5 Reasons Why Wonder Woman: Warbringer Is Better Than DC’s Wonder Woman

by - Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Wonder Woman Warbringer Book Review | sprinkledpages


It’s been a while, my friends, sorry I haven’t been that consistent with blogging, but school has been super crazy and life has been very busy and all my time spent in the community has been dedicated to my YouTube channel so I kinda forgot about my blog there in between! 

But fear not, because I am back and ready to share with you my thoughts about Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo! 

I am into superheroes, after having watched (and having loved!) all the DC and Marvel superhero movies. But I’m not that invested in their stories that I read the original comics – partially because they are hard to track down and read and partially because I’m not that much of a comic book reader.

However, I didn’t know much (read: anything) about Wonder Woman before watching the movie and reading the book. I knew she had super powers, I knew she was a superhero, I knew she was a woman. That’s it. 

I was however excited when I heard DC was releasing their adaptation of Wonder Woman because a) SUPER HEROES! b) girl power and c) a girl superhero in a movie created by a huge franchise focused on girl power. So yeah, I was excited. I was also excited when I heard the lovely Leigh Bardugo would be releasing her adaptation of the story of Diana Prince, especially after having read and loved her Six Of Crows duology (read more: Six Of Crowsand Crooked Kingdom no spoiler mini reviews) and Grisha trilogy! 

I watched and movie in the cinemas when it came out, because it was released before the book, and I found I enjoyed it. The acting was very well done (YES CHRIS PINE!) and I think it stayed true to the message of ‘girls run the world’ because Diana remains in the main focus the ENTIRE time, which I thought was important. However, similar with most DC productions, the fighting sequences weren’t the best due to being ridiculously long and the ending was a mish-mash. It’s story line also seemed to be dangerously similar to some of the Marvel storylines *cough* Captain America *cough*.

I still ended up enjoying the movie.

And then I read the book. 

Wonder Woman Warbringer Book Review | sprinkledpages

First thing to note is: no, it does not have the same storyline as the movie. Yes, that means the book is different from the movie. Second thing to note is: yes, the movie is good. But also yes, the book is better. The five reasons why are below! Third thing to note is: in saying everything that I say before, it is HARD to compare a book and a movie because they are different mediums.

About the book. 

Book: Wonder Woman: Warbringer
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Publisher: Penguin Australia
Pages: 383
Publication date: August 2017
Synopsis: 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 mere mortal. Even worse, Alia Keralis is no ordinary girl and with this single brave act, Diana may have doomed the world.

Alia just wanted to escape her overprotective brother with a semester at sea. She doesn’t know she is being hunted. 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, Diana and Alia will face an army of enemies—mortal and divine—determined to either destroy or possess the Warbringer. If they have any hope of saving both their worlds, they will have to stand side by side against the tide of war. (source)
Genre: Mythology
Recommended for: Anyone 14+

Thank you to Penguin teen Australia for sending me a review copy, however all thoughts and opinions are my own and this is an honest review.

5 reasons why the book is better! 

1. The characters are much more developed

I thought the development in the characters was MUCH better done than in the movies, but I do understand it isn’t always possible in movies due to time constraints. However, Diana didn’t have a character arc in the movie like she did in the book. In the book, Bardugo fully explored Diana’s character, and went deeper than just being the princess of the Amazons. She was insecure and socially awkward at times, but still brave and loyal. 

There were parts of her which were very child-like yet at the same time wise. She had explicit knowledge of everything to in the world of man, yet she had experienced none of it, and Bardugo was able to really pull apart this element and use it as the foundation on which she based Diana’s character throughout the book.

2. There is SO much diversity

I always applaud Bardugo’s diversity in her novels and Warbringer isn’t an exception. There are people of colour and underrepresented body types and Bardugo manages to weave the discussion of race and weight affecting people’s attitudes towards the marginalised into the novel really cleverly, yet at the same time, clearly. 

I know this must seem like a small aspect to some people, but representation matters, and I like how Bardugo’s book ISN’T based upon these characters marginalisation’s, yet at the same time, she chooses to include it as part of her discussion. 

In the movie, as far as I can recall, there are no people of colour and no discussion of underrepresented body types, which is quite disappointing, yet at the same time, not unexpected. 

3. The book has the best coming of age element  

I feel the way Bardugo explores Diana’s backstory is truly well done. It allows readers to get to know Diana Prince and that even though she is the princess of the Amazons, even though she is beautiful and brave and strong, she has insecurities and that she also has to fight for her place to belong and find out who she truly is. 

The coming of age element is so so appealing to the YA audience as many readers are teenagers themselves who are trying to figure out where they fit, and seeing their thoughts reflected on the page, and especially by someone as badass as Wonder Woman, can make them feel comforted, knowing they aren’t the only ones! 

4. A better developed plot

I always feel like DC movies don’t really have a plot, they are basically just comprised of action sequences *cough* Batman VS Superman *cough* BUUUUTTT I guess the movie didn’t do the worst job of including a story. 

But Bardugo did a better job.

The plot is quite fast paced and unexpected and keeps the readers on their toes. There is much more intrigue and high stakes than in the movie, although the movie had a different way of keeping the readers on the edge of their seat.

Without giving too much away, I feel the plot in Warbringer is much more interesting though! 

5. Strong female friendships

One thing that saddened me in the movie was the lack of female friendship. I am a STRONG believer in the fact that girls should support one another and girl-on-girl hate is a big no-no, and I feel like girl power, partially comes from having good, strong friendships. 

Wonder Woman Warbringer Book Review | sprinkledpages

There aren’t any females Diana is friends with in the movie and while I understand they may not be relevant to the plot, I feel like a movie about girl power should FOR SURE include other females, especially to highlight female friendships. 

However, Warbringer had some very positive female friendships and the girls throughout the book supported and uplifted one another. There was no jealousy and catty-ness between the three girls, even in situations where other authors may decide to show some animosity (eg Diana being the ‘new girl’ in the friendship between Alia and Nim) which was so refreshing and the best part of the book.

As you can tell, I REALLY enjoyed this book. I know this post has been me (partially) complaining about the movie BUT it isn’t to say I didn’t enjoy that either. I know movies cannot always get the same depth books can and I think the Wonder Woman movie is great for other reasons, such as good use of costume and sets and like I said before, acting, but if I had to choose, I’d choose the book!

OVERALL RATING:

Chat with me! Have you read Wonder Woman Warbringer? Do you plan to? And have you seen the movie? What did you think of it?

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20 happy thoughts

  1. I really want to pick this up now!I'm more of a Marvel persom than I am a DC so I was hesistant but after reading your review, I feel like I HAVE to read it.

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  2. I have yet to see the Wonder Woman movie, but I'll probably get around to it eventually. I'm so glad you loved Wonder Woman: Warbringer, I love it so, so much. It was so empowering and though I knew very little about Wonder Woman going into it, Leigh's version made it really accessible.

    Great post, thanks for sharing!
    ~Brittany @ Brittany's Book Rambles

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  3. I definitely have to read the book now! I really LOVED the movie!

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  4. I'm not a comic book reader or into superheroes either really but I'm so excited to read this one because girl power. I haven't seen the movie yet, we usually wait until you can buy them on Blu Ray and watch them at home. I love the strong, positive female friendships. All too often YA seems to show teen friendships as toxic or dependant. Great review Anisha, so glad you enjoyed it <3

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    1. Thank you so much for reading and commenting Kelly! <3

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  5. I haven't seen the movie at all because I'm not such a fan of DC haha, but OMG I LOVED THIS BOOK SO SO MUCH AND LEIGH BARDUGO IS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING. 😍 What totally got me was all the powerful female friendships that didn't just fall apart when they saw a boy or got catty or jealous of each other. Like this is the kind of thing I want to read about???? Girls are AMAZING and we deserve much better stories than we often get in media. 😜

    (Also I keep seeing that the DC movie of Wonder Woman didn't have any people of colour in it and I'm SO confused?? Wonder Woman the actor herself is from Israel so technically POC isn't she?!? I haven't seen it though, so like it's on the to do list eventually haha.)

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    1. Hmm I may have to look into that Cait, thank you for letting me know! And so glad you enjoyed it too xx

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  6. I love this post! I loved the movie and have been dying to read the book! Books are always better and I look forward to the diversity and strong female friendships you mentioned, plus it's always fun to read a new spin on something. I have two copies sitting on my shelf waiting for me. :)

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    1. I hope you enjoy them whenever you great around to them Sara!

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  7. I haven't seen the movie or read the book yet, but both are VERY HIGH on my to-do list :) I love your comparison of the book and movie, and am eager to devour both even though I'll probably enjoy the book just a tad better as well :)

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  8. I'm currently reading Wonder Woman: Warbringer and it is SO GOOD, I have a hard time putting it down when life calls. I'm approx. halfway through, but I do agree with everything you said already in comparison to the movie. I mean, sure the movie was good - especially for someone like me, who hasn't really watched many superhero movies before, less so for my friend who's watched every DC and Marvel superhero movie, - but it lacked certain things the book has. The diversity is INCREDIBLE in the book and the characters are so fleshed out and complex, I LOVE THEM ALL, BASICALLY. Also, the plot is super-exciting and the fight scenes are very well-done, in my opinion. AND THE FEMALE FRIENDSHIP YES YES YES. Love Nim, Alia and Diana together. Anyhow, wonderful post! :)

    Veronika @ The Regal Critiques

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    1. AHA glad you enjoyed and thank you for this incredibly detailed comment!

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  9. I wasn't going to read it before (I thought it would just be the movie in book format) but now I HAVE to find it. Especially since Leigh Bardugo wrote it and I am obsessed with Six of Crows.

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    1. YES! And it is nothing like the movie, it's a different story!

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  10. I have yet to read or see Wonder Woman, however, I really do want to read it especially since Leigh Bardugo wrote it! I was at the bookstore the other day and didn't know if I should buy it. I ended up not buying it because my TBR at home was taunting me ahah but maybe I'll pick it up for my birthday

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    1. I think you should buy it, even if it is just to add to your collection because I know you love her stuff!

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