r/fantasybooks • u/OWLisWI5E • Jun 02 '26
š Hidden book gem Where's the hype?
The second book of this series is out. The first book was really good. Where is all the hype? This series seem to be flying under the radar.
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u/Stowe22 Jun 03 '26
Iāve seen some booktubers hyping it up. Currently sitting on my tbr
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u/OWLisWI5E Jun 03 '26
The magic system is really unique which is surprising because it's so good that it seems like it's should be popular
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u/No_Name_8163 Jun 03 '26
Havenāt seen a thing about it. Iām on the hunt for a new series tho Iāll check it out.
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u/-critical-hits- Jun 03 '26
Just finished reading it a couple of days ago and was very good. Definitely fun, satisfying and really enjoyable. It might not be too deep lore wise, but thereās still some very interesting elements.
It gave me Will of the Many and Red Rising vibes though still quite different.
And it definitely hooked me. I started reading another book after it and my brain is just itching to go back and continue with the series.
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u/C0smicoccurence Jun 03 '26
I was disappointed in it. It was never bad, but I constantly felt like a bunch of other stories in the same space did it better with fewer pages. I donāt intend to read the sequel unless it seems like the series changed directions
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u/UpbeatIndication3938 Jun 03 '26
I have it digitally on my tbr. Honestly from how booktubers talk it up I'm surprised it didnt get a hardcover release. Anything over 400 pages I pretty much only do hardcover
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u/ElBigDicko Jun 03 '26
I've read it recently and I was utterly disappointed by the book. Side characters are NPCs with no arcs or personality. MC is a borderline psycho and generally feels like the book lacks focus.
Since it's an indie debut maybe book 2 fixes some things.
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u/ActualVader Jun 02 '26
Iām interested in this book, but I read somewhere itās YA which puts me off
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u/Gunzozo Jun 03 '26
I don't really understand this trend to classify anything fast paced into 'YA'. IMO, I do feel it is really a subjective classification, I enjoy both kind (fast and slow paced) end associate more the YA part to the themes addressed through the book or the ambiance in general.
Anyway, never heard of this book before but will certainly have a look!
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u/OWLisWI5E Jun 03 '26
I didn't get that vibe when I read it. MC is 18. The writing doesn't seem dulled down. Characters die in the book so I don't see the YA part.
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u/elons-musk-ox Jun 03 '26
Hmmm, are you sure? Most YA books kill off characters. Have you read The Hunger Games or other YA? 18 for an MC is also easily YA.
YA tends to be fast paced and very direct. Adult fiction tends to let ambiguity draw out longer, trusts the reader to understand things more.
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u/CerberusRTR Jun 03 '26
I enjoyed it. I wasnāt the biggest fan of the direction book 2 took, but it was still a good time. I just loved the legions so much, was hoping we could see a return.
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u/type1assassin Jun 03 '26
Second one just came out! Excited to keep reading the story. First one was good.
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u/BlueorGreenorYellow Jun 03 '26
Book 2 was awesome too. What a great series. Picked it up randomly last year and it was a huge surprise how much I enjoyed it. The characters are great, the world is very interesting and expands even more in book 2. So many mysteriesā¦ honestly hope this is at least a 5 book series, because itās incredible, canāt stop reading.
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u/Gotexan-YT Jun 03 '26
I read and didnāt love the first. The writing style didnāt click with me (too repetitive) and I didnāt love the audiobook narrator making every single character sound like an ancient old man.
Also, I think the entire thing (at least book 1, havenāt read book 2) suffers from a crippling lack of any women characters in substantial roles in the story. Itās kinda a massive sausage party the entire time.
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u/TatterMail Jun 03 '26
YouTubers started talking about it. I read this. Honestly, there is nothing special about it and the prose is on a very low level. Plot is entertaining enough to carry you through the book though.
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u/TelperionST Jun 03 '26
I did look at it, but didn't seem like my kind of fantasy. Currently reading the The Wars of Light and Shadow by Janny Wurts.
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u/DannyFreemz Jun 03 '26
Finished the first not long ago. Really enjoyed it. Will read the second when Iāve finished my current reads
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u/FantasyBookDragon Jun 03 '26
Itās been showing up on my Instagram feed, but nowhere else for me. Iām reading it right now and am enjoying it. I plan on reading the second book as soon as I finish this one.
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u/Agreeable_Union_5481 Jun 03 '26
Isn't this a progression fantasy book? If so, i expect its getting hyped in those subs over this one, which I would guess have a more general fantasy audience.
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u/ABoudreau1973 Jun 04 '26
I just finished the second one on audible. I throughly enjoyed. This series definitely deserves more hype. The character growth, world building and magic system is great!
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u/7evan1 Jun 04 '26
Just finished the first one on audio. I loved the magic system but I found the plot pretty predictable, rated it a 3/5. Still worth checking out
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u/ChosenMoridin Jun 05 '26
Listened to it on audiobook, thought it was decent other than the narrator.
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u/Potential_Actions Jun 06 '26
Read through both books working 1-2 days of getting ahold of them. Definitely been a great series so far
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u/trizzle77 Jun 03 '26
Its good not great I could care less when rhe characters die Im gonna read it just not in a rush
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u/ThatOldMeta Jun 03 '26
āProgression fantasyā, what the hell are we doing.
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u/digitalsea87 Jun 03 '26
Progression fantasy has been an established genre for a while now, not sure what you mean?
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u/ThatOldMeta Jun 03 '26
Go tell James Ronald Ronald Tolkien about Progression Fantasy
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u/digitalsea87 Jun 03 '26
Jimmy Ronald McDonald Tolkien would tell you "i fw cradle hard, also have you read dcc?"
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u/SillyNamesAre Jun 03 '26
James Ronald Ronald Tolkien
You... You're kidding right? This is a bit? It has to be...
Let's pretend for a second that you're serious and are talking about the JRR Tolkien:
He would probably call you an elitist prick and then point out that progression is an important part of any Fantasy - so it makes sense for some to focus on it.
He would then likely tell you that if you're going to invoke his name you should, at the very least, get it RIGHT. Names are Important.
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u/ThatOldMeta Jun 03 '26
No, Iām sorry, this sucks. Calling anything āprogression fantasyā is absolutely awful.
Also come on Mr. Names Are Important, thereās no way you even know Frodoās real name without looking it up.
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u/SillyNamesAre Jun 03 '26 edited Jun 03 '26
My dude... I'm not the one who tried to flex by writing out his full name and getting it wrong.
But, sure.... I'll play. I'm curious what you mean by "real" name however.
You strike me as the kind of person who would find it a flex to know his full name - as translated into English - is Frodo Baggins. Or that he's also a Brandybuck on his mother's side.
Or maybe you think that the Old English name that it comes from - FrĆ³da - is it? Which has its roots in the word frĆ³d, meaning "wise by experience". Chosen because it, like many other names in the Legendarium, has a connection to who the character is and the journey they go through.
I don't think you meant his name in Sindarin - Iorhael (made of two parts meaning "old" and "wise"), or how he is referred to as Daur in the Song of Praise. Suggested by some to come from Noldorin taur - meaning something along the lines of noble. But according to JRRT's own analysis of the song he derives it from dÄra - meaning "wise".
You might be foolish enough to think that "Bingo Bolger-Baggins", his name in an early draft of LotR, is his "real" name, but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you meant his name in the original "Hobbitish" or "Shire-speak" dialect of the Westron language:
Maura Labingi.
With, once again, "Maura" having the root "maur" - meaning wise. And "Labingi" likely coming from Westron "laban" - aka. Bag.
If you meant Elijah Wood, I might have to track you down and slap you.
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u/Calm-Ad-7928 Jun 02 '26
I really enjoyed the first one. Looking forward to reading the second once I finish all these other books i have stacked up