100% be a stereotypical Mary Sue, animal companions and all, if it weren't for the fact that she's wildly abrasive and unlikable to a lot of the other characters. And even being hypercompetent in many areas, Jasmine is definitely not overpowered. She is stated and shown to be the smallest and physically weakest of the group. Making the token Girl of the group the weakest would usually end up reading as sexist, however Jasmine does not. She is never truly excluded from any combat or major events because she's weak. As shown during the Rithmere games, she's screwed in a direct contest of strength, but has developed a unique fighting style that evens the playing field against bigger opponents. She always read as a ranger/rogue type to me -- somewhat frail, but very precise, and most useful outside of combat. Which, in combination with the rest of the writing + strong women in the series, is just sort of realistic for someone in her position. She's a really good character imo even if we don't get to see all that much interpersonal stuff between the cast. But what we do get works really well.

But then we have Anime Jasmine, who just like... Is bad lol. Even though she makes most of the same decisions and accomplishes most of the same tasks, she comes off as irrational, annoying, and generally incompetent lmfao. I think part of this is that her anger issues and difficulty expressing herself in the books gets turned into cattiness instead of like a genuine character flaw that causes issues. Part of it is also that for some reason Barda isn't allowed to be sarcastic since he got flanderized into the stoic adult (telling jokes isn't masc enough I guess???), so Jasmine got designated the group funnyman. Which honestly wouldn't even be a big problem if she told actual jokes? A sarcastic, dry wit would totally work for her. But she's just sort of catty for no reason instead of being funny. I do understand that the general tone of the show is a lot lighter than the books as well, so having a really angsty character would go against the more child-friendly direction they went. But there are also others ways they could have changed her while still keeping her general concept and vibe the same.

But the majority of it, I think, is due to the line delivery/visual design. In the anime she's very whiny and like. Cheerful? Which... I guess isn't technically an incorrect interpretation, but it's certainly a weird one considering how much she mutters and hisses her dialogue. Her visual design is, however, completely contradictory to how she's supposed to look. In the books, she dresses in worn-out military-esque clothing, is unkempt, and is -- to some degree -- androgynous. And this physical appearance doesn't really call to mind a huffy kid. In the show they made her dress a lot more brightly, and she's like weirdly sexualized imo? Which is a pattern with the women in the anime. But that's a whole other rant I could go on. Basically, my point is, because of the tone in which she reads her lines and the way she is disallowed from being Actually Disheveled, her decisions are tainted by the misogyny of the writers. You know? Like you can tell that the in-character intent behind her actions is different because the writers themselves view her a certain way. She objects to the monarchy not because she has a strong sense of justice while being somewhat vindictive, but because she's an irrational, emotional Woman. She gets sidelined in fights not because she's trying to find a way out that doesn't involve getting pummeled by a creature 10 times her size, but because she's a weak little girl. Her hating Neridah gets turned into some kind of cat fight instead of the party rightfully being distrustful of her. The whole thing with Doom goes from being about Jasmine's trauma and loneliness, to being about her finding a big strong father figure to... Idk fill some kind of emotional void only a man can fill? Some of the differences are very subtle, but they really do change the entire vibe of the character from "jaded, violent survivalist" to "quirky girl with an attitude" even though the actual events in the anime -- up to book 8 at least -- are pretty 1-to-1 with the books. The weird characterization somehow retroactively makes things that happen in the books kinda misogynist!!! Maybe I'm insane for thinking all this but really do believe it. It's such an odd feature of the writing and it's honestly so fascinating to me. Anyway this is what I think Lindal would look like in the anime

My Best and Worst Books of 2016

Best

Tam Lin, Pamela Dean (Fantasy)

The rest of my picks are listed in no particular order, but this one definitely takes the top spot. Dean’s lyrical prose, her enchanting and authentic little universe, her genuine, three-dimensional characters, the way she interweaves the mundane and the magical and slowly builds up to the big fantasy reveal…it all had me hooked from the beginning. Tam Lin is also as much a loving homage to a four-year liberal arts education as it is a folklore retelling, and as a slightly “homesick” graduate only two years out of college, I loved it all the more for being both.

The full list is below the cut. A few more categories and complete reviews of all books listed are also on my blog, Luthien Reviews.

Three Dark Queens, Kendare Blake (YA Fantasy)

This book is, as I said in my recent review, “really something.” Strong world-building, a suspenseful slow-burning plot, and some great characters all add up to a wonderful read.  And unlike in a lot of YA books that are marketed as “dark,” I appreciated that Ms. Blake proved herself willing to “kill her darlings,” as the saying goes. That went a long way towards making my reading experience far more gripping. While some element of Blake’s world and some of her characters need more depth added to them in the sequel, I still ate this one up.

House Broken, Sonja Yoerg (Contemporary)

I picked this one up for personal reasons thinking it would be a bit light-hearted, but in reality it’s a sobering multi-generational tale that revolves around the consequences of substance abuse and family secrets. The three main female characters–grandmother, mother, and daughter–are well-drawn. They come across as both realistic and sympathetic even at times when they aren’t likable. The revelations contained within the last hundred-fifty pages are difficult to swallow, to say the least, but are nevertheless handled deftly and delicately by the author in an excellently crafted debut.

Dark Triumph, Robin LaFevers (YA Fantasy, Historical Fiction)

By turns dark, funny, and romantic, this book shows up its prequel, Grave Mercy. This book, not that one, is the top-shelf historical fiction about lady-assassins that I wanted to read  when I started the His Fair Assassin series in the first place. The sharp-witted and sharper-tongued heroine, Sybella, is a delightfully active narrator–she gets stuff done–and her story bursts with action and intrigue. Apart from a slightly weak ending, Dark Triumph is intense, entertaining, and sets the trilogy up for a (hopefully!) excellent conclusion.

Still Star-Crossed, Melinda Taub (YA Historical Fiction, Romance)

This “sequel” of sorts to Romeo and Juliet boasts a much more engaging plot than the play upon which it’s based. Believably sixteenth-century characters, well-executed Shakespearean-inspired dialogue, and overall solid writing come together to create a unique novel with a lot of charm and humor. Even a few implausible plot twists and a (sigh) love triangle failed to spoil Melinda Taub’s terrific debut for me. I’m still hoping that she’ll put out something new in the next few years.

Cleopatra’s Shadows, Emily Holleman (Historical Fiction)

Lush with rich historical details, political intrigue, and wonderfully compelling characters, this novel tells the stories of Berenice and Arsinoe, sisters of the (in)famous Cleopatra VII of Egypt, and of their struggles following the coup that makes Berenice the queen of an increasingly unstable kingdom surrounded threats from all sides. Berenice is fierce but troubled, while Arsinoe begins as a naive child but grows into driven and determined young woman. Shadows is a well-written, well-researched debut for Emily Holleman whose sequel comes out this year–hooray!

The Midnight Dress, Karen Foxlee (YA Fantasy, Mystery)

I never reviewed of this beguiling little book properly. It’s two parts coming-of-age story, one part fantasy, one part murder mystery. It offers poetic language, a breathtaking setting, and sympathetic and somewhat tragic characters. Though I can’t honestly remember the finer details, I remember getting swept away by Foxlee’s lyricism and the magical realism that transforms the plot from merely sad to something truly haunting.

Worst

The Boleyn King, Laura Andersen (Historical Fiction)

What a total waste this was. It was one of the only books I “DNF’d” last year. The premise is great: what would have happened if Anne Boleyn had given birth to a son and had never been executed, therefore reducing Henry VIII’s number of wives to an unremarkable two? But the writing is juvenile at best, clumsy at worst; the characters, both real and imagined, are simply awful (Anne Boleyn is portrayed as a shrill, short-tempered egomaniac, surprise…); the plot centers around a ridiculous love triangle, and there are so many anachronisms and unbelievable conversations that I had to give up a hundred or so pages in. Really, really bad.

Blackhearts, Nicole Castroman (YA Romance, Historical Fiction)

More trash historical fiction! This one reads like a poorly-written, melodramatic high school TV show. It’s dressed up with some very vague (“floppy hat,” “powdered wig,” etc.) historical details, but those can’t hide the forced teen angst at its core. Oh, and it’s marketed as being about a young Edward Teach, aka Blackbeard–the infamous pirate–even though almost nothing (much less any pirating) actually happens. I didn’t care about a single one of the characters; they’re all arrogant, selfish, and spineless. To make matters worse, the writing itself is choppy and bland, and the author herself comes off badly in her (inaccurate) author’s note at the end. Suffice to say, the whole experience of reading this ] left me with a bad taste in my mouth.

Hold Me Like a Breath, Tiffany Schmidt (YA Romance)

This was the first book I read last year, and it was such a let-down. Despite its crime-family marketing, it has nothing to offer besides a dull, meandering plot led by a remarkably inactive, clueless, whiny “heroine,” as well as a love triangle about as interesting as plain toast. Even if it was doomed to fail as an organized crime story, I felt that it should’ve at least had something worthwhile to say about disabilties, given that the MC has a rare debilitating blood disease. But no; she walks around feeling sorry for herself and crying, and that’s about it. What little plot there is relies on unbelievable coincidences to work, meaning I spent a lot of time rolling my eyes. It is, overall, a very weak, very boring novel.

The Darkest Evening of the Year, Dean Koontz (Crime/Thriller)

A less-than-thrilling thriller full of underdeveloped Very Good characters with haunted pasts pitted against over-the-top Very Bad ones. Also dogs…a lot of dogs. The plot is contrived and, again, relies on a bunch of coincidences to work at all. The back cover declares that it’s “The Silence of the Lambs meets Marley & Me,” but that’s total hogwash. Silence is legendary. Meanwhile, I can’t recall the name of a single character from this bloated and uninspired book.

The Star-Touched Queen, Roshani Chokshi (YA Fantasy, Romance)

Purple prose does not a good fantasy novel make (in fact, sometimes it gets in the way of actually telling a story). Despite the interesting premise and beautiful writing, the actual world-building and plot are paper-thin and often confusing, which is a real shame, because Indian and Hindu mythology are so fascinating. A retelling based on those ideas, set in that culture, should be something special. But here, all the characters and the heroine in particular are forgettable. The romance falls flat as well, which makes it difficult to buy into the rest. The second half is so chock-full of rushed, underdeveloped backstory that I completely lost track of what was going on. Fortunately, though, the one character who did interest me is getting a stand-alone novel of her own. I’m hoping that Chokshi’s hot mess of a debut is just a fluke and that her genuine talent will make the companion to this book a pleasure to read instead of a chore.