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lastcomment314's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
It was almost so good. I love me a good gay Arthurian fantasy, and this one had a cool twist with being set in space, and some nice found family vibes, but the overall delivery on this one held it back. Stylistically, it wasn't quite my cuppa tea. There were also certain scenes that seemed forced, and the focus on sex and bodily functions was a bit much for my tastes. To summarize discussion with group I read this with, we don't care about Merlin relieving himself in the crystal cave, we care about the quest to overthrow the unjust, tyrannical king company.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Genocide, Excrement, Colonisation, Violence, Cursing, Death, War, Classism, Blood, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Alcohol, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Torture, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Grief, Death of parent, Racism, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, and Pregnancy
zachzakku's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
This book wasn't my cup of tea.
- It isn't a standalone, and looking at the (physical) book itself, I did not realize that. Even books that are the first in a series (duology/trilogy/whatever) should be able to stand alone, and this one well and truly cannot.
- The characters don't read like they're 17/18, so this is another YA book that reads younger than it's supposed to. There are also several things that these 17/18-year-olds do that wouldn't be done by 17/18-year olds today, with no in-world explanation; for example, being the queen of an entire planet, or being the queen's aide. I understand this is sort of a conceit of the genre--kids want to read about other kids. But it's another minor detail that bumped me from the story.
- This is supposed to be set in a distant future (at some point, the 23rd century is mentioned as though it's well in the past), and yet there are many, many cultural present day references, including mentioning Katy Perry by name. Merlin is supposed to be--what, a thousand years old? And yet the majority of his cultural references and his moral compass seem to be fairly contemporary. Which, on the one hand, I completely understand was likely a choice by the writers to make Merlin more relatable/fun for contemporary readers. But on the other hand, it took me out of the world and, for me, weakened any sense of world-building in what was supposed to be a mashup of the distant past and the distant future.
- Some of the cultural references were groan-worthy. At one point, bewildered by what's going on around him, Merlin asks, "Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?" Why is there a Bohemian Rhapsody reference all of a sudden?
- I found it hard to suspend my disbelief around the premise of a giant Walmart-esque company (called Mercer) having taken over the entire universe and government. I also couldn't reconcile this premise with the fact that, multiple times, we meet people and entire planets willing to resist Mercer.
- Awkward night-club dancing.
Last frustration bullet, but major spoiler:
Content Warnings
Minor: Racism and Xenophobia
martin27's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
An insanely fun sci-fi adventure is does exactly what it claims to be: a queer female King Arthur in space. For those familiar with the Arthurian legend, it might fall short for you if you go in expecting a retelling that remains faithful to the themes of the original, but if you take it for what it actually is (a pretty standard YA sci-fi plot that uses the legends as set dressing), it’s extremely entertaining. Once & Future is also, unsurprisingly, based very heavily on T.H. White’s The Once and Future King more so than anything else. If you can’t stand White’s work then some of the choices in this book will be very hit or miss for you.
The characters are lovely, though how much they actually have in common with their medieval counterparts varies a lot. One of the plot twists near the end is simply that Merlin was wrong about which role Jordan fulfills in the legend, and it was in my opinion the weakest plot point. Some of the characters are very strong (Ari and Merlin, for example), but some of them really fall by the wayside at times. I think having even one more good scene with Jordan as the focus would have improved the character significantly.
The relationships are the highlight of the book in my opinion. The friendship between Merlin and Ari is wonderful and such a joy to read, and the fiery romance between Ari and Gwen is captivating. The slow burn romance between Merlin and Val is my favorite part of the book.
The world building isn’t super strong but it is interesting most of the time. The hook for the sequel kind of comes out of nowhere, but it does set up an interesting premise and I definitely will be looking at book two.
The characters are lovely, though how much they actually have in common with their medieval counterparts varies a lot. One of the plot twists near the end is simply that Merlin was wrong about which role
The relationships are the highlight of the book in my opinion. The friendship between Merlin and Ari is wonderful and such a joy to read, and the fiery romance between Ari and Gwen is captivating. The slow burn romance between
The world building isn’t super strong but it is interesting most of the time. The hook for the sequel kind of comes out of nowhere, but it does set up an interesting premise and I definitely will be looking at book two.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Genocide, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Blood, War, Infidelity, Violence, and Death
Minor: Sexism, Homophobia, and Racism
I can’t think of anything that’s just implied or alluded to. Everything I tagged occurs on page, but I don’t want to make it sound like the book is a lot heavier than it is. It’s still overall a very hopeful adventure story, it just also talks about a lot of intense themes.longlost's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
this is the superior king arthur mythos adaptation
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Murder, Violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Genocide, and Death of parent
Moderate: Grief, Confinement, Kidnapping, Racism, Pregnancy, and Cursing
Minor: Sexual content and Rape
sssssoup's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
This book was so much fun. It was a great experience and reading it was a treat. The plot, characters, and world building all felt very well developed and it felt very different than a lot of other YA I’ve read.
The main cast members were all interesting and likable with distinct personalities and a variety of identities. There wasn’t a ton of development during the story for them - except for Merlin - but it didn’t really bother me. I wish some of the characters in the main group got more page time, but I was pretty happy with them for the most part. Overall I really liked the found family dynamic the group had.
The plot was definitely been done before, and it wasn’t the most interesting one I’ve ever read. I was definitely more invested in the characters themselves than what they were trying to accomplish. That being said, the last hundred pages or so felt very strange to me. Everything got pretty confusing and I wasn’t a fan of the direction the authors went with some of the characters and their dynamics.
Despite its flaws, I really enjoyed this book and I would definitely recommend it, especially to someone who’s looking for a lot of representation. I’m looking forward to reading the sequel.
The main cast members were all interesting and likable with distinct personalities and a variety of identities. There wasn’t a ton of development during the story for them - except for Merlin - but it didn’t really bother me. I wish some of the characters in the main group got more page time, but I was pretty happy with them for the most part. Overall I really liked the found family dynamic the group had.
The plot was definitely been done before, and it wasn’t the most interesting one I’ve ever read. I was definitely more invested in the characters themselves than what they were trying to accomplish. That being said, the last hundred pages or so felt very strange to me. Everything got pretty confusing and I wasn’t a fan of the direction the authors went with some of the characters and their dynamics.
Despite its flaws, I really enjoyed this book and I would definitely recommend it, especially to someone who’s looking for a lot of representation. I’m looking forward to reading the sequel.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, Genocide, and Racism
Minor: Death of parent, Grief, Torture, and Pregnancy
aseel_reads's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
this was actually a lot of fun and quite gripping - a sci-fi retelling of Arthur with super diverse characters?? a FANTASTIC idea. it definitely took some time to get hooked into it but I think it's because I don't vibe much sign sci-fi as a genre, not the hooks fault. was pleasantly surprised by all the books twists and turns - pretty original while staying true to the og story. keen to see what happens in the next book
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Pregnancy, Grief, Death of parent, and Death
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