Revenge. It’s something Sigrud je Harkvaldsson is very, very good at. Maybe the only thing. So when he learns that his oldest friend and ally, former Prime Minister Shara Komayd, has been assassinated, he knows exactly what to do—and that no mortal force can stop him from meting out the suffering Shara’s killers deserve. Yet as Sigrud pursues his quarry with his customary terrifying … terrifying efficiency, he begins to fear that this battle is an unwinnable one. Because discovering the truth behind Shara’s death will require him to take up arms in a secret, decades-long war, face down an angry young god, and unravel the last mysteries of Bulikov, the city of miracles itself. And—perhaps most daunting of all—finally face the truth about his own cursed existence.
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HOLY SHIT
I really… wow I’m just speechless. I just finished reading this book yesterday, and I tried my hardest to make up points for a review–and I truly can’t. All I can say is wow, this was a fan-fucking-tastic series.
My heart is physically hurting at the idea that this is the last book in this wonderful world. I want to read more and more and more and more. I don’t want to give up Bulikov or Shara or Sigrud or Taty or Mulaghesh. Ugh, I love them all so much.
But in a way, I am glad that this is the last book in the series. (Spoiler) I love that we saw the life spans or Shara and Sigrud, the OGs of the series, and I’m glad that the author lets our imaginations go wild with where life will guide Taty and Mulaghesh and Ivanya.
I can’t recommend this series enough. Every single book in this trilogy is its own epic, heart-wrenching novel that is just so motherfucking beautiful you cannot help but to fall in love with each one of them (City of Blades remains my favorite though, hands down).
AND BENNETT’S WRITING. Can we talk about how beautiful his words are??? How does he create this intricate, epic world, but also incorporates philosophy and therapy-sessions that can be turned around to your own life?? HOW DOES HE DO IT??
“I though my sorrow was a weapon…yet all this time, it was simply a burden. And how I suffered because of it.”
“You walked away from power, and gave people choices where they’d never had any before.”
Highly recommend you pick up this series. And also…. one more thing…. WHEN THE FUCK IS THIS GOING TO BE A TV SHOW OR MOVIE? HOW AMAZING WOULD IT BE TO SEE THESE CHARACTERS COME TO LIFE????
I won this book in a Goodreads Giveaway.
In a short unspoily review, this was a great book. I assume it is the final book in the series, because it certainly feels like a satisfying, if bittersweet, ending point. This is such a great world that I kind of wish there had been more books in the series. Then again, it’s nice to have a series that’s all high points and a strong ending.
City of Miracles by Robert Jackson Bennett is the third epic in his Divine Cities Trilogy. In the first novel, City of Stairs, readers follow three fascinating characters: Shara Kamayd, spy and politician, her Beowulf-like sidekick Sigrud je Harkvaldsson, and Turyin Mulaghesh, a quirky yet distinguished soldier who spearheads the action in the City of Blades. In City of Miracles, Sigrud, perhaps the most interesting of the trio, is humanized and drives the narrative. Readers finally get to enjoy a close relationship with this mysterious, conflicted hero.
“What fools we are to pretend that when we walk to war we do not bring our loved ones with us.” (City of Blades)
In City of Blades, Sigrud’s involvement in yet another divine battle costs him dearly when he loses someone precious to him. His guilt-ridden, unreflective response is a vicious murder spree that brands him as a criminal. His only option is to vanish into the wilderness where he spends thirteen years in hiding, sawing down giant, “groaning” trees, perhaps symbolic of his past life as a destroyer of divinities. After vanquishing an especially large tree, he wonders how “Such a colossus could be eradicated in a few hours by a handful of fools with axes and a saw.” This quote harkens back to Sigrud’s past and anticipates his next adventure.
Sigrud, a ghost of the past, endures his exile by repeating a wishful mantra: “When will she send for me? Will today be the day she tells me to come alive again?” His dreams of forgiveness and acceptance are terminated by devastating news; Shara Kamayd has been assassinated. Ever loyal, he turns away from the forest and heads back to civilization, once again driven by an uncontrollable thirst for revenge.
It is extremely interesting that Sigrud is not the only player lusting after vengeance. His need to settle a score is mirrored by the actions of the malevolent antagonist who seeks reprisal as he struggles to attain absolute divinity. Who will succeed? Who will survive?
Bennett preserves constant stylistic patterns throughout the entire trilogy. A master of the present tense, he again creates action that feels in-the-now. Again, his main characters are real, palpable, and admirable. Even the diabolical antagonist, as twisted and monstrous as he is, has a back-story that depicts him as almost human, almost deserving of compassion. The constant action propels the plot at full-speed, allowing no chance for boredom. It is interesting that Bennett’s characters use modern linguistic terms, especially offensive language. He also sprinkles the scenes with modern props such as cigarillos, making his setting morph, mirage like, between a fantasy universe and our material world. This practice could be a calculated decision that forces readers to reflect and make connections between worlds.
As in the first two mythologies, the narrative symbolically mirrors our real world. The author urges readers to consider how parenting, good or bad, can create a divinity or a monster—how childhood abuse or neglect affects children. One terrifying divinity attempting to take control of his world by forcibly devouring all other divinities/religions is sure to urge discerning readers to wonder if humanity will ever evolve to the point where each and every soul may consider itself divine, perhaps ending a need for fanatical competition among divinities .
Although it would be best to have read the first two of the series, this novel is written in such a way that it can be understood and enjoyed as a standalone narrative. Sigrud, a stellar protagonist, conflicted, haunted, and struggling to come to terms with his past is sure to become an avatar of the futuristic epic hero readers will cherish and never forget. City of Miracles is highly recommended.
Rougeski