Where I Struggled but Mostly Liked It

A Labyrinth of Scions and Sorcery by Curtis Craddock
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Yeah, I liked it.

But I should have liked it more.

I almost gave it a 3. In fact, I almost DNF partway through. Lemme explain.

It's an amazing world with fantastic characters, and it at times is super fun. But I'd be a liar if I said I understood what was really going on most of the time. It actually felt pretty often like the main character was looking for something to do and found about five or six things. The main plot--which is a conspiracy to overthrow the king--is kinda on the periphery for most of the book. Mainly, our characters are looking into weird stuff happening that might be related. Not sure why; they're not private investigators or anything. As far as the king, Grand Leon, he's kind of a jerk who isn't doing much for Isabelle, and I don't really care if he gets deposed.

My other issue with the book is how the world-building is doled out in painfully small bits, so little that I still don't get the picture. I sure could use a map. Or a painting. Or a timeline. Or a listing of the various magical gifts. Or a chart of the families and their trees. It's a lot.

Anyway, it's still fun. It took me ages to finish because I wasn't highly motivated to pick it up sometimes, struggling to figure out what the real main conflict was for the main character, working too hard to understand the minor characters on either side of the coming revolt, but the action at the end was sufficiently exciting that I still want to read the third book, so... that's a win, I guess.

A good summary would sure help, though. Maybe a glossary. Throw me a bone.

High marks for creativity and imagination.

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