DNF at 47%

Here's the thing. I REALLY wanted to like this book. I mean, I was already in the middle of a stunning book when I got the urge to put that off in favor of this one. The urge was THAT strong. Maybe it had something to do with the gorgeous boy on the cover (I have a thing for blond haired men, after all, and that cannot be denied). That's what attracted me to this book in the first place. Apart from the fact that it was available via prime reading, meaning I didn't have to spend a penny on it. Though I would have if it came down to it, because this book has pretty damn good reviews on here, and the premise sounded interesting enough. I was also excited to read from a male's point of view, because I feel like I've done nothing but read from a female's point of view for my last several books.

Unfortunately, this book didn't stack up to my expectations. It is by no means a bad book. In fact, I think I held on for so long because it actually is rather fun. But the more I read, the more I was starting to get annoyed with the writing of it, and I didn't really care enough about the plot or the characters to want to continue. I'd pondered DNFing the book several times while leading up to that 47% mark, but kept reminding myself that it didn't have to be stunning work for me to enjoy it, and that it was short so it'd be worth finishing anyway. For a while, I actually believed I was going to finish it. But the things I didn't like just kept adding up, so I decided it wasn't worth continuing.

Do I think this is a good book? Sure. I think it's fun and if you want a good fantasy fix, this might provide you with that. And there are several books in the series, so if you love it, you're in for one hell of a ride. But I don't think this was the right book for me, which sucks as a huge fantasy lover. Especially since its been a while since I read a solid fantasy book lately.

Anyway, most of my qualms come down to the writing of the book. I read in another review that this book is actually translated, so I'm not going to criticize the author. I'm going to chalk it up to a shoddy translation and not the author's actual ability to write; that would be unfair to him and all the work he's put into this. Unfortunately that CAN be a huge downfall in translated books, because I agreed with the other reviewer; some of the sentences felt a little off or poorly worded, like it could have been written a little smoother. You know how English teachers tell you to read your essay out loud to see if it sounds right, and inevitably you come across those blocky sentences that read better in your head but didn't sound the same aloud? That's how this read, at times. But again, I don't think that has anything to do with the author himself. That's simply the way of translated books. It can make them or break them. Beyond that, there were a few typos and grammatical errors, but that's not a real complaint; just something I noticed.

The story was pretty slow to start, but now that I see how many books this series has, I think that makes sense. It's just trying to build you up to the main event, and there's quite a bit of training that the main character has to undergo before things can really take off. Unfortunately, I did not make it past this point in the novel, so I don't think I caught more than a glimpse of the main, overarching plot. In addition to that, the beginning was a bit info-dumpy, to the point where it was hard to keep all the information straight. If it had been dispersed evenly throughout the novel, it would have been easier to follow along. The information was interesting enough, but it would have been nice to see it executed differently.

The dialogue did not captivate me much either. There were a lot of exclamation points used, especially in the beginning. I cannot even begin to understand WHY that's a pet peeve of mine, but it is, for whatever reason. The other thing is the author made comparisons to bears A LOT in the story, and I don't know why, but that kind of grated on me after a while. Like there may have been better things to compare the bulk of the characters to. But when the characters spoke, a lot of it felt repetitive. A lot of things were explained to us, and this came via dialogue, when sometimes that information probably could have been demonstrated to us via other alternatives instead. I don't mind a dialogue heavy book at all, but the dialogue amongst many of the side or supporting characters felt weak and indistinct from one another, making it even harder to grant each character their own unique voice. A lot of cliches were used, especially pertaining to the bullies.

My final complaint is that we kind of know who the antagonist is from the start...but I felt nothing one way or another about him and didn't really KNOW him beyond his name. We're supposed to fear the antagonist, but only because we're told to. They don't show me anything that will actually make me fear them. It wasn't all that convincing, and it made it hard to sympathize with the characters and the hush that fell over them every time the guy's name was mentioned.

But you know what I DID like? And this is probably the thing that made me keep reading, honestly. But I loved that we were getting a story about the underdog. Lasgol had a hard time captivating me, yes, despite being the main character. But I was rooting for him the entire time. I wanted him to succeed, and I hope he does. I'm not interested in reading the rest of the story to find out, but I hope he gets what he wants out of life, because he certainly didn't bother me. He seemed sweet. A fifteen year old boy struggling to find his place in the world. Almost like a coming of age novel, but not quite that. It was refreshing to see a character who was NOT good at everything he touched. Who got excited when he learned new things. And who had REAL emotions! Do you know how tired I am of reading books that feature male protagonists that are stiffer than a piece of wood? Extremely. So reading about a boy who does have emotions, who feels fear, panic, and sadness, and who also still knows how to experience joy and excitement despite the ugly hand he's been dealt, was WONDERFUL. This boy is the son of a traitor, and he must live with this dark cloud over his head for the rest of his life. But he's not letting that stop him. And he's not letting it make him bitter and ugly, either.

So yes, I had a lot of complaints about this book. A lot of things I really didn't care for. But Lasgol kept me reading. And even though I'm not interested enough in his story to keep reading, and kind of knew from the first few chapters that even if I did finish the book, I probably wasn't going to continue with the series, I was definitely happy enough to see an appropriate portrayal of a young, fifteen year old in an adult fantasy book.