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4.03 AVERAGE
4.03 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Gore, Blood, Grief
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4/5. Checked this out of the library on a whim. It was excellent!
I was torn between 3 and 4 stars on this one. Let's begin with what it has going for it: Matt Wallace's 'Savage Legion' is a good fantasy series opener that will appeal to fans of violent, bloody combat and political intrigue. The titular concept behind the Savage Legion is an interesting idea with a unique explanation for how the dubiously conscripted citizen warriors/cannon fodder are kept under control. The narrative perspective cycles through several characters who are each involved in exploration/investigation of different but intersecting sections of the overarching societal structure: economic, political, bureaucratic, military. This offers enough opportunity for worldbuilding to keep things interesting, without getting bogged down in the tedium and minutiae that sometimes hampers high fantasy. The novel is also refreshingly inclusive of lead characters with disabilities/physical differences, non-binary gender identity and sexuality, and female perspective.
Now for the shortcomings: the author's use of third-person voice sometimes seemed to waiver between that of a removed narrator/observer, and an "inside the character's head" perspective. This inconsistency was occasionally confusing, and had the overall effect of making it difficult to become fully invested in the characters, which was a shame, because they were generally well-written and enjoyable (if teetering a bit on the edge of infallible). This effect was best exemplified when one of the point-of-view characters abruptly revealed a drastic shift of motivation/personality, which felt a bit like a betrayal because I was under the impression that I had been "in the character's head" during the character's narrative POV passages up to that point. The author no doubt intended that sense of betrayal to drive a plot twist, but it felt a bit cheap, as if he were "breaking the rules." A contributing factor to my generally underwhelming level of investment in the characters was the absence of a real palpable or believable chemistry between many of them. I think this may have been the result of the author doing a bit too much "telling" rather than "showing" in his character development. Similarly, some of the motifs pulling together the narrative, such as critical commentary/examination of socio-political structures, overt/covert oppression, morality, propaganda, and biases toward marginalized groups, came off as a bit 'on the nose'. This may or may not be your cup of tea; personally, I thought the messaging in this novel would have actually come off stronger with a bit more subtlety.
Overall, this novel had a lot of the ingredients I love: a compelling premise, interesting, likeable, characters with good inclusivity/representation, balanced action, and strong, important messaging. Unfortunately, in this instance these ingredients did not combine to yield a whole greater than the sum of its parts. That said, I settled on 4 stars, because despite its faults, it does have many redeeming qualities, and I do still want to see where the story is going and what happens to the characters. Wallace has written what may well end up being a novel-length prologue to a story with the opportunity for richer development and deeper intrigue. Here's hoping.
Now for the shortcomings: the author's use of third-person voice sometimes seemed to waiver between that of a removed narrator/observer, and an "inside the character's head" perspective. This inconsistency was occasionally confusing, and had the overall effect of making it difficult to become fully invested in the characters, which was a shame, because they were generally well-written and enjoyable (if teetering a bit on the edge of infallible). This effect was best exemplified when one of the point-of-view characters abruptly revealed a drastic shift of motivation/personality, which felt a bit like a betrayal because I was under the impression that I had been "in the character's head" during the character's narrative POV passages up to that point. The author no doubt intended that sense of betrayal to drive a plot twist, but it felt a bit cheap, as if he were "breaking the rules." A contributing factor to my generally underwhelming level of investment in the characters was the absence of a real palpable or believable chemistry between many of them. I think this may have been the result of the author doing a bit too much "telling" rather than "showing" in his character development. Similarly, some of the motifs pulling together the narrative, such as critical commentary/examination of socio-political structures, overt/covert oppression, morality, propaganda, and biases toward marginalized groups, came off as a bit 'on the nose'. This may or may not be your cup of tea; personally, I thought the messaging in this novel would have actually come off stronger with a bit more subtlety.
Overall, this novel had a lot of the ingredients I love: a compelling premise, interesting, likeable, characters with good inclusivity/representation, balanced action, and strong, important messaging. Unfortunately, in this instance these ingredients did not combine to yield a whole greater than the sum of its parts. That said, I settled on 4 stars, because despite its faults, it does have many redeeming qualities, and I do still want to see where the story is going and what happens to the characters. Wallace has written what may well end up being a novel-length prologue to a story with the opportunity for richer development and deeper intrigue. Here's hoping.
This book started off a 3-4 star story, good but maybe not great but it kept building and growing as the story went on and the characters evolved and I WANT MORE!
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes