zacwest's reviews
455 reviews

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

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5.0

Phenomenal fantasy murder mystery. My mental checklist was satisfyingly fully resolved in the last 10%.
When Wizards Follow Fools by Andrew Rowe

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4.0

More depth to the LitRPG aspects is fun; definitely enjoying the increased understanding of the magic systems.
All the Seas of the World by Guy Gavriel Kay

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5.0

Inverted my expectations of lost siblings: strongly heart-warming rather than heart-breaking like _Tigana_.
Loved the depth of lived religious experiences and how certain characters receiving an epilogue comfortably filled in the story.
A Brightness Long Ago by Guy Gavriel Kay

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5.0

Every Kay novel can be summed up as: _thorough_. This fills in the background of stories past--and works better knowing them--while feeling individually compelling. What rich characters, even the "villain" is once again somewhat lovable.
Disquiet Gods by Christopher Ruocchio

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4.0

Informative, interesting and often inconsequential but the world building keeps me going. I really enjoy the universe but again I'm torn by narrator hints of future calamities; this plot device isn't my favorite.
Ashes of Man by Christopher Ruocchio

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4.0

This series has not shied away from killing off major characters, to say the least, but off-screen at the end was a bit weak; the common failing with this series is the endings feeling like brief sudden pauses. Still captivating world-building action with solid forward momentum. Hard to believe I’m nearly caught up.
Kingdoms of Death by Christopher Ruocchio

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4.0

 
I couldn't stop. There's something about the story line and the gradual reveals that makes me really captivated. This was a much harder book to read, probably owing to Hadrian's experiences. I'm a little confused about the contrast between going down a path with no foresight past this point and earlier books narrator proclaiming some of the visions after this point had happened. I'm guessing it's a continuity problem, a retcon, or something that'll be settled in the books in the future. This one ended at a weird point and really did not feel like a conclusion: both unsatisfying and immediate. 
Demon in White by Christopher Ruocchio

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4.0

 
I'm appreciating more the time-skips and forward references but I'm still not entirely convinced it's going to continue to work. I feel like the end of this book came quickly, predictably and uninterestingly. The plot overall was still fun, and the world-building definitely kicked up a notch. I'm not sure I'll be reading the rest of the series, given I'm halfway through what's released so far, but I think I'm happy to have read to this point too.
Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio

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4.0

 
The _deus ex machina_ was a little much here, but also clearly not necessary from a plot perspective, so I can overlook it at least a little bit. I guess I can see how it paves the road ahead, but I am really stuck on it. I think the plot expansion was useful and enjoyable and I'm looking forward to the next book as we expand more into the Empire itself.
Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio

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4.0

 
There's something interesting here, at least at the core. The world building is unique and I think can best be described as cribbing some good tropes and combining them together well. I feel like it's probably 30% longer than needed, but at least reasonably unpredictable. The thing I dislike the most is the constant discussion of the long-future-from-this-novel state of the narrator. It's good that it's wrapping up loose ends ("and I never saw them again" after a chapter, e.g.) but it's hard that it's projecting some weird future state (look how awful I made the galaxy). I'm torn, really, but erring on the side of liking it more than I expected from the beginning.