The Spear Cuts Through Water

This writer can WRITE and they are writing something NEW. This book doesn't have a hooky start. Rather there is a slow immersion into the story. But the publisher released a long sample and if you're not entirely engrossed by the end of that the book probably isn't for you. I can't compare it to other books, it's too original but I feel strongly that a lot of fantasy readers, from all different sub genres, would love this. Because it is has so many layers there is something for everyone. Terrible dark things happen but it is never depressing. There is always beauty, love and hope to lift it. But neither is it filtered through rose colored lenses. There is a realism, a grit to the characters reactions. Even things I might shy away from like multi POV are executed so well and with such clear intention that it feels like the only choice. Writing style, unique and absolutely beautiful. World building, superb, feels like a real myth. Characters, excellent, the main characters are great but the author has a talent for making even minor characters memorable. Plot had no idea what was going to happen. Every time we were on a typical story beat, something entirely unexpected would happen. This is as near to a perfect book as humans are capable of. I LOVE it.

The storytelling will enchant you and pull you into its' unique narrative, whilst its tale explores love, identity, legacy and belonging. The Spear Cuts Through Water is one of the most unique fantasy reads I think I've ever read. It's writing style beautifully mimics oral storytelling and honestly gives the vibes of hearing a tale from your parents, who heard it from their parents. It's a tale filled with layers, and timelines from the time of the origin of the myth being told to "present" day and the descendants learning about the land they had to leave.

Just gorgeous in every capacity. The writing, the characters, the story. Wanted to stay much longer than the book let me and will recommend to everyone.

Daringly different and beautifully written. Unfortunately, I did not find the plot or the characters very interesting.

I think this might be the best book I’ve ever read. The author tells a thought-provoking and impactful story through many different lenses, dipping into different perspectives in a way that keeps you fully immersed but also makes you feel beyond omnipresent. It is a boldly unique way of presenting a story in many different aspects and I absolutely loved it. Every part of the book feels purposeful and intricately detailed. The author has a masterful grasp of the art of writing and it was joyous to witness. This is the sort of book that I will think about whenever there is a lull in the bonbardment of everyday life.

Surreal storytelling. The writing flows beautifully just as thoughts in the mind often do giving this book a dream like quality. Multifaceted and clever. Among the gore, torture and death there is love, yearning and tender characters. I enjoyed the romance and connections the characters make. The characters are whole. The changing narratives meant I was never fully immersed. This is a book I think I will have to re-read at some point when I have no distractions and can just be. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-ARC. This is a voluntary review of my own thoughts.

This was recommended by a friend of mine, and I will never be more grateful. I found the second person perspective for the first chapter quite jarring, but was reassured when we moved into third person. The second person returns at points, but flows naturally and feels like music. The prose is gorgeous, the story moving. 10*

The first book where I picked it up because it was a one-shot fantasy story, and was so sad for it to end! Also, this is the first book for an age where I’ve cried at the end. The love and the craft in this book, the characters and the scenery, the skirmishes and violence so elegantly painted out.. and the end? In the final pages of the story there are two characters are in a glade, that’s all I’ll say. The magic of that part was just breathtaking to me, I read this maybe two weeks ago and I’m tearing up now just casting my mind back to it. I don’t often reread books, but I may even reread this one this year. Bravo, Jimenez.

Me encantó de principio a fin. Novela atípica de fantasía que mezcla narración en primera persona, segunda y tercera en función del pasaje que se relata y del punto de vista desde el que se exponen los sucesos. Los protagonistas son carismáticos y la relación que se desarrolla entre ellos es una de las más bonitas que he leído en fantasía.

Beautiful, poetic, mythical, unique. An absolute masterpiece.

I'm having a hard time describing this incredibly layered, ambitious, and unconventional book. It is familiar in its epic fantasy/folk tale story beats, but it's told in such a unique, experimental, metaphysical style. It's woven deeply into the novel and doesn't feel like a gimmick. A little preview: there's the story of the reader, who is then invited to a play in the spirit realm, and that stage play is the main heart of the book. The author adds little asides told directly to the reader as if the characters are there watching with you, their commentary adding spice and giving a sense of the wide scope of a fully lived-in world. And still, the writing feels intimate, giving voice to side characters that could have been so easily discarded. Reading this book feels like you're really in the audience of a theater with actors breaking the 4th wall (and maybe the person next to you keeps adding little quips since it's actually based on their life...) The audiobook really highlights this quality, and the narrator does a fantastic job changing voices. Add to that a magical tale of gods and monsters, interesting characters (repping LGBT, people with disabilities, and vaguely Asian-ish?), and themes of redemption, legacy, parenthood, and selfish and selfless acts of love... it's a mind-boggling 5/5 for me.

You will feel many emotions while reading this book. It feels really long but way too short at the same time. It’s truly a unique experience.

The story of the book is not what I am talking about. It is the book itself. Very poor quality cover and even worse page quality. I've seen better quality newspapers. Yes, it is a paperback but the cover is so thin, it was barely ok when it came to me but it was drowning from the warmth of my hands while reading. Now the cover is bending all the other ways but flat. It has a really good cover art too. Sorry for the Author and the cover artist, they deserved better.