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nenya_kanadka's review
4.0
I loved all the hints at Cas's backstory in this one, and am dying to find out where they lead. When does the next book come out?!? Also loved the development of her relationships with Checker and Arthur. I feel like we saw a lot more of Checker especially than usual. But holy shit Cas was put through the wringer this time! How many different kinds of injuries did she get?? Girl needs to sleep for about six weeks.
Math as superpower and math as world-destroying is still cool, though I don't know enough about the specific math to be entirely convinced that it would do what they said it would do. SL Huang clearly knows her stuff, though, so I trust her on that.
Can't wait for the next book.
Math as superpower and math as world-destroying is still cool, though I don't know enough about the specific math to be entirely convinced that it would do what they said it would do. SL Huang clearly knows her stuff, though, so I trust her on that.
Can't wait for the next book.
frakalot's review
adventurous
funny
informative
mysterious
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
The Root of Unity offers an improvement at every level of the storytelling. The Cas Russell series has been a fun idea applied to a zany set of adventures but now there's a mysterious thread about Russell's past lurking in the plot, the mathematics has become a much more relevant feature, and the character development has gone from being a light-hearted comedic approach to a substantial element of the delivery.
The team is back but don't expect to see Rio, who is again only referenced in this story. It seems likely that Rio will eventually return but so far there's no real evidence of that. My suspicion is that Rio is linked to Russell's hidden past. There's a Rick and Morty style message in a bottle from past Cas to future Cas which simultaneously advances and obscures the mystery, I loved it.
The rest of the gang are working to prevent the collapse of the modern global economy while continuing to bewilder Cas with their genuine gestures of friendship. Thankfully Russell's no kill streak has been broken and the explosive action has returned with an undefined limit.
I've enjoyed the series and this one is probably the best so far.
It's a little frustrating to figure out what's up with the series having been retitled and reordered and partly rewritten when it got picked up by Tor publishing. From what I read on the author's website, self published book four is the Tor published book two, and Tor book three is the intended but unpublished original book five. My plan is to finish out the original self published four and then jump straight into Tor book three, of course this means I'll miss any new developments in the republished books but I'm not prepared to reread at this point.
The team is back but don't expect to see Rio, who is again only referenced in this story. It seems likely that Rio will eventually return but so far there's no real evidence of that. My suspicion is that Rio is linked to Russell's hidden past. There's a Rick and Morty style message in a bottle from past Cas to future Cas which simultaneously advances and obscures the mystery, I loved it.
The rest of the gang are working to prevent the collapse of the modern global economy while continuing to bewilder Cas with their genuine gestures of friendship. Thankfully Russell's no kill streak has been broken and the explosive action has returned with an undefined limit.
I've enjoyed the series and this one is probably the best so far.
It's a little frustrating to figure out what's up with the series having been retitled and reordered and partly rewritten when it got picked up by Tor publishing. From what I read on the author's website, self published book four is the Tor published book two, and Tor book three is the intended but unpublished original book five. My plan is to finish out the original self published four and then jump straight into Tor book three, of course this means I'll miss any new developments in the republished books but I'm not prepared to reread at this point.
coolcurrybooks's review
4.0
Cas Russell and her mathematical superpowers are back! Root of Unity is the third book in Russell’s Attic series (start with Zero Sum Game), a series of fast paced, science fiction action thriller’s. Cas Russell has superhuman math abilities which she uses to work as a mercenary, instantly calculating the trajectory of bullets and the exact parabolic arcs needed to leap between buildings.
However, Cas is also trying to become a better person. It’s a strange journey for our anti-heroine, and Roots of Unity opens with her “falling off the wagon” – killing people again after she’d gone all of book two without murdering anyone. Over the course of the last two books, she’s found something very new for her: friends. Cas is horrible at interpersonal relationships, but she’s trying her best to learn this friendship thing.
So when one of her new friends, Arthur, who acts as her moral conscious of a sorts, needs help, she decides to help him out, even if she’s not getting paid. Arthur’s childhood best friend is a mathematician who’s developed a world shaking proof that could undo the encryptions that the entire digital world depends on. And it’s been stolen.
Meanwhile, questions about Cas’s past are piling up. I’ve always wanted to know more about Cas’s background. How did she get her powers? Where did she come from? While Root of Unity doesn’t provide answers, the questions are starting to gain a greater urgency as Cas’s dreams worsen and she realizes the limitations of her own mathematical powers.
Roots of Unity was the exact book I needed at the moment I read it. Something fun and fast paced with characters I could care about. Cas is such a complete mess, which is probably why I loved her character so much. Immediately after finishing Roots of Unity, I headed straight to book four so expect to see a review of that before too long!
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
However, Cas is also trying to become a better person. It’s a strange journey for our anti-heroine, and Roots of Unity opens with her “falling off the wagon” – killing people again after she’d gone all of book two without murdering anyone. Over the course of the last two books, she’s found something very new for her: friends. Cas is horrible at interpersonal relationships, but she’s trying her best to learn this friendship thing.
So when one of her new friends, Arthur, who acts as her moral conscious of a sorts, needs help, she decides to help him out, even if she’s not getting paid. Arthur’s childhood best friend is a mathematician who’s developed a world shaking proof that could undo the encryptions that the entire digital world depends on. And it’s been stolen.
Meanwhile, questions about Cas’s past are piling up. I’ve always wanted to know more about Cas’s background. How did she get her powers? Where did she come from? While Root of Unity doesn’t provide answers, the questions are starting to gain a greater urgency as Cas’s dreams worsen and she realizes the limitations of her own mathematical powers.
Roots of Unity was the exact book I needed at the moment I read it. Something fun and fast paced with characters I could care about. Cas is such a complete mess, which is probably why I loved her character so much. Immediately after finishing Roots of Unity, I headed straight to book four so expect to see a review of that before too long!
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
beyondthebig5's review
4.0
(Received an e-book from author for recommendation consideration.)
This is one of my favourite thriller series and Root of Unity definitely doesn't disappoint. Cas is an awesome action hero and her backstory is gradually becoming more and more fascinating. I also really love her moral struggle as she tries to be less ruthless and a better person, influenced by her friends. This seemed significantly darker than the previous 2 books (although it's a while since I've read them) but is still a really good read.
This is one of my favourite thriller series and Root of Unity definitely doesn't disappoint. Cas is an awesome action hero and her backstory is gradually becoming more and more fascinating. I also really love her moral struggle as she tries to be less ruthless and a better person, influenced by her friends. This seemed significantly darker than the previous 2 books (although it's a while since I've read them) but is still a really good read.
thefourthvine's review
4.0
I genuinely do not know what to rate this book. Like, the characters and the general setup are so id-appealing to me that I'll pretty much always be delighted to read about them, but the structure of this book was weird and it was, in places, actively uncomfortable to read. It definitely wasn't as good as the first two books (both of which are GREAT), and yet I read it intently and quickly and cared deeply about it. I wasn't just engaged; I was well on my way to marrying it. So: four stars. But I think an honest rating would be more like two stars for the first half, five stars for the next 25%, three stars for the 5% after that, and then four stars for the remainder.
It's that kind of book.
So, basically, Cas Russell is back, and if you've read the first two books you know exactly what that means. More math! More action! More weird memory issues and total inability to handle or even recognize feelings! More bizarrest-found-family ever! (You can't even call them a family of choice, because Cas didn't choose them. She doesn't even really know the definition of family. And yet.) In this case, there is a problem involving two major (and I mean MAJOR) mathematical discoveries that miiiiiiiight possibly lead to the end of the world as we know it. (And no one feels all that fine about it.)
So far, so great, right? I mean, if you like action SF with spacetoasters, THIS IS YOUR JAM. But. But. The first half of the book is an overlong series of Cas making seriously bad decisions while getting injured. And injured. And injured again. For me, it ended up being like reading about a character holding their breath. And then after 30 pages, they still haven't breathed, and your lungs are starting to hurt, and also your disbelief is crashing to the ground because humans can't survive this, and it's anxiety-inducing and uncomfortable and it rips you out of the novel. I hope, I hope the point of this was to drive home that there are other weird things about Cas, that she can sustain more damage and heal more quickly than normal humans. Even so: weird and unnecessary and, for me, unfun.
During this part, Huang also walks back Cas's character significantly from the point in her overall arc that she reached in the last novel. Which, again, I did not enjoy all that much.
Then the nonstop action cabaret ends, for which I was devoutly grateful, and Cas takes a giant step forward on her arc, or is sort of dragged along it, anyway. That was great! And then Cas does the Bad Decision Boogie, and when she does it, she really does it. Which, again, uncomfortable. But it does allow her to move forward on her character arc yet again, so it's an understandable justification for my cringing.
So, I was actively uncomfortable through more than half of the book. But I finished it and hit the next button several times, hoping against hope for more. And I will now commence haunting Amazon, waiting impatiently for the next one.
Basically: I don't know for sure how I feel about this book. But WOW do I need more of it.
It's that kind of book.
So, basically, Cas Russell is back, and if you've read the first two books you know exactly what that means. More math! More action! More weird memory issues and total inability to handle or even recognize feelings! More bizarrest-found-family ever! (You can't even call them a family of choice, because Cas didn't choose them. She doesn't even really know the definition of family. And yet.) In this case, there is a problem involving two major (and I mean MAJOR) mathematical discoveries that miiiiiiiight possibly lead to the end of the world as we know it. (And no one feels all that fine about it.)
So far, so great, right? I mean, if you like action SF with spacetoasters, THIS IS YOUR JAM. But. But. The first half of the book is an overlong series of Cas making seriously bad decisions while getting injured. And injured. And injured again. For me, it ended up being like reading about a character holding their breath. And then after 30 pages, they still haven't breathed, and your lungs are starting to hurt, and also your disbelief is crashing to the ground because humans can't survive this, and it's anxiety-inducing and uncomfortable and it rips you out of the novel. I hope, I hope the point of this was to drive home that there are other weird things about Cas, that she can sustain more damage and heal more quickly than normal humans. Even so: weird and unnecessary and, for me, unfun.
During this part, Huang also walks back Cas's character significantly from the point in her overall arc that she reached in the last novel. Which, again, I did not enjoy all that much.
Then the nonstop action cabaret ends, for which I was devoutly grateful, and Cas takes a giant step forward on her arc, or is sort of dragged along it, anyway. That was great! And then Cas does the Bad Decision Boogie, and when she does it, she really does it. Which, again, uncomfortable. But it does allow her to move forward on her character arc yet again, so it's an understandable justification for my cringing.
So, I was actively uncomfortable through more than half of the book. But I finished it and hit the next button several times, hoping against hope for more. And I will now commence haunting Amazon, waiting impatiently for the next one.
Basically: I don't know for sure how I feel about this book. But WOW do I need more of it.
tundragirl's review
4.0
These books are super fun, even though I can't pretend to understand even a tiny bit of the math.
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