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pagesplotsandpints 's review for:
Dead Man's Hand
by James J. Butcher
Read Completed 8/31/23 | 3.25 stars
I've been looking for more mid-level fantasy (sort of in between high and low fantasy) and was hoping this would be an Alex Verus vibe, but it really wasn't. That's not the book's fault, but just what I was hoping for.
Overall, this was an enjoyable concept but I felt like it was lacking in a lot of ways. The main character, Grimsby, was ... eh. He was the underdog, which can be really fun, but he was a little too blah for me. Usually when there's someone who's "a failure" and the "wimpy sidekick", there's usually something that ends up making him special and that kind of never came. That COULD be coming in the rest of the series, so we could still see, but I just didn't feel why he was important here besides just getting caught up in everything. It was also confusing having the story start with Mayflower. I thought he was going to be THE main character, and he was very important to the story, but it was just so different from what I expected.
I liked that this was kind of a lighter fantasy so it didn't get too bogged down with heavy world-building but I did want some more. There's another realm involved here and I feel like I just didn't know enough about it? Its rules were mentioned in passing but it was a little too much in passing and I just didn't feel like I understood it well enough. I also wanted more from the plot. There was a lot of action but I think I just wanted more reason WHY everything was happening. We didn't find out much about the reasoning or potential reasons and I just kind of felt a little lost while all of the action sequences were going on.
At the end of the book, I decided I wasn't going to continue on in the series, but I did actually like the way it ended and I think the ending changed my mind. There were some lead-ups to the next book and a fun partnership formed so it grabbed my attention. I won't be rushing to read it but the potential is out there!
I've been looking for more mid-level fantasy (sort of in between high and low fantasy) and was hoping this would be an Alex Verus vibe, but it really wasn't. That's not the book's fault, but just what I was hoping for.
Overall, this was an enjoyable concept but I felt like it was lacking in a lot of ways. The main character, Grimsby, was ... eh. He was the underdog, which can be really fun, but he was a little too blah for me. Usually when there's someone who's "a failure" and the "wimpy sidekick", there's usually something that ends up making him special and that kind of never came. That COULD be coming in the rest of the series, so we could still see, but I just didn't feel why he was important here besides just getting caught up in everything. It was also confusing having the story start with Mayflower. I thought he was going to be THE main character, and he was very important to the story, but it was just so different from what I expected.
I liked that this was kind of a lighter fantasy so it didn't get too bogged down with heavy world-building but I did want some more. There's another realm involved here and I feel like I just didn't know enough about it? Its rules were mentioned in passing but it was a little too much in passing and I just didn't feel like I understood it well enough. I also wanted more from the plot. There was a lot of action but I think I just wanted more reason WHY everything was happening. We didn't find out much about the reasoning or potential reasons and I just kind of felt a little lost while all of the action sequences were going on.
At the end of the book, I decided I wasn't going to continue on in the series, but I did actually like the way it ended and I think the ending changed my mind. There were some lead-ups to the next book and a fun partnership formed so it grabbed my attention. I won't be rushing to read it but the potential is out there!