If you would further everything you know about these series and their authors, and could go back in time and experience them again with fresh eyes, which would you pick and why?
One of my new year goals was to read some new authors that I'd never heard before. The last few years I'd been stuck in a cycle of George RR Martin and Brandon Sanderson (which I absolutely did not mind at all), but it's tempting to see what gold I might be missing out on.
A friend recommended The Calligromancer by Benedict Northman and I decided to give it a shot. Pretty quick read, 350 pages, so I flew through it in a weekend.
Pros:
-very cool magic system. I don't believe I've seen something like this. It's almost like coding, where Calligromancers can essentially "re-code" the laws and physics. Really interesting
- Witty dialogue. Some literal laugh out loud moments.
- Deep world building. For a short book, it really grounds you in the world pretty quickly. It feels like a real place by chapter two.
Con:
- Very fast paced. I typically like fast paced thrillers, but this one could have let things breathe a little more. I want to get the characters a little better, but the plot just keeps barreling forward. More of a preference thing for me.
- People are a little too helpful. Maybe I'm nitpicking, but it felt like whenever the protagonist was in trouble, some rando was offering help for no apparent incentive. Maybe felt a little unrealistic.
Overall, I'd give this one 8.5/10. I definitely would read more by this author.