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When I first started The Masquerade series by Seth Dickinson, I wasn’t convinced it was for me.
I read The Traitor Baru Cormorant with a lot of skepticism. It was dense, hard to understand, boring at times, and asked more of me than most books do. If I had stopped there, I probably would have walked away thinking this series just wasn’t for me.
Finding out there was a second book made me curious enough to keep going, and I’m so glad I did.
Falling Into the Story
I gave The Monster Baru Cormorant a chance, finished it, and ended up loving it. By the time I reached The Tyrant Baru Cormorant, everything had fully clicked.
Books two and three feel less like separate novels and more like one long, continuous story. The third book picks up immediately where the second ends, and while it’s technically a cliffhanger, it never feels cheap or frustrating. It feels intentional and earned.
Baru as a Character
What truly makes this series stand out is Baru herself.
Baru is a hard character to read about, not because she’s poorly written, but because she is so deliberate. She destroys herself in pursuit of her goals. She makes choices you disagree with. She knowingly does things that are bad for her because they serve the outcome she’s aiming for.
Watching her sacrifice parts of herself is painful, frustrating, and incredibly compelling. She isn’t an anti-hero in the traditional sense, but she is deeply morally gray. Her determination is terrifying and fascinating at the same time, and I’ve never read a character quite like her.
Favorite Characters
Baru is easily my favorite character in the series.
That said, Tau-indi Bosoka is a close second. Tau is such a strong, interesting presence in the story, and every moment involving them pulled me in deeper, but also left a light hearted impact.
They're funny, but insanely well written with a deep and devastatingly relatable backstory. I think they are a perfect contrast to Baru's character, and their interactions in the story are always meaningful.
Final Thoughts
I would rate The Tyrant Baru Cormorant a 10/10, and it makes me want to increase my rating for the last book too since they feel like one long story.
This is not an easy series to start. It demands patience, trust, and attention from the reader. But continuing past the first book is absolutely worth it.
I’m genuinely glad I didn’t judge the entire series based solely on my reaction to the first book, because what followed became one of the most powerful reading experiences I’ve ever had.
Some stories take time to bloom, and The Masquerade is one of them.