The 'side' characters and world building are the highlights for me in this work. Each character feels unique and are well described. I also enjoyed the little romantic interactions during the brief reprieve at the start of the second arc. They were 'heckin adorable' and did well to help characterize not only the two involved but some of the side chars as well. As a whole, the author is really good at painting a picture with words.
The only gripes I have are with some of the plot related things.
Spoiler
One is Diego (Main protag) having very little agency (has been Princess Peach for 70% of the novel so far). This isn't necessarily bad as the novel's premise is strong people wanting him, but it has lead to me losing interest in his thread of the story during arc 3. Another is the way Plasia's bit in arc 2 started. It felt a bit contrived; other chars mentioning how suspicious things were on landing but doing nothing, and later Diego just letting the known time-bomb go off on her own back to the ship.
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Despite those few quibbles, I did enjoy reading the first two arcs immensely (honestly is worth a read for just those alone) and am willing to let the author cook with arc 3.
TL;DR - Under appreciated gem
The 'side' characters and world building are the highlights for me in this work. Each character feels unique and are well described. I also enjoyed the little romantic interactions during the brief reprieve at the start of the second arc. They were 'heckin adorable' and did well to help characterize not only the two involved but some of the side chars as well. As a whole, the author is really good at painting a picture with words.
The only gripes I have are with some of the plot related things.
One is Diego (Main protag) having very little agency (has been Princess Peach for 70% of the novel so far). This isn't necessarily bad as the novel's premise is strong people wanting him, but it has lead to me losing interest in his thread of the story during arc 3. Another is the way Plasia's bit in arc 2 started. It felt a bit contrived; other chars mentioning how suspicious things were on landing but doing nothing, and later Diego just letting the known time-bomb go off on her own back to the ship.
Despite those few quibbles, I did enjoy reading the first two arcs immensely (honestly is worth a read for just those alone) and am willing to let the author cook with arc 3.
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