Reviews with content warning for Murder - Once & Future

Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Once & Future by Cory McCarthy, A.R. Capetta

12 reviews

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.

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mbradham's review

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adventurous funny hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Loved the found family aspect of this book and it was very funny. However, it got very slow half-way through and after that point the plot almost felt forced. I’m still planning on reading the sequel but the first book feels incomplete by itself in a weird way

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just_one_more_paige's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful reflective 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? No

4.0

Look y'all. It's looking like 2023 is the year of King Arthur retellings for me. Specifically, awesomely queer YA retellings. I loved The Other Merlin a few weeks ago and, while I'm waiting for my library to *hopefully* get the second book in that duology, I decided to go ahead and pick up this duology as well. Thankfully, both of these books are already at the library, so I can binge the entire thing without a waitt.

This is a queer YA retelling of King Arthur...in space. In the future, after Old Earth has long been broken and abandoned, Ari and her brother, Kay, find themselves on the surface of the old planet after making an escape from the tyrannical corporation, Mercer, that runs their post-post-capitalist world. While there, Ari pulls a sword from an old tree and restarts the most recent cycle of "the one true king to take down the great evil and unite the world." But this is the first time the sword has ever chosen a girl, and it's also one of Merlin's last chances to successfully complete his mission of guiding Arthur to success, so everything about this iteration of the story is different and the stakes have never been higher. Ari and Merlin must bring together the "knights" and navigate the complicated interpersonal dramas that keep replaying amongst them (this time with added teen hormones), while also saving Ari and Kay's parents from an planet-prison, expose the evils of the Mercer corporation, face down ancient magical beings like the Lady of the Lake, and contend with a myriad other magical and political threats.

Alright, this was great fun. But also, if I'm being honest, definitely not as good as The Other Merlin. There are a couple reasons for this. And I'm going to start with those, so you know what they are, and then close with the good things. Because there were quite enough of those that I am totally planning to pick up book two as soon as possible. First, the writing itself had a choppiness to it. In both the dialogue and the unfolding of events (sequence and plot development), there was just a lack of smoothness and connectivity. Now, this is something that I moved past more or less without issue, because this was a fast and entertaining read and I chose not to get bogged down in the holes between details and to just enjoy the ride. But if that would be a bigger turn-off for you, just be aware. The second issue I had is mostly related, actually, but felt worth a separate mention to me. Some of the capitalism references and euphemisms and critiques are a bit too on the nose, like manhandled into the text. I mean, I agree with them. But it was clunkily done. However, again, I'm choosing to give leeway because this is for a YA audience. And I chose to read quickly and move past these flow issues.

I did enjoy the mix of more serious issues and lighter entertainment vibes that this retelling had. I always love a future world where issues of discrimination based on sex/gender/sexuality are a thing of the past, and this novel had that in spades. Almost all the characters were queer in some way and it was bittersweet in all the best ways to see how Merlin, the only one of them to have lived through myriad generations of Old Earth's murderous prejudice on this front, was able to find his own freedom in this more accepting future. Loved that. So basically, all the sex positivity (in an ace inclusive way) and queer love was *chef's kiss.*

Though it is very in your face, I am team "take down capitalist overreach" so that facade for the "big evil" is one I can get behind taking down. There was always some action going on as well, whether it was the fighting kind or the prisonbreak kind or the relationship kind, that kept things moving at a good clip throughout. And I appreciated, as always, the ways this both lined up and diverged from the "original" story. That's the reason I come back to retellings: the creative ways the author's put new spins on these stories, keeping things fresh but familiar. There was also some very sweet and very snort-level funny sprinkled throughout this book, that are lovely in their different ways and keep the entertainment level high. Of note, let me just say lolz, I see you with Ari being Arthur 42.

Anyways, reading this was totally diverting. The fun escapist ride I was looking for. With where the story left off, I am invested in seeing where the second book takes us (and by "where it takes us," I mean the plot and the characters' developments, because it's very clear where in space/time we're going!). I'm hoping for a fun and fulfilling conclusion, with all the same complicated young romance, King Arthur Easter eggs, corny jokes and throwbacks to "old" Earth, and taking-down-the-bad-guys action as this first one.

“Because too many people believe that difference is the enemy of unity.”

“The path humans took through time was less the mythical arrow of progress, and more of a squiggle that doubled back on itself, curling and looping. A roller coaster designed by a drunkard.”

“The greatest power is a hand on your shoulder, a whisper in your head, gentle but insistent. These people don’t want to see what’s happening, so they don’t see it.”

“That’s what resistance looks like, Merlin. It’s not one glorious, shining victory. It’s a torch that you keep burning, no matter what.”

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miles's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

4.5

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mitzee's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

Loved this story of reincarnated court of King Arthur.

I am dying to know what happens next and am very happy it seems to be a series.

I loved all the queer and diverse characters in this space opera future. It’s TRULY sci-fi fantasy.

If theres anything I didn’t like about this book it’s that the love and sex scenes feel a bit heavy-handed or gratuitous sometimes, but they do help me envision the emotional relationships between characters.

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toopunkrockforshul's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense 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

4.75

Really enjoyed this book! It really married the scifi and fantasy elements well, had twists despite being a retelling, and the characters and worldbuilding were really compelling! Not sure how medieval fans would feel about it, but as someone only tangentially aware of that time period and Arthurian myth, I loved it!

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cookiecat73's review against another edition

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adventurous dark fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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longlost's review

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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

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iksme's review against another edition

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adventurous dark hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

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bluejayreads's review

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adventurous dark emotional

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

King Arthur in space. Cool idea, right? It gets better.

King Arthur and his knights are reincarnated every so often. The 42nd King Arthur is Ari Helix, an illegal immigrant from a blocked-off planet currently on the run with her adopted brother after their mothers were arrested and imprisoned for not turning Ari in. They're on the run from the Mercer Corporation, the galaxy-wide monopoly on everything that blocked off Ari's planet for saying that monopolies were bad, actually, and basically are the government because if the government does something they don't like they can just stop delivering food and water until the government changes their mind.

Ari herself is hard-headed, stubborn, devoted to those close to her, and deeply passionate about truth. She is almost physically incapable of telling a lie, hates lies by omission just as much, and once ended a relationship because she felt like her girlfriend not telling her every single thing about herself immediately up front was tantamount to being lied to. Not only did that make her an interesting character, but it functioned as both a positive thing and a character flaw depending on the situation.

Merlin was a point-of-view character, cursed to age backwards so a couple millenia after helping the original King Arthur he's somewhere around seventeen. It's his job to mentor each reincarnation of Arthur, train him (or her, in the case of Ari), and accomplish a series of steps that the Lady of the Lake set out to end the cycle of reincarnation. Forty-one Arthurs before Ari have died without completing the steps, and Merlin carries the guilt of every single one. He is also incredibly gay, and completely adorable falling for one of Ari's "knights."

All of the characters in this book are stellar (pun intended). From Ari herself to her love interest Gwen (regal, pragmatic, and literally queen of a planet); Merlin (terrified of de-aging out of existence and not sure what to do about teenage hormones) and Morgana (not quite a physical being and fairly terrifying); Ari's knights, including her relentlessly practical brother and a nonbinary friend who uses they/them pronouns; and the director of the Mercer Corporation who gives the faceless evil company a hateable and very punchable face
.

I've seen criticisms of this book saying the pacing is all over the place, and I can absolutely understand not liking this. But personally, I found it a delightful sort of chaotic. This book gets really dark at times, from relationship betrayals to literal genocide, and fits a lot of really intense emotions into less than 400 pages, but it's balanced somewhat by witty quips and bordering-on-absurd situations. It's one of those books where looking back some of it was a little ridiculous, but in the moment it was a great read.

Considering the end of this book, I'm not sure I want to read book two - the ending wasn't bad, but it was setting up what sounds like a vastly different type of adventure, and I don't know if that's really what I want out of these characters and this concept. But this book was absolutely worth the read.

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