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seacrab1 's review for:
The Crown Tower
by Michael J. Sullivan
Hmm, this is a hard review to write. I was all ready to go gaga over this series (like the Gentleman Bastard series by [a:Scott Lynch|73149|Scott Lynch|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1332432746p2/73149.jpg]).
I have not read any of the other Riyria books. I saw all the great reviews for the series and thought I'd start with Book 1. Well, book 1 is really book 4 if one goes in published order; it's a prequel to the Riyria Revelations and gives the reader some back story on the main characters.
In hindsight, maybe starting at Book 1 was not such a good idea. In the Author's Note before Chapter 1, Michael Sullivan states that reading them chronologically instead of in published order won't matter but after reading this book, I disagree. I enjoyed it, don't get me wrong. But it didn't live up to the hype: it's quite weak on the fantasy elements (a seer, a glorified wizard and a few mentions of goblin lore... that's all??), the action is pretty minimal until well over halfway through, and it ends with more questions than when it started.
Is it a good story? Yes, it's fine. Does it take me away to a rich fantasy land? No, it could easily be Scotland or England circa 1750. Am I now invested in the adventures of Hadrian and Royce? Barely. They are likable but I'm not convinced they are as fabulous as all the reviews have built them up to be.
I'm not dying to read the next book but I will keep going, mostly out of faith that they will get better.
I have not read any of the other Riyria books. I saw all the great reviews for the series and thought I'd start with Book 1. Well, book 1 is really book 4 if one goes in published order; it's a prequel to the Riyria Revelations and gives the reader some back story on the main characters.
In hindsight, maybe starting at Book 1 was not such a good idea. In the Author's Note before Chapter 1, Michael Sullivan states that reading them chronologically instead of in published order won't matter but after reading this book, I disagree. I enjoyed it, don't get me wrong. But it didn't live up to the hype: it's quite weak on the fantasy elements (a seer, a glorified wizard and a few mentions of goblin lore... that's all??), the action is pretty minimal until well over halfway through, and it ends with more questions than when it started.
Is it a good story? Yes, it's fine. Does it take me away to a rich fantasy land? No, it could easily be Scotland or England circa 1750. Am I now invested in the adventures of Hadrian and Royce? Barely. They are likable but I'm not convinced they are as fabulous as all the reviews have built them up to be.
I'm not dying to read the next book but I will keep going, mostly out of faith that they will get better.