en-US Fri, 09 May 2025 06:33:51 -0700 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg AuthorBlogPost25742578 Fri, 09 May 2025 06:33:51 -0700 /author_blog_posts/25742578-trikhymaerax Review6645212727 Sat, 06 Jul 2024 04:48:24 -0700 /review/show/6645212727 Zachary gave 4 stars to Nabukko (The Nabukko Trilogy, #1) by K.R. Gadeken
An Intriguing Story

This wasn't quite the story I expected it to be, but it was no less good for that.

It's got a pretty good blend of mystery and adventure as we follow Eff trying to make sense of the strange world she's on, and the even stranger circumstances that she and the people of Nabukko are trapped in. I found myself quite engaged in the mystery, reading quickly to try and figure out just what had happened to them all.

The visual descriptions of the strange world they're on were extremely good, and the cast of characters believable in their circumstance.

I might have liked to see Eff on her own in the beginning a little longer, and perhaps a few more hints as to their circumstances before the cliffhanger ending, but overall it was a very solid read an I'd certainly be interested in picking up the next one. ]]> Review6604319228 Sat, 29 Jun 2024 11:24:59 -0700 /review/show/6604319228 Zachary gave 4 stars to Youtopia: A Techno-Thriller (Kindle Edition) by Joseph Rein
Youtopia. The concept of being able to create a virtual reality based on ones' memories, thoughts, and perceptions in order to create a personalized 'perfect' reality. A nearly perfect form of escapism.

I say nearly perfect because, from nearly the very beginning, the book makes it clear that the very existence of such technology begins to cause problems. Both for those without, with the main character clearly suffering from her loved one's decision to enter the program, but also within; people quickly begin succumbing to their darkest desires once within the program.

In that I find this book to be extremely intriguing, as it delves into just what it means to be able to experience a 'perfect' reality, and how, just like in reality, the truth of the matter is considerably darker than the lovely promises.

While I greatly enjoyed the premise, and liked the FBI detective serving as the main character, I thought the book was a tad short. The ending, while a nice twist and a pointed riposte against the very idea the book is about, felt a bit rushed, and left me wishing it had been expanded out a bit.

Still a solid enough read, to be sure, and I'll strongly consider picking up the next. ]]> Review6604306799 Fri, 21 Jun 2024 03:48:27 -0700 /review/show/6604306799 Zachary gave 5 stars to Of Friction (Altered Earth #1) by S.J. Lee
Of Friction is very much a 'show' rather than 'tell' kind of book. You get the barebones of how screwed up the planet is during the introduction, right before you're thrown into the deep end of a fast paced story.

I say that as a positive; there's nothing that bogs a new universe down more than excessive exposition, and this novel neatly avoids that. You learn just enough to piece things together, but the core of the story is focused on the investigative action of the plot. That's a genre I'm a bit of a sucker for, and SJ Lee has done a very good job in that regard.

My one quibble would be that there could have been a few more explanations here and there in the early sections, and we got hit with a lot of character names very early on. It took me a while to keep them all straight in my head, and having a slower introduction to Echo might have been in order.

As for the main character, I quite liked her as well. She's definitely got the vibes of someone who's been in the military from a far-too-young age, who struggles to imagine any other kind of life. The contrast with Echo Squad really helps her start to try and figure things out with both her brother and herself.

That ending though.... while I called one of the character deaths very early, I expected a completely different kind of setup for a sequel than what we got. Shocking, yes, but pleasantly so, once I sat back and had some time to think. It was extremely unexpected and left me far more interested in reading the second novel than I would have been with a far more typical ending. ]]> Review6593394395 Mon, 17 Jun 2024 07:36:43 -0700 /review/show/6593394395 Zachary gave 4 stars to Legends & Lattes (Legends & Lattes, #1) by Travis Baldree
]]> ReadStatus6813163913 Mon, 17 Jul 2023 12:34:09 -0700 /review/show/5699816635 Zachary is currently reading The Mask of Mirrors by M.A. Carrick
]]> Review5542218246 Mon, 17 Jul 2023 12:25:14 -0700 /review/show/5542218246 Zachary gave 4 stars to The Unbroken (Magic of the Lost, #1) by C.L. Clark
A good book, somewhat let down by the ending.

Where a lot of books these days feel as if they could do with being far shorter than they are, The Unbroken is the odd one that feels as if it could have done with another half-dozen chapters to strengthen its final act, which is sadly the weakest part of the novel. The final conclusion wraps up a bit too neatly, and too quickly, after an extremely solid build up.

With that minor negative out of the way, let's talk strengths. The core pair of characters are, quite simply, excellently written. Both have extremely believable struggles, clearly coming from backgrounds that both shaped and damaged them. This realistically affects their decision making, causing numerous problems that too many other books would simply avoid.

The world building is quite broad, and just deep enough to intrigue without getting you lost in the weeds of irrelevant details that would take away from the story being told. Very much ideal for the nature of the plot, and it leaves plenty of room for further expansion in the sequels.

Overall, I would call it a solid B+ novel. Well worth picking up if you like the genre. ]]> Review5562137489 Sat, 20 May 2023 04:20:44 -0700 /review/show/5562137489 Zachary gave 4 stars to The Warden (The Warden, #1) by Daniel M. Ford
Pleasantly surprised.

I honestly wasn't expecting too much out of the Warden. It seemed like a short fantasy novel that took a lot of inspiration from tabletop role-playing campaigns. There's all of the usual fantasy races, a fairly shallow romance, and a 'quest-line' feel to it.

With that being said, the main character is superb. Her inner narration is quite excellent, and her struggle to be a 'good Warden' in what she considers to be an uncivilized backwater (one she very much does not want to be in), feels quite real. Further, I very much appreciate that the book remains entirely centered around her point of view, and no real 'party' develops around her. This helps keep it focused on the mysteries she has to resolve, and avoids the too-many-characters pitfall that many fantasy books fall into.

The world building is enough to hint at a much broader setting, without being so in depth as to bog down the narrative. Descriptions are similarly good enough to set the scene, but don't take up entire pages describing unimportant minutiae. It lets you read quickly and fill in the blanks with your imagination.

Perhaps the largest complaints are that the flashbacks occasionally feel out of place in the general pacing, and the books goes on for several chapters after what feels like it's natural 'end'. This was clearly done in the interest of setting up the sequel, but it leaves the last four or so chapters feeling more like the opening to Book 2 than the end to Book 1.

Still, if you like the fantasy genre, it's definitely worth a read, and I'll strongly consider reading the sequel whenever it releases. ]]> ReadStatus6592968960 Wed, 10 May 2023 08:42:21 -0700 /review/show/5542218246 Zachary is currently reading The Unbroken by C.L. Clark
]]> Review5541792301 Wed, 10 May 2023 03:51:18 -0700 /review/show/5541792301 Zachary gave 4 stars to Gideon the Ninth (The Locked Tomb, #1) by Tamsyn Muir
At a friend's recommendation, I finally broke down and picked up Gideon the Ninth to see if it was as good as it's premise seemed.

Overall... my answer is yes, yes it is.

Gideon herself is a fantastic protagonist. Her backstory has the right elements of mystery, her snark is on point and amusing, and her need to do the right thing is refreshing when put up against the many other characters in the novel. Those secondary characters themselves, especially Harrow, feel equally real and deep, which makes their relationships quite interesting.

Similarly, the plot is pretty quick and rarely loses its sense of pacing. The opening Act in particular is outstanding; it's the rare book where I think its beginning is actually stronger than its end. That end is very much a downer for me, sadly, and not quite what I was hoping for.

An occasional tendency to over-describe environments and a tad bit of excessive gore combine with the downer end to bring it down to 4/5 stars for me.

Very much well worth a read, just be prepared for grizzly details of Necromancy. ]]>