Autumn Witch
Contains spoilers
I really wanted to like this book. The premises sounded interesting, but they just did not deliver. Five assassins, plot to kill god king, the plotting, lies and treachery, what not to like?
A lot as it seems.
If you want a book with a good heist/plot that will make you question your sanity - go read "The lies of Locke Lamora".
Will say it here. The writing is not bad. The story flows, it is an easy page turner, has really interesting bits of story building. Have no idea how the world functions as we seem to go from expensive places to gang infested, no rules cities, but it doesn't break the immersion.
But it isn't what the blurb says. The main plot is barely noticeable for most of the book.
At some point this book became romance tiktok tropes bingo. Check if you can find it:
- One bed,
- Sunshine-grumpy
- Enemies to lovers
- The Double-Cross
- Forced Proximity
- Forbidden Love
- Incapable of Love
- Miscomunication
There is too many POV and they are just blending with each other as only two of them have unique voice and third one just drops a lot of f words to show how hardcore, street he is.
The plot is weak, nobody asks questions and in world that is described I laughed every time that character without doubt accepted explanation of somebody else behaviour. Because you know hardcore killers and liars are known for only telling the real version of the story.
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Things that annoyed me so much:
- How come a street wise, hand for hire pledges his sword without hesitation because the prince tells him he will be good and do all this nice things, just give him power. This guy suffered under rules of nobles, he seen how little they care about people and still just drops to his knees to pledge alliance...
- Why did Sora not leave as soon as she found out her indenture was burned? Heck why was it with the Ty in a first place. The logical thing to do was poison him, burn it herself (if they were stupid enough to send it with her), find her sister and kill the S guy.
- The prince is useless. The revelation of hunting people isn't maybe as innocent as I though... This is ladies and gentlemen the new bright future of the kingdom
- If his daughter can stop time, why don't she just go into palace and steal the ring. I know the whole price thing, but that would be a one off and no need for the whole elaborated plot.
- The never ending repetition of scene from different perspectives....
- The whole plot and their co-conspirators is just so unbelievable with the world that has been presented.
This bookgot 2 starts as Twilight got 1. It was better than Twilight but this is the only good thing I can say about it.
I was so disappointed with this book. Main character was quite boring and the plot... Coincidence after coincidence. The main idea for a plot was interesting, saying this the whole talk about american money being so superior to other currency made me laugh really hard. So much of american patriotism forced through readers throat wasn't pleasant.
Funnily enough this book and its main plot have lots in common for me. I never saw american dollars until half a year ago. I was really curious how this famous currency look in real life - not only on tv. I still remember how disappointed I was with the awful quality of the print, material and texture. It looked like it was printed using old needle printer popular in 80s. The same way I was feeling about this book. So much hype for really disappointing outcome.
I really wanted to like this book, I really did. Stainless Steel Rat is my old time favourite and this book being written by the same author must be as good, right? Not so much.
I don't like the main character and I don't think he was made to be likeable, but there is absolutly nobody who reader could care about and keep fingers crossed for. Somebody told me that this book was written as a pastiche on goverment, but at some point it became so riddicules that it reminded me one of the comments from āPrincess Bride'.
In additional notes author of āPrincess..' was saying that he cut out a whole fragment of the book that lasted for 14 pages and described how woman was unpacking her clothes. Apparently in times when orginal author of āPrincess Bride' lived it was consider a beautiful satire on french high society, but on us was lost.
This book sounded for me like that removed fragment.
Great read, even if whole āI'm not the heroā sentence is starting to annoy me. I understand that author tried to higlight difficult situation that Gerry found himself in, but in my opinion he over done it. If you don't suffer from alzhimer you probably got the concept rather quick and didn't need reminder every second paragraf.
āBlack Jackā has waken up after 100 years of sleeping in rescue capsule to find out the war is still on. Finding himself in charge of a fleet he will try to get all of them home as quick as enemy will allow him to.
Worth recommending for every space opera fan. There are few glitches and main charcter repeating himself too many times, but it has potential. Interesting universe and tactics description make me think that it could be begining of a great adventure. I definitively will bite into second book in series.
Another fantastic book from Terry Pratchett. This time we are following adventures of Daphne, young english lady that finds herself on an island that isn't on the map, and Mau - stuck between being a boy and a man, which tries to find sense in life after tragedy and lead the nation.
Full of typical Pratchett humour it is a sweet and sour tale about growing up.