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A review by cat_rector
Ruination by Anthony Reynolds
5.0
Five stars as a League of Legends fan, four from a general fiction standpoint.
A huge part of why I enjoyed this is because I played League for like six years and this book is essentially the prequel for a handful of characters from the game. The game has a ton of lore, but it's a very optional thing to consume, since it has little to do with the gameplay itself, so I went into this with zero idea of what the story would be, but knowing that these characters need to get from A) normal humans to B) Fucked up and unique warriors. Getting to guess at how was a fun experience for me.
As well, the book drops in a small horde of easter eggs for players, such as character cameos, origins of some in-game weapons, important locations, explanations why some characters are fish and birds and stuff? Like. I just had a lot of fun.
From a fictional perspective, I can see how a reader who hasn't played League will read this book, look at some of the details, and ask themselves why that wasn't cut. Unfortunately, in serving one community, you may underserve another. I think the plot is good fun, the stakes are high, the characters are deeply human, and there's a lot to love for a non-gamer fantasy fan.
Like. Just. I didn't like Kalista at all while playing (something about being yeeted across the map against my will is not fun) but this story makes her the character of my heart, I love her
A huge part of why I enjoyed this is because I played League for like six years and this book is essentially the prequel for a handful of characters from the game. The game has a ton of lore, but it's a very optional thing to consume, since it has little to do with the gameplay itself, so I went into this with zero idea of what the story would be, but knowing that these characters need to get from A) normal humans to B) Fucked up and unique warriors. Getting to guess at how was a fun experience for me.
As well, the book drops in a small horde of easter eggs for players, such as character cameos, origins of some in-game weapons, important locations, explanations why some characters are fish and birds and stuff? Like. I just had a lot of fun.
From a fictional perspective, I can see how a reader who hasn't played League will read this book, look at some of the details, and ask themselves why that wasn't cut. Unfortunately, in serving one community, you may underserve another. I think the plot is good fun, the stakes are high, the characters are deeply human, and there's a lot to love for a non-gamer fantasy fan.
Like. Just. I didn't like Kalista at all while playing (something about being yeeted across the map against my will is not fun) but this story makes her the character of my heart, I love her