19 ratings (3.53 avg)
12 reviews

Sugarros

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Sugarros is Currently Reading

Sugarros is currently reading

Blood of the Blackthorn (The Eternal Curse #1)

by Rocio Carranza (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading, fantasy, slow-paced, magic

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May 25, 2026 04:36PM

Sugarros is currently reading

Ring and Wraith

by Ian Lapham (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading, fantasy, slow-paced

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Sugarros said: " I picked up this book at the 2026 Tucson Book Festival, where the author had a booth. The book that had originally piqued my interest had sold out, but he did have Ring and Wraith, and after chatting a bit, he sold me on it (also, he has great covers I picked up this book at the 2026 Tucson Book Festival, where the author had a booth. The book that had originally piqued my interest had sold out, but he did have Ring and Wraith, and after chatting a bit, he sold me on it (also, he has great covers).

Now, I did open up the book and read the first few paragraphs before I bought it, and the writing was tight. But now I'm at chapter 6, a little over 60 pages in, and I'm afraid the writing needs a lot more work. I probably wouldn't have purchased the book had I read the third paragraph.

The story is fine. I loved the idea of a spunky potato farmer from a small village finding tragedy and her journey as death's mercenary. The art, again, is great. But the author has a few very glaring issues with his writing. I'm not sure what he does for editing, but if he has an editor, he needs a different one who will be more critical. The biggest issue is that he doesn't trust the reader (me). The narration is filled with extra sentences explaining things that we already understand due to context.

One example is as follows:

"The Knight turned towards the defeated old man with not a scratch in him. He brushed his hair out of his face and said, "An old style." Commenting on the way Mr. Took moved. "Easily out maneuvered with a little experience.""

There's no need for the "commenting on the way Mr. Took moved" because contextually the reader knows a) that he's commenting and b) what he's commenting on.

And I could even get over that if it happened a few times, but again, I'm only 6 chapters in and it's everywhere. It makes reading the story a slog, so I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to finish it.

It's a shame, because I think with some more rounds of editing, or maybe a more critical editor, this could be a really good read. But as it is now, I personally don't think it's worth the price. That being said, I wouldn't be opposed to reading something else by this author. Also, I might be back to add to this as again, I'm only at chapter 6. ...more "

progress:

(page 64 of 350)
"Meh so far. The writing needs work." — Mar 21, 2026 08:11PM

Mar 21, 2026 08:08PM · see review