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A review by bookpanther
Siege Weapons by Harry F. Rey
3.0
Seige Weapons is fine in terms of enjoyment but is a mixed bag overall, albeit with lots of potential. The strongest elements of this novella are the world-building and the complex character(s) (in all honestly, only Ales showed any complexity). I really loved the tidbits about the history of the world as well as the societal context of "homosapiens" and "heterosapiens." Rey's writing is also clean and easily accessible, making it quite easy to speed through.
I think this work would have been a lot stronger as a full-length novel. I felt like I didn't really get a nuanced sense of the powers fighting against each other and their motivations. A deeper exploration into this would have solidified the "high-stakes" atmosphere. However, what was most jarring to me was
Despite some of the flaws, I am still interested in how this series will progress, and I look forward to more world-building and deeper character development, especially for the other side characters.
I think this work would have been a lot stronger as a full-length novel. I felt like I didn't really get a nuanced sense of the powers fighting against each other and their motivations. A deeper exploration into this would have solidified the "high-stakes" atmosphere. However, what was most jarring to me was
Spoiler
the "insta-love" (if you can call it that). One minute Ales and Turo are meeting at a bar for a hook-up and the next, Turo suddenly understands Ales's motivations and wants him to join his crew. This all happens in the span of 1 to 2 (short) chapters. Without any sort of development, it just felt like a huge chunk of the story arc was missing. Near the end, the way Turo suddenly sees Ales's view (to fight for freedom with peace instead of violence) seemed like a classic case of "telling" instead of "showing," reinforced by the fact that we don't really get a concrete sense of the "how" and "why" behind his change of heart.Despite some of the flaws, I am still interested in how this series will progress, and I look forward to more world-building and deeper character development, especially for the other side characters.