Status Updates From Dawn of Defiance: Manus Dei...

not even 10% in and i wanna DNF. it reads too muck like red rising and not in a good way

Yeah that’s the warhammer 40k feel I like. Valyrie’s pov is much more interesting to me. It has that scale effect without the bro stuff. Daniel’s pov looks more like a Gears of War mood.

I think it’s just the Daniel storyline that I don’t like.
Lazarus and Atrione are fine, Ivan is the best. Jonah, Dinah and Valyrie are kinda on the side.

Wow Ivan is my guy. That part was so Gundam, evangelion, akira coded I hyper focused.
That’s what is so good on those patchwork narratives. You are bound to hate some parts and absolutely love others.

This made me want to play 13th sentinels aegis rim again…

Well the hope part was really unnecessary.

I'm actually so split. I shouldn't do this but I am thinking about what it could have been without the "bro coded" tones.

It could have been the perfect mixture of Blame and the Leftovers. In the void of space the exploration of Megastructures of the mind while fighting for a profund metaphysical revolution.
It already is that for most of the book. I'm just being a bit unfair.

What is there to say. It’s an experience that stimulates the senses that’s for sure. The tone is still on that grandiose and spiritual style. Each character with their own solution and somehow the same problem. Can’t wait for the clashes.

More horrible people great. Anyway we're still on that "power plays through discussion leverage of violence" situation which is nice.

Yeah I much prefer that tone of mystery and mystique to the action sequences of warfare. In a sense they are needed to contrast and build inertia but I think the writing style, for now, fits way more for that “pole”/dimension of the story.

Well that part with Atrione woke me up. The warfare is good but I’m a bit off so wasn’t in the mood.
The sweet words on the death bed though.

You need to have read the bible for this. Love the prose. It’s a bit heavy to my taste thankfully the dialogs are not made up of philosophers talking to each other. I’d just say they easily believe that the “miracle” happened.