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caidyn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-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? Yes
3.5
So, after going on an Arthurian kick, I decided to revisit this book. Still hate James Patterson no matter how irrationally, but I did enjoy this book when I decided to give it another go. I still wish there was a bit less banter and sex -- that's just not my jam at all. I still felt it was a bit contrived. But, I wanted to revisit it for the diversity and a unique Arthurian tale. I fully intend to give the sequel/final book a try to see how everything concludes!
ORIGINAL REVIEW
This review can also be found on my blog!
DNF @ 39%
As I said in a First Lines Friday I did about this book, I was very wary of this book. Mainly because James Patterson put his name on it. First, I know that this isn’t by James Patterson. I completely realize that. However, it has his mark on it.
And his mark, to me, says that everything’s going to be nearly the same with slight changes made so it’s not 100% the same. The characters are all going to fit a certain archetype. The main character is going to be bold and reckless. The rest of the team are going to fade into the background and barely be distinguishable from each other. The plot is going to be contrived. The series will never end and just go on and on and on for eternity.
That’s James Patterson’s brand and the brand of people he works with.
And, I can say, I wasn’t wrong.
The only thing that this book has going for it is the diversity. And, damn that diversity was great! Gender-bent, Arabic, female Arthur (aka Ari) who’s totally queer. Merlin’s gay. There are black siblings; one is genderfluid and missing a hand, and the other is queer. Gwen is a queer woman of Asian-European heritage. Then, there’s an ace character but I didn’t get to the point where she was actually called ace.
Like, I loved how naturally the diversity came and how it was on the page. It wasn’t mentioned once and forgotten. It came up again and again and again. I enjoyed that because it just shows that diversity can be done right.
However…
The story wasn’t anything special. In the almost 40% that I had read, nothing happened. Lots of banter and flirting and sex. When I decided to throw in the towel with this book, I had just gotten to meeting the bad guy in person. And the bad guy? Basically like any other James Patterson bad guy. Humorous, sarcastic, a part of a huge company.
Nothing to impress me.
So, this book isn’t by James Patterson. But it felt like it was. Which is exactly what I thought would happen when I saw he had a publishing company. I’m very glad that these diverse books are out there, but I don’t like it that James Patterson is pumping them out. I know that from this experience, I’ll be staying away from his publishing company.
ORIGINAL REVIEW
This review can also be found on my blog!
DNF @ 39%
As I said in a First Lines Friday I did about this book, I was very wary of this book. Mainly because James Patterson put his name on it. First, I know that this isn’t by James Patterson. I completely realize that. However, it has his mark on it.
And his mark, to me, says that everything’s going to be nearly the same with slight changes made so it’s not 100% the same. The characters are all going to fit a certain archetype. The main character is going to be bold and reckless. The rest of the team are going to fade into the background and barely be distinguishable from each other. The plot is going to be contrived. The series will never end and just go on and on and on for eternity.
That’s James Patterson’s brand and the brand of people he works with.
And, I can say, I wasn’t wrong.
The only thing that this book has going for it is the diversity. And, damn that diversity was great! Gender-bent, Arabic, female Arthur (aka Ari) who’s totally queer. Merlin’s gay. There are black siblings; one is genderfluid and missing a hand, and the other is queer. Gwen is a queer woman of Asian-European heritage. Then, there’s an ace character but I didn’t get to the point where she was actually called ace.
Like, I loved how naturally the diversity came and how it was on the page. It wasn’t mentioned once and forgotten. It came up again and again and again. I enjoyed that because it just shows that diversity can be done right.
However…
The story wasn’t anything special. In the almost 40% that I had read, nothing happened. Lots of banter and flirting and sex. When I decided to throw in the towel with this book, I had just gotten to meeting the bad guy in person. And the bad guy? Basically like any other James Patterson bad guy. Humorous, sarcastic, a part of a huge company.
Nothing to impress me.
So, this book isn’t by James Patterson. But it felt like it was. Which is exactly what I thought would happen when I saw he had a publishing company. I’m very glad that these diverse books are out there, but I don’t like it that James Patterson is pumping them out. I know that from this experience, I’ll be staying away from his publishing company.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Kidnapping, Death, and Infidelity
valereads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
When I first heard about this book I was immediately intrigued but wrote it off the second I saw it was sci-fi. Then I read two sci-fi books in a row that I enjoyed and saw a couple of great reviews so decided to give it a chance. I did not regret it.
If you're looking for a critique of this novel you've come to the wrong place. This review is pretty much going to be a list of everything I loved about this book (and reasons you should probably pick it up).
One thing I couldn't not mention about this book is the diversity. So many queer identities are represented in this story and I love how it's just accepted as normal in this world - something I for one desperately needed right now.
This story follows a fun and immediately likeable cast of characters who I just want more from. And yes that means I will be picking up the sequel as soon as I can. I got attached to them quickly. Merlin in particularly was brilliant. I loved reading from his point of view which was usually a lot of fun.
I also love what they did with some elements of the original King Arthur myth. This take of Morgana was particularly good to read about and I love what they ended up doing with her.
Overall this book was a fun read with likeable characters. That's all I really have to say. If you enjoy diverse books, science fantasy or the King Arthur legend I'd recommend giving it a try. And if you're a fan of the CBBC Merlin TV show I could not recommend this to you more.
Content Warnings: discussions of rape, torture, genocide, animal death, graphic violence
If you're looking for a critique of this novel you've come to the wrong place. This review is pretty much going to be a list of everything I loved about this book (and reasons you should probably pick it up).
One thing I couldn't not mention about this book is the diversity. So many queer identities are represented in this story and I love how it's just accepted as normal in this world - something I for one desperately needed right now.
This story follows a fun and immediately likeable cast of characters who I just want more from. And yes that means I will be picking up the sequel as soon as I can. I got attached to them quickly. Merlin in particularly was brilliant. I loved reading from his point of view which was usually a lot of fun.
I also love what they did with some elements of the original King Arthur myth. This take of Morgana was particularly good to read about and I love what they ended up doing with her.
Overall this book was a fun read with likeable characters. That's all I really have to say. If you enjoy diverse books, science fantasy or the King Arthur legend I'd recommend giving it a try. And if you're a fan of the CBBC Merlin TV show I could not recommend this to you more.
Content Warnings: discussions of rape, torture, genocide, animal death, graphic violence
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Death, Genocide, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Terminal illness
Minor: Infidelity and Rape
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