Genre: Science-Fiction
Release Date: November 8th, 2022
Pages: 528
Publisher: Orbit Books
My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
The author has a brilliant mind for creating intricate multifaceted story worlds with dramatic plots. The sheer scope of this story is impressive and I wanted so badly to be immersed in it. I can see all of this objectively, but I’m afraid the story just wasn’t for me.
The beginning is really dense, with a lot of information thrown at readers without proper context – names, places, world, factions, legends, etc. It’s all just too much to comprehend all at once and completely. This is my biggest concern, that many readers will not push through.
Although it truly does build into an adventure of epic proportions, I struggled to connect with the characters and the plot because of the first section. On the one hand, the setting is otherworldly and the lore is immersive, and I really wanted to be transported into the scenes. But the sheer amount of information that I was trying to absorb just left me slightly overwhelmed instead.
I think with some reworking to the first third of this book, it could have made for a much better start for the reader experience. I believe the author has intriguing concepts for creating a unique, spacey world, but the execution of it left much to be desired.
For readers who do manage to stick it out and grasp the story, I think that science-fiction lovers will enjoy it. It is accurately referred to as a space opera, and that’s the exact feel that I had while reading it. Even though my own experience with it wasn’t exactly raving, I still think it is a commendable debut and I’d be interested to see what this author has in store for us all next.
Disclaimers:
Huge thank you to Netgalley and Orbit Books for gifting me an early copy of this amazing story! I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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