Shawn Braden
The Frugal Wizard's Handbook for Surviving medieval England (phew) was a great and easy read. I loved the relationship between the main cast, I loved the internal conflict of the main character, I loved the moral of the story, I loved the clever twist on gods and men, and I loved basically everything about it. Spoiler free: the main conflict was engaging and compelling, the main protagonist and antagonists were clever and fun to read, the resolution to the story was satisfying and brilliant as always with Brandon's books, and the best thing about the book is the relationships between the main cast. So authentic and beautifully written. And surprisingly, i found myself cracking up throughout the entire story. So many clever and fun things were turned on their heads.
The ONLY thing that I wish was done better or we had more of was the importance of the missing pages. I feel like that petered out and became irrelevant, and a promise was made that was unfulfilled. I was waiting for the cathartic final page to be discovered somewhere casual or in plain sight that had the moral to the story or the answer to all the questions raised, and it just never came. Maybe the rest of the pre-jump survey or something. Don't get me wrong, I loved everything else, but this was the one thing that was promised and never delivered, which is rare in a Sanderson book.
The Sunlit Man was a pleasant surprise for me. It took me a long time to realize Nomad was a character from the Stormlight Archives, and that I actually knew him! I ended up googling everything about Hoid and Nomad and etc etc. It was a wonderful time.
The book itself was well paced, engaging, interesting, and fun. I loved the clever world and how Brandon built it up, I loved the scientific explanations for all the weird and fantastical nonsense of the world, I loved that the setting was as much of a character as the characters were, and I loved the cathartic release I got from how beautifully everything was tied up. These four books (the secret ones) are probably my favorites of Sandersons even having read Stormlight Archive and Mistborn (first trilogy, my previous favorites of all time). Tress is still number one, but I also haven't read Yumi yet.
No complaints. 5 stars. Would read again.
I can say without a shadow of a doubt that “Tress of the Emerald Sea” is one of my all time favorite books. Perhaps the best book I've ever read. It has the magical whimsy of Harry Potter, the adventure of The Pricess Bride and The Lies of Locke Lamora, and the tight, well written story that I've come know from Brandon Sanderson. It doesn't have the slow, hard to get through parts his stories sometimes do at the beginning, and it's beautifully written. I didn't want to put it down, and it never felt slow or meandering. Just... perfect.
I had trouble enjoying this one as much as the first few books. It was the one I put down the most. That being said, I believe this one had some of the biggest stakes and pay off. I love the White Council, the Faeries, the Knights of the Cross, the Summer and Winter Knights. I love the story, the twists, everything.Still a 5 star book.
Once again the Dresden files makes me fall in love with the world and the characters. I love the way he handles Susan, I love Dresden, and I absolutely love the way he handles their relationship. I love the way he handles relationships in general. Murphy and Dresden. Murphy and Carmichael. Ughhhh.
I love Butchers take on Werewolves. Mild potential spoilers after the period.
There are 4 or more different types of werewolves, and they're all absolutely thematic, flavorful, and well handled.
A delightfully short, entertaining G.novel
It brings to life the beautiful word of the Dresden files. While the normal novels aren't wordy by any means, reading the graphic novel gets you straight into the action and isn't riddled the more boring parts you come to expect from a book. Plus, who doesn't like pictures?
This book was 351 pages of fast paced, crime-solving, down-on-his-luck, kick-ass wizardry, and I'm his next biggest fan. Every character was dripping with nuance, every scene had a purpose, every action seemed foreshadowed, every twist felt genuine, every decision felt natural, and even the things we didn't see coming felt believable and real.
Even something that “could” feel like dues ex machine felt so natural and believable I couldn't help but sit in awe. I had a joyous sense of magic like I did when I first read Harry Potter, watched Little Witch Academia (the short film not the show), and I first saw Merlin. Every description of the Nevernever, demons, vampires, faeries, etc., get real, and the world felt so grand and magical and wonderful that I just couldn't stop reading.
It was such a joy to follow Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden (conjure by it at your own risk), that I can't wait until Amazon sends the second book over (still really angry about that one). Pick up this book, you won't regret it.
I loved this book, but i am not entirely sure if the final fight was as believable as it could have been. I'll explain more below with spoilers (and plenty of warning). I loved the magic system, i loved the writing, i loved the characters and the world. I loved this book, though it isn't as good as the second one. Everything else made sense, everything else was amazing, but there's just one little thing that i didn't love that wasn't foreshadowed well (if at all) and that made the final fight bring me out of an otherwise 100/100 amazing ending for me.
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
I love that Marsh turned on the Lord Ruler, I love that Vin went and confronted the Lord Ruler, I love that Elend became the King by preaching peace to an angry mob of oppressed slaves after a 1000 year rule.
I did not love how Vin magically breaks every law of Allomancy in the most unforshadowed way. There is zero precedent for Vin being able to pull metals that pierce someone's body, zero precedent for burning mists instead of metals, and zero reason other than “if the Lord Ruler (who's using Ferumchemy AND Allomancy) can do it, so must I be able to... if i just try hard enough.” I don't know, didn't sit right with me. I loved everything else about this book, and i still give it 95/100, 9.5/10, whatever, but that minor detail killed an otherwise perfect ending and made me love the second book so much more.
This book was so fulfilling, so well planned, so thoughtful, and so intentional. Everything was tied up in such a neat and interesting way, and the payoff was so huge every step of the way. One of the very few trilogies I can honestly say the first book was my least favorite because it was so good at allowing the other two books to pay off. I mean seriously, read this series.
The Scythe series up until this point has been so incredibly interesting that it feels real! The pacing is a bit slow at times, and I do have trouble picking it up, but just forcing myself to read has paid off so immensely each time!
The characters are well written and interesting, their motives are believable and fun, and this story is heavily character focused with AN AMAZING PLOT.
Let's talk about the plot.
Holy. S#!+.
My general complaint with the first book, despite loving it and burning through it, was that it felt like the major plot points, pinch points, and turning points were mundane for such a grandiose world. I can't think of a better word for what I truly mean, the plot was interesting but unimpressive, it was good but not inspiring, and I wasn't gripping the book reading it. Don't get me wrong, it was SO SATISFYING to read and finish Scythe, and I immediately bought the second book, but it wasn't as flashy or grand as a Gentlemen Bastard book is by comparison.
Thunderhead, though?
From the Act 1 finale, to the Act 2 finale, to the final scene when what seems like every promise and hook the first book makes is delivered AND had me gripping the book, I can say this plot, these characters, and these moments are every bit as grandiose and thrilling as a Scott Lynch plot line. The major difference is that, in my opinion, you can probably see things coming in this book when you wouldn't see them coming in a Scott Lynch book, but that doesn't change the fact that it will have you stunned by the end.
Mild spoilers ahead, but nothing specific. Major spoilers for Game of Thrones though.
SPOILERS AHEAD*
The ending of this book has me torn. I'm devastated for the main characters. I'm devastated for the Old Guard. I'm devastated for the MidMerican Scythedom. Ladies and Gentlemen, this book has me shook. I haven't felt this feeling since chapter 10 of A Game of Thrones book when Bran was casually chucked from a window, or the end of Book 1 when Edward Stark died and it took me 6 months to pick up book 2. Or the red wedding. I'm SHOOK. I hurt for these characters, and much like the Lannister's, I want the culprit to die a most painful death. (Oooh I'm trying not to spoil anything) I don't even want to read the next book if it's going to hurt this much. Ughh.
This book took everything i loved about the first book and ran with it. I love the political intrigue, i love the chesslike movements of all parties involved, i love the misdirection, i love how the new religions play out, and i LOVE LOVE LOVE the way he foreshadows the otherwise Deus Ex Machina. It all works. Everything, including the ending, is satisfying in the most spectacular way. No complaints about this ending unlike the ending to the first book.
Listen, this book was 5 stars and every bit as good as its predecessor. Then I get to the middle of the book where the protagonists go to place you know you won't enjoy reading about. I'm 28 and I still remember the feeling of dread and loathing associated with under-water levels and caves in video games (looking at you Sonic and Pokémon), and that's the exact same feeling I got when the author PAUSED the main narrative to introduce a side mission. I can't find the motivation to pick it back up. I will eventually, but for now it gets a 3 star review for the perfect first half of a book.
EDIT: it's still a 5 star book, and it's only slows down for FOUR CHAPTER CYCLES... ughh. But it's all worth it once the side quest is fully underway.
Read this book for the first time and I am completely enamored with it. The writing is difficult to follow at first but once you get used to the style you realize the author is basically answering your questions when or before you have them with the flashbacks. I love the amazing plot, the lovable characters, and the entire world. I hope the next two books answer some of the question about the Eldren, Elderglass, and the Bondsmagi.
My only real critique is that the main climax' (plural) don't hit as hard as i wanted. The writing style is so fluid it feels like you can read right past them without being impacted at all. Don't get me wrong, i loved them was devastated by them when i was supposed to be, but i feel like the author could have made his points in the cliffhanger format most readers are used to to make the climax' more impactful.
This book was very quirky and very hard to read at first. The goofy, militaristic names and the almost comical approach to magic almost had me putting the book down before it began.
However, i'm really glad i stuck it out. After the first few chapters you really start to care for and appreciate the characters. After that, you're hooked! I read all 10 books, 4 omnibuses, in about a month. I couldn't put them down.
The magic is both interesting and subdued. Magic is an ever-looming threat and also a very rare thing at the same time. You almost always have a sense that something could go very wrong and sometimes things do. The character arcs are VERY amazing, the main antagonist is amazing, the subsequent threats in each book never feel forced, and the books are just overall a good solid read. If you're looking for an interesting, unique world builder with great characters, interesting duels, death, strategy and tactics, a little military life, and one of the most interesting assassin concepts i've ever read in my life... then this is the book for you.
This book was over a thousand pages of setup and a few hundred pages of payoff, but I was literally never bored, it never felt slow, and always felt intentional and well paced. I was always interested in the characters and events I was reading about. What a wonderfully written book with satisfying climaxes.
This book was better than the second one, but not as good as the third. The cliffhanger at the end was perfect though. The book was great, but i feel the ending lacked impact (except for the cliffhanger). It just felt like the book was drawing to a big end and then sort of petered out. All in all 9.5/10
This one invokes the heart string, turns a particularly fun nursery rhyme into a horrifying series of encounters, and has a wonderfully horrible turn of and series of events that fees natural and real and incredible. Even the ending, which was tragic and heartbreaking, felt real and rewarding and raised the stakes.
This book started out great. I was excited to see where everything went next... and then the pacing fell off a cliff. I don't know what happened, the first two books were fantastic. I lost the motivation to continue reading at some point. I made it over halfway through, but it was just missing something to keep me engaged. I will restart this series at some point, but for now, 2 stars for the DNF. This is probably my most critical review of a Sanderson book.
Don't ask me how, but Dresden made me care about the Dolores Umbridge of his world. Dresden is a man of principle, and like every man of principle he is willing to turn coat to do what's right... especially if the owner gets it wrong. Wonderful and thrilling.
As always, absolutely love the books and the story. This one had turns and surprises where I especially didn't expect them to go. 10/10
Relatively short (350ish) book, wonderfully complex plot and characters, and a deliciously seductive array of moral ultimatums. This book is beautiful, wonderful, and so well written that i couldn't stop here, I immediately went on to read the next two books in 5 days.
Once again, his handing of relationships is some of the best I've ever seen. I love Michael, Susan, and Dresden. I love Michaels wife. I love the relationship between faith and magic and everything. I love the plot, the twists, and the ending. So much love.
This was a really amazing book with a really satisfying story. It feels like iRobot with assassin training school arcs. I loved the characters, the antagonists, and the way everything wraps up. I went out and bought the second book immediately.