Otherworld (Last Reality #1) – Review

Ready Player One meets Game of Thrones meets The Lord of the Rings

Title: Otherworld (Last Reality #1)

Author: Jason Segel and Kirsten Miller

Type: Fiction

Theme: Virtual Reality/Game Based

Genre: Science Fiction

Format: Hardback

Pages: 355

Owned/Borrowed/Given Etc: Borrowed from the library

Rating: 4/5

Blurb: The company says Otherworld is amazing — like nothing you’ve ever seen before. They say it’s addictive — that you’ll want to stay forever. They promise Otherworld will make all your dreams come true.
Simon thought Otherworld was a game. Turns out he knew nothing. Otherworld is the next phase of reality. It’s everything you’ve ever wanted.
And it’s about to change humanity forever.
Welcome to the Otherworld. No one could have seen it coming.

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I loved this book. The story was just what I was looking for and it fit really well with my new found taste in genres. Otherworld is a tussle of a story between virtual and physical worlds, seeing the potential end of the world as we know it. This is definitely a science fiction book, but it centres around the video game side of science fiction and that’s why I liked it so much.

I was the first person to borrow this copy from my library so I got to read it, as new, in its hardback format. I’ve also reserved a copy of the second book in the last reality series and am hoping to collect it soon.

Deadly Class – Review (Partial)

Title: Deadly Class

Author: Rick Remender

Format: Comic Issues (36 in total)

Deadly Class #1 Deadly Class #2 Deadly Class #3 Deadly Class #4 Deadly Class #5 Deadly Class #6 Deadly Class #7 Deadly Class #8 Deadly Class #9 Deadly Class #10 Deadly Class #11 Deadly Class #12 Deadly Class #13 Deadly Class #14 Deadly Class #15

Before I get stuck in, I have to make you all aware that this review ONLY covers the first 15 issues.

I started reading the series because I saw this trailer and I am a sucker for SyFy TV shows:

As for the books, I have made the decision to not rate this series purely because at this exact moment in time, I could not bring myself to finish them.

I found the first (almost) half of the series really interesting. The idea that there is a school to train assassins is a fascinating concept, one that was executed well in the beginning. I got half way through issue 16 and just felt like it was far too teenage-angst-filled for me to continue.

The October Faction – Review

The October Faction Issues 1-18

The October Faction: Deadly Season Issues 1-5

The October Faction: Supernatural Dreams Issues 1-5

Reading The October Faction was a random spur of the moment, looking for a quick graphic novel or comic series to read.

I love a good supernatural read and this series definitely ticked all my boxes. The illustrations were quite good and fit well within the style of the story. They had an edgy horror feel to them. The main story was interesting as were the two extra “side” stories.

4 stars (1)

Y: The Last Man Review – Brian K. Vaughan

3 stars (1)

I read it because it was described as having a magician and “The Walking Dead but with Women” and also because of the impending TV show.

Whilst there is a hefty 10 volumes (around 60 issues), I actually found that it was quite an intriguing story. Y (aka Yorick) is as the title says “The Last Man” on Earth. Following some kind of unknown event all men cease to be (including animals etc).

It’s interesting to see how the women continue on without any men in the world (I’m pretty sure we’d cope just fine if it happened in the real world lol).

The art work wasn’t anything special, but it wasn’t that bad that I couldn’t read it.

The Kill Order (The Maze Runner #4) Review – James Dashner

James Dashner is well known for his writing of The Maze Runner series of books. The trilogy that includes The Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials and The Death Cure. I say trilogy because that was clearly all it needed to be. Sure a bit about the background and how W.I.C.K.E.D came to be would be nice (which I now believe is explained in The Fever Code, although judging by the majority of the reviews I’m not sure it actually does give us any unexpected answers) but Dashner could’ve just stopped at the end of The Death Cure.

The Kill Order, book #4 in the series is a prequel. Set not long after when the sun flares have finished but left the entire planet in disarray, The Kill Order takes us to a time when people were trying to stay alive and survive. Not to end up with the “madness” that so many have already succumbed to.

In The Kill Order we meet BRAND NEW characters. NONE, and I mean, NONE of the characters from any of the original trilogy are in this story. Whilst I appreciate, that the previous characters are of YA age, it would have been good to have been able to connect the characters in this story to the original trilogy. The only connections between this book and previous books are 1) the crazies (people affected by the madness) and 2) the sun flares.
I think I understand what Dashner was trying to do, by telling us more about the world before the “maze” it would give us a clearer picture of what was happening but to be honest, I didn’t feel that at all. We didn’t learn anything in this particular prequel that we didn’t already know from previous instalments.
I not only had issues with the story, but with reading this book. I started reading it back in August 2018 but due to having difficulties (which I’m not sure was due to myself or the book) it took until today to finish it. I couldn’t read more than a few pages at a time.

While I did have issues with it, when reviewing I try and provide some positives as well as negatives. Had this been a stand alone story, it could have worked as a good old apocalyptic action story (there was definitely plenty of action).
I had a favourite character, I usually do, even in books I don’t like. Alec an older ex-forces gentleman, leading the charge throughout the book, he made it worth sticking with. I liked him.

James Dashner, I’m disappointed in this particular book. Not only did it not deliver what I thought it would, I’m not sure that it delivered what you wanted it too either.

The Paper Magician Series Review – Charlie N Holmberg

The Master Magician (The Paper Magician #3)

The Plastic Magician (The Paper Magician #4)

The Paper Magician Series by Charlie N Holmberg

Book 1 – Ceony Twill arrives at the cottage of Magician Emery Thane with a broken heart. Having graduated at the top of her class from the Tagis Praff School for the Magically Inclined, Ceony is assigned an apprenticeship in paper magic despite her dreams of bespelling metal. And once she’s bonded to paper, that will be her only magic…forever.
Book 2 – Three months after returning Magician Emery Thane’s heart to his body, Ceony Twill is well on her way to becoming a Folder. Unfortunately, not all of Ceony’s thoughts have been focused on paper magic. Though she was promised romance by a fortuity box, Ceony still hasn’t broken the teacher-student barrier with Emery, despite their growing closeness.
Book 3 – Throughout her studies, Ceony Twill has harbored a secret, one she’s kept from even her mentor, Emery Thane. She’s discovered how to practice forms of magic other than her own—an ability long thought impossible.
Book 4 – Alvie Brechenmacher has arrived in London to begin her training in Polymaking—the magical discipline of bespelling plastic. Polymaking is the newest form of magic, and in a field where there is so much left to learn, every Polymaker dreams of making the next big discovery.

Taken from Amazon.co.uk

The above descriptions are only the beginning of what these books hold within but I felt that the descriptions on Amazon gave away far too much detail.
For the purposes of this review, I have decided to review THE PLASTIC MAGICIAN individually, I will explain why when I get to it.

Books 1, 2 and 3 – The Paper, Glass and Master Magician

We meet Ceony, a young and recently graduated magician’s apprentice for the first time in The Paper Magician and follow her adventures to the end of The Master Magician.
Set approximately between the Victorian era and the 1920’s a lot of the surroundings mentioned, although familiar place names (due to it being set in England), are definitely not what I am used to. You can tell from the level of detail put into the writing that Charlie N Holmberg had definitely researched the era she wished to write about. Reading these stories made me feel like I was actually there living in that era.
The characters are fantastic. As with the era/backdrop, the amount of detail put into the characters was amazing. I could visualise Ceony and the adorable Magician Thane (Yes, I have a new crush). I couldn’t wait to dive back in and find out what was going to happen next with the lovely young apprentice.
Each book seemed to pick up effortlessly from the one before and the way they were written meant that there didn’t feel like there had been any passing of time (as a reader, I love it when someone manages to sew their series together without need for explanation).

I’ve given all three of these books 5/5 on the rating scale.

5 stars

Book 4 – The Plastic Magician

Onto book four in the series now – the reason for the separate review is that this book does not contain the same main characters as the initial three books.

In book four we meet Alvie. Much like Ceony, her journey starts just as she’s assigned to her elective Magic material and tutor. She’s to become a polymaker (plastic magician) and for that, she has to travel all the way from America to England.

I really enjoyed this book, almost as much as I loved the first three but before starting I really was hopeful that it was still about Ceony. Granted if I’d have read the blurb before hand I would’ve probably known, but I loved the first three so didn’t think about it.
I liked finding out more about some characters that were only touched upon in the initial trilogy and I did like the new main character.

I have given this book a 4/5 on the rating scale.