Beginning After the End: Divergence, Ascension

By TurtleMe

Pages: 595, 924

I have finally reached the finale only to find out that THE AUTHOR ISN'T DONE. I was hoping for a satisfactory ending only to be left yet again on another cliffhanger. The storytelling improved with every story arc and the author loves to add all sorts of twists and turns to the narrative. I was complaining about how over-powered the main character, Arthur, was becoming, only for everything to change at the end of the seventh book. Its hard to give a summary at this point as the war continues, only for another twist to de-rail it. Arthur has to deal with more loss and learn to control new powers after he nearly kills himself trying to save everything he has grown to love in his new life.

I definitely recommend this series as it offers a new magic system that I have yet to see so well done. You do have to have some patience in the first couple books as the author develops his writing and storytelling skills, but it is well worth the wait.

Beginning After the End: Convergence

 

Beginning After the End: Transcendence

By TurtleMe

Pages: 597

With the war in full swing, Arthur and Sylvie are still trying to find ways to help in the efforts without getting themselves killed. Que some more training montages, betrayals from the characters you were really hoping were actually good guys this time, and battles against their strongest enemies yet. I am still really enjoying this series and was excited when I saw that this book and the next were twice the size of the first five books. The end was a huge reveal and cliffhanger that I have already borrowed and started book seven.

Horizon's Edge

 

Beginning After the End: Convergence

By TurtleMe

Pages: 446

This one wasn't as good as the last three and almost feels like a pause in the story, but it makes sense to step back a little at this point in the plot arc. The viewpoint changes a lot more and we leave Arthur with a mysterious master to train his abilities for the upcoming war, which we are finally learning more about. The author did do a good job in presenting the training as I often find those sections in other books a little more dry. The way it was written kept me engaged and the world-building has greatly expanded and some of the earliest questions are starting to get answered.

My Weekend Binge Reads

 

Beginning After the End: Beckoning Fates; Horizon's Edge

By TurtleMe

Pages: 303; 290

I managed to binge read through these two books and a good chunk of the next in the series (I'm 3/4 of the way through at the moment) this last weekend and Beckoning Fates in particular blew me away. You can tell the author has really improved their writings skills as characters have extra depth to them and we are finally seeing some flaws to previously near-perfect characters. I was getting a little tired of the main character being several levels above his peers and enemies in terms of power, but that seems to be changing as we discover the main protagonists of the story arc and some secrets about the people around him. Now that he is old enough, Arthur has enrolled into the local prestigious school for mages (cue Hedwig's Theme) where he has to tread the messy politics and egos that surround him. We are also finally getting a glimpse into the history of the kingdom, how mages were born, and the emergence of the overarching series conflict that we have been given sooo many tiny hits to in the fourth installment as he travels to a mystic city to find masters capable of preparing him for the battles and enemies on the rise. 

New Heights

 

Beginning After the End: New Heights

By TurtleMe

Pages: 242

The continuation of the saga of a king reborn as a child. We are really getting into the system of magic as King Grey (now Arthur) continues to grow up and begins adventuring at age 9?!? Not really sure what I think about that though after the first book started out with him as a baby and teaching himself magic as a toddler, I've begun to forget how young Arthur really is physically when his mental reincarnated age really shows. This second installment brought in a more Dungeons and Dragons fantasy style though I was a little disappointed when the author decided to skip a lot of his first adventures and summarize the two years before we finally get a detailed dungeon exploration. Now that he has come home after a couple years, he has found some friends, made some enemies, and is about to start in a prestigious magic academy.

My October Reads

Digital Body Language

By Erica Dhawan

Pages: 288

A self-proclaimed definitive guide to communicating and connecting in a hybrid world. I found it to be a very eye-opening read into digital communication and the ways we can translate physical body language, something people rely on to communicate, into a digital context. This is especially important with the current pandemic situation and I have already tried many of the recommendations Erica made in my own personal and professional communications.

Beginning After the End: The Early Years

By TurtleMe

Pages: 237

King Grey has unrivaled strength, wealth, and prestige in world governed through martial ability. However, solitude lingers closely behind those with great power. Beneath the glamorous exterior of a powerful king lurks the shell of man, devoid of purpose and will. Reincarnated into a new world filled with magic and monsters, the king has a second chance to relive his life. Underneath the peace and prosperity of the new world is an undercurrent threatening to destroy everything he has worked for, questioning his role and reason for being born again.

I really enjoyed this one. It has a nice pace and the plot and all the mysterious exposition has me hooked and eager to start the next one in the series.