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timwhitecastle's review
4.0
In short, “I liked it and I didn’t like it.” (Hemingway quote)
Liked: The prose was very good. Stroud knows how to tell a story and weaves words skillfully to make an enjoyable read. The premise is fascinating, and the multicultural impact of the magic world on that alternate history, ranging from Japan, over the Aztecs, to medieval Europe is shown through the various plotlines. I find this is far too often not the case in epic fantasy, where most writers (myself included) stick to generic fantasy medieval Europe by default. It was great to see that differentiated here.
But –
Didn’t like: The epic scope is also the novel’s kryptonite. Because there are so many people of interest, it’s hard to really get into the story. I have this same problem with GRRM’s A Song of Ice and Fire. It seems to be the thing today in fantasy to write from multiple viewpoints, with converging plotlines. I’m not sure I know why. Too many POV characters can be confusing (they’re not in this book, though), and you tend to enjoy one storyline with a certain character more than others, so that this one becomes the focal point. The problem with that is, you start impatiently skimming pages of the storylines that don’t matter as much to you, and so might miss important pieces of information.
Here I had few main characters I rooted for (Galina and Piers). However, my favourites ended up being the supporting cast: Eleanor of Aquitaine (totally geeked out over her inclusion as a powerful mage) and the mischief maker Faim who appears in several plotstrands as a twisted kind of mentor with an agenda of his own.
The problem with book to game or game to book adaptations is always the question of who you’re writing for: for the gamers who want to dig deeper into the lore and history of their game’s world (I think this is what Stroud is doing here), or to attract readers to the game. So I’m not sure who to recommend Dreams of Chaos to.
I'll try with this: if you like book series that have alternate fantastical histories as a premise, or you have played/are playing Chaos Reborn, this might be the book for you. It’s definitely well written and will make for an entertaining read.
*I received a copy of this book from the author himself in exchange for an honest review*
Liked: The prose was very good. Stroud knows how to tell a story and weaves words skillfully to make an enjoyable read. The premise is fascinating, and the multicultural impact of the magic world on that alternate history, ranging from Japan, over the Aztecs, to medieval Europe is shown through the various plotlines. I find this is far too often not the case in epic fantasy, where most writers (myself included) stick to generic fantasy medieval Europe by default. It was great to see that differentiated here.
But –
Didn’t like: The epic scope is also the novel’s kryptonite. Because there are so many people of interest, it’s hard to really get into the story. I have this same problem with GRRM’s A Song of Ice and Fire. It seems to be the thing today in fantasy to write from multiple viewpoints, with converging plotlines. I’m not sure I know why. Too many POV characters can be confusing (they’re not in this book, though), and you tend to enjoy one storyline with a certain character more than others, so that this one becomes the focal point. The problem with that is, you start impatiently skimming pages of the storylines that don’t matter as much to you, and so might miss important pieces of information.
Here I had few main characters I rooted for (Galina and Piers). However, my favourites ended up being the supporting cast: Eleanor of Aquitaine (totally geeked out over her inclusion as a powerful mage) and the mischief maker Faim who appears in several plotstrands as a twisted kind of mentor with an agenda of his own.
The problem with book to game or game to book adaptations is always the question of who you’re writing for: for the gamers who want to dig deeper into the lore and history of their game’s world (I think this is what Stroud is doing here), or to attract readers to the game. So I’m not sure who to recommend Dreams of Chaos to.
I'll try with this: if you like book series that have alternate fantastical histories as a premise, or you have played/are playing Chaos Reborn, this might be the book for you. It’s definitely well written and will make for an entertaining read.
*I received a copy of this book from the author himself in exchange for an honest review*
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