Dnf at page 102/35%.

Here we have my third dnf of the month and my first one-star read of 2018. I went into this with fairly low expectations, but I didn’t expect it to be this bad. Yes, I know it was written in 2005, but I’m not holding that against it. As much as I hate to say it, I can’t really think of any positives regarding this novel.

From the first chapter, I was bored. I decided to give it a chance, and ended up falling asleep unintentionally around page 54. I thought it was merely off to a slow start, but I regret to say that, in my opinion, it didn’t get any better.

I didn’t like any of the characters. Gen was a plain protagonist, snarky and always complaining. I don’t know why the magus and the other characters were so antagonistic. Everyone was unnecessarily contemptuous and didn’t have much personality beyond that.

As for the world-building, again, I figured it would improve as the book progressed. Guess what? It didn’t. In chapters four and five, there was a lot of info-dumping under the guise of the magus quizzing his apprentices and telling stories of the old gods. The fourth chapter had about three pages of information about landscape, wars, trade, and leadership, while the fifth had not one but two lengthy myths. When I ask for world-building, I mean for it to be incorporated throughout the story, not dumped in a couple of chapters like someone using a tablespoon instead of a teaspoon.

Since I only read 100 pages, I can’t say much else. Please know that I have nothing against the author or those who enjoy this book and its sequels; they’re just absolutely not my cup of tea. Needless to say, I won’t be continuing the series. Good night.