brenticus's reviews
657 reviews

The Invincible Shovel Vol. 2 by Yasohachi Tsuchise

adventurous funny fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This series is shovupid.

Goodbye, Eri by Tatsuki Fujimoto

emotional funny mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Holy hell.

The Rising Force by Dave Wolverton

adventurous tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

It's probably been 20 years since I last read this series and this first entry actually holds up quite well. Even with it coming out before Episodes 2 or 3 and especially the Clone Wars there are bits and pieces that seem to plant the seeds for Obi-wan's future as a Jedi Master. It provides really interesting backstory to Obi-wan and Qui-gon's beginnings as master and apprentice along with a perspective on the Jedi and their teachings which is often absent in favour of fancy laser swords. 

It's obviously a children's book, and it's a simple read with mostly simple characters, but it still impressed me how well it fills in bits of the characters that I didn't even realize were missing.

I May Be a Guild Receptionist, but I'll Solo Any Boss to Clock Out on Time, Vol. 1 by Mato Kousaka

adventurous emotional lighthearted reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

What I was expecting to be a quick, goofy read turned out to tug at my heart strings, make me worry for the characters, and make me think about what stability really means in a job and a life.

All this from a lady with anger management problems and a very overpowered hammer.

A very good read, probably one of the best light novels I've ever read. 

In the Land of Leadale, Vol. 6 (light novel) by Ceez

adventurous lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I kind of like this volume better because Opus lays out a bunch of stuff that's been teased for a while and he's generally a fun inclusion to the cast. But a ton of the volume is just... info dumping. And nothing really happens, even by this series' lax standards on "things happening." I'm committed at this point, but yeesh.

ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight for an Ordinary Life with My Love and Cursed Sword! (Light Novel) Vol. 4 by Kiki

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is actually good. The development of Nekt and the children is interesting. The revelation of projects and mysteries actually clarifies things rather than coming out of nowhere. Everyone actually feels like they have interesting roles and developments, not just a few people out of a large cast. It's almost hard to see where it can go from here since so much is covered and cleaned up, but this volume wraps up interesting stories in an interesting way while still leaving me interested in more, rather than simply hoping for more like I was before.

ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight for an Ordinary Life with My Love and Cursed Sword! (Light Novel) Vol. 3 by Kiki

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

The plot feels weaker here, with the whole Satils and Necromancy things basically coming out of nowhere, but the use of the plot to drive character development is really well done. Overall it's a better volume than the rest, but it still struggles to actually execute well all the way through.

Sword Art Online: Progressive, Vol. 1 by Reki Kawahara

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Sword Art Online... isn't very good. But Progressive is; it takes the interesting initial premise and adds depth to the world, characters, and plot that is simply absent in the original telling of the Aincrad arc. It's really just taking something that's interesting but poorly executed, and then executing it well.

On Liberty by John Stuart Mill

informative reflective slow-paced

4.0

Mill is, in a way, an early libertarian. For the most part he argues against the government's role in everyday life, but he does so in a moderate way that acknowledges the need for government and the importance of certain public works and institutions. There are a lot of interesting and reflective insights throughout, with the odd sketchy bit that comes with being a white British man during the age of colonization.

My main complain is that his writing is tough to get through. While Mill presents himself well, he does so at excruciating length. He'll start a paragraph, and two pages later you'll have forgotten what point he was trying to make because he has delved into so much detail across far too many words. Despite the short length of the book it is a surprisingly difficult read. 

ROLL OVER AND DIE: I Will Fight for an Ordinary Life with My Love and Cursed Sword! (Light Novel) Vol. 2 by Kiki

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

This is sort of better than the first volume in that not *everyone* is either evil or saintly, but there still isn't a lot of nuance to the characters. Dein is just... the worst villain. The definition of two-bit all the way through. The plot developments feel weird and arbitrary a lot of the time, and despite things being brutal and tense for a lot of the volume it all just kind of works out without much consequence.