Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
Po samym początku myślałam, że to będzie kolejna historia o wybrańcu, który ratuje świat. Oh, jak bardzo się pomyliłam
DNF @ 57%. Brain-dead, colorless, and irritating the whole way through. I certainly don't expect deep intellect or scintillating prose from the author of King's Dark Tidings, but I absolutely DO expect a whole lot of FUN, and that was notably absent. Alas.
I won a copy of this book through Goodreads giveaways, and though I finished it a few days ago, it has taken me a little while to review it. The reason for this is that I read through all the overwhelmingly positive reviews it got, and since I really really did not like it, I wanted to think about it a bit to see if maybe there was something I had missed. In the end, I still really really did not like it. Perhaps I just don't like traditional fantasy anymore, since there is so much more creative stuff coming out in the genre of late, or maybe I just found this particular book to be poorly written and poorly plotted, with a distinct lack of character development and altogether too much telling with barely any showing.
The premise is potentially interesting; though, if the chosen one dies early on in the story, doesn't that sort of by definition make him not the chosen one? I'm just not exactly sure this premise even makes sense. Even if you accept this premise, the main character of the book, Aaslo (who starts out as the loyal sidekick), just isn't an interesting enough character to carry the entire book himself. He goes on a quest, meets a few interesting characters along the way, but overall has very little personality or distinctiveness to make me care about him. And then it didn't even end in a satisfying way! I kept hoping perhaps all the meandering and various characters popping in and out was leading up to something, but no! There was no conclusion to the story! And I get that the point of that is to make you want to read the next book, but you have to give me SOMETHING in the first book then to make me even care what happens next.
Basically, I really really didn't like this book. But thank you to Tor for giving me the opportunity to read an advance copy!
The premise is potentially interesting; though, if the chosen one dies early on in the story, doesn't that sort of by definition make him not the chosen one? I'm just not exactly sure this premise even makes sense. Even if you accept this premise, the main character of the book, Aaslo (who starts out as the loyal sidekick), just isn't an interesting enough character to carry the entire book himself. He goes on a quest, meets a few interesting characters along the way, but overall has very little personality or distinctiveness to make me care about him. And then it didn't even end in a satisfying way! I kept hoping perhaps all the meandering and various characters popping in and out was leading up to something, but no! There was no conclusion to the story! And I get that the point of that is to make you want to read the next book, but you have to give me SOMETHING in the first book then to make me even care what happens next.
Basically, I really really didn't like this book. But thank you to Tor for giving me the opportunity to read an advance copy!
4.5 stars rounded up.
What engaging plot twists and characters! Kade has managed to make a worn-out fantasy set-up fresh and unpredictable (in a good way).
What engaging plot twists and characters! Kade has managed to make a worn-out fantasy set-up fresh and unpredictable (in a good way).
Couldn't get past the amateurish writing
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
This book was definitely different from my normal reads. I love fantasy, but this read almost like a D&D quest or choose your own adventure novel in how the story unfolded. A bit funny, a bit absurd, definitely a good time.
adventurous
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This is a bit of an unconventional take on the classic hero's journey where the chosen one dies and his grumpy bestie takes up the mantle instead.
Mathias is the golden boy destined to save the world. Aaslo is his moody (and kind of unpleasant) best friend. I had trouble bonding with Aaslo pretty quickly as he has just made assumptions about a young woman marrying him. But it's implied that she just wants to marry the hero and is a bad person because she didn't just accept this relationship. I think this is part of his journey and something that he grows beyond, but I can't be sure because I don't think it's ever revisited. If one does not reflect and regret bad behavior - can it even be considered growth?
Things quickly veer off the rails as the story begins to subvert traditional fantasy tropes. It’s a bold concept, but the execution left me feeling ... meh? The tone wavers between bleak and absurd, and I couldn’t quite tell if I was supposed to laugh at some moments (like Aaslo traveling around with his best friend's head that is talking to him in his mind?) or feel disturbed. That tonal inconsistency made it hard to stay engaged.
As for the characters, they didn’t always win me over. Aaslo, in particular, felt moody and bratty at times, making it hard to root for him. While the idea of an "ordinary" character being thrust into the hero role has appeal, I find it difficult to connect to a main character that I simply do not like. That said, I did enjoy the writing style, which has a classic fantasy feel—something fans of traditional epics might find nostalgic and comforting, but they are not books I gravitate towards.
Overall, Fate of the Fallen didn’t work for me, but I can see its appeal for readers who enjoy a more traditional, classic fantasy vibe.
Mathias is the golden boy destined to save the world. Aaslo is his moody (and kind of unpleasant) best friend. I had trouble bonding with Aaslo pretty quickly as he has just made assumptions about a young woman marrying him. But it's implied that she just wants to marry the hero and is a bad person because she didn't just accept this relationship. I think this is part of his journey and something that he grows beyond, but I can't be sure because I don't think it's ever revisited. If one does not reflect and regret bad behavior - can it even be considered growth?
Things quickly veer off the rails as the story begins to subvert traditional fantasy tropes. It’s a bold concept, but the execution left me feeling ... meh? The tone wavers between bleak and absurd, and I couldn’t quite tell if I was supposed to laugh at some moments (like Aaslo traveling around with his best friend's head that is talking to him in his mind?) or feel disturbed. That tonal inconsistency made it hard to stay engaged.
As for the characters, they didn’t always win me over. Aaslo, in particular, felt moody and bratty at times, making it hard to root for him. While the idea of an "ordinary" character being thrust into the hero role has appeal, I find it difficult to connect to a main character that I simply do not like. That said, I did enjoy the writing style, which has a classic fantasy feel—something fans of traditional epics might find nostalgic and comforting, but they are not books I gravitate towards.
Overall, Fate of the Fallen didn’t work for me, but I can see its appeal for readers who enjoy a more traditional, classic fantasy vibe.
This book made me happy to be reading fantasy again. Plot got a little stereotypical in the end, but I find the cast of characters charming enough that I really didn't care. Can't wait to read the rest of this series!