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Ben S. Dobson

Autor von Scriber

8 Werke 313 Mitglieder 40 Rezensionen

Über den Autor

Beinhaltet den Namen: Ben S. Dobson

Reihen

Werke von Ben S. Dobson

Scriber (2011) 179 Exemplare
The Flaw in All Magic (2017) 75 Exemplare
The Emperor's Mask (2018) 18 Exemplare
The Swampling King (2017) 13 Exemplare
The Dragon Machine (2018) 11 Exemplare
The Spirit Siphon (2019) 7 Exemplare
The Last Hero (2011) 6 Exemplare

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Wissenswertes

Geburtstag
1985-06-27
Geschlecht
male
Nationalität
Canada

Mitglieder

Rezensionen

Wow, this was really a very good book. I can imagine people might be a bit hesitant to start a self-published book, because there are quite a few that do not deserve to be published, but in this case you needn't worry. This book would be worth a lot more than the €0.85 that I now paid for it.

The best about the book was definitely the characters. Not only are they very well-drawn and show believable and realistic development, they are also unusual in that the main character is a withdrawn and someone timid scholar, accompanied by a group of tough, well-trained, professional female soldiers. Although their world does not appreciate women fighting, Scriber (the book, not the character) treats them with respect. Not once are they diminished for the fact that they are (fighting) women. And, I'm glad to say, the same goes for the scholar. In some of the reviews he is called cowardly. I do not really agree. I would say emotionally deeply scarred and healthily cautious. However, due to the immense bravery of the women's captain, Bryndine, he manages to grow beyond that. But he does not become a soldier in any way, and he does not become someone who jumps into danger, which would be unnatural for him. His relationship with the women is amazingly natural, and so is the way it develops. At first, not all of them get along, but mutual respect and friendship grows slowly. All of this is very well done, with a surprising depth to it. The issues the characters struggle with are very real and in their dealing with it, they never grow beyond their natural potential, never become something they were not to begin with.

The story itself does not have as much depth to it, having only a single storyline which is not overly complicated. Within a quarter of the book, I had strong suspicions about the origins of the Burners, and I was right. It didn't disturb me at all, though, because the story was told well. I liked the flow of information, introducing us to the world gradually. Dennon's voice was appealing, and I liked the little bits of his journal and books that were given at the beginning of each chapter. The world itself was attractive as well, a good stage for the story that is playing out.

I think if Dobson at some point manages to put some more intricacy in his books, they will be amazing. As it is, Scriber is very good. Based on the overall experience and on the characters I would give this 4 stars. Add to that the end of the book, with the extra insights in Bryndine's character and the discussion she has with Dennon about guilt, and I have to raise that to 4.5 stars. And on strength of pure enthusiasm, I'll round that upwards to 5.
… (mehr)
 
Gekennzeichnet
zjakkelien | 26 weitere Rezensionen | Jan 2, 2024 |
A non-mage as detective in a magical mystery.
The MC went to the mage university without any magical talent, but he could fake it. When it came out in the end he lost a few friends. Now he is called back because one of those friends was murdered in a place where the magic should have prevented an intruder. The MC has a history to find the flaws in the magic...
Very nice murder mystery in a mage society.
Enjoyable read for a lazy day!
 
Gekennzeichnet
Wolkenfels | 6 weitere Rezensionen | Feb 25, 2023 |
Another mystery criminal story in a world that mixes modern with magic.
This time people die behind magic wards and the MC and hit half-orc sidekick try to find who is behind this and why is he trying to blame the magebreaker for it?
I really enjoyed this. It has a nice level of easiness, politics and intersting world together with smart dialogues and nice action.
Only reason it gets 3 and not 4 stars is that i was very sure about the bad guy and his methods at only a quarter of the book. That leads me to shout at the MC "when i got the solution how can yo miss it?". But well - sometimes you write a mystery and try to hide the important clue in the open - and sometimes the reader gets it too fast.
Nevertheless - great series - can recommend.
… (mehr)
 
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Wolkenfels | 4 weitere Rezensionen | Feb 25, 2023 |
What a surprisingly exceptional tale!

I heard of this series in a SFF group online, and I'm so grateful now to whoever recommended it! I've never seen or heard of it outside of that one instance, and now I'll be recommending it any time there's an opportunity.
Quality writing, an engaging plot, lovable characters (Kadka, what a delight!), and a refreshingly unique angle for the focus of the story.
I'm invested in these characters' lives, and will be continuing with the series.… (mehr)
 
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jessoftheBooks | 6 weitere Rezensionen | Aug 23, 2022 |

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Statistikseite

Werke
8
Mitglieder
313
Beliebtheit
#75,401
Bewertung
4.0
Rezensionen
40
ISBNs
13

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