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A review by timinbc
The Starless Crown by James Rollins
1.0
I've met two of the characters, and I'm thinking what a BIG book this is and how it's one of many, in the "New York Times Best-Selling Author" tradition.
Pretty early on it's clear that I have stumbled into a word factory, producing a simulacrum of an epic fantasy. Not ruling out AI participation. It's clear that Rollins wanted to do some worldbuilding, but it seems that it was more important to work quickly and get out the 6,000 words a day. Urth? Really? I'll bet they all drink kave. I'll bet one of the next lead characters will have gray eyes and a crisp white shirt. And if it's a couldabeen version of our world, what's with the dinosaur-dogs?
The thriller background shows in the gleeful violence and abuse. And yes, I have read most of Joe Abercrombie's work. The latter's grimdark isn't full of people who ENJOY being nasty, and I don't need it in my stories.
The reviews suggest a large, complex plot, and that's fine. I just don't think it's going to be a good use of my reading time to plow through 4000 pages to find out how it all turns out.
I should have checked here first. “Rollins is what you might wind up with if you tossed Michael Crichton and Dan Brown into a particle accelerator together” would have made me drop it like a hot potato.
Pretty early on it's clear that I have stumbled into a word factory, producing a simulacrum of an epic fantasy. Not ruling out AI participation. It's clear that Rollins wanted to do some worldbuilding, but it seems that it was more important to work quickly and get out the 6,000 words a day. Urth? Really? I'll bet they all drink kave. I'll bet one of the next lead characters will have gray eyes and a crisp white shirt. And if it's a couldabeen version of our world, what's with the dinosaur-dogs?
The thriller background shows in the gleeful violence and abuse. And yes, I have read most of Joe Abercrombie's work. The latter's grimdark isn't full of people who ENJOY being nasty, and I don't need it in my stories.
The reviews suggest a large, complex plot, and that's fine. I just don't think it's going to be a good use of my reading time to plow through 4000 pages to find out how it all turns out.
I should have checked here first. “Rollins is what you might wind up with if you tossed Michael Crichton and Dan Brown into a particle accelerator together” would have made me drop it like a hot potato.