octavosaurus's review against another edition
4.0
I've been stuck in a reading rut for months, unable to finish anything. This wonderful fantasy debut from one of my favourite bloggers/essay writers got me out of it at last! Flex is addictively fast paced, so creatively written and one of the most imaginative debuts I've read in years; you just cannot see where it's going and it is so, so much fun.
Huzzah for Ferrett! Now to hunt down the sequel...
Huzzah for Ferrett! Now to hunt down the sequel...
titusfortner's review against another edition
4.0
Fun, a little silly, enjoyable characters. A light read and I enjoyed it.
platinumwarlock's review
4.0
Smart, creative, interesting. Really cool premise, especially for someone who hasn’t read a lot of urban fantasy and/or magic themes (beyond Harry Potter). Some compelling characters (Valentine, Anathema, Aliyah), although I wish I’d liked Paul a little more.
The story was a little choppy for me, and the flash-forward with Paul chained to the radiator was clumsy and lacked subtlety, but neither was sufficiently egregious to make me stop reading. I loved the integration of video games and wish I were familiar with more of them so I could understand the references better.
I always love a story with some version of a “guns don’t kill people, people kill people” message, even when it’s a cliché (which it often is, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be done well), and this was no exception.
All in all - very enjoyable. I’ll be interested to see what else Mr. Steinmetz produces.
The story was a little choppy for me, and the flash-forward with Paul chained to the radiator was clumsy and lacked subtlety, but neither was sufficiently egregious to make me stop reading. I loved the integration of video games and wish I were familiar with more of them so I could understand the references better.
I always love a story with some version of a “guns don’t kill people, people kill people” message, even when it’s a cliché (which it often is, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be done well), and this was no exception.
All in all - very enjoyable. I’ll be interested to see what else Mr. Steinmetz produces.
ronsos's review against another edition
4.0
I liked this book. The premise was great, and I really liked the ending. I would have preferred that a rather large portion of the plot in the middle of the book not been so directly based on Breaking Bad. And as a parent of a 6-yr old, I felt the 6-yr old in the book occasionally came off as inauthentic. On the whole, a worthy read.
stiricide's review against another edition
1.0
DNF p. 115. For as much as I've loved Steinmetz's journaling over the years, and The Sol Majestic is one of my favourite reads of last year, this is bad. Idea is ok, characters are flimsy. Maybe I just have to hang up on urban fantasy, it very much isn't a hit for me.
readingthething's review against another edition
4.0
This review first appeared on Reading the Thing
This book made me miss almost my tube-stop several times. This is high praise from a public transport veteran like me (even when I fall asleep, I wake a bit before reaching my destination). The story is about Paul, an insurance agent/former cop, who finds people who have a certain magic ability that changes the fabric of the universe: they can do ‘mancy. Mancers (the people the can do ‘mancy) are capable of making a certain drug (flex), but using flex (or ‘mancy itself) always leads to the universe wanting to put things into balance again, which leads to disaster (flux). And that disaster, that is of course something the insurance company might have to pay for, hence the need for someone like Paul. Then disaster (or well, flux) strikes, Paul discovers this new side of himself, and needs to rescue the world (or at least his daughter). This sounds way too much like a standard superhero movie, which this isn’t.
Paul is a likeable protagonist. He is divorced, has a lovely kid (who is portrayed quite realistically; and showing realistic 6-year-olds is hard), a less likeable ex-wife, and an awesome kick-ass female friend, who loves videogames, is promiscuous and geeky. He’s the best at what he does, but also has flaws. Yay for realism. The world is presented as in the here and now, except that Europe is… well… gone. Due to this new magic. I don’t want to spoil stuff (because you all should read this book when it comes out!), but this book gave me a whole new respect for bureaucracy and rules. The concept of the magic was quite refreshing and interesting, especially because it came in so many forms. The same for the antagonist: they are an interesting piece of work. I felt influences of Neil Stephenson and William Gibson in the book every once in a while.
The main critique I have of this book, is mostly one of editing, and less of the story or the writing in itself. I am a firm proponent of “show, don’t tell” in books, and I don’t need someone to tell me things twice. This happens every once in a while; there are sentences that could be scrapped completely and it would not change a thing (except make the reader feel less guided by the hand, which would be a good thing). Also, some characters (like Kit, Paul’s boss) get a sudden introduction that seems too fabricated (which made seem like a weird comment, since the whole story is fabricated, but since most of the things seem quite realistic, stuff like that jumps out more). Goodreads suggested to me that a sequel might be out in October this year, and I hope it’s not too late to “fix” that for part 2.
But, because of the awesomeness of the story, the lovability and realism of the characters, and the geeky references, this can all be forgiven. Also, the author is quite a cool guy. This doesn’t influence my opinion of his book, but it needed saying anyway. So, wait for March 3, and then go out and get yourself this new read!
This book made me miss almost my tube-stop several times. This is high praise from a public transport veteran like me (even when I fall asleep, I wake a bit before reaching my destination). The story is about Paul, an insurance agent/former cop, who finds people who have a certain magic ability that changes the fabric of the universe: they can do ‘mancy. Mancers (the people the can do ‘mancy) are capable of making a certain drug (flex), but using flex (or ‘mancy itself) always leads to the universe wanting to put things into balance again, which leads to disaster (flux). And that disaster, that is of course something the insurance company might have to pay for, hence the need for someone like Paul. Then disaster (or well, flux) strikes, Paul discovers this new side of himself, and needs to rescue the world (or at least his daughter). This sounds way too much like a standard superhero movie, which this isn’t.
Paul is a likeable protagonist. He is divorced, has a lovely kid (who is portrayed quite realistically; and showing realistic 6-year-olds is hard), a less likeable ex-wife, and an awesome kick-ass female friend, who loves videogames, is promiscuous and geeky. He’s the best at what he does, but also has flaws. Yay for realism. The world is presented as in the here and now, except that Europe is… well… gone. Due to this new magic. I don’t want to spoil stuff (because you all should read this book when it comes out!), but this book gave me a whole new respect for bureaucracy and rules. The concept of the magic was quite refreshing and interesting, especially because it came in so many forms. The same for the antagonist: they are an interesting piece of work. I felt influences of Neil Stephenson and William Gibson in the book every once in a while.
The main critique I have of this book, is mostly one of editing, and less of the story or the writing in itself. I am a firm proponent of “show, don’t tell” in books, and I don’t need someone to tell me things twice. This happens every once in a while; there are sentences that could be scrapped completely and it would not change a thing (except make the reader feel less guided by the hand, which would be a good thing). Also, some characters (like Kit, Paul’s boss) get a sudden introduction that seems too fabricated (which made seem like a weird comment, since the whole story is fabricated, but since most of the things seem quite realistic, stuff like that jumps out more). Goodreads suggested to me that a sequel might be out in October this year, and I hope it’s not too late to “fix” that for part 2.
But, because of the awesomeness of the story, the lovability and realism of the characters, and the geeky references, this can all be forgiven. Also, the author is quite a cool guy. This doesn’t influence my opinion of his book, but it needed saying anyway. So, wait for March 3, and then go out and get yourself this new read!
kejadlen's review against another edition
3.0
An enjoyable read. I liked it overall, although the resolution of the main plot was a bit too pat for me. Otherwise, it was fun and good enough that I'll probably read the sequel when it comes out.
I do kind of wonder if this would've been better as a YA book, though...
I do kind of wonder if this would've been better as a YA book, though...