mickeymickey's review against another edition
3.0
3.5/5
Following after Orconomics the books takes a similar tone. I feel like it had doubled down on the wittiness and goofiness which started to turn off my own interest in it. It was well written and the story was solid enough that it could be taken as an ending to the series at this point unlike the first book which ended in much more of a cliffhanger. Overall I still enjoyed it, but not nearly as much as the first book. I will probably pick up the last book whenever it is released and hope that it picks back up again.
Following after Orconomics the books takes a similar tone. I feel like it had doubled down on the wittiness and goofiness which started to turn off my own interest in it. It was well written and the story was solid enough that it could be taken as an ending to the series at this point unlike the first book which ended in much more of a cliffhanger. Overall I still enjoyed it, but not nearly as much as the first book. I will probably pick up the last book whenever it is released and hope that it picks back up again.
mhedgescsus's review against another edition
4.0
Check out my YouTube channel where I show my instant reactions upon finishing reading fantasy books.
4.5 stars. An extremely entertaining read that did not quite match the charm of it's predecessor.
This sequel to Orconomics has been highly anticipated by me ever since finishing that book due to how blown away I was by the quality, humor, and fun I had from start to finish. And while much of those qualities do exist in this sequel, I found myself ultimately not enjoying myself to quite as high of a level, in part due to the pacing issues that existed and in part due to the change in story structure.
While the first book had a somewhat forgettable plot, it was legitimately one of the funniest books I have ever read in my life - and it was entertaining 100% of the time. Unfortunately, I found almost the opposite to be true here, where the plot was significantly better but the comedy was noticeably toned down and the pacing caused several sections of this book to just drag on for far too long without anything entertaining happening.
This book is much longer than the first book, and I think this would have greatly benefitted by either being trimmed down or split into two books. Two books would actually have made a ton of sense because at about the halfway mark of this story a major conflict happens that wraps up a major part of the story, and then the second half of the book tells a brand new arc of the story.
I think part of the problem here from the comedy perspective is that a large part of what made the first book funny was how original the world was here. And in this book the hilarious world has already been created with not much more development here. If this were the first book in the series it would likely be just as hilarious as the first, but something was lost with how little was original here.
This sounds like I didn't like this book - which is simply no true. I had a wonderful time reading it and the plot was fantastic. But it's hard for me to review this without comparing it to the first book, which I just thought was quite a bit better than this one.
I'm still very much intrigued by this series and will pick up the final book in this trilogy the moment it gets released.
4.5 stars. An extremely entertaining read that did not quite match the charm of it's predecessor.
This sequel to Orconomics has been highly anticipated by me ever since finishing that book due to how blown away I was by the quality, humor, and fun I had from start to finish. And while much of those qualities do exist in this sequel, I found myself ultimately not enjoying myself to quite as high of a level, in part due to the pacing issues that existed and in part due to the change in story structure.
While the first book had a somewhat forgettable plot, it was legitimately one of the funniest books I have ever read in my life - and it was entertaining 100% of the time. Unfortunately, I found almost the opposite to be true here, where the plot was significantly better but the comedy was noticeably toned down and the pacing caused several sections of this book to just drag on for far too long without anything entertaining happening.
This book is much longer than the first book, and I think this would have greatly benefitted by either being trimmed down or split into two books. Two books would actually have made a ton of sense because at about the halfway mark of this story a major conflict happens that wraps up a major part of the story, and then the second half of the book tells a brand new arc of the story.
I think part of the problem here from the comedy perspective is that a large part of what made the first book funny was how original the world was here. And in this book the hilarious world has already been created with not much more development here. If this were the first book in the series it would likely be just as hilarious as the first, but something was lost with how little was original here.
This sounds like I didn't like this book - which is simply no true. I had a wonderful time reading it and the plot was fantastic. But it's hard for me to review this without comparing it to the first book, which I just thought was quite a bit better than this one.
I'm still very much intrigued by this series and will pick up the final book in this trilogy the moment it gets released.
assaphmehr's review against another edition
5.0
Son of a Liche continues Pike's first novel, and delivers on the promise. This is what Terry Pratchett would write, if he played D&D and poked fun at the GFC.
What to Expect
The story starts about a year after the end of Orconomics. Pike weaves an excellent epic from multiple threads, building on events and characters introduced in the first book and building to a climatic finish (with just enough hooks -- and a post-credits hidden scene -- to lead up to the next book).
This time the undead are rising, while Andarun's business and banking loot-economy are busy swapping Consolidated Threat Obligations. As the undead threat draws near, the economy collapses and the real heroes rise.
What I liked
I love Pike's writing style (the best scene transitions seen in any fantasy novel!), the intelligent satire of the (real) Global Financial Crisis juxtaposed on a fantasy setting, and the way he builds up side-characters and small events that later have significant effects when they intersect with the main plot-line.
What to be aware of
This is a sequel, and while Pike provided an (online) recap of Orconomics, it is still best to read the books in order.
The book is marked as satire, and while humour plays a large part it is not the focus. This is epic fantasy at its best: not afraid to laugh at both fantasy tropes and real economics, while telling a large-scale fantasy adventure story.
Summary
This is an excellent novel, reminiscent of Pratchett's work. Highly recommended to lovers of epic fantasy. If you liked the first book, you'll love this sequel.
--
[a:Assaph Mehr|14422472|Assaph Mehr|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1518065419p2/14422472.jpg], author of [b:Murder In Absentia|29500700|Murder In Absentia (Felix the Fox, #1)|Assaph Mehr|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1457914061l/29500700._SY75_.jpg|46845657]: A story of Togas, Daggers, and Magic - for lovers of Ancient Rome, Murder Mysteries, and Urban Fantasy.
What to Expect
The story starts about a year after the end of Orconomics. Pike weaves an excellent epic from multiple threads, building on events and characters introduced in the first book and building to a climatic finish (with just enough hooks -- and a post-credits hidden scene -- to lead up to the next book).
This time the undead are rising, while Andarun's business and banking loot-economy are busy swapping Consolidated Threat Obligations. As the undead threat draws near, the economy collapses and the real heroes rise.
What I liked
I love Pike's writing style (the best scene transitions seen in any fantasy novel!), the intelligent satire of the (real) Global Financial Crisis juxtaposed on a fantasy setting, and the way he builds up side-characters and small events that later have significant effects when they intersect with the main plot-line.
What to be aware of
This is a sequel, and while Pike provided an (online) recap of Orconomics, it is still best to read the books in order.
The book is marked as satire, and while humour plays a large part it is not the focus. This is epic fantasy at its best: not afraid to laugh at both fantasy tropes and real economics, while telling a large-scale fantasy adventure story.
Summary
This is an excellent novel, reminiscent of Pratchett's work. Highly recommended to lovers of epic fantasy. If you liked the first book, you'll love this sequel.
--
[a:Assaph Mehr|14422472|Assaph Mehr|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1518065419p2/14422472.jpg], author of [b:Murder In Absentia|29500700|Murder In Absentia (Felix the Fox, #1)|Assaph Mehr|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1457914061l/29500700._SY75_.jpg|46845657]: A story of Togas, Daggers, and Magic - for lovers of Ancient Rome, Murder Mysteries, and Urban Fantasy.
cah242's review against another edition
5.0
I like that Pike knows what sort of book he’s writing and doesn’t apologize for it. There’s so much funny, silly, and groan-worthy material in here that it’s surprising to stop and realize how much heart it has. Fantastic characters, interesting quests, and a great take on both fantasy tropes and the modern financial world.
mindwrack's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
pavram's review
5.0
Ludilo koliko Pajk ume dobro da balansira humor sa izvesnom ozbiljnošću narative. Ono što mi je neretko bilo klimavo kod Pračeta (a nema puno toga klimavog kod Pračeta) jeste to što njegov humor i parodiranje izvesnih šablona u fantastici, pa onda i kasnija satirizacija i izmeštanje stvarnih ljudskih problema u fantastično okruženje, umeju da ukradu srž dinamičnosti narative. Pračet nije postao poznat po tenziji radnje.
Pajk, međutim, u tome ga sasvim sigurno nadmašuje. Sem što je zabavna i smešna, veoma empatična - sve kvaliteti koje deli sa Disksvetom, doduše ne uvek u istom redu veličine, jer ipak je Teri Teri - Dark Profit saga savršen je primer kako jedno samoobjavljeno ostvarenje može da potpuno zaseni cca 95% modernih naslova velikih izdavača. Tom savršenstvu i globalnoj ironiji (tri principa ironije, nešto kao one in a million kod Pračeta, meta su oslonac Pajkovog serijala) još više doprinosi činjenica da je ovo ekstremna. kritika (hiper)kapitalističkog društva koje, eto, igrom slučaja se zasniva na kvestovima i RPG mehanikama. Ovom delu buduće trilogije još je teže zameriti bilo šta, jer iako sledi neke ustaljeni obrasce, ima veće srce od bezmalo svih skorijih knjiga koje sam pročitao. Ne sećam se kada sam voleo neku družinu fantastike kao što volim ovu.
Prvi deo sam pročitao, a drugi deo odslušao, i mislim da oba formata imaju svojih prednosti, od kojih je narator audioknjige ona koja možda sija sjajnije.
5
Pajk, međutim, u tome ga sasvim sigurno nadmašuje. Sem što je zabavna i smešna, veoma empatična - sve kvaliteti koje deli sa Disksvetom, doduše ne uvek u istom redu veličine, jer ipak je Teri Teri - Dark Profit saga savršen je primer kako jedno samoobjavljeno ostvarenje može da potpuno zaseni cca 95% modernih naslova velikih izdavača. Tom savršenstvu i globalnoj ironiji (tri principa ironije, nešto kao one in a million kod Pračeta, meta su oslonac Pajkovog serijala) još više doprinosi činjenica da je ovo ekstremna. kritika (hiper)kapitalističkog društva koje, eto, igrom slučaja se zasniva na kvestovima i RPG mehanikama. Ovom delu buduće trilogije još je teže zameriti bilo šta, jer iako sledi neke ustaljeni obrasce, ima veće srce od bezmalo svih skorijih knjiga koje sam pročitao. Ne sećam se kada sam voleo neku družinu fantastike kao što volim ovu.
Prvi deo sam pročitao, a drugi deo odslušao, i mislim da oba formata imaju svojih prednosti, od kojih je narator audioknjige ona koja možda sija sjajnije.
5
chazzhoss's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
astoria_in_a_jar's review
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
cb1984's review
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5