Reviews with content warning for Colonisation - The Will of the Many

wow. just wow.

i loved the protagonist of this book. vis is a character who is very calculative about how he conceals his past, and it's definitely helpful that he is very intelligent and skilled. it was a thrill watching him succeed through the academy.

vis's flaws definitely made the book all the more interesting to read. although he is a good actor, he progressively becomes more careless throughout the book when it comes to his secret. he also has a quick temper, which leads to some reckless incidents. i genuinely cannot wait to see everything fall apart eventually and the ramifications of all his secrets.

the relationships vis has with other characters were also a joy to read. in particular, i loved his friendships with callidus and eidhin. i love how the latter friendship had an very unconventional start. but eventually they grew close and as a result, we saw new sides of both vis and eidhin.

i also really enjoyed vis's bond with lanistia and although she was initially weary of him, she definitely grew to care for him. i'm definitely intrigued by her character and i'm excited to see more unfold about her past. also, i'm a lover of animal companions so vis and diago's bond definitely warmed my heart. i do hope we see more of them together.

we're entering potential spoiler territory here, but the way colonialism was shown through the story, was, for the most part, well-done. in the last quarter of the novel, when the details of vis's past become clearer, we see vis's reactions to colonisation and the unhealed trauma of his past. it all felt so raw and real and i deeply felt for what he was enduring. this point in the story also completely changed my perspective on the novel as a whole.

vis's relationship with emissa was an interesting one. initially, it just felt uninteresting and bland, but in the last quarter, when some details about vis's past were revealed (see the above paragraph), i began to heavily detest it. given the context of things, it just felt... wrong, even if it seemed fine on a surface level. that being said, by the end of the novel i'm actually quite content with the state of this relationship. if the direction of it goes the way i hope it does, i think it's a valuable addition to the story. as a reader, all i needed was a bit of patience.

my only main issue were some points in the story where vis acts as though he is above violence. it's a frustrating trope in scifi/fantasy, when protagonists act as though resisting without violence is the only correct way. it's only the early stages though, so i'm willing to be lenient on this just to see how the story may progress.

overall: this book was incredible. it definitely put me through a rollercoaster of emotions in that final quarter, but ultimately i loved it. and i cannot wait for the sequel.

Content Warnings

karwc's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

One of my favorite books I’ve ever read.

Content Warnings

jl_marie's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

karenreadsbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I really enjoyed this book and am eagerly awaiting the sequel, especially since this book opened up so many questions and possibilities at the end.

This book was a single first person POV throughout, which I found refreshing so as not to have to keep up with so many POVs. That meant we really got to know Vis on a deep level, which I enjoyed. I had lots of highlighting and annotations throughout, and I can definitely see a reread at some point (probably before the next book comes out).

The book had my attention from the opening scene and kept it the entire time. We have Vis who is in hiding after his family was killed; he ends up in an elite school and has to work his way to the top and discover some of the secrets being hidden. In this world, the magic system is a pyramid-like structure with those on the lower levels ceding Will to those above, so the higher up in the pyramid you are, the more powerful, while those at the bottom are drained of energy all the time.

The motto of the Hierarchy is "Stronger Together" which seems to promise inclusion, protection, and belonging. But, as Vis points out, "you never have to look far to see its hypocrisy laid bare." At another point: "A fair system only works if there's an unbiased means of assessing merit. When there is no pride or selfishness involved....which means that fair systems cannot exist where people are involved." So much of what was wrong with the Hierarchy also feels like a commentary on our own society and the problems within it.

I cried a couple of times toward the end. And I'm so intrigued by what happened right at the end. I wrote a big WHAT?! on the final page. Excited to see where this goes.

Content Warnings