Scan barcode
A review by dawn_marie
Engines of Chaos by R.S. Ford
3.0
Engines of Chaos is the second installment of R.S. Ford’s The Age of Uprising series and suffers from “middle book syndrome” – other than “that thing” (which was telegraphed from book one) and a (not so surprising) reveal, the entire novel is a set up for the next installment. This is in no way a bad book, it just felt . . . underwhelming.
Engines of Chaos shows the aftermath of the emperor’s assignation and the coup of the Draconate Ministry lead by Sanctan Egelrath, who is determined to destroy the Guilds and anyone/thing that stands in his way. The Guilds, lead by the Hawkspurs, are determined to stop Sanctan , his unbridled lust for power and his determination to eliminated all use of artifice, returning Torwyn to the time where the Ministry controlled everything.
The magic system continues to be the most interesting aspect of the novel. In Mr. Ford’s world, magic is science based; where artificers create weapons, machinery, vehicles, engines, and gadgets powered by pyrestones, which in turn, are “activated” by webwainers. Through this magical science Torwyn, lead by the Guilds, has become powerful. In addition to the pyrestone magic system, Mr. Ford expands on the other magical systems that were briefly mentioned in the first installment.
After the prologue, the novel was off to the races, with non-stop action, battle, battle planning, fighting, and some more battles. Although the stakes were raised, I didn’t feel any tension because (as was true in the first installment) there is little thought to falling action. While I understand that the “go-go-go” pace was used to illustrate the seriousness of the situation and the importance of acting quickly, the plot would have been better served if there was a moment or two to reflect on some of the things that happened (at least more than a single sentence stating Character A missed Character B after they died). The entire plot was basically moving the characters from point A to point B so they’ll be in place for the eventual show-down between the Guild and Ministry.
As was true in the first installment, where the story was lacking, for me, was in the characters. They weren’t well developed, ranging from mildly interesting to annoying. Of all the POV chapters, I found Ansell’s the most interesting and enjoyed reading his personal journey as he examined his belief system. I also enjoyed Connell’s chapters and found his struggles between “good” and “bad” engaging – also, the poor boy needed a hug. The rest of the POV characters were “meh”, with Kera’s being highly repetitive and Tyreta’s bordering on annoying (mainly because her powers seem to wax or wan depending on what the plot needed).
Even with its flaws, Engines of Chaos was a fast paced, enjoyable read that nicely sets up the next installment.
Engines of Chaos shows the aftermath of the emperor’s assignation and the coup of the Draconate Ministry lead by Sanctan Egelrath, who is determined to destroy the Guilds and anyone/thing that stands in his way. The Guilds, lead by the Hawkspurs, are determined to stop Sanctan , his unbridled lust for power and his determination to eliminated all use of artifice, returning Torwyn to the time where the Ministry controlled everything.
The magic system continues to be the most interesting aspect of the novel. In Mr. Ford’s world, magic is science based; where artificers create weapons, machinery, vehicles, engines, and gadgets powered by pyrestones, which in turn, are “activated” by webwainers. Through this magical science Torwyn, lead by the Guilds, has become powerful. In addition to the pyrestone magic system, Mr. Ford expands on the other magical systems that were briefly mentioned in the first installment.
After the prologue, the novel was off to the races, with non-stop action, battle, battle planning, fighting, and some more battles. Although the stakes were raised, I didn’t feel any tension because (as was true in the first installment) there is little thought to falling action. While I understand that the “go-go-go” pace was used to illustrate the seriousness of the situation and the importance of acting quickly, the plot would have been better served if there was a moment or two to reflect on some of the things that happened (at least more than a single sentence stating Character A missed Character B after they died). The entire plot was basically moving the characters from point A to point B so they’ll be in place for the eventual show-down between the Guild and Ministry.
As was true in the first installment, where the story was lacking, for me, was in the characters. They weren’t well developed, ranging from mildly interesting to annoying. Of all the POV chapters, I found Ansell’s the most interesting and enjoyed reading his personal journey as he examined his belief system. I also enjoyed Connell’s chapters and found his struggles between “good” and “bad” engaging – also, the poor boy needed a hug. The rest of the POV characters were “meh”, with Kera’s being highly repetitive and Tyreta’s bordering on annoying (mainly because her powers seem to wax or wan depending on what the plot needed).
Even with its flaws, Engines of Chaos was a fast paced, enjoyable read that nicely sets up the next installment.