Fantasy Tournament - Week 5 & 6
After recovering from a minor "reading slump," I returned to reading and read four samples I had chosen last time.
Previous weeks
The Second Apocalypse vs. First Law World
I must confess that "The Second Apocalypse" is somehow confusing on all levels, even its titles. It has two titles for the series. And I didn't manage to remember the first book's name while reading the sample. But that's not an issue per se; it's just a unique feature of this book.
The book is well-written, as promised in Goodreads reviews, though leaning towards being confusing and over the top. I couldn't relate to the world jumping 2000 years in a few pages. Overall, the scattered magic system and characters were complicated to follow.
"The Blade Itself," the first book of "First Law World," was much easier to get into on the contrary while being enticing. The characters are very well laid out, and I'm eager to continue reading and learn more about them.
The author barely hinted at this world's magical elements and history, so I could enjoy the story without feeling overwhelmed and confused. The chapters didn't take forever to make sense; the story came alive soon enough. This was the most exciting sample I read during this challenge so far!
Remembrance of Earth's Past vs. The Emperor's Soul
"Three-body Problem," the first book in the "Remembrance of Earth's Past," started almost like a narrative non-fiction, but it managed to weave smoothly into the story in later chapters. Confusing sci-fi descriptions, weird world-building, or even weirder objects were nowhere to be found in the book, which was promising for me. However, the strangeness might increase later with the introduction of "aliens."
The book had a slow build-up; the alien part didn't even start yet in the first 10% of the book. The characters were ok, though not spectacular, and the same for the story.
As for "The Emperor's Soul," I found the magic system interesting, as usual for a Sanderson book. The main character was witty, skillful, supposedly likable, Robin Hood-ish type as usual for a Sanderson book. The premise and the story sound good, though reading like another court story. Let's see how it unfolds in later chapters.
That's it for this round's update. For the upcoming week(s), I'll read 25% of "The Blade Itself" and "The Emperor's Soul". And maybe I'll choose some new samples from these four pairs:
