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A review by r_j_setser
The Spring Catastrophe by Vit Vanicek
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Divine Tyranny: The Spring Catastrophe reads like a classic fantasy novel. It's straight-forward in its plot building, the scenes are action-packed and conversational, and the world is described enough to set the scenes, but also left open enough to allow our imaginations to fill in the blanks.
I hope the author takes it as a compliment and not an insult, but it reminded me a lot of The Witcher (books), both in the style of writing and the feel of the story, but without such an emphasis on the overly descriptive relationships in The Witcher. I love (love, love) a good tension arc between a hardened warrior and philosophical, playful bard (seriously, it's one of my favorite fantasy tropes) and I thought Lord Versos and Sinestros had a great duo-dynamic (the banter in this book is TOP-TIER). All of the characters were well-written and the story kept me interested throughout the entire book.
My impulse is to call it "epic fantasy" because it hits all of the beats: traveling across the fantasy realm, many characters, intricate peace/war themes in the plot, etc. But a lot of readers associate "epic fantasy" with long books and highly detailed writing, and this book is less than 300 pages with a fair amount of descriptions, but I wouldn't call it an "overly descriptive" style. I hesitate to label it as an "epic fantasy", lest that turn any casual fantasy readers away, but I would absolutely consider it a brilliant example of the genre, just on a shorter scale.
Overall, The Spring Catastrophe is perfect for readers who enjoy plot-focused fantasy and characters on epic journeys to face catastrophes where you don't know which characters will make it to the next book. I'm highly invested in the Divine Tyranny series and recommend it to my fellow high fantasy lovers!
I received this book from the author. All comments and opinions are entirely my own and this review is voluntary.
I hope the author takes it as a compliment and not an insult, but it reminded me a lot of The Witcher (books), both in the style of writing and the feel of the story, but without such an emphasis on the overly descriptive relationships in The Witcher. I love (love, love) a good tension arc between a hardened warrior and philosophical, playful bard (seriously, it's one of my favorite fantasy tropes) and I thought Lord Versos and Sinestros had a great duo-dynamic (the banter in this book is TOP-TIER). All of the characters were well-written and the story kept me interested throughout the entire book.
My impulse is to call it "epic fantasy" because it hits all of the beats: traveling across the fantasy realm, many characters, intricate peace/war themes in the plot, etc. But a lot of readers associate "epic fantasy" with long books and highly detailed writing, and this book is less than 300 pages with a fair amount of descriptions, but I wouldn't call it an "overly descriptive" style. I hesitate to label it as an "epic fantasy", lest that turn any casual fantasy readers away, but I would absolutely consider it a brilliant example of the genre, just on a shorter scale.
Overall, The Spring Catastrophe is perfect for readers who enjoy plot-focused fantasy and characters on epic journeys to face catastrophes where you don't know which characters will make it to the next book. I'm highly invested in the Divine Tyranny series and recommend it to my fellow high fantasy lovers!
I received this book from the author. All comments and opinions are entirely my own and this review is voluntary.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, War, Fire/Fire injury, Blood, and Cursing
Content: No on page romance/spice. Action/gore is fairly present: both character & animal deaths are somewhat graphic. Devastation and suffering after war. Cursing would be rated PG-13. Mild mistreatment of characters based on origin/race.