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A review by natoriety
The Atlas Complex by Olivie Blake
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I would say that I enjoyed greatly the majority of the book for what it was. The relationships between the characters and their personal arcs were greatly entertaining and amusing.
Now to the critique because I feel all of us hold a bit of it:
While seeing into the heads of the people that Ezra chose was a very interesting idea, I dare say that the execution was quite poor and by the end of it we just learned barely enough for some characters that either didn’t appear again or failed to deliver anything interesting to the plot. Perhaps the only exceptions here would be Belen and Nothazai, who by the end of the book also disappointed a bit.
Talking about disappointment, the whole build-up between Callum and Tristan straight up killed me. Their moments and chapters were my favourite, so you can imagine how let down I was when it all ended with one bullet to Callum’s chest. It was so very unnecessary to me to kill the one character that had so much personality and rediscovered hope for life. Perhaps the only saving grace here is that we got to see Callum and Tristan got quite a few happy endings in other universes and I choose to live believing in them instead.
Libby is another character in whose arc I was really invested and expectant of her possibilities. She became but a narcissistic murderer. The fact that she not only killed Nico but then had the audacity to say she didn’t regret it but then went on to feel bad for herself was too much for me. She went from a favourite character to one that I absolutely cannot stand now. I wouldn’t say her arc was done badly, in fact, it was very well written. I simply am not a fan of what she turned into, who she sacrificed and the fact that she faced ZERO consequences at the end.
I also feel there could be more expansion on Reina in general. Her arc felt very rushed and incomplete by the end and only left me with more questions than anything.
All in all, I would still say this was a very enjoyable book that developed in a pretty much expected ending when one considers the ideas the whole series conveys. I would also have rathered a different ending, but I believe Blake handled well the story she wanted to tell. To me, it was a story of hope, corruption and inevitable failure at redemption. I would say this was suitable in spite of my personal bias.
Now to the critique because I feel all of us hold a bit of it:
While seeing into the heads of the people that Ezra chose was a very interesting idea, I dare say that the execution was quite poor and by the end of it we just learned barely enough for some characters that either didn’t appear again or failed to deliver anything interesting to the plot. Perhaps the only exceptions here would be Belen and Nothazai, who by the end of the book also disappointed a bit.
Talking about disappointment, the whole build-up between Callum and Tristan straight up killed me. Their moments and chapters were my favourite, so you can imagine how let down I was when it all ended with one bullet to Callum’s chest. It was so very unnecessary to me to kill the one character that had so much personality and rediscovered hope for life. Perhaps the only saving grace here is that we got to see Callum and Tristan got quite a few happy endings in other universes and I choose to live believing in them instead.
Libby is another character in whose arc I was really invested and expectant of her possibilities. She became but a narcissistic murderer. The fact that she not only killed Nico but then had the audacity to say she didn’t regret it but then went on to feel bad for herself was too much for me. She went from a favourite character to one that I absolutely cannot stand now. I wouldn’t say her arc was done badly, in fact, it was very well written. I simply am not a fan of what she turned into, who she sacrificed and the fact that she faced ZERO consequences at the end.
I also feel there could be more expansion on Reina in general. Her arc felt very rushed and incomplete by the end and only left me with more questions than anything.
All in all, I would still say this was a very enjoyable book that developed in a pretty much expected ending when one considers the ideas the whole series conveys. I would also have rathered a different ending, but I believe Blake handled well the story she wanted to tell. To me, it was a story of hope, corruption and inevitable failure at redemption. I would say this was suitable in spite of my personal bias.