The Trials of Empire (spoiler free review) by Richard Swan

Рет қаралды 2,264

5 ай бұрын

My review of the final book in the "Empire of the Wolf" trilogy.
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Пікірлер: 36

@blankface911 5 ай бұрын

I know it's a matter of opinion and you've been really spot on with the way I feel about the books I've read but.. sheesh, I'm a little surprised to the degree to which we disagree on this one. I didn't find the first half a slog at all, I enjoyed all of the character moments and how their feelings for one another changed. I sort of wish you had done a spoiler review to give full context to your feelings but I know that would take a lot of extra work and I don't expect it but I really enjoyed this book and it seems that you really did not. I appreciate your time and effort though! I never would have tried this series out if you hadn't reviewed the first and second and I am happy to say it's still one of my favorite trilogies. I look forward to your recommendations still!

@andrewf7732 5 ай бұрын

100% agree with this review. I wanted more from Helena and Vonvalt relationship. I felt the promise of the trilogy was the implied fallout between these characters and I dont think the ending delivered on this in a satisfying way. I also felt the supernatural elements weren't developed enough. I think the books were published too quickly. I think this book needed another six months of developmental editing. But I love Swan's writing. I just hope he lays a more thought out foundation in his future series. The first book is my favorite in this series and I still think it's overall four stars, but it had the potential to be a five stars series

@JJ-nu8qi 5 ай бұрын

I agree that the super natural stuff wasn't fleshed out enough. I didn't really care or know enough about those super natural characters to really care or understand what they were about.

@zackattack366 5 ай бұрын

I disagree entirely about this needed to be 4 or 5 books. This book would have been entirely boring and painfully slow if it was stretched two or three books. I disagree that the first half was a bore and the second half was too crammed. We slowed down to set up the ending conflict and then once it was set up we picked up the pace. That totally make sense to me.

@moev29 5 ай бұрын

Agreed. I needed this one split. It felt like it rushed through things that mattered. I enjoyed it, but it wasn’t perfect.

@jessezigg 5 ай бұрын

Respect your forthright honesty, as always.

@jamiethomas4165 5 ай бұрын

I agree with this. The plot felt so erratic for the first half, I kind of liked the actual ending but the first half was messy

@nestorcaceres8928 4 ай бұрын

"Alot of fantasies aren't done"...I felt that to my core.

@jan2bratt 2 ай бұрын

I'm on the last pages of this book and remembered you did this review. I agree with you. I gave the first two either 4 or 5 stars and I might give this one a 2, I was so bored with it.

@itsagoddam.pandamic 5 ай бұрын

I'm going to be honest, I think I'm going to love this based on what people have been saying. I've been wanting what it sounds like you're describing since it was introduced in the first book. But I'm sorry you didn't like it, that always sucks.

@bradykathol8806 5 ай бұрын

I was totally engrossed with the first 2 and couldn’t put them down I loved them, I’m about half way through this one and I agree completely. I feel lost in it and my brain can’t retain most of it, it’s a very sad time

@MaxFidler 5 ай бұрын

Its really funny. I preordered this and I havent read it yet but i was sitting at my desk yesterday thinking about this. It seemed so odd that this time last year The Tyranny of Faith was setting BookTube on fire and I havent heard anything about this one. Its been crickets. I REALLY hope that I wind up disagreeing with this but quite a few reviews on Goodreads are also mixed.

@jeremycamp0206 5 ай бұрын

Well I ended up really enjoying it but my tastes in books seem to differ from most 😂 🤷🏻‍♂️

@misternegative4918 5 ай бұрын

I liked it a bit more. Gave it 4 stars. While the first half was a bit of a slog, I really enjoyed and found the world building being done fascinating. It definitely was too much in too little of time, but I found it interesting. I really liked the second half. Just didn’t really like Helena’s final decision. I think the first half seemed like setup for where Swan might be taking the characters to in another trilogy.

@zackattack366 5 ай бұрын

I think Swan has stated that he may stay in this world but push it forward about 200 years into a flintlock fantasy era. So I don't believe we'll see any of these characters again.

@readbykyle3082 5 ай бұрын

Totally agree with all of this

@KindlesandKicks 5 ай бұрын

Aw man! I was looking forward to this series because of the overwhelming love the first two books recieved, but with the lukewarm reviews from Booktube on the third book, I’m a bit hesitant now.

@alexvaldiers9788 5 ай бұрын

Read the first book at least. It's a masterpiece.

@kurjan1 4 ай бұрын

Man, I've always enjoyed your reviews, but damn... I think you and I have read completly different books!

@laurac56 5 ай бұрын

I loved the first one and own the second. I haven’t read it yet. I almost purchased the third when available, but held off. Do you think I should read the second without the third? Does it end the story enough without the third? Third book doesn’t sound like it’s for me.

@MattsFantasyBookReviews 5 ай бұрын

Just read them all honestly, my opinion probably isn't the predominant one!

@peternewman9606 4 ай бұрын

@@MattsFantasyBookReviewswill u stil review Bakker? Curious what u think of the rest of the books

@2GunsUpZ 4 ай бұрын

At a certain point, I just wanted it to end. Hated all the dream sequences. Agreed on the big bad. And Helena seems to have very little agency. How many times did he say "I froze"? SMH. I liked the ending but it didn't really flow to me. Great review.

@noteuser15 5 ай бұрын

I completely agree. In fact I feel like I tried to read this before you reviewed it, so your opinion didn’t influence mine 😂. But I completely felt the same way you did. The pacing was way off, the character work was thrown mostly out the window, and it was just too different from the first two. It’s a real shame because I also gave the first two five stars, and this had the potential to be one of my favorite trilogies of all time. It just didn’t land for me either. I gave it four stars though just because I am biased and love the characters too much. But I logically agree more with a three star rating

@scottv5587 5 ай бұрын

That’s a shame. I still plan on giving this series a shot later this year

@alexvaldiers9788 5 ай бұрын

This was my most anticipated book of the year and sadly it did not deliver. This felt rush and lacklustre. There was no climax... ahhhh It's disappointing. I still love the 1st book and the 2nd though.

@geoffjohnston6066 5 ай бұрын

Agree. I just reviewed it on your discord. Gave it 4 stars. But I was feeling generous. Couldn't agree more that the first half was a painful slog.

@mattamant915 5 ай бұрын

Not what I like to hear when I'm on page 373 of the physical copy (almost 70%).

@noname3609 5 ай бұрын

Comment 4 youtube algorhythm

@Raddon 5 ай бұрын

I will never waste my time on comments like that.

@TheMrNukeman 5 ай бұрын

@@Raddon wasted your time commenting on it though...

@noname3609 5 ай бұрын

@@Raddon I think Mat is an awesome dude and deserves more subscribers 😊

@Raddon 5 ай бұрын

@@TheMrNukeman Sarcasm is never a waste of time

@Roondawg_Valhalla 5 ай бұрын

Goof

@caitlinl2750 5 ай бұрын

I felt the same😢

@BooksWithBenghisKahn 5 ай бұрын

I tried starting this one and hated the beginning so much I had to stop. Unlike you I thought it started to slog in bk 2, which was really disappointed after I liked bk 1 a lot and felt like it was doing something I’d never seen before. Once it became a more standard plot it really lost my interest, and that def doesn’t seem to change in this final book. Oh well they can’t all be winners.