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forgottenwitch 's review for:
Guardian: Zhen Hun (Novel) Vol. 3
by priest
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
By and large, I enjoyed Guardian — theres a lot to this universe that I think is super interesting! Whether that be the lore of the world, the diversity of the characters, the “monster of the week” story set up, or the blending of more xianxia elements with a modern day paranormal detective story, theres so much here that I am such a huge fan of. That being said, I dont think Guardian is long enough, nor intricate enough, to execute a lot of what it is attempting to do in a satisfactory manor.
At no point reading this book did I ever feel like I had a completely solid grasp on the universe or the fantasy elements. Maybe this would be different if I had a better basis in the philosophies/folklore/mythology the plot is being built off of; but, more often than not, it felt more like I was being dragged along, waiting for the author to tell me what was happening because I was never provided with enough information to draw my own conclusions. When I was provided with information, it was often the result of an info dump and was difficult to fully digest without reading over a few times. On the flip side, there were times where I would be provided with little bits of information here or there, but it was either A) a bit too convoluted for me to truly figure out what was going on until some character laid it all out, or B) some character would be withholding information integral to the situation, and said info would only be shared after the events had transpired.
Overall, I feel like Guardian has an incredibly strong start, but gets messier and harder to follow the longer it goes on — making for a bit of a frustrating reading experience. There is so much going on during every moment of this story, and huge chunks of information are being thrown at you from so many different directions, that the last half of the series as a whole just feels overwhelming and rushed.
I wish this series was at least twice as long as it is, and really had the time to draw out and expand on everything going on. There’s so much here that I am interested in, but none of it really gets the care or development it needs to become something truly impactful.
At no point reading this book did I ever feel like I had a completely solid grasp on the universe or the fantasy elements. Maybe this would be different if I had a better basis in the philosophies/folklore/mythology the plot is being built off of; but, more often than not, it felt more like I was being dragged along, waiting for the author to tell me what was happening because I was never provided with enough information to draw my own conclusions. When I was provided with information, it was often the result of an info dump and was difficult to fully digest without reading over a few times. On the flip side, there were times where I would be provided with little bits of information here or there, but it was either A) a bit too convoluted for me to truly figure out what was going on until some character laid it all out, or B) some character would be withholding information integral to the situation, and said info would only be shared after the events had transpired.
Overall, I feel like Guardian has an incredibly strong start, but gets messier and harder to follow the longer it goes on — making for a bit of a frustrating reading experience. There is so much going on during every moment of this story, and huge chunks of information are being thrown at you from so many different directions, that the last half of the series as a whole just feels overwhelming and rushed.
I wish this series was at least twice as long as it is, and really had the time to draw out and expand on everything going on. There’s so much here that I am interested in, but none of it really gets the care or development it needs to become something truly impactful.