After finished The Black Prism I immediately knew it would be hard to follow-up, and Weeks does an admirable job trying. Kip is still as lovable as ever, and remains one of my favorite young adult characters in any book, ever. His character arc in this story follows a trajectory that makes sense, and he stays consistent in motivation and growth. Yet his voice is unique and very different than other characters, making him stand out. Gavin often annoys me (dude, chill out with wanting to have sex all the time), but has flashes of likability, and tries his very best to be a good human being. He fails. Quite often, in fact, poor man. But he tries, and that's what matters, right? This also stays consistent to the story. His friendship with Danavis really stands out in this book, too. Karris... oh, Karris. I feel like her storyline is the least consistent, but not enough to make me complain too much. And honestly, her and Gavin's relationship really worked for me... well, mostly. All in all, the characters are REALLY well done, and this is where Weeks shines with his writing. Even Liv's character arc is believable, and I can appreciate the choices she makes, even if they are...unfortunate.
Weeks is a stand-out writer. I listened to The Black Prism on audio, but I read this story. The experience was altogether different, but no less enjoyable. His unique flare, seeming ease with which he transfers from one point of view to another, and laugh-out-loud humor makes reading his stories a real pleasure.
But then. I just couldn't get behind some of the plot choices. I don't want to give too much away, but where The Black Prism was seamless and smooth, this book was a bit haphazard and disjointed. I think this partly came from the direction of the plot itself, which I wasn't a huge fan of to begin with, but also maybe comes from packing too much mayhem into one book. The plot races at breakneck speed, which isn't necessarily a problem, mind you. But it also wasn't all too clear, at times. The gods were weird and strange, and they didn't give off too much danger, either. The Color Prince, however, is an awesome antagonist. I wish more time had been spent developing his character and story, instead of the focus on the gods.
The knife itself almost seemed an afterthought, too. It was the title of the book, yet didn't play too huge of a role until the very end. A minor complaint, but still... the title is a bit misleading. Maybe "Everyone Loves Kip" would suffice as an alternative. Just a thought.
All in all, an enjoyable read. I really look forward to book 3.
