A review by mariamizhys
Grey Magic by Jeffe Kennedy
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
3.5
Review for the Trilogy:
I was surprised by the depth of character and genuine character development. I empathized with and believed them. They didn't quite feel like real people but were surprisingly close.
The character development was understandable and well thought through. There were setbacks and they wasnt sudden or unbiased in what we got to see. It felt like a natural growth, so much so, that I only noticed it after I started reviewing it. Beautifully done. Genuinely good character work.
The Problem for me was twofold.
1. The Plot was a bit too tropy and predictable. And that was a bit boring. I didn't stay because I wanted to know what would happen next, but because I liked seeing our heroes process things and make mistakes and then try to work them out. It was fine but boring.
2. And this was the bigger issue. I didn't like the world. I just didn't believe it. It was too twodimensional and simplistic, good and bad were clearly and unmistakably defined and there was no room for genuinely morally grey decisions and behaviors. It felt cartoony and that was disappointing. And the story wasn't enough of an epic to justify this division into "light hero fights against the evil dark kingdom".
The fact that the main villain ended up being a psychopath was lazy and it somehow felt fitting for the worldbuiding. Because in a lazily built world a lazily developed overpowered villain is just the thing.
The entire thing felt a little bit like a manga or anime, where there is a good hero and a bad villain, and the villain may have a good point somewhere but his logic and motivation are fundamentally flawed and that flaw is what makes him bad and our hero good. It felt too simplistic and flat. I didn't buy it and I kept being annoyed at the circumstances I didn't believe.
I liked it, in fact, I liked it more than I had anticipated. Especially the characters. But I didn't love it. It was good, but not very good, and definitely not excellent.
I was surprised by the depth of character and genuine character development. I empathized with and believed them. They didn't quite feel like real people but were surprisingly close.
The character development was understandable and well thought through. There were setbacks and they wasnt sudden or unbiased in what we got to see. It felt like a natural growth, so much so, that I only noticed it after I started reviewing it. Beautifully done. Genuinely good character work.
The Problem for me was twofold.
1. The Plot was a bit too tropy and predictable. And that was a bit boring. I didn't stay because I wanted to know what would happen next, but because I liked seeing our heroes process things and make mistakes and then try to work them out. It was fine but boring.
2. And this was the bigger issue. I didn't like the world. I just didn't believe it. It was too twodimensional and simplistic, good and bad were clearly and unmistakably defined and there was no room for genuinely morally grey decisions and behaviors. It felt cartoony and that was disappointing. And the story wasn't enough of an epic to justify this division into "light hero fights against the evil dark kingdom".
The fact that the main villain ended up being a psychopath was lazy and it somehow felt fitting for the worldbuiding. Because in a lazily built world a lazily developed overpowered villain is just the thing.
The entire thing felt a little bit like a manga or anime, where there is a good hero and a bad villain, and the villain may have a good point somewhere but his logic and motivation are fundamentally flawed and that flaw is what makes him bad and our hero good. It felt too simplistic and flat. I didn't buy it and I kept being annoyed at the circumstances I didn't believe.
I liked it, in fact, I liked it more than I had anticipated. Especially the characters. But I didn't love it. It was good, but not very good, and definitely not excellent.