Nikki Bright

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Overall Rating - 7/10
Plot - 7/10 Good. A coherent and satisfying plot with multiple well-crafted arcs and engaging twists.

World-building - 6/10 Above average. The world was slightly more than a standard backdrop to the story. There were many interesting elements, but not much time was spent fleshing it all out.

Characters - 7/10 Good. Satisfying depth and development of the main character. The side characters were a bit flat, but had personality and were quite lovable.

Prose - 5/10 Average. Meets expectations but nothing about the writing quality stands out.

Theme - 8/10 Very good. An impressive execution of theme, entwined well with the character work.

Narration - 8/10 Very good. Kim Bretton knocks it out of the park. Her delivery was engaging and immersive with well-differentiated characters and fluctuating tone that fit each situation well.

January 8, 2024

The Sunlit Man

Brandon Sanderson

Overall Rating - 8.5/10
Plot - 9/10 Excellent. The Sunlit Man is Sanderson's homage to “old westerns and their modernized versions, like the Mad Max films.” It's fast-paced and dope as heck. I was gripped the whole time, eager to reach each beat. Plot, character, and world were intertwined in a way that improved each one and kept them all moving forward.
World-building - 10/10 Outstanding. Sanderson, as usual, masterfully creates a vibrant world here. It's unique, complex, and creative. The Sunlit Man is set on Canticle, a planet with one hemisphere always covered in deadly daylight that incinerates those unfortunate souls caught in the sunrise. The planet's inhabitants must always stay on the dark side of the planet, so live in mobile cities that are constantly moving forward. This is a standalone novel but I just know there are so many stories that could be told here.
Characters - 8/10 Very good. Reviewing Cosmere books can be a little weird, because I'm unable to know what the experience would be like if I didn't have a self-awarded MCS (Master of Cosmere Studies). The main POV character, Nomad, is a side character from a different book, so I came into this already having thoughts and feelings about him. That said, I absolutely loved his arc in this book. Nomad is characterized pretty clearly, and his development is satisfying. And as usual, Sanderson weaves that development into the plot in a satisfying way. Rating would be 9/10 if so much of his backstory wasn't “locked” behind spoilers for upcoming Cosmere novels. That made it more difficult for me to really dig into what motivates him.
Prose - 8/10 Very good. I've heard it said that Sanderson doesn't have very good prose. That his writing is too simple/straightforward. And for his first few published novels, I would agree! Here's the thing though: Sanderson is a veteran of putting out well-written, cohesive, creative, and compelling books (I think he said this is his 15th novel?). With that depth experience, his prose are far from lacking at this point. It's not super flowery/poetic, true, but he uses language well, describes places and events in the perfect level of detail, and he conveys the emotional impact of character moments with skill. Also, he writes a DAMN good fight scene.
Theme - 7/10 Good. I don't usually see conveyance of theme as one of Sanderson's greatest strengths. I care enough about his plots, worlds, and (sometimes) characters that theme doesn't really stand out for me. I think he's starting to change that, however. Although I didn't walk away from The Sunlit Man thinking about life in a new way or questioning my perception of morality, Sanderson did communicate themes of redemption, self-realization, and compassion well enough to add fuel to the fiery plot and character moments. Felt big feelings, y'all.

January 12, 2024

Carter & Lovecraft

Jonathan L. Howard

Overall Rating - 5.5/10
Plot - 6/10 Above average. Plot was medium-paced with some interesting twists and went in some fun, unexpected directions.

World/Concepts - 7/10 Good. Digging through the Lovecraft canon for spooky stuff to put into the world was lots of fun. I love math so it was an easy win for this book when mathematics was integrated with the Lovecraftian lore.

Characters - 6/10 Above average. Nothing to write home about in my opinion. The main cast was characterized well, but development there wasn't much exploration or development.

Prose - 4/10 Below average. Mostly average writing, but there was a lot of telling not showing and towards the end there were some odd tense changes that really took me out of it.

Themes - 3/10 Poor. Lovecraftian fiction is fighting an uphill battle in my opinion. So few authors are able to truly drive home the themes around cosmic horror and get readers to feel small, insignificant, and frightened by their unimportance. Unfortunately, Howard doesn't stick the landing here. His tendency to tell instead of show made it difficult to immerse in the moments that made the characters feel those sweet sweet cosmically horrific feelings.

Enjoyment - 7/10 Good. Overall I had fun reading Carter & Lovecraft. Noir + Lovecraft is such a fun pairing, regardless of how well or not it was executed. There were elements I didn't enjoy, and the writing wasn't for me, but nothing could get in the way of how enjoyable it was to read the main character encounter a bunch of eldritch BS integrated into a modern setting.