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stegofreak's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
rogue_runner's review
3.5
I did enjoy this, but now knowing (on finishing) that this was originally a TTRPG, EVERYTHING makes sense. I'm invested in approximately (only) one character alone, and that is Thalric. I was invested in Tisamon before the first arc came to an end- and tbh, the death of half the 'cool' characters was what kinda made me put this down.
Totho is particularly unlikeable and uninteresting to me, but at least there wasn't a lot of Stenwold this time.
There is about 1/4 of the book just filled with random war scenes though, which honestly? I'd rather have some substantial plot rather than that sort of padding these days.
Interesting enough reading, but I'm so bored of fantasy that just leans so heavily on fight scenes throughout.
Totho is particularly unlikeable and uninteresting to me, but at least there wasn't a lot of Stenwold this time.
There is about 1/4 of the book just filled with random war scenes though, which honestly? I'd rather have some substantial plot rather than that sort of padding these days.
Interesting enough reading, but I'm so bored of fantasy that just leans so heavily on fight scenes throughout.
kadomi's review
2.0
The first book of the second story arc of the Shadows of the Apt series made me realize that the series is not for me. The first book is fantastic, with such interesting world-building. Now that I know that the series exists because the author ran it as a tabletop campaign, it all makes sense. It's probably an amazing campaign setting. But the storytelling? Not so much. The Scarab Path just plodded on, without ever grabbing my attention. Sure, I wanted to know who the Masters were, and the Egyptian-style setting was lovely, but the payoff was wholly unsatisfying for me.
Top notch worldbuilding, interesting characters, but also so many that it's hard to care. I only really enjoyed the chapters with Che and Thalric, everything else was meh. If you like your fantasy with endless massive battle scenes, it's a great series, but I don't.
I decided that I'll give the rest of the series a pass, with fond memories of the first book and its interesting world of insect people.
Top notch worldbuilding, interesting characters, but also so many that it's hard to care. I only really enjoyed the chapters with Che and Thalric, everything else was meh. If you like your fantasy with endless massive battle scenes, it's a great series, but I don't.
I decided that I'll give the rest of the series a pass, with fond memories of the first book and its interesting world of insect people.
sharkiereads's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
5.0
kodermike's review against another edition
4.0
Before I even get into my review of this book, I should explain my past with this series. I first tried getting into the Shadows of the Apt series when book one, "Empire in Black and Gold," came out - tried, and failed. I thought the ideas were interesting, but the execution was a little too predictable even for me, and I gave up. I watched as successive novels came out, each one sounding awesome. I even read a few short stories set in this world of the Apt, but I never tried to go back to the full series.
And then book five fell into my hands. I could still remember the characters and world setting from the first book, but would that be enough for me to get through "The Scarab Path"? Just barely, and now I know I've missed out on some awesome reading. Comparing book one to book five, it's easy to see Tchaikovsky's growth and maturation as a writer. The action scenes are well paced, and there are plenty of them. But this isn't just an excuse to chronicle some series of RPG born campaigns - there is no want on violence, and every scene serves to further the plot.
The only drawback of this novel is that it doesn't work as a stand alone story. If you've only read the back covers of the other four in the series, you know about the rise of the Wasp empire, and how by the end of book four the Wasps were halted, at least for now. In that respect, this novel is a new direction for the series. But without at least a basic familiarity of the cast involved, the Scarab Path would be confusing to navigate. Many names are just casually referred to, even when critical to the plot. In this novel we bring back Che and Thalric as our principal view point characters, with a mix of new and old supporting cast to round out the story narration. The story is set in the distant city of Khanaphes, a city consigned to myth where a strange kinden of beetles live their lives according to the laws of their mysteriously absent Masters. Che is there to find answers to the confusing questions she was left with at the end of the last book. And where Che goes, others will follow, all suspecting secret strategy in her visit to such a remote corner of the Nem desert.
"The Scarab Path" was a good read that kept me up late reading often. Its always fun to read a book that is so stock full of high magic (the Art of the Apt can be described no other way) but where the characters are blind to it, seeing only the fantastical of the rare low (Inapt)magic. A wonderful blend of steampunk and epic fantasy, "The Scarab Path" makes a good addition to the Shadows of the Apt series.
And then book five fell into my hands. I could still remember the characters and world setting from the first book, but would that be enough for me to get through "The Scarab Path"? Just barely, and now I know I've missed out on some awesome reading. Comparing book one to book five, it's easy to see Tchaikovsky's growth and maturation as a writer. The action scenes are well paced, and there are plenty of them. But this isn't just an excuse to chronicle some series of RPG born campaigns - there is no want on violence, and every scene serves to further the plot.
The only drawback of this novel is that it doesn't work as a stand alone story. If you've only read the back covers of the other four in the series, you know about the rise of the Wasp empire, and how by the end of book four the Wasps were halted, at least for now. In that respect, this novel is a new direction for the series. But without at least a basic familiarity of the cast involved, the Scarab Path would be confusing to navigate. Many names are just casually referred to, even when critical to the plot. In this novel we bring back Che and Thalric as our principal view point characters, with a mix of new and old supporting cast to round out the story narration. The story is set in the distant city of Khanaphes, a city consigned to myth where a strange kinden of beetles live their lives according to the laws of their mysteriously absent Masters. Che is there to find answers to the confusing questions she was left with at the end of the last book. And where Che goes, others will follow, all suspecting secret strategy in her visit to such a remote corner of the Nem desert.
"The Scarab Path" was a good read that kept me up late reading often. Its always fun to read a book that is so stock full of high magic (the Art of the Apt can be described no other way) but where the characters are blind to it, seeing only the fantastical of the rare low (Inapt)magic. A wonderful blend of steampunk and epic fantasy, "The Scarab Path" makes a good addition to the Shadows of the Apt series.
hallucigenia's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-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? Yes
2.75
tornadical's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
brents's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
This wasn't perfect, but I think it is my favorite since book 2. Whereas books 3 and 4 expanded things really fast and kind of lacked depth in the characters I was most interested in this book really focuses in on just a few characters and I enjoyed that. Also it still expands the world as we go to a new place. More importantly though this book really starts getting deeper into the lore of the world and the magic. While I was somewhat frustrated through the first 3 parts because I wasn't hooked by the plot happenings part 4 was really really good and brought it home. I'm not sure how I feel about a couple of the choices at the end, but it was nothing that ruined anything for me. I'm excited to read the next one.