Book Review: Dynasty of Ghosts

Summer Writing Challenge

3. Review a movie/book/anything

Dynasty of Ghosts

First of all, this is a yaoi (m/m) novel so if you cannot take the prospect of ever reading something like that then hey, you have no business reading this review. But hey wait! It doesn't really kill to try something like this for the mere purpose of broadening your horizon just a tad bit, isn't it? But if you're okay with this thing then carry on and read my humble review of this wonderful book.

The summary of the book can be found in goodreads so I don't really need to repeat it here, I'm just itching to rant about this book. Here, check out the plot first: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7132358-dynasty-of-ghosts

Now, done reading? Okay here goes. I really love this book but it is a very long read. It has more than 270,000 words and that was like a quarter of the Harry Potter series which is fine with me being a heavy reader. Unfortunately I only read it in e-book format but just like most of what the reviewers stated, if you ever pay more than $7 for this book, you'd find it worth it in the end and even willing to spend more for it. It's just that awesome.

There are a lot of negative things in this book. I thought I would put it first for you so that we can eradicate negative thoughts about this book first and we shall relish all the goodness of it later on. There are lots, lots, LOTS of grammatical errors in it. I don't know what happened to its editor or if it was even edited, I doubt. You can see errors on simple subject-verb agreements, verb tenses, mistakes such as using "breath" for "breathe". Confusion on using -ing or -ed ending verbs and such. Misspelled words were everywhere, even the spacing err. Over all the mistakes were noticeable much to the point that if I would be given a chance to edit this book, I'd do it for free just to see some of the mistakes corrected (not that I'm perfect or anything, just reduce it a tad bit.) But if you're not a grammar nazi who'd kill for wrong grammar then, please, don't turn your back on this book. You'd regret it, like, yeah, for real.

Also, illya is a girl. No he's a guy, this being a yaoi but damn that beau acts like a girl most of the time. That painful  need of a guy is there, rarely, but there nonetheless which is good. He's not overly dramatic sopping  on the corners for such a tough love. (The main reason I don't like hetero romances that much.) No, hardly. he contemplates, yes. he's scared, he's reluctant and hesitant which is fine if you're a ranger and your lover is the prince heir, but he is overly attached to his religion condemning this and that is bad. He couldn't accept that this is love we have over here and you cannot do anything when it comes to that. Although I don't blame him for that I blame his family for that, poor Illya and his childhood. He's lonely and naive, pretty dense as well and he blush furiously most of the time! His reactions to sex were girly as well and if not for some statements regarding his thing between his legs I would think that Ashe is having sex with a girl! Well I think it's just the way it is. I doubt if the book would be as good as it is if Illya's different.

I also hate the fact that sometimes Nunn wrote like a seasonal writer meaning there's a part in the book wherein she continuously used 'one must..' 'one does not..' like a broken record and it's just disturbing and all.

On the good parts, I love the idea of the ghosts here in the story. It's not the usual pity or scary difference. It's much more than that. There's frustrations, so much more madness and viciousness  hatred, anger and pure evil. The plot twist  regarding the ghosts are realistic and appealing at best sometimes you'd even get goosebumps but not the usual ghost goosebumps we get from ordinary ghosts stories, it's the goosebumps you get from thrill and expectations and speculations presented in the story. Also, Ashe is lovely. At the first part of the book, you'd be fascinated with Illya and his gentle, lonely personality, his ability to see ghost, his beautiful long hair and such, and on the other hand you'd find Ashe as the arrogant  cunning, needy (yet very charming) handsome prince who forced himself on Illya. But as the story progresses, you'd come to a point where you would stop with a sudden realization that you already love Ashe. Ashe is as princely as any prince heir is expected to be. Handsome, strong and courageous but inside that, you'll see a man tired and bitter by his father's attitude to a second son who never really caught his affection. You'll see a man tired of the intrigues and poisonous mouths and eyes hovering him for the intention of getting attached to the second most powerful person in the kingdom with so much as a pretense of a good friend or a concerned and loyal lover. Ashe is lonely as much as Illya was for the loss of a mother and a brother whom he could consider as the few who really loved him. He's eaten by the guilt that he was not able to do anything to save the people he loved so much. He is a man deprived of true love..a child deprived of paternal love and a childhood that he very much deserved  Ashe is a gentle soul entrapped in a tough vessel tossed out in a deadly place. Ashe is a man afraid to love someone for the fear of losing them and him being left alone once again. Ashe longed for a father that could love him despite of all the circumstances. Ashe longs for love and he found a kindred soul in Illya in that direst situation of his life.

Nunn did great with the flow of the story. Despite it's length,you'd hardly find a boring spot in this book. The world of this book was wonderfully crafted without much trying too hard. Just like with Ashe, you'd find yourself in the world without even thinking about it. It was a flow like no other that at one point you're in your chair reading it, the next you're there overseeing Ashe and Illya's affairs with a vivid vision of everything not in the way that every single thing was being described to you with such lengthy words, but a brief and enchanting description that leaves a room for your imagination to expand it beautifully.

Most of the readers were disappointed in the ending of the book and long for a sequel, I do want a sequel too but I'm not disappointed in the ending as much as they do (quite grouchy with some loopholes, though) for I understood that the scene in the ending is the most beautiful way to end that mundane and painful situation they're in. Turn around forget everything and escape reality but know that you would have to go back to it sooner or later. That's why this love is so beautiful and painful.