A Diverse Superhero Story - Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo [Review]

April 14, 2018

A Diverse Superhero Story - Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo [Review]

Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo

Daughter of immortals.

Princess Diana longs to prove herself to her legendary warrior sisters. But when the opportunity finally comes, she throws away her chance at glory and breaks Amazon law—risking exile—to save a mortal. Diana will soon learn that she has rescued no ordinary girl, and that with this single brave act, she may have doomed the world.

Daughter of death.

Alia Keralis just wanted to escape her overprotective brother with a semester at sea. She doesn’t know she is being hunted by people who think her very existence could spark a world war. When a bomb detonates aboard her ship, Alia is rescued by a mysterious girl of extraordinary strength and forced to confront a horrible truth: Alia is a Warbringer—a direct descendant of the infamous Helen of Troy, fated to bring about an age of bloodshed and misery.

Together.

Two girls will face an army of enemies—mortal and divine—determined to either destroy or possess the Warbringer. Tested beyond the bounds of their abilities, Diana and Alia must find a way to unleash hidden strengths and forge an unlikely alliance. Because if they have any hope of saving both their worlds, they will have to stand side by side against the tide of war.

GOODREADS // AMAZON

Buddy read this book with the awesome Di @Book Reviews by Di. We absolutely enjoyed reading this book together and fangirled all the way! You can find her review HERE!

To say in a single sentence how I feel about this book – This book is everything right about a book. Period. Say hello to my new favourite book of this century and be prepared to have me ~~shake you hard~~ call upon you gently and ~~shove this book in your face~~ hand you the book in an attempt to make you read it.

Actual picture of me hitting you with my #nerd energy to make you read the book

“You do not enter a race to lose.”

I LOVED the Wonder Woman movie okay? So when I say I loved Leigh Bardugo's version of Wonder Woman more, that means a LOT. That being said, now I should probably explain why I love this book so freaking much! I'll try to do it with as minimal fangirling as possible. (If throwing GIFs in your faces and screaming at you to read the book is considered minimal.) You have been warned.

Female friendships - YAAS! This is something I'd like to see in every single book and most of the times I'm sorely disappointed either by the lack of it or by it having being portrayed so horribly I'd rather not have it at all. But Leigh Bardugo being the queen of all created the most wonderful female friendships in this book. There's the breezy, fun friendship between Diana and Maeve that made me smile. There's the absolutely wonderful friendship between Alia and Nim that has been there for ages. Then there's the one between Alia and Diana that is developed so beautifully. I also love how the three girls get together amazingly(I was so glad Bardugo didn't use the 'Three's a crowd' trope).

“Sister in battle,” murmured Diana, “I am shield and blade to you.”

“And friend.”

“And always your friend.”

Diversity - Holy heavens, I swear Leigh Bardugo is the one person who can write so much diversity into a single book and not have it feel forced and seem like diversity for the sake of ticking the diverse boxes. The Amazons themselves are so wonderfully diverse. Then there's Alia who has a Greek father and an African-American mother. Nim has Indian roots and is bi. Theo is a nerdy Mediterranean guy who is just so endearing. And I repeat, NONE of these diverse elements feel forced.

“A pleasure. Are you one of Alia’s friends from Bennett? She’s usually with that pudgy little Indian girl.” “I’m not sure who you mean,” said Diana, feeling her anger prickle. “I’ve only met her friend Nim, the brilliant designer.”

The story of the Amazons - I haven't read the comics but the story of Amazons here is different than that in the movie and I DEFINITELY prefer this book version. I loved how detailed Bardugo's world building was without feeling like an info dump. HOW DO YOU DO IT LEIGH?

Feminism - The feminism makes me so emotional! I was literally grinning through happy tears while reading this book because all the empowerment and wonderful depiction of all kinds of girls was just -- Excuse me while I sob in happiness.

Strong Characters - I loved how Bardugo's characters are actual 'Strong' characters. And by that I mean Bardugo not just writes those who are physically strong but also those who are strong in other ways. Diana is strong and can lift cars but Alia is strong too; intellectually strong. Bardugo celebrates strengths of various kinds and I'm -- Let me get back to my sobbing.

“You may well be my equal in strength,” she said. “But you are no match for Nim’s ingenuity, for Theo’s resilience, for Alia’s bravery. Might does not make a hero. You can build a thousand soldiers, and not one will have a hero’s heart.”

The entire cast - This book may be called Wonder Woman: Warbringer but this story is more than just about Diana or Alia. Every single 'secondary' character is developed just as well as them. And even with so many characters, every single character's voice stands out in a unique manner. And of course it was Bardugo so I ended up loving all the characters. At the same time it was Bardugo so I was trying not to get too attached because WHAT IF SHE KILLS OFF SOMEONE? Look at me having a midlife crisis at freaking 21!

Dialogue with 100000% sass - I'm always here for sassy, sarcastic banter. Diana reacting to the glorious city of New York is absolute gold and every scene with Nim and Theo made me snort with laughter.

All the action scenes - I've always had trouble in action scenes in books. They can either come of as confusing or so descriptive and detailed that the only action going on is my brain cells nudging each other to stay awake. But here the action scenes were absolutely perfect with wonderful imagery that make be feel like I was right there next to Diana, kicking ass!

Honestly, the only complaint I have with the book is WHAT'S WITH THE TINY FONT?? While reading I probably looked like I was trying to eat the book because I had to hold it THIS close to read at all!