My full review on my blog.

The newest novel by the author of The Wind-Up Girl and The Water Knife promises an immersion into a faux Italian Renaissance, full of warring city-states, a growing power of banks and merchants, and a little bit of fantasy. Actually, the cover promises a lot more than just a little, that baleful red eye gloriously resplendent on the creamy, delicately sculptured background. What it delivers, however, is a more of a mixed message. The alternate Italian Renaissance is indeed delivered as promised, obsessively detailed, fully realised, rich and evocative in every aspect, from the almost tactile depictions of cloths and nature to sharp observations of social mores and behaviour – Bacigalupi even goes as far as inventing his own version of Italian language and embellishes the culture with a pantheon of ancient agrarian gods, not too far from the actual Roman deities. But the author of The Wind-Up Girl would not have been himself if he hadn’t added a smear of blood and shit on that canvas – and, dear reader, better prepare yourself for the typical Bacigalupi penchant for lovingly detailed and vivid descriptions of torture, debasement, misery and suffering.

I could end my review here, but where would be fun in that :). Let me say, then, that the novel is long, and it feels even longer. That the main protagonist is a teenager, and Bacigalupi even for a moment doesn’t let us forget about that painful fact – Davico is a teenager engulfed in a hormonal storm, stupid, impulsive, focused entirely on himself, and, later, also on the object of his affection. The depiction of his emotional and physiological states is very realistic indeed, but that’s a small solace for the suffering reader, who must endure pages upon pages of the teenage angst, shortsightedness, and wildly seesawing feelings. I was close to DNFing this book two times, the first out of boredom, the second out of exasperation with Davico’s mulish stupidity.

So why didn’t I? Simple. Bacigalupi is a good writer. Oh, he has issues, his obsessive love for describing human suffering and cruelty is definitely way beyond any norm, but his style is easy and engaging, the words on the page seem to flow effortlessly, and his attention to detail, which he uses skillfully to create immersive, lush and believable worlds, is truly impressive. I enjoyed reading about his alternate Renaissance Italy, the rise and fall of the merchant clans, the bitter biting reaction from the nobles, the politics of Navola which so closely mirrored the history. I also appreciated the tiny drop of fantasy making ever bigger circles on the surface of Navola’s reality – and this slowly growing presence, Davico’s believable if painful development, and his quest for revenge, are what will make me come back for more – for while Navola’s sequel has not been announced yet, the ending ensures the story has only begun.

[...]

So, in short, Navola is largely a promise of things to come. A letter of credit, written on a thick, richly embossed and gilded paper, signed by the head of the family – an assurance of value, but not entirely value itself. I am an incurable optimist, however, and generally trust people – and thus, if not for the disturbingly intimate descriptions of violence and torture, the newest Bacigalupi’s novel would have gotten a solid 8/10 from me. But because my violence-porn-meter is very sensitive, Navola’s rating gets bumped down to 7/10 stars.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. My thanks.

Historical fiction feel.

Heavy on the world building. Unfortunately not a book I could get into. However, the descriptions are world class and would definitely suit those readers who love a less fantasy style Raymond Feist world.
Authors story telling was fine, again it just wasn't a book for me :)

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher of providing me with an e-arc of this book. My opinions are my own.

Ooof, where do I start.
We have reluctant nepo-baby Davico, set to inherit the Reguli banking empire, living his best nepo-baby life riding his pony and perving on girls, in the pseudo-city state Navola. A clearly renaissance Italy inspired setting.
But you see, dum dum Davico, is YA brained character stuck in a GOT tier political twisty twisty twisty fantasy. GOT tier for the writing, because I was very very well written. Twisty, twisty twisty, well such are the ways of political driven books. Fantasy because there is big dumb dragon eye on the cover. An element that is certainly well restrained throughout.

I feel like dodo davcio was a much more painful character then he needed to be, his lessons too long, his learnings too slow. I read in another review, that said we should have follow Celia's POV in this book and that WOULD have been a good time she was by far the most interesting and well written.

Navola is an epic political with a touch of fantasy.

I found it incredibly slow to start with all the world building, and I desperately wanted more fantasy elements. The last part of the book was much more compelling and if you like a good political fantasy heavy on the politics I think you'll love it. Unfortunately I did not love the main character so it did impact my enjoyment. I also was not sure from the ending if this was going to be a series or if this is a standalone.

Navola is an epic political fantasy in which the author has clearly developed a world deep in lore and design. While the book is described as a fantasy tale, the closest we come to fantasy is the dragon eye that sits upon the main character's father's desk. If you're expecting an epic tale about dragons, you won't find it here.

Unfortunately the story was quite slow to start and I found myself not particularly engaged until the last quarter. The main character didn't hold my interest as I much as I would've hoped and I found myself more interested in the side characters.

I think those that enjoy political fantasy tales will very much enjoy this story, however I don't feel it was the right book for myself.

Navola by Paola Bacigalupi, publication date July 04th 24.

This book is what I would call a dark historical or political fantasy with a touch of magic more than straight fantasy. Touch of Dune, touch of Games of Thrones.
The author is new to me but I was drawn in by the promise of the cover and thoroughly enjoyed the book even though it’s something I wouldn’t usually read. I went out on a whim and I’m so glad I did.

The first half or so was incredible world building, very detailed if not too detailed somewhat but enjoyable non the less, with wonderful prose. I adored the descriptive plot and character building was really thought out and much more important to me in feeling the story. The last part of the book was a lot quicker and and I couldn’t stop reading until it was finished.

If you love political/historical fantasy you will love this book and I feel there’s more to come. I’ll be waiting for the next instalment;)

Thankyou to NetGalley and Bloomsbury ANZ for the EArc and chance to read this early