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paulgzareith's review against another edition
5.0
Loved this book. The recurring theme of conflict and contrast, the stark grim world setup as well as the author's unique brand of humour made it impossible to put the book down.
hiking_reader's review against another edition
4.5
After finishing The Greatcoats series this year and moving Sebastien de Castell into my top authors to read more of, I started looking into what else he already has out there. I also caught a few of his books on sale at The Broken Binding which included The Malevolent Seven. Even though I own a physical copy of this one, I opted to go with the audio because I enjoyed the narration by Joe Jameson so much in The Greatcoats series.
Initially I thought this might have been a mistake as I've come to recognize and relate Joe's voices so much with The Greatcoats. It took me a good hour or more into this one before I was successfully separating the stories and just settled in and enjoyed this one for it's own worth.
I think I pictured this one as a bit of a mashup of the Swashbuckling fun I am used to from the author with visuals that remind me of Final Fantasy environments and magic. It was a good mix. And I'm becoming a bit of a sucker for the moral grey or even anti-hero type of characters in stories.
I had a lot of fun experiencing this story and I am looking forward to diving into more yet from the Author as I know there are at least two other series I want to get to.
Initially I thought this might have been a mistake as I've come to recognize and relate Joe's voices so much with The Greatcoats. It took me a good hour or more into this one before I was successfully separating the stories and just settled in and enjoyed this one for it's own worth.
I think I pictured this one as a bit of a mashup of the Swashbuckling fun I am used to from the author with visuals that remind me of Final Fantasy environments and magic. It was a good mix. And I'm becoming a bit of a sucker for the moral grey or even anti-hero type of characters in stories.
I had a lot of fun experiencing this story and I am looking forward to diving into more yet from the Author as I know there are at least two other series I want to get to.
amyapple's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting bunch of characters put together to .. save the world!?
The narrator is honest with us from the get go and this quest type narrative is engaging albeit some moments where I felt maybe the author tried a little to hard to make another jovial moment. A very modern voice shines through which took me a little of getting used to.
Although the story is sort of set up in a dark world of mages and sorts, none of it comes across as that grim for me even though normally it would be. I’m not sure if I make sense, but if you read it, you’ll know what I mean.
If you like his Spellslinger series, I think you will enjoy this as the tone is very similar. Or perhaps it’s his writing style shining through and through.
The narrator is honest with us from the get go and this quest type narrative is engaging albeit some moments where I felt maybe the author tried a little to hard to make another jovial moment. A very modern voice shines through which took me a little of getting used to.
Although the story is sort of set up in a dark world of mages and sorts, none of it comes across as that grim for me even though normally it would be. I’m not sure if I make sense, but if you read it, you’ll know what I mean.
If you like his Spellslinger series, I think you will enjoy this as the tone is very similar. Or perhaps it’s his writing style shining through and through.
terriaminute's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
4.5
4.5 stars. While I thought parts drug on a bit longer than necessary, I appreciate this book's existence.
It starts out weird, and just keeps getting weirder. If you're down with an antihero protagonist, and willing to entertain the evil side of (magical) mercenary work, this is a book you'll want to give a try. I particularly enjoyed that last chapter. The author did a great job of keeping the language in tune with this world; there were none of those modern phrases that invariably pop me out of a story. I appreciate that immensely.
(All the chapters are short, which I found a little jarring at times, but obviously it wasn't that big a deal to me.)
It starts out weird, and just keeps getting weirder. If you're down with an antihero protagonist, and willing to entertain the evil side of (magical) mercenary work, this is a book you'll want to give a try. I particularly enjoyed that last chapter. The author did a great job of keeping the language in tune with this world; there were none of those modern phrases that invariably pop me out of a story. I appreciate that immensely.
(All the chapters are short, which I found a little jarring at times, but obviously it wasn't that big a deal to me.)
ptaradactyl's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This book is trying to make a point, but I couldn’t figure out what it was. Power corrupts? No gods or masters? Something about a river of shit that’s supposed to sound profound? Expectations are a bitch?
datboitantony's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-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
4.25
sarahetc's review against another edition
4.0
This started very unevenly and was a little slow. I wasn't sure I was going to like it, but after chapter 10, it picked up significantly. I think it's a standalone, but I'm here to say that I would not mind a little bit reading many more conversations between Cade and Corrigan.
biblionerdrflxn's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
odunayo_y's review against another edition
The only queer representation being a gay pedohile ticked me off, the “good guy” MC admiting to being attracted to a girl who was at most 17 grossed me out. The setting was bland mantasy slop and writing was edgy trying to hard to be witty Abercombie rip-off.
Just bleh
Just bleh
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual violence