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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
another banger from the author of my favourite book, revenge of the sith (star wars: novelizations, #3).
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was awesome. The characters are complex and don't necessarily fit a standard mold. The bad guys aren't necessarily all that bad and the good guys aren't necessarily all that good. If you like books that are black and white, this one isn't for you. It swims in a morally grey eddy that makes you continually re-evaluate the various characters motives and morals.
On top of all that, it has a very unique premise and a highly layered, complex plot. Even though it's 500+ pages, I never felt as though it was dragging or overly verbose. The author did a great job of keeping things moving, as well as keeping the reader guessing.
There are quibbles: his prose is a bit clumsy in spots and there are aspects of the world he builds that are never very well explained, but they're tiny criticisms of an otherwise fantastic read.
On top of all that, it has a very unique premise and a highly layered, complex plot. Even though it's 500+ pages, I never felt as though it was dragging or overly verbose. The author did a great job of keeping things moving, as well as keeping the reader guessing.
There are quibbles: his prose is a bit clumsy in spots and there are aspects of the world he builds that are never very well explained, but they're tiny criticisms of an otherwise fantastic read.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Heroes Die, a good book that could have been greater if 200 pages shorter
The premise is awesome, an alternate world where studio executives send actors to fight and kill. If an actor dies over there, they die in real life. The action was good, loved the quips from Caine/Michael, the real world politics of corporate greed and trying to squeeze every penny possible made it a very relatable book.
My issue is that the book is too long. This would have been a great 250-300 page read. Nothing about the other world's politics or characters interested me. Pallas, Ma'elKoth, Berne, etc. Just found them boring. I get what the author was going for, trying to build the other world, antagonist, love interest, etc. But none of it hit for me.
But overall I still enjoyed this world and it is a solid 4/5 despite being a little longer than I felt it needed to be. Would liek to re-read this at some point
The premise is awesome, an alternate world where studio executives send actors to fight and kill. If an actor dies over there, they die in real life. The action was good, loved the quips from Caine/Michael, the real world politics of corporate greed and trying to squeeze every penny possible made it a very relatable book.
My issue is that the book is too long. This would have been a great 250-300 page read. Nothing about the other world's politics or characters interested me. Pallas, Ma'elKoth, Berne, etc. Just found them boring. I get what the author was going for, trying to build the other world, antagonist, love interest, etc. But none of it hit for me.
But overall I still enjoyed this world and it is a solid 4/5 despite being a little longer than I felt it needed to be. Would liek to re-read this at some point
I tried, but while the world was interesting, the characters within were not. They were sort of bland. I tried, I did, but I'm giving up I'm at page 200 and I just don't care, at all. I can't get invested at all in the stock characters, who I can read a lot into, but in this book, I can't make that be something I cling to as a positive. Sorry book. But I am giving you up.
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Well. This was an interesting book. Quite gruesome. While it was a very well written book, I don't think I would recommend it to anyone unless I knew that they would definitely like it because it is really dark and gritty. But man, the main character, Caine, was awesome. I didn't like him a whole lot in the beginning. He is definitely one fierce warrior (I don't even know what to call him because he's not exactly a hero) and he totally grew on me. The end was tied up too much in a neat little package for my tastes, but that's ok. If you like George RR Martin, this may be your cup of tea. If blood and guts gross you out, stay far far away.
adventurous
dark
funny
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Gore, Torture, Violence, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Classism
Minor: Pedophilia
Brutal violence is the name of the game; secondary antagonist is made more "evil" by making him a gay man who likes to sexually abuse boys but who will rape anyone he feels like; a brothel is a recurring location; colonization/colonialism & classism in the treatment of Overworld by the companies who run Earth
5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture