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A review by seanorrhea
Smoke and Stone by Michael R. Fletcher
5.0
4.5/5, but rounding up because it's closer to a 5 than a 4.
What the actual fuck, mike? How do you keep doing this to me? First Manifest delusions, and the wildly batshit insane magic system based off of, well...delusions that Manifest themselves. Then the Obsidian Path, which was just one fucked up idea after another.
Now you decide, hey, you know what would make a cool idea? A war between banished and current gods, people who can access them and their benefits by taking essentially recreational drugs, ranging from mushrooms, to opium, to cocaine.
The more I read from this man, the more convinced I am that he is writing all these series within a single universe, or world set in different periods of time. I have been noticing little Easter eggs for books now, and this one was no different, if anything I saw more than ever. I've spoken to Mike briefly about this, and he was cagey about it, saying very little it other than its mostly to entertain himself, and the select few of us that pick up on them, but I don't know that I buy that. I think there's a bigger plan behind the scenes, but I could be totally wrong about that.
I read this in two sittings, which isn't uncommon for me when reading one of fletcher's novels.
I'll probably read book two tomorrow, then anxiously await Manifest delusions #4 later this summer, then the last city of sacrifice book sometime after that.
Criminally underrated author, I wouldn't start here, though. If you want a taste for how fucking insane this man's mind is, and how that translates to some of the most grimdark fantasy I've ever had the pleasure of reading, do yourself a favor and read Beyond Redemption.
What the actual fuck, mike? How do you keep doing this to me? First Manifest delusions, and the wildly batshit insane magic system based off of, well...delusions that Manifest themselves. Then the Obsidian Path, which was just one fucked up idea after another.
Now you decide, hey, you know what would make a cool idea? A war between banished and current gods, people who can access them and their benefits by taking essentially recreational drugs, ranging from mushrooms, to opium, to cocaine.
The more I read from this man, the more convinced I am that he is writing all these series within a single universe, or world set in different periods of time. I have been noticing little Easter eggs for books now, and this one was no different, if anything I saw more than ever. I've spoken to Mike briefly about this, and he was cagey about it, saying very little it other than its mostly to entertain himself, and the select few of us that pick up on them, but I don't know that I buy that. I think there's a bigger plan behind the scenes, but I could be totally wrong about that.
I read this in two sittings, which isn't uncommon for me when reading one of fletcher's novels.
I'll probably read book two tomorrow, then anxiously await Manifest delusions #4 later this summer, then the last city of sacrifice book sometime after that.
Criminally underrated author, I wouldn't start here, though. If you want a taste for how fucking insane this man's mind is, and how that translates to some of the most grimdark fantasy I've ever had the pleasure of reading, do yourself a favor and read Beyond Redemption.