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Arcane Ascension #4
The Silence of Unworthy Gods
Upon returning to Valia after his journey to Caelford and the Unclaimed Lands, Corin Cadence is confronted with a familiar foe — his own father. While his strength has vastly increased since his last encounter with Magnus Cadence, Corin knows that he’ll need every trick at his disposal — and maybe a few new ones — if he wants to survive a duel with his father intact.
While Corin struggles with his family, his friends must face a second year at Lorian Heights with new classes, familiar but new chancellor, and deadly new enemies both on and off the campus. But school itself is the least of their worries. As the year progresses, the nation of Valia faces new travails at the emergence of a mysterious faction targeting attuned commoners and foreigners. Casualties mount as Corin’s allies seek to unmask the leadership of this deadly order — and discover a threat that they cannot hope to face and emerge unscathed.
The Silence of Unworthy Gods is the fourth book in the Arcane Ascension series, a progression fantasy epic that mixes dungeon crawling and magical school content. This book also references events from the Weapons & Wielders series up to Book 3, a connected series that takes place several years earlier with some overlapping cast members.
While Corin struggles with his family, his friends must face a second year at Lorian Heights with new classes, familiar but new chancellor, and deadly new enemies both on and off the campus. But school itself is the least of their worries. As the year progresses, the nation of Valia faces new travails at the emergence of a mysterious faction targeting attuned commoners and foreigners. Casualties mount as Corin’s allies seek to unmask the leadership of this deadly order — and discover a threat that they cannot hope to face and emerge unscathed.
The Silence of Unworthy Gods is the fourth book in the Arcane Ascension series, a progression fantasy epic that mixes dungeon crawling and magical school content. This book also references events from the Weapons & Wielders series up to Book 3, a connected series that takes place several years earlier with some overlapping cast members.
21 pages, Audible Audio
First published October 1, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 285 reviews
October 7, 2022
This series is something truly special. If you’re neurodivergent and like fantasy I think you should give it a try.
And this book? Gosh it set up so many promises and kept them and the ending OH. MY. GOD.
I just truly can’t even.
I will definitely be continuing this series.
And this book? Gosh it set up so many promises and kept them and the ending OH. MY. GOD.
I just truly can’t even.
I will definitely be continuing this series.
October 24, 2022
I just felt this book was lacking in a general sense. Character interactions and development felt less impactful, the story just seemed to stagnate and felt bloated until the final events, and the whole climax felt contrived and idiotic.
Aside from the tower exploration (which there was none of in this entry) and character strength cultivation, the characters are normally the driving force in these books, and they just didn't do anything for me this time around. It's stated at the start that the Sacred Swords books are unnecessary for the enjoyment of this book, as was the case in previous entries, but its focus on Keras, which took up a staggering amount of the narrative focus, makes me question how true that really is. I know I am being stubborn for not reading them and I am sure I'd find some positive aspects I'd appreciate, but I just don't think it's a commitment I should have to make to enjoy this story. "Read an entirely separate prequel series, filled with important lore and character backstory recounted in this series but omitted, so you can better grasp what the hell is going on." Nah, I'm good. I'll stick to traditional storytelling methods where the worldbuilding isn't dissected and removed, to be placed in a supplementary series you feel obliged to read alongside.
The way this story was told, in general, made me feel really detached this time around. Corin would recount the events occurring in the present in a detached and summarised way that just made me wish I actually got to read about this conversation between friends, for example, and not be told about its existence. What the story decided to focus on and what only deserved a brief afterthought before being glossed over felt arbitrary and is probably the biggest factor as to why this book felt a lot more bloated and insubstantial to me.
The main baddies the group has to face this time around weren't given nearly enough consideration and development. They lack depth, simply. We're told of the horrible acts they are committing on campus, and even when a member of the main group is targeted, I just don't feel the tension that I should because they haven't been established as a major antagonist to Team Corin. I am not particularly interested in their actions in the story, and since the entire climax of this novel revolves around the Sons of Valia, you'd think I'd be more invested in their downfall, and not see their entire discussion time as a mere side plot going on to merely complicate matters a little during the group's first semester of the second year.
The ending didn't do anything for me. I just find it unbelievable and a little stupid that these 2nd year students were just allowed to tag along with the Blackstone bandits whilst they launch an assault on this very dangerous and completely serious group of Valia's elites. Despite being targeted once by this group, Corin and Co. really had no real reason to be in that warehouse in the end. Sure, they may have a vested interest in seeing the Sons of Valia being toppled, but were they realistically needed by this supposedly all-powerful crime syndicate? It was like they just tagged along because there was nothing else for them to do at the time in the narrative. It just felt underwhelming, and the horrible things that transpire in the final showdown kind of felt self-inflicted - like they put themselves in harm's way for absolutely no reason. Something, you'd think, Corin would be starkly opposed to.
Anyway, this book was okay. The magic system at the core of this series is incredibly well-done, if not a little confusing at times. The father-son duel was actually really cool and I enjoyed that whole arc as a whole. I'd recommend giving it a read if you enjoyed the previous entries, sad I didn't like it more.
Aside from the tower exploration (which there was none of in this entry) and character strength cultivation, the characters are normally the driving force in these books, and they just didn't do anything for me this time around. It's stated at the start that the Sacred Swords books are unnecessary for the enjoyment of this book, as was the case in previous entries, but its focus on Keras, which took up a staggering amount of the narrative focus, makes me question how true that really is. I know I am being stubborn for not reading them and I am sure I'd find some positive aspects I'd appreciate, but I just don't think it's a commitment I should have to make to enjoy this story. "Read an entirely separate prequel series, filled with important lore and character backstory recounted in this series but omitted, so you can better grasp what the hell is going on." Nah, I'm good. I'll stick to traditional storytelling methods where the worldbuilding isn't dissected and removed, to be placed in a supplementary series you feel obliged to read alongside.
The way this story was told, in general, made me feel really detached this time around. Corin would recount the events occurring in the present in a detached and summarised way that just made me wish I actually got to read about this conversation between friends, for example, and not be told about its existence. What the story decided to focus on and what only deserved a brief afterthought before being glossed over felt arbitrary and is probably the biggest factor as to why this book felt a lot more bloated and insubstantial to me.
The main baddies the group has to face this time around weren't given nearly enough consideration and development. They lack depth, simply. We're told of the horrible acts they are committing on campus, and even when a member of the main group is targeted, I just don't feel the tension that I should because they haven't been established as a major antagonist to Team Corin. I am not particularly interested in their actions in the story, and since the entire climax of this novel revolves around the Sons of Valia, you'd think I'd be more invested in their downfall, and not see their entire discussion time as a mere side plot going on to merely complicate matters a little during the group's first semester of the second year.
The ending didn't do anything for me. I just find it unbelievable and a little stupid that these 2nd year students were just allowed to tag along with the Blackstone bandits whilst they launch an assault on this very dangerous and completely serious group of Valia's elites. Despite being targeted once by this group, Corin and Co. really had no real reason to be in that warehouse in the end. Sure, they may have a vested interest in seeing the Sons of Valia being toppled, but were they realistically needed by this supposedly all-powerful crime syndicate? It was like they just tagged along because there was nothing else for them to do at the time in the narrative. It just felt underwhelming, and the horrible things that transpire in the final showdown kind of felt self-inflicted - like they put themselves in harm's way for absolutely no reason. Something, you'd think, Corin would be starkly opposed to.
Anyway, this book was okay. The magic system at the core of this series is incredibly well-done, if not a little confusing at times. The father-son duel was actually really cool and I enjoyed that whole arc as a whole. I'd recommend giving it a read if you enjoyed the previous entries, sad I didn't like it more.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 26, 2022
By far Rowes worst entry into his whole universe. There has always been some preachyness in his novels but the characters and action has mostly lead the story. In this current novel the preachyness takes center stage and for the most part doesn't stop for 700 pages. I am all for social justice and equality but having it pounded into your brain over and over again just doesn't make for a very good novel.
If you have already read the other nine books in this universe then this book is probably worth reading in the hopes that Andrew has gotten the full on Social Justice Warrior out of his system and can dial it back in future releases.
Overall this book was not fun or entertaining and comes across as pretentious and repetitive. Here's hoping that the next one is better.
If you have already read the other nine books in this universe then this book is probably worth reading in the hopes that Andrew has gotten the full on Social Justice Warrior out of his system and can dial it back in future releases.
Overall this book was not fun or entertaining and comes across as pretentious and repetitive. Here's hoping that the next one is better.
October 5, 2022
I think I read every single book by Andrew Rowe in less than 2 days, and it was no different with this one. For the first time though, I found myself putting it down at times and wishing for it to go faster. I read these books for the characters, and I will admit I don't understand every detail of the magic system. This doesn't normally take anything away from the story, but I found myself confused a few times in this book by how things worked, which might be because I read the last book some time ago. Overall I still really enjoyed it, but I did miss a level of story progression and excitement in the fight scenes. The last third of the book really picked up, and I am in no way deterred of reading all the books that come out in the future. I also judge this book more harshly because I enjoyed the other books so much, but I am also lenient to flaws that might be present in this and Rowe's other books, but don't take away from my enjoyment.
Overall, a fun read and I can't wait for the next one (especially with that ending!!).
I do hope some things get resolved and I am always excited to see my favourite character again!
Overall, a fun read and I can't wait for the next one (especially with that ending!!).
I do hope some things get resolved and I am always excited to see my favourite character again!
May 5, 2025
This is a political/social inequities/opinion thesis disguised as a fantasy book. There is very little story actually going on here, and extremely heavy handed/thinly veiled SJW propaganda messages being thrown out. I am actually fine with an author expressing their opinion on current topics/events, but holy shit, it should NEVER come at the cost of ruining your own story.
Andrew Rowe has progressively moved away from telling stories and now just preaches while pretending he is telling a story.
Skip the book, skip the author.
Andrew Rowe has progressively moved away from telling stories and now just preaches while pretending he is telling a story.
Skip the book, skip the author.
August 6, 2023
4.0 Stars
After being disappointed by the previous book, I was so pleased that this one was back on track. We're back at the school with some solid plot progression. I'm looking forward to the next book.
After being disappointed by the previous book, I was so pleased that this one was back on track. We're back at the school with some solid plot progression. I'm looking forward to the next book.
November 18, 2022
A bit heavy handed, don't ya think?
April 11, 2024
My Rating: 4.5/5
Full YouTube Review: https://youtu.be/tUuxrNQIHls
Series rating so far: 4/5
Hey Friends, so for books 2-4 I am doing a combined review since my Youtube video was a 3-for-1.
Story and Magic: 5/5
There are many cool things about this series. Particularly, I enjoyed the ability to combine magic and magical artifacts the most. There are a lot of potential threats and the world seems a lot bigger than what is explained in the books.
Characters: 5/5
I really like our main characters as a whole. I think they have set an amazing group of friends together who really fight to keep each other alive and safe. We see how each of our characters grows not only physically but emotionally as well.
Writing style: 3/5
Here is where I find myself questioning some of the publishers/authors choice. There are a lot of modern day issues, shown in the current story. For example, very many instances of pronoun usage surrounding specific characters, and a heavy emphasis on "oh no, should I use, he, she or they them pronouns so I don't offend certain people". Aside from this there is a lot of sexual confusion between who the main character finds attractive or who he wants to date. While I don't have any issue with people expressing themselves however they may want, I do have an issue when it shows up on books unexpectedly and then follows to be a huge part of the story. Additionally, and probably my greatest drawback is Corins inability to emotionally express himself. He doesn't like people physically touching him, and yes, while I understand that there are many people like this in the world, I don't think it's to his extreme. He refuses hugs etc sometimes from his best friends who have literally almost died for him. This is a bit too much.
Overall thoughts:4/5
I generally really enjoy this series and to me, the pros far outweigh the cons. I think you all would really enjoy this too! I look forward to future books!!!!
Full YouTube Review: https://youtu.be/tUuxrNQIHls
Series rating so far: 4/5
Hey Friends, so for books 2-4 I am doing a combined review since my Youtube video was a 3-for-1.
Story and Magic: 5/5
There are many cool things about this series. Particularly, I enjoyed the ability to combine magic and magical artifacts the most. There are a lot of potential threats and the world seems a lot bigger than what is explained in the books.
Characters: 5/5
I really like our main characters as a whole. I think they have set an amazing group of friends together who really fight to keep each other alive and safe. We see how each of our characters grows not only physically but emotionally as well.
Writing style: 3/5
Here is where I find myself questioning some of the publishers/authors choice. There are a lot of modern day issues, shown in the current story. For example, very many instances of pronoun usage surrounding specific characters, and a heavy emphasis on "oh no, should I use, he, she or they them pronouns so I don't offend certain people". Aside from this there is a lot of sexual confusion between who the main character finds attractive or who he wants to date. While I don't have any issue with people expressing themselves however they may want, I do have an issue when it shows up on books unexpectedly and then follows to be a huge part of the story. Additionally, and probably my greatest drawback is Corins inability to emotionally express himself. He doesn't like people physically touching him, and yes, while I understand that there are many people like this in the world, I don't think it's to his extreme. He refuses hugs etc sometimes from his best friends who have literally almost died for him. This is a bit too much.
Overall thoughts:4/5
I generally really enjoy this series and to me, the pros far outweigh the cons. I think you all would really enjoy this too! I look forward to future books!!!!
May 9, 2023
I enjoyed this continuation of the story and was happy to get back to the main plotline. I do think that this one meanders a little, although I think Corin's brain just kind of meanders too, so there's still new things being opened up here even though we're on book 4, but we do have a few resolution points too and I liked seeing some of the main plot progress.
I am certainly going to continue with the series and the books in this world as they are coming out ;)
3.5*s
I am certainly going to continue with the series and the books in this world as they are coming out ;)
3.5*s
October 16, 2022
Very disappointing book. This series has so much potential but this book in particular has just gotten so heavy handed with the political messages that it has lost sight of actually being an entertaining read.
December 15, 2022
Dang, book 4 made me so frustrated. I could barely get through it. Nothing happened for 70% of the book. There was no direction. I had no idea where the author was taking me. The last 30% saved it from a 2-star review.
Book 1: I loved
Book 2: so great
Book 3: good not great
Book 4: sucks until the very end
I love this series. I hope this was just a set up for the rest of the series and we get back on track with some real plot progress. It feels like the author is afraid to move the story forward before Corin is powerful enough, so we get a lot of chapters where Corin researches stuff and doesn’t really get anywhere, then moves on to research something else.
Book 1: I loved
Book 2: so great
Book 3: good not great
Book 4: sucks until the very end
I love this series. I hope this was just a set up for the rest of the series and we get back on track with some real plot progress. It feels like the author is afraid to move the story forward before Corin is powerful enough, so we get a lot of chapters where Corin researches stuff and doesn’t really get anywhere, then moves on to research something else.
October 27, 2022
So boring
I really liked the first book. They just get worse as you read more of them. Half this book is the main character whining about his insecurities. The moronic use of pronouns really confused me until I remember the author is pushing his social agenda. It’s sad that this book is aimed at young adults who are still learning the proper use of the English language. I’m over the pronoun b.s. pushing the gender agenda. Don’t encourage this idiocy by buying this book.
I really liked the first book. They just get worse as you read more of them. Half this book is the main character whining about his insecurities. The moronic use of pronouns really confused me until I remember the author is pushing his social agenda. It’s sad that this book is aimed at young adults who are still learning the proper use of the English language. I’m over the pronoun b.s. pushing the gender agenda. Don’t encourage this idiocy by buying this book.
October 18, 2022
Don't touch me!
We get it, the main character doesn't like to touch or be touched. He doesn't need to go over it every chapter of every book at this point. If his antisocial behavior is not going to be considered a character flaw for him to overcome, then stop talking about it all the time
Also, several pages of discussion on the ethics of monster summoning was wildly unnecessary.
And lastly, the entire book is predicated on this nobles vs commoners setup, but somehow, it's never been discussed what the peerage system looks like or what the benefits of nobility are from a public perspective. Takes away from the drama bc there's not much distinction between the 2 groups except money
We get it, the main character doesn't like to touch or be touched. He doesn't need to go over it every chapter of every book at this point. If his antisocial behavior is not going to be considered a character flaw for him to overcome, then stop talking about it all the time
Also, several pages of discussion on the ethics of monster summoning was wildly unnecessary.
And lastly, the entire book is predicated on this nobles vs commoners setup, but somehow, it's never been discussed what the peerage system looks like or what the benefits of nobility are from a public perspective. Takes away from the drama bc there's not much distinction between the 2 groups except money
December 31, 2024
IT'S SO GOOD I WANNA PUNCH SOMEONE!!!!!!!! :'D
October 8, 2022
First of all, I want to say that I got addicted to Andrew Rowe's books after reading "Forging Divinity" in 2015. I liked the books because of quite adequate characters, good plot twists, an interesting magic system, a big world, characters with unique personalities, some gray choices, and many other things. I also like slice-of-life (or slice-of-magic?) books as well as detailed descriptions of magic systems. This book was also great.
I enjoyed the return to school and the new classes. It was especially fun to read the scenes where Colin realized how far ahead he is in certain topics.
It was sad seeing Keras leave, but it was inevitable - this isn't his own story. I hope to read more about his new adventures :)
The scene of the sword awakening was wonderful, and the result was really Corin-like.
It was also great to see a hint that Corin and Sera are cursed twins indeed. No one should have gotten this reference, but let's see how things play out in the future.
The duel with his father was awesome. Of course, I knew that Corin wouldn't be able to win in a conventional fight, but I didn't expect his solution. But it should have been obvious - the thing which he did is a pinnacle of what he is doing already.
I suppose that the next book will deal with the repercussions. The main one is that their family lost their main duelist. Now it can lose its standing or worse.
I loved Satsuki! And the growing Corin's harem, if you could call it this.
Some things I have mixed feelings about:
Usually, it is fun to see how people work around personal boundaries, but I feel that maybe it happened too much in this book.
The arc with Sons of Valia seemed strange to me. First of all, we have too little information about them. Though this could be explained by the lack of interest from Corin's side. Another problem is that no one (except the Bandits) tried to stop them. I understand that the students could be scared of repercussions, but the administration should be very alarmed by these accidents - it would show the weakness of the system, and other governments would see this as a problem and maybe won't send their students to this school.
Lute didn't click for me at all. I wasn't able to care about him at all. Maybe he will be more interesting to me in the future.
As for the last fight... I still can't believe that they killed Saffron; it should be impossible at their level despite their preparations. There had some tactics and suitable gear, but it shouldn't have made any difference. On the other hand, I doubt Ayara wouldn't save Saffron if she could (she may not like him much, but she should have helped him), so maybe she played her part in his death? Maybe the new book will tell more about it.
And as for the aftermath, I'm so sad. Sera barely recovered since she was hurt in the first book, and now she is in a bad condition again. I think that Mara will be okay physically (I assume Corin will make her a prosthetic hand), but mentally she is in a very bad place.
So, anyway, the book was great for me, and I'm looking for reading the next books (or the new series).
I enjoyed the return to school and the new classes. It was especially fun to read the scenes where Colin realized how far ahead he is in certain topics.
It was sad seeing Keras leave, but it was inevitable - this isn't his own story. I hope to read more about his new adventures :)
The scene of the sword awakening was wonderful, and the result was really Corin-like.
It was also great to see a hint that Corin and Sera are cursed twins indeed. No one should have gotten this reference, but let's see how things play out in the future.
The duel with his father was awesome. Of course, I knew that Corin wouldn't be able to win in a conventional fight, but I didn't expect his solution. But it should have been obvious - the thing which he did is a pinnacle of what he is doing already.
I suppose that the next book will deal with the repercussions. The main one is that their family lost their main duelist. Now it can lose its standing or worse.
I loved Satsuki! And the growing Corin's harem, if you could call it this.
Some things I have mixed feelings about:
Usually, it is fun to see how people work around personal boundaries, but I feel that maybe it happened too much in this book.
The arc with Sons of Valia seemed strange to me. First of all, we have too little information about them. Though this could be explained by the lack of interest from Corin's side. Another problem is that no one (except the Bandits) tried to stop them. I understand that the students could be scared of repercussions, but the administration should be very alarmed by these accidents - it would show the weakness of the system, and other governments would see this as a problem and maybe won't send their students to this school.
Lute didn't click for me at all. I wasn't able to care about him at all. Maybe he will be more interesting to me in the future.
As for the last fight... I still can't believe that they killed Saffron; it should be impossible at their level despite their preparations. There had some tactics and suitable gear, but it shouldn't have made any difference. On the other hand, I doubt Ayara wouldn't save Saffron if she could (she may not like him much, but she should have helped him), so maybe she played her part in his death? Maybe the new book will tell more about it.
And as for the aftermath, I'm so sad. Sera barely recovered since she was hurt in the first book, and now she is in a bad condition again. I think that Mara will be okay physically (I assume Corin will make her a prosthetic hand), but mentally she is in a very bad place.
So, anyway, the book was great for me, and I'm looking for reading the next books (or the new series).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 3, 2024
4 1/2 stars. I was up all night and day reading the latest installment of this wonderful series. It is a mashup of a progression, LitRPG and magical school novels without being pegged into anyone of those and the best of all of them.
Corin and friends have returned from their winter break that was filled with many challenges and surprising knowledge only to be confronted by Corin's father demanding a duel. Corin is able to put off the duel to the end of the new school semester but will that be enough time for him to figure out some way to survive his powerful father? Meanwhile, changes are sweeping the school and a new danger in the form of prejudice based attacks threaten foreigner and commoners alike. But the real person behind the movement is more dangerous than anyone realizes...
The magic system is explored further as Corin continues to expand his enchantment abilities and explore new areas of magic. I love the details about how he enchants things. I also love that the plot arcs of this series is not limited to school. Prejudice, politics, child abuse, confronting one's own embedded biases that one may not really be aware of, and religion are among the things that all play a part in the ongoing story. After all, there is more to life than just school. It also makes for a complex and vibrant story.
But there is plenty of action as well. People won't be disappointed with the big fight at the end. Or the way Corin uses his twisty mindset and his sister strategic thinking to finally have it out with his father. There's plenty of growth in combat skills and in characters to keep all sorts of people happy.
I will admit there were a few parts that dragged a little bit too long for me. Hence, the 4 1/2 stars instead of 5. But, I was very happy to lose some sleep to read it all.
Corin and friends have returned from their winter break that was filled with many challenges and surprising knowledge only to be confronted by Corin's father demanding a duel. Corin is able to put off the duel to the end of the new school semester but will that be enough time for him to figure out some way to survive his powerful father? Meanwhile, changes are sweeping the school and a new danger in the form of prejudice based attacks threaten foreigner and commoners alike. But the real person behind the movement is more dangerous than anyone realizes...
The magic system is explored further as Corin continues to expand his enchantment abilities and explore new areas of magic. I love the details about how he enchants things. I also love that the plot arcs of this series is not limited to school. Prejudice, politics, child abuse, confronting one's own embedded biases that one may not really be aware of, and religion are among the things that all play a part in the ongoing story. After all, there is more to life than just school. It also makes for a complex and vibrant story.
But there is plenty of action as well. People won't be disappointed with the big fight at the end. Or the way Corin uses his twisty mindset and his sister strategic thinking to finally have it out with his father. There's plenty of growth in combat skills and in characters to keep all sorts of people happy.
I will admit there were a few parts that dragged a little bit too long for me. Hence, the 4 1/2 stars instead of 5. But, I was very happy to lose some sleep to read it all.
October 27, 2022
Too much exposition. gave up at 30%.
November 7, 2022
Super weak story: almost nothing happens in this book, besides studying and training. Very little in the way of revelations or progress towards resolving anything of the larger story. Filler book?
September 19, 2024
This series continues to deliver - great plot, characters, and writing. Four books in, and it only gets better!
April 21, 2023
DNF at 43%.
This is what happens when an author apparently cares more about forcing his message down your throat than writing an actually good story. But before we get to that, here are my "technical" opinions.
Ellipses. You...don't...have...to...use...them...every...time...your...characters...have...a...thought...or...conversation. Seriously, you don't. It is incredibly annoying when every page is littered with them. I was constantly thinking that all it did was show that the characters (particularly the main one) are mouth-drooling idiots that can't even string one continuous thought together without getting hung up somehow. And this is mainly coming from a character that actually ponders how his increased mental faculties are affecting him; are they making him smarter, faster thinking, etc? No, because apparently they just make him a moron.
The characters used to moderately interest me. In the related series where Keras was the main character, I was pretty invested. Now we're stuck with an unlikable "people are icky" antisocial protagonist. That would be ok, I suppose, if it weren't pretty obvious that the author wants to shove it in our face that he's writing someone with autistm or aspergers, without actually using those words. Same with all the lgbtq leanings, and the blatant "they/them" character that is somehow super interesting and mysterious, despite literally doing nothing except saying dumb shit, along the lines of character says, "Wow, you're really smart," and THEY reply something like "Am I?" with a smirk. I don't care if those characters are in the books I read, and I've read and finished the previous in this series where it was all there, so whether you believe me or not this isn't me not wanting them in my books. I don't want stupid characters and their stupid actions shoved in my face in such a way that I'm supposed to think it is awesome, when it isn't. Straight, bi, autistic, whatever, I just want a good character. Nobody in this book qualifies as such.
Add onto all of that the fact that I'm literally 43% of the way through and NOTHING has happened. Nothing. Endless descriptions of routing school stuff, which even the character telling us about it seems to find boring. Endless philosophical ramblings that go nowhere. Endless "Eww, this thing I want to do is going to require me to interact with people. I'm not sure if I'm up to that kind of icky today." Endless musings about how powers work which COULD be interesting if not for the fact that they are most definitely NOT interesting, and so far not a single thing has come of it in this book. Just endless boring boring boring.
And now I just got a lecture (via the other characters crapping on the main character) about privilege. No thanks. So I'm going to exercise my privilege and stop giving the author any of that sweet sweet Kindle Unlimited money and not read another word of anything he/she/they/xhe writes.
This is what happens when an author apparently cares more about forcing his message down your throat than writing an actually good story. But before we get to that, here are my "technical" opinions.
Ellipses. You...don't...have...to...use...them...every...time...your...characters...have...a...thought...or...conversation. Seriously, you don't. It is incredibly annoying when every page is littered with them. I was constantly thinking that all it did was show that the characters (particularly the main one) are mouth-drooling idiots that can't even string one continuous thought together without getting hung up somehow. And this is mainly coming from a character that actually ponders how his increased mental faculties are affecting him; are they making him smarter, faster thinking, etc? No, because apparently they just make him a moron.
The characters used to moderately interest me. In the related series where Keras was the main character, I was pretty invested. Now we're stuck with an unlikable "people are icky" antisocial protagonist. That would be ok, I suppose, if it weren't pretty obvious that the author wants to shove it in our face that he's writing someone with autistm or aspergers, without actually using those words. Same with all the lgbtq leanings, and the blatant "they/them" character that is somehow super interesting and mysterious, despite literally doing nothing except saying dumb shit, along the lines of character says, "Wow, you're really smart," and THEY reply something like "Am I?" with a smirk. I don't care if those characters are in the books I read, and I've read and finished the previous in this series where it was all there, so whether you believe me or not this isn't me not wanting them in my books. I don't want stupid characters and their stupid actions shoved in my face in such a way that I'm supposed to think it is awesome, when it isn't. Straight, bi, autistic, whatever, I just want a good character. Nobody in this book qualifies as such.
Add onto all of that the fact that I'm literally 43% of the way through and NOTHING has happened. Nothing. Endless descriptions of routing school stuff, which even the character telling us about it seems to find boring. Endless philosophical ramblings that go nowhere. Endless "Eww, this thing I want to do is going to require me to interact with people. I'm not sure if I'm up to that kind of icky today." Endless musings about how powers work which COULD be interesting if not for the fact that they are most definitely NOT interesting, and so far not a single thing has come of it in this book. Just endless boring boring boring.
And now I just got a lecture (via the other characters crapping on the main character) about privilege. No thanks. So I'm going to exercise my privilege and stop giving the author any of that sweet sweet Kindle Unlimited money and not read another word of anything he/she/they/xhe writes.
January 16, 2023
I love the world and magic that was built for this series. The story the author is trying to tell seems good, but it's hard to be sure.
After hours(sometimes 2 or 3 hours straight) of listening to largely meaningless identity politics and moral agonizing, it's almost impossible to keep the thread of what's happening in the actual STORY. If you want a subset of the population to be wishy-washy about their gender? Ok. You want to talk about the sapience of intelligence "monsters?" Fine. Those things can be done, and done well. Unfortunately, not like this. The author forgets the story he's telling while he's does it.
Characters go on long monologues, preaching about class or race or gender, from an extremely slanted view point. And the other characters reaction, near every time, is "you're right," and that's it. The main character has scars all over his body, including some on his face from his father's (very frequent) beatings, but he'll just take being called a pampered prince. And from someone who grew up as nearly as gilded as him, but without all the abuse and abandonment.
I'm struggling to decide if this is the last book for me. The world is fascinating, the magic unique. The author should probably think about utilizing that at some point, but I don't know if I can make it through until he figures that out.
After hours(sometimes 2 or 3 hours straight) of listening to largely meaningless identity politics and moral agonizing, it's almost impossible to keep the thread of what's happening in the actual STORY. If you want a subset of the population to be wishy-washy about their gender? Ok. You want to talk about the sapience of intelligence "monsters?" Fine. Those things can be done, and done well. Unfortunately, not like this. The author forgets the story he's telling while he's does it.
Characters go on long monologues, preaching about class or race or gender, from an extremely slanted view point. And the other characters reaction, near every time, is "you're right," and that's it. The main character has scars all over his body, including some on his face from his father's (very frequent) beatings, but he'll just take being called a pampered prince. And from someone who grew up as nearly as gilded as him, but without all the abuse and abandonment.
I'm struggling to decide if this is the last book for me. The world is fascinating, the magic unique. The author should probably think about utilizing that at some point, but I don't know if I can make it through until he figures that out.
March 29, 2025
Rowe enjoys a good turn of phrase, so here's one that summarizes my rating. "Every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment."
This book is 600 pages long, 90% of which is entirely skippable. Unfortunately, in those 500 pages the weaknesses of Rowe's writing dominate(inconsistent characterization, poorly developed side characters, bloated technobabble, and vague world-building), with nearly zero of his strengths (creative problem solving, dungeoneering, and dramatic turnabouts) arising until the very end, but by then you're so disconnected from the skeletal narrative after a book long slog that the 'shocking' resolution to the nonsensical climax leaves no impact and worse feels unearned.
There were similar problems in Rowe's third book, but by the midpoint there was a shift from "magical internship downtime" to the more enjoyable staple of the series "tower-climb/dungeon exploration" which salvaged the book.
This is the first book where Rowe attempts an overt theme exemplified by the title "Silence of Unworthy Gods", in which the apparent thesis is a play on the inaction of the powers that be (and to a lesser extent, the 'silent majority' represented by the MC) in the rise of tyranny (Tyrant in Gold). This is a fine theme to explore, but to do so satisfactorily requires deep world-building, extensive characterization/development, and a plot that impacts the characters such that their attitudes and actions are changed in a demonstrably meaningful way (preferably with a direct impact for good or ill on the climax!). All of this takes page-time to develop, but like the sin of 'not using its privilege to advocate for the greater good' that Sera berates Corin about (a hypocrisy never further explored), the novel itself squanders its page count by never delivering on these elements, relegating this 'title-worthy theme' to a mere B-plot.
Instead, the book mires itself in the thematically empty tropes of progression fantasy masquerading as A-plot, spending 100s of pages on meaningless DND-esque downtime, where Corin learns the magic of: copy-pasting, googling questions from the database 'Researcher', and studiously avoiding any and all interactions that could have been used to develop the theme or his character as a whole.
The politics, struggles, and threats are left as info-dumps, overt lectures, or just one-off occurrences that don't affect the MCs in any meaningful way, which makes the entire theme at best underdeveloped and at worst just virtue signaling. This theme is not a new one. It has been explored in other magical academic environments, most prominently in the formation of Dumbledore's Army to protect muggle-born wizards against the death-eater threats in the final books of Harry Potter. So, there already exists a blueprint on how collective action can stave off similar problems in a fantasy series.
Where Arcane Ascension could have offered a different take on this theme was to show how an introvert "hero" like Corin could go about approaching this challenge, but instead we're left with a Corin suffering from terminal Main Character Syndrome, and a book that ignores its own theme in its grindingly dull execution. Nothing really matters outside of Corin's little bubble. He is an island. Even when threats affect him or those he cares about directly, someone else pays the price. He never changes his self-centered behavior because "that's just how he is" and it's not a flaw, it's a feature at this point, even when his deficiencies hurt those around him. Corin gives lip service to the 'moral/ethical' high ground, but whenever morality and ethics becomes inconvenient, he throws them out to serve his own self-interest. That is the characteristic of a villain. That's not a hero I have any interest in following.
After 600 pages, I believe I would have been happier if the plot of this book (Corin grinds for six-months to have a duel with his dad and a fight with a BBEG that resolves via deus ex machina) had been skipped altogether. If you're still interested in the series, I suggest skipping this book and reading a summary. For myself, with Corin suffering from Main Character Syndrome, and the disrespectful treatment of Keras/Derek as mere plot-devices or convenient power-ups, I don't think I'll be continuing with Corin's series any time soon.
1 'nothing more than words' out of 5.
This book is 600 pages long, 90% of which is entirely skippable. Unfortunately, in those 500 pages the weaknesses of Rowe's writing dominate(inconsistent characterization, poorly developed side characters, bloated technobabble, and vague world-building), with nearly zero of his strengths (creative problem solving, dungeoneering, and dramatic turnabouts) arising until the very end, but by then you're so disconnected from the skeletal narrative after a book long slog that the 'shocking' resolution to the nonsensical climax leaves no impact and worse feels unearned.
There were similar problems in Rowe's third book, but by the midpoint there was a shift from "magical internship downtime" to the more enjoyable staple of the series "tower-climb/dungeon exploration" which salvaged the book.
This is the first book where Rowe attempts an overt theme exemplified by the title "Silence of Unworthy Gods", in which the apparent thesis is a play on the inaction of the powers that be (and to a lesser extent, the 'silent majority' represented by the MC) in the rise of tyranny (Tyrant in Gold). This is a fine theme to explore, but to do so satisfactorily requires deep world-building, extensive characterization/development, and a plot that impacts the characters such that their attitudes and actions are changed in a demonstrably meaningful way (preferably with a direct impact for good or ill on the climax!). All of this takes page-time to develop, but like the sin of 'not using its privilege to advocate for the greater good' that Sera berates Corin about (a hypocrisy never further explored), the novel itself squanders its page count by never delivering on these elements, relegating this 'title-worthy theme' to a mere B-plot.
Instead, the book mires itself in the thematically empty tropes of progression fantasy masquerading as A-plot, spending 100s of pages on meaningless DND-esque downtime, where Corin learns the magic of: copy-pasting, googling questions from the database 'Researcher', and studiously avoiding any and all interactions that could have been used to develop the theme or his character as a whole.
The politics, struggles, and threats are left as info-dumps, overt lectures, or just one-off occurrences that don't affect the MCs in any meaningful way, which makes the entire theme at best underdeveloped and at worst just virtue signaling. This theme is not a new one. It has been explored in other magical academic environments, most prominently in the formation of Dumbledore's Army to protect muggle-born wizards against the death-eater threats in the final books of Harry Potter. So, there already exists a blueprint on how collective action can stave off similar problems in a fantasy series.
Where Arcane Ascension could have offered a different take on this theme was to show how an introvert "hero" like Corin could go about approaching this challenge, but instead we're left with a Corin suffering from terminal Main Character Syndrome, and a book that ignores its own theme in its grindingly dull execution. Nothing really matters outside of Corin's little bubble. He is an island. Even when threats affect him or those he cares about directly, someone else pays the price. He never changes his self-centered behavior because "that's just how he is" and it's not a flaw, it's a feature at this point, even when his deficiencies hurt those around him. Corin gives lip service to the 'moral/ethical' high ground, but whenever morality and ethics becomes inconvenient, he throws them out to serve his own self-interest. That is the characteristic of a villain. That's not a hero I have any interest in following.
After 600 pages, I believe I would have been happier if the plot of this book (Corin grinds for six-months to have a duel with his dad and a fight with a BBEG that resolves via deus ex machina) had been skipped altogether. If you're still interested in the series, I suggest skipping this book and reading a summary. For myself, with Corin suffering from Main Character Syndrome, and the disrespectful treatment of Keras/Derek as mere plot-devices or convenient power-ups, I don't think I'll be continuing with Corin's series any time soon.
1 'nothing more than words' out of 5.
April 30, 2025
The Silence of Unworthy Gods by Andrew Rowe was pretty much what I was expecting, as it is very similar to earlier books.
I actually had a longer pause between books 3 & 4, as the two previous ones felt a bit too similar for maximum enjoyment, and I felt a bit of a break would help. And help it did!
I loved getting back into this world, and accompanying these characters. Corins neuro-diversity gets more page time, and I really liked to see that aspect grow.
The story is mostly a bit less action heavy than earlier books, but has the same focus on details and a bit of a slice of life feel to it, which I enjoyed a lot all through the series. His tinkering, and leveling just is comfortable to follow.
I especially love the friendships and how people are there for each other. The strong bonds and found family aspect is another major draw for me.
The actual fight scenes are one of the reasons for the missing star. They always felt a bit over powered and silly, yet I still enjoyed them so far.
In this book however, and I found myself wishing they were shorter in the few such chapters. Especially the "big finale" felt incredibly drawn out, and aside from some emotional impacts, most of it just didn't really grip me at all to be honest.
Overall it was still a very enjoyable read, and I'm more than eager to start book 5!
I actually had a longer pause between books 3 & 4, as the two previous ones felt a bit too similar for maximum enjoyment, and I felt a bit of a break would help. And help it did!
I loved getting back into this world, and accompanying these characters. Corins neuro-diversity gets more page time, and I really liked to see that aspect grow.
The story is mostly a bit less action heavy than earlier books, but has the same focus on details and a bit of a slice of life feel to it, which I enjoyed a lot all through the series. His tinkering, and leveling just is comfortable to follow.
I especially love the friendships and how people are there for each other. The strong bonds and found family aspect is another major draw for me.
The actual fight scenes are one of the reasons for the missing star. They always felt a bit over powered and silly, yet I still enjoyed them so far.
In this book however, and I found myself wishing they were shorter in the few such chapters. Especially the "big finale" felt incredibly drawn out, and aside from some emotional impacts, most of it just didn't really grip me at all to be honest.
Overall it was still a very enjoyable read, and I'm more than eager to start book 5!
October 5, 2022
a great story with a terrible cliffhanger!
As usual I really enjoyed the book! But man that cliffhanger ending! My other complaint is that while Corin and Co are supposed to be growing rapidly in power, they’re still far behind the threats they face. It’d be nice to see them gain the power they need to actually take on these threats in a legitimate fight vs just getting themselves stomped over and over and only win by luck.
As usual I really enjoyed the book! But man that cliffhanger ending! My other complaint is that while Corin and Co are supposed to be growing rapidly in power, they’re still far behind the threats they face. It’d be nice to see them gain the power they need to actually take on these threats in a legitimate fight vs just getting themselves stomped over and over and only win by luck.
January 13, 2023
Great! The team advances smoothly and quite a few new factors get introduced. That ending though… can’t wait for the next one!
November 12, 2022
It's one of the worst books I have read in a long time. It's more of the book 3 and everything that I liked about book 1&2 was basically scraped. I was naively hoping that now that we are back on campus we will see more magic academy stuff the detour in book 3 was just that - a side adventure. But no, everything that i disliked about book 3 was dialed up to 11.
This book takes place over the course of Corin's 3rd semester and yet there is all of 1 chapter dedicated to going to classes And that chapter was a complete letdown, it boiled down to Corin going to 1st classes of his courses where every teacher fawns on him and tells him he doesn't need to attend their classes. Which he presumably does, because the next time he is on campus it's time for final exam. I kept reading with the hope that next chapter he would go attend some classes but he never did and when the time for final exams came it was already towards the end of the book.
Mr Rowe still can't write dialogues, he should focus on his strengths and stick to writing good battle sequences and flesh out the world some more. The "witty" banter is far from smart and is cringe inducing at best and completely off putting at worst. Many times I had to skip these dialogue sections especially involving Corin and Sera when they get in pissing contest.
And then there's the lore of this world. While there is a warning at the beginning just like the previous book that some rather insignificant elements won't make sense to those who have only read Arcane Ascension series, I still find that a bit disingenuous, there are far more instances of Corin thinking about stuff that has been taken from Mr Rowe's other series and which Corin doesn't even give a passing summary of. It would have been so easy to simply summarise the key-points, but alas. This is also compounded by Corin deliberately withholding information because it is not the right time to divulge it. I understand that it a writing technique but it still feels frustrating.
Besides this, there are so many new "mystery boxes" introduced in this books, that by the end I lost track of them, and the few mysteries that "were" solved towards the end felt completely underwhelming because I had genuinely forgotten about them.
There is also a certain fight where That would have been so funny, had it been a satire but it was supposed to be taken seriously, and I am still laughing that "that" fight got into the finished book.
All in all, absolutely not recommended to anyone and especially not to the fans of the first 2 books.
This book takes place over the course of Corin's 3rd semester and yet there is all of 1 chapter dedicated to going to classes And that chapter was a complete letdown, it boiled down to Corin going to 1st classes of his courses where every teacher fawns on him and tells him he doesn't need to attend their classes. Which he presumably does, because the next time he is on campus it's time for final exam. I kept reading with the hope that next chapter he would go attend some classes but he never did and when the time for final exams came it was already towards the end of the book.
Mr Rowe still can't write dialogues, he should focus on his strengths and stick to writing good battle sequences and flesh out the world some more. The "witty" banter is far from smart and is cringe inducing at best and completely off putting at worst. Many times I had to skip these dialogue sections especially involving Corin and Sera when they get in pissing contest.
And then there's the lore of this world. While there is a warning at the beginning just like the previous book that some rather insignificant elements won't make sense to those who have only read Arcane Ascension series, I still find that a bit disingenuous, there are far more instances of Corin thinking about stuff that has been taken from Mr Rowe's other series and which Corin doesn't even give a passing summary of. It would have been so easy to simply summarise the key-points, but alas. This is also compounded by Corin deliberately withholding information because it is not the right time to divulge it. I understand that it a writing technique but it still feels frustrating.
Besides this, there are so many new "mystery boxes" introduced in this books, that by the end I lost track of them, and the few mysteries that "were" solved towards the end felt completely underwhelming because I had genuinely forgotten about them.
There is also a certain fight where That would have been so funny, had it been a satire but it was supposed to be taken seriously, and I am still laughing that "that" fight got into the finished book.
All in all, absolutely not recommended to anyone and especially not to the fans of the first 2 books.
December 18, 2022
The plot in this book was pretty good for the most part. But one of my main issues with this book is the writing, as I felt it was really jarring and out of place in some parts, which took me out of the story. Sometimes several of the characters seemed to be all speaking the same way, with the same speech patterns and personality. More effort should have been made to make each character’s way of speaking more distinctive and unique. Another issue is that I feel like the author is a bit repetitive and over-explaining things in some parts. Besides that, the way the author addresses social issues like racism, etc. could be reworked. I believe that a subtler approach in addressing these issues would make the story run more smoothly, because it just feels like the author is addressing the reader directly which kinds of breaks the reader experience.
February 3, 2023
2.5 ⭐
I was really hoping my disappointment in the previous book in this series was an exception since the first two books were so fantastic, but this 4th entry was my least favourite entry in the series so far.
I still had fun with this, I love these characters and some of the fight scenes and scenarios these characters have to deal with are always interesting and play out differently than I expect. So overall I'm still happy I read this and will for sure be continuing on with the series.
However - there was really no plot direction through this whole book. There's various things happening in the background, but there isn't a solid plot thread driving the story to keep things interesting and Corin sort of loses some of the agency he had in the first couple books, as a lot of the plot now revolves around large scale things happening around him that he just happens to be there for.
Instead, we get a lot of exposition on the intricacies of the magic system. Delving into the magic system is a big part of these books and the main character's ability, and I enjoy it in small chunks because it is interesting. BUT there's just way to much of it here causing the story to really drag. If I wasn't listening to the audiobook I really think I would have had a hard time getting through this. The saving grace was the ending - I'm looking forward to seeing where the story picks up in the next book and how the consequences play out.
I should also note that if you haven't read Rowe's other series set in the same world, I think this book would be very confusing. Until now they sort of stood a part but there's so much cross over now that I think at least being up to date on Weapons and Wielders is necessary.
Also, there's some pretty clear themes Rowe is trying to drive home with this book, and while the themes are good the handling felt sort of heavy handed honestly, and lacking the nuance and thorough attention these topics deserve.
I was really hoping my disappointment in the previous book in this series was an exception since the first two books were so fantastic, but this 4th entry was my least favourite entry in the series so far.
I still had fun with this, I love these characters and some of the fight scenes and scenarios these characters have to deal with are always interesting and play out differently than I expect. So overall I'm still happy I read this and will for sure be continuing on with the series.
However - there was really no plot direction through this whole book. There's various things happening in the background, but there isn't a solid plot thread driving the story to keep things interesting and Corin sort of loses some of the agency he had in the first couple books, as a lot of the plot now revolves around large scale things happening around him that he just happens to be there for.
Instead, we get a lot of exposition on the intricacies of the magic system. Delving into the magic system is a big part of these books and the main character's ability, and I enjoy it in small chunks because it is interesting. BUT there's just way to much of it here causing the story to really drag. If I wasn't listening to the audiobook I really think I would have had a hard time getting through this. The saving grace was the ending - I'm looking forward to seeing where the story picks up in the next book and how the consequences play out.
I should also note that if you haven't read Rowe's other series set in the same world, I think this book would be very confusing. Until now they sort of stood a part but there's so much cross over now that I think at least being up to date on Weapons and Wielders is necessary.
Also, there's some pretty clear themes Rowe is trying to drive home with this book, and while the themes are good the handling felt sort of heavy handed honestly, and lacking the nuance and thorough attention these topics deserve.
November 26, 2022
A solid continuation, but hopefully a stepping stone toward better editions. Overall the worst Arcane Ascension book (which still puts it higher than some other series' best book on my lists). Nevertheless, less than what I expect from Rowe (or in this case, perhaps, more bad).
Pros:
- Interesting characters continue to be interesting
- Character(s) who are a crutch take a back seat
- The climax moves the story forward in a good direction
Cons:
- I'm going to couch this carefully... It is fair to address social injustice in fiction/fantasy. However, this book takes its call-to-action way too seriously. When an evil bigoted faction supported by social elite needed a smack down, I fully supported it. But the constant referencing of the danger of them, and the importance to be an activist, and how the Corin felt *so bad* for not helping enough... it was too much. I read fantasy to get *out* of my life for a while, not be told how to respond to the real world so overtly.
- Most of the book has very little to do with the plot lines begun in the first three books.
- Some of the characters' drama, especially the supporting cast, felt phoned in. Could be that I need to read Keras' series fully.
- The school finals' resolution seemed like it missed something. For something set up so early, it seemed like more attention should have been given to Jin's involvement, Corin's ability to contribute his he did, and probably a perspective shift to show actively what was just summarized afterward.
Pros:
- Interesting characters continue to be interesting
- Character(s) who are a crutch take a back seat
- The climax moves the story forward in a good direction
Cons:
- I'm going to couch this carefully... It is fair to address social injustice in fiction/fantasy. However, this book takes its call-to-action way too seriously. When an evil bigoted faction supported by social elite needed a smack down, I fully supported it. But the constant referencing of the danger of them, and the importance to be an activist, and how the Corin felt *so bad* for not helping enough... it was too much. I read fantasy to get *out* of my life for a while, not be told how to respond to the real world so overtly.
- Most of the book has very little to do with the plot lines begun in the first three books.
- Some of the characters' drama, especially the supporting cast, felt phoned in. Could be that I need to read Keras' series fully.
- The school finals' resolution seemed like it missed something. For something set up so early, it seemed like more attention should have been given to Jin's involvement, Corin's ability to contribute his he did, and probably a perspective shift to show actively what was just summarized afterward.
March 5, 2023
This one kind of frustrated me. It's overly long at times, and there are sections where I feel like Andrew Rowe wants to express his personal opinions, but for me it just pulled me out of the story. I don't have any issue with authors who want to use fiction to discuss real world issues, but when it ruins the immersion like that, it just doesn't work for me. But the good parts are really good and keeps me invested in the series.
I've long felt that Mr. Rowe is better on ideas than writing and maybe that is starting to overwhelm me more in this series than it has in the past. I still like the characters and world building and I'm still interested in knowing what comes next. However I feel like the pacing and writing could still be better. It's one of the main reasons I didn't continue on with the related stories. While I'd like to know the details of those books, I just struggled with Six Sacred Swords too much to go on.
I will give this next book a go, but I hope things don't keep trending in this direction.
The narration is fantastic as always. It being unabridged can feel bad at time due to some of the detailed descriptions of things that your eyes would probably skim over if you were reading it. However Nick Podehl always seems to handle it as well as he can. I will definitely continue on in the audio format.
I've long felt that Mr. Rowe is better on ideas than writing and maybe that is starting to overwhelm me more in this series than it has in the past. I still like the characters and world building and I'm still interested in knowing what comes next. However I feel like the pacing and writing could still be better. It's one of the main reasons I didn't continue on with the related stories. While I'd like to know the details of those books, I just struggled with Six Sacred Swords too much to go on.
I will give this next book a go, but I hope things don't keep trending in this direction.
The narration is fantastic as always. It being unabridged can feel bad at time due to some of the detailed descriptions of things that your eyes would probably skim over if you were reading it. However Nick Podehl always seems to handle it as well as he can. I will definitely continue on in the audio format.
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