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A review by thijs_geluiden
The First Binding by R.R. Virdi
2.0
2.5 stars. And this took some consideration.
First off, something that a lot of people have said already and is heavily discussed online, so I won't go into it, but this book is so incredibly close to The Name of the Wind that it feels derivative and in other places even a blatant ripoff. I'll try to judge the book on its own merits and in isolation but it does affect my rating pretty badly.
I picked this book up because the blurb reminded me of The Name of the Wind. And I liked the Name of the Wind. A previously heroic character retelling their own story sounds really good to me.
However, aside from being wholly similar to The Name of the Wind, the book is also just sort of... flat. Its a whopping 800 pages long, but completely lacks the depth of interaction between friends and family that make a self-told, introspective story worth the read. The prose is quite good, but becomes repetitive after a while to the point where everything sort of sounds the same.
Which is a shame, because I think this writer is capable of so much. There are parts of the story which are beautifully written, the worldbuilding and magic system are very interesting, and the writer generally shows a great capacity for writing. The setting is beautifully crafted and its South Asian inspiration feels new and fresh. It is, however, completely wasted on this book, which kind of drags along at times.
I won't go into the whole Kingkiller discussion, but lets say if you've read The Name of the Wind, this book has no new story for you.
First off, something that a lot of people have said already and is heavily discussed online, so I won't go into it, but this book is so incredibly close to The Name of the Wind that it feels derivative and in other places even a blatant ripoff. I'll try to judge the book on its own merits and in isolation but it does affect my rating pretty badly.
I picked this book up because the blurb reminded me of The Name of the Wind. And I liked the Name of the Wind. A previously heroic character retelling their own story sounds really good to me.
However, aside from being wholly similar to The Name of the Wind, the book is also just sort of... flat. Its a whopping 800 pages long, but completely lacks the depth of interaction between friends and family that make a self-told, introspective story worth the read. The prose is quite good, but becomes repetitive after a while to the point where everything sort of sounds the same.
Which is a shame, because I think this writer is capable of so much. There are parts of the story which are beautifully written, the worldbuilding and magic system are very interesting, and the writer generally shows a great capacity for writing. The setting is beautifully crafted and its South Asian inspiration feels new and fresh. It is, however, completely wasted on this book, which kind of drags along at times.
I won't go into the whole Kingkiller discussion, but lets say if you've read The Name of the Wind, this book has no new story for you.