Harbinger of Justice

3.5 stars

Very solid definitely going to continue

Things I liked:

- the setting, I haven’t read too many books set in a desert and it was refreshing

- the worldbuilding. This story is pretty contained but it was setup to be greatly expanded on in future books

- Rai’s Pov. I enjoyed his character the most especially his interactions with his shadow fax

- Dust is the bomb

- the cosmic horror vibe

My totally subjective critiques

- the flashback chapters that kick off around halfway through the book slowed the books pacing for me

- nya’s choices felt inconsistent at times

- the travel from point a to point b at the end felt way to convenient

I'm pleasantly surprised by this fast paced and action packed debut novel. Watson does an amazing job at building a believable world that feels way bigger then what is mentioned in this book. There is lots of potential for future stories.

Some of the fantastical elements were original and well executed. The snarky humour is just perfect and got a few chuckles from me.

The characters are layered and I got really emotional invested in some.

4.25 ⭐️

This book was great, fast paced, action packed and with great characters! Plus an animal companion who in my brain was a proper little cutie! Its really hard to believe this is a debut novel as it felt very polished and well crafted! Loved the world building and the setting, I'm a sucker for Ancient Egypt and this gave me that feeling to the max. The magic was so interesting and I really cant wait to see how it moves forward in following books. It really had everything, heart pounding action, intrigue and heart breaking gut punches followed up by some of the best humour I've read in any book! Would highly recommend this book to anyone!

Plus Fax! Love Fax

The Harbinger of Justice has a fast-moving plot but still takes time to develop the characters without derailing the pacing. The setting of the world being a desert is very interesting and refreshing (day-night cycle in the desert). The world-building in this book is absolutely phenomenal. The shadow magic system is creepy and intriguing.
The characters are truly fascinating. They are deep, intriguing, and have their own lives. They feel very fleshed out, even side characters. Rai and Fax's duet works very well. They can be serious one moment and funny a moment later, especially Fax. Though, some characters could have been utilized more and better, for example Kyan.
The only part that felt a little out of place was the plot in the library. It does not feel like it added a more to the plot, especially that a few chapters later (being a climax of the story) a very similar plotline happens again.
The story is intriguing, and for now, this book really helps to set up the world for the next adventures.
Overall, Harbinger of Justice is a must-read. The writing style is very accessible, and the pacing is good. The book is a page-turner that will keep you engaged from beginning to end.

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were fleshed out and I could ignore some of the weaker writing.
The prologue was amazing and by far the best in the book.
The biggest strength was the worldbuilding. Well thought, flashed out and downright incredible. Reminds me a little of Brandon Sanderson.

The ending felt a little rushed. I would have loved it more is there was just a bit more of a set up, a fear for the characters and more time to understand why the characters made the decisions they did. it felt more written to achieve one point than the characters making choices that would lead to a certain point,

Still enjoyable, with a few debut author mistakes.

I like the steampunk art style, but the story didn't grip me as much as I'd hoped. It begins as a very standard magical girl portal story right down to stock bullies. Once we got rolling in the other world, the story picked up a little, but so far it's a little too familiar for me. I'll probably keep going with the series a bit to see if the story gets a bit more developed now that the intro arc is over.