just to clarify, this is my opinion (as stated in the title) if you disagree that's fine but don't come at me for it!
WARNING: there may be spoilers in this post (depending on what you classify a spoiler), don't read it if you intend to read TAS!
I finished this book a few weeks ago and wanted to get my thoughts down.
I nearly bought it but decided against it and ended up borrowing from my library, and thank god for that.
the idea of a secret society of magicians that have access to indispensable knowledge is fascinating, and the "knowledge is carnage" part in the corner would draw anyone in, but the book itself was so poorly executed that the only thing i really enjoyed were the illustrations and cover and perhaps the idea of it.
in my review, I'll be touching 4 main points off the top of my head
WHY I STRONGLY DISLIKE THIS BOOK:
1. World Building: As a predominantly fantasy reader, I am used to intricate world-building and lore. Calling TAS a fantasy book is honestly disrespectful to genuine ones because of the unenthusiastic world-building.
I understand that TAS is a YA but there have been other YA fantasies that have done so much better with the world building. I understand that worldbuilding isn't everything for other people but again, this is my take!
We are told that this is not present day, because of the dying planet and large population, but apart from a few instances where they are mentioned, almost nothing is ever brought up about the world the characters live in, which I find a bit disappointing, I mean, they may as well be living in 2024, why include the dying planet if it doesn't have anything to do with the plot?
Moreover, the setting is hard to grasp and visualise, for example, the Library house thing itself. I had a hard time trying to imagine it using only the sparse description we were given right when the characters walked in. Apart from the brief introduction to the setting in the beginning, we were given no description or acknowledgement of the surroundings and environment to the point where the characters may as well have been floating in an endless void.
There was also a disappointing amount of sensory information, the few descriptions we did get were almost always visual. A combination of the senses would've been much more immersive and interesting to read.
2. Annoying Characters: I did not like any of these characters, period.
I understand everyone has different tastes but these characters were so hard to connect with.
Usually, there's at least one character that I'm rooting for, whether it be the protagonist or some side character, but with TAS, all I was doing was desperately waiting for the end of one chapter so I could start another only to be counting down the pages till the next one (yes I know no one was forcing me to read the book, but this is called a hyperbole)
The characters were all SO dramatically overbearing with their given tropes; Parisa the femme fatale, Libby being an anxious, OCD nerd, Nico and his obsession with protecting Gideon, Callum a cold sociopath and Reina just plain unbothered and blunt.
The only bearable character was Atlas himself because I found myself waiting for him, but we barely had any interactions with him and it did nothing to compensate for what the other characters lacked.
The writing of the characters was also shallow and a lot of the chapters were mushed together because of the lack of distinction the characters had in terms of their voice. Apart from snippets of the characters forced into some parts, it was very bleak.
Speaking of forcing personality into the chapters, there were SO many instances where details were so dramatically overstated– like Libby's anxiety and Tristan's cynicism– but rarely ever acknowledged in the character's own POVs that it just felt like unenthusiastic afterthoughts added just because.
Some more thoughts:
What even is Dalton??? Why is he here? He might be significant in the sequels but he literally served no purpose in TAS. Bye babe
Why did they hate each other so much? Sure, it's for the "plot" but it seems so shallow and lacks reason.
How did they go from hating each other asses to suddenly teaming up to find Libby (whom they also hated) It seemed so unrealistic, and again, shallow
3. Half-Assed Plotline: To sum up my thoughts on the plotline, this book felt like it was written in one sitting with no previous planning whatsoever.
The plot meanders so much that half the time, even I didn't know what was happening. I had no clue what the storyline and what the characters were working towards was until the last few chapters which is frankly disappointing because I was floundering for most of the book.
The plot jumped so many times from being initiated into the Society, being liked by other members, killing/being killed to saving the world??? It felt like a series squished into 400 pages, so much happened yet so little at the same time because we were just bombarded with events, taking significance away from each one (if that makes sense
Moreover, there were so many unanswered questions, random plot holes and lazy details in this book. I understand it's part of a trilogy but the amount of plot holes wasn't exactly enjoyable to read, at least some should've been fully thought through or answered for the readers.
4. Random Tangents + Confusing Details? The characters in this book went on so many long, boring tangents about philosophy or science to the point where they sounded like pretentious try-hards, sorry not sorry.
I understand it is a book heavy in topics about physics and laws behind the magic, but as a reader, it felt so confusing, and I consider myself someone who can follow along pretty easily. The little lore they had in the book made me more and more confused because of the random tangents about physics resembling a textbook followed by normal writing.
The long winding paragraphs about philosophy were also mind-numbing, it may be because I rarely read philosophical texts, but I genuinely cannot fathom how even someone who loves philosophy would be able to keep up.
The characters also went on for pages about unnecessary stuff that barely added to the plot the only thing I could think of while reading was… spinach. Like when you can put a giant bunch of it into a pan for it to end up barely a handful when cooked …yeah, that's how I felt about the writing. So many words but hardly anything said.
Now TAS wasn't an absolutely horrible book, but it did have a few merits, like the mechanics of the characters' powers, I liked how their weaknesses outweighed their strengths. The concept was also very unique.
Overall, though, it was a hard read imo, which is why I'd give The Atlas Six a 3.5/10.
by ashyytrashyy