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eileenmccoy's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
krayfuse's review against another edition
2.0
Age of Ra is a contemporary science-fiction story of a world where the Egyptian pantheon reigned supreme over Earth after having defeated all of the other gods. Each god has their country of followers wage war with one another in order to air out their own grievances in their godly world above. The story follows the POV of David, a paratrooper left the last survivor of his stick, and of Ra, the God of the Sun and King of Gods.
Conceptually, the story is strong. The world-building stands on it’s own two legs and whilst at times it’s uninspired, it manages to remain compelling and interesting enough from it’s petty politicking to the grander gestures of the gods. The author clearly has two areas of great interest and he writes them in brilliant detail- War and Gods. The characterization of the gods and everything to do with them is leagues beyond the rest of the story, and Ra comes across as a far more interesting character than David (who we’ll get onto soon). Likewise, his description of military tactics, warfare activities and the Lightbringer’s guerilla tactics as he wages war against the gods is captivating- I could read an entire series of a guerilla corp waging war against deities. For a brief moment, the story has a strong vibe of “Humans, fuck yeah!”, or to put it more poetically, it seems to go in the age-old direction of the indomitable human spirit against arrogant overlords. The classic underdog story that we all love, as we’re always depicted as the underdogs.
However, the story isn’t that. The themes are threadbare and the characterization is- Not great, to put it politely. The romance in the story is terrible, most of the characters are paper-thin and as deep as a puddle. The story develops intrigue only for it to choose the least exciting option, falling back on tropes rather than being willing to strike out and be bold in its narrative options.
Age of Ra is a story that limps along, only standing by its strong original concept. If you turn your brain off you might enjoy it- But its flaws are honestly so damning that they ruin the experience no matter what.
Conceptually, the story is strong. The world-building stands on it’s own two legs and whilst at times it’s uninspired, it manages to remain compelling and interesting enough from it’s petty politicking to the grander gestures of the gods. The author clearly has two areas of great interest and he writes them in brilliant detail- War and Gods. The characterization of the gods and everything to do with them is leagues beyond the rest of the story, and Ra comes across as a far more interesting character than David (who we’ll get onto soon). Likewise, his description of military tactics, warfare activities and the Lightbringer’s guerilla tactics as he wages war against the gods is captivating- I could read an entire series of a guerilla corp waging war against deities. For a brief moment, the story has a strong vibe of “Humans, fuck yeah!”, or to put it more poetically, it seems to go in the age-old direction of the indomitable human spirit against arrogant overlords. The classic underdog story that we all love, as we’re always depicted as the underdogs.
However, the story isn’t that. The themes are threadbare and the characterization is- Not great, to put it politely. The romance in the story is terrible, most of the characters are paper-thin and as deep as a puddle. The story develops intrigue only for it to choose the least exciting option, falling back on tropes rather than being willing to strike out and be bold in its narrative options.
Age of Ra is a story that limps along, only standing by its strong original concept. If you turn your brain off you might enjoy it- But its flaws are honestly so damning that they ruin the experience no matter what.
sir_scott's review against another edition
1.0
This is a war novel, not really the sci-fi you are expecting. Even at that, I enjoyed it until it became pronographic... Lovegrove's decission to focus on the immoral traits of the Egyption pantheon forced me to dispose of the book.
teachinsci's review against another edition
3.0
I could have loved this book. The idea that the Gods of Egypt had destroyed all other gods and split the world amongst them is a good premise (although, it might have been more interesting to read about those battles). What lacked was the execution.
The book starts off with the trials and tribulations of a soldier of Osiris & Isis who has been ambushed. Through the first 40 pages of so, we are supposed to care what happens to him with no explanation of who he is save his name. Honestly, it almost lost me then. He just wasn't interesting enough to care about. The book eventually gets around to describing the world at large (in broad strokes) and how things came to be how they are in the world. This was the most interesting portion. Later, there are battle scenes and a resolution... fairly well written but not enough to make up for the previous lacking portions.
Long story short, an OK book... I won't be reading the rest of the series.
The book starts off with the trials and tribulations of a soldier of Osiris & Isis who has been ambushed. Through the first 40 pages of so, we are supposed to care what happens to him with no explanation of who he is save his name. Honestly, it almost lost me then. He just wasn't interesting enough to care about. The book eventually gets around to describing the world at large (in broad strokes) and how things came to be how they are in the world. This was the most interesting portion. Later, there are battle scenes and a resolution... fairly well written but not enough to make up for the previous lacking portions.
Long story short, an OK book... I won't be reading the rest of the series.
colorfulleo92's review against another edition
1.0
Ancient Egyptian gods have taken control over earth and some people fight back or something like that. Didn't enjoy it and quite frankly don't have anything good to say about it. So I won't. I'll keep my review short because I have nothing else to say about it other then I feel it was a waste of my time
xfajardo's review against another edition
1.0
Qué final tan odioso, buena premisa, pero uno se siente engañado con la manera en la que entrega la historia el autor. Horrible.
asaatkamp's review against another edition
4.0
Wow. I am impressed with this novel. I picked it up because a later in the "series" caught my eye and I decided to start with this one.
The premise is that the in an alternate universe the gods of Egypt vanquished all the other pantheons, mono-and polytheistic, sometime in the early 20th century and have divided the world amongst themselves. But there are squabbles in the heavens and those are reflected on Earth.
The book is about what happens when a man decides to go against the gods.
This could easily have been hokey or just plain dumb, but Mr. Lovegrove manages to pull it off. I am not a student of Egyptology, but from what little I know of the gods their depictions in the book seem fairly accurate; minus the odd colloquialism or two.
This was something different in the SF genre for me and I enjoyed it and am ready to read the others in the series.
The premise is that the in an alternate universe the gods of Egypt vanquished all the other pantheons, mono-and polytheistic, sometime in the early 20th century and have divided the world amongst themselves. But there are squabbles in the heavens and those are reflected on Earth.
The book is about what happens when a man decides to go against the gods.
This could easily have been hokey or just plain dumb, but Mr. Lovegrove manages to pull it off. I am not a student of Egyptology, but from what little I know of the gods their depictions in the book seem fairly accurate; minus the odd colloquialism or two.
This was something different in the SF genre for me and I enjoyed it and am ready to read the others in the series.
abigcoffeedragon's review against another edition
3.0
This is an OK story, but characters I did not care about, surprises that were not surprising - basically, alternate history fiction, which like history, is not moving to me
graye143's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and War
Moderate: Homophobia and Incest
kimal25's review against another edition
3.0
An alternate history of the world where the Egyptian gods have defeated all others and have carved up the planet between themselves. Only a band of Freedom Fighters and their enigmatic leader can free the Earth from their divine tyranny. A good concept and I really did genuinely enjoy it. I read it several years ago, but remember having a hard time getting into the book, and keeping up with the plot. Granted I was going to college at the time and did not really devote myself fully to the book. I do love James Lovegrove's books. If you like action-packed books, give this one a go.