Master of One

This is one of those odd books that you don’t truly appreciate in its entirety until you’ve reached the end.

Master of One is long. Like, really long. Which, in and of itself, is not a bad thing, except that it takes about 300 pages for the story to actually pick up, and the pacing and structure is sort of all over the place. There’s several exposition dumps that had my eyes glazing over, too. It definitely makes getting through the novel rough, and I had half a mind to skim or even DNF.

Not only that, but the plot itself is rather lacking. Undeniably a great concept, but the execution felt vague and underdeveloped, needing just a little more time in the workshop to tighten up and decide exactly what it wanted to do.

The settings were vague, which always frustrates me, although this is often the result of having an expedition-type story.

The prose was… interesting. Not bad – not at all, I actually enjoyed it – but not what I was expecting. It doesn’t read like a fantasy novel; everything feels modern and ancient all at the same time, and it’s a lot more humorous than I was anticipating. This isn’t a con for the story, nor is it a pro – it just is.

BUT! You’ll notice I did not, in fact, DNF the book, and I’ve even given it 4 stars!

Master of One uses multiple POVs, and the characters really do save this story. They’re a ragtag little group: Rags, a scrawny thief; Shining Talon, a handsome fae prince; Inis, an angry ex-noble; Cab, a nervous deserter; and Somhairle, an underestimated prince with a crutch/brace. Rags and Shining Talon definitely take the spotlight, to the point where I was initially frustrated every time I was taken away from Rag’s POV. Like, I asked a friend if I could get away with just… skipping the other POVs. And, yes, Rags remained my favorite all the way through, and I was always itching to get back to him, but I was pleasantly surprised by the end to realize that, at some point, I had started looking forward to getting back to our other characters, too! I liked the side characters, although I will admit they felt particularly flat.

The main romance was GOLD – sweet, hilarious, and very much so a slow burn for those who enjoy those! (Like. Seriously. A SLOW burn.) There were several other romances scattered throughout, which unfortunately felt rather abrupt – I have no major feelings about them one way or the other – but were a sequel to be released, I think I could be persuaded with a little more development.

Also! The diversity! I have a habit of expecting the least when it comes to YA fantasy in regards to diversity, so I was super excited about the representation! There are characters who are POC, plus-sized characters, gay/bi characters, a trans woman (this one had my crying at 2 am), and, as mentioned before, a character who uses a crutch. I was even more excited to learn that one of the authors is genderqueer – all the more reason to support Master of One!

The magic system was really interesting and definitely stood out to me. Again, perhaps a little underdeveloped – even after 530 pages I don’t entirely understand the rules – but it was honestly just fun. I won’t even try to explain it – you’ll just have to read for yourself – but I would consider it a plus.

The authors have talked about wanting to write a sequel for Master of One – and if this were to happen, I would definitely read it. I enjoyed these characters too much to feel satisfied with just the one book, so I sincerely hope we get more content!

TLDR: There are a lot of off-putting things about Master of One. The wonky pacing and structure, the foggy plot, etc. But the characters and relationships make it entirely worth the read, and if you can push past the rough beginning, I really do highly recommend taking this book for a spin!

Its been a while since I read the Havemercy series, and I was so excited to find this book. It doesnt disappoint. I love the whole concept of finding the segments, the segments themselves (Number Two missing an ear because of lost cutlery, and her spoon nose…awesome!). The characters are wonderful and flawed but trying to stumble along in their roles the best they can. I appreciated having a prince with a disability, and the relationships between the characters. Its just such a wonderful horrible world, and the power of individuals to power on individually and together is such a strong force. Very highly recommended.

For a book with over 500 pages and no confirmed sequel, I expected the story to have a satisfying conclusion, not a cliffhanger. Only four relics were found, a daring rescue didn’t take place until 60% through the book, and the romance only truly happened in the last few pages of the last chapter. It feels unfinished. That’s what sticks with me the most. This one book felt like it already could have been split into two separate ones, but instead it was all shoved into one book and left the few parts I genuinely loved about it feeling rushed.

Let’s talk about those parts. There aren’t many. Namely, I loved Rags. He’s a fun protagonist, the one character who truly doesn’t seem to belong in this messed up situation he’s found himself in. And, dont worry, the narration will never let you forget that Rags also believes he doesn’t belong. His pov chapters were always the most fun to read, which meant that when I was forced away to someone else’s, I felt more than a little annoyed.

The other characters aren’t bad, but they don’t have the same spark of life that Rags has. The fact that they never truly for to interact as a group didn’t help. Outside of the books chosen pairings, there were no real character dynamics to speak of. Inis and Rags came the closest, but even then I feel like I’m grasping at straws to describe what their relationship is like. They respect each other but also Rags annoys her? Maybe.

Overall, the book reads like a fanfiction of a better series. Superficial at best. That said, there’s nothing inherently terrible about it. Decent writing, decent characters, a decent book. I’ll read a sequel, but I hope the co-authors could expand more on the characters and give them more interesting relationships.

I loved this book so much it is now one of my favorites of the year. I loved everything about this book from the story and the characters and everything in between I am also really wishing for a sequel I hope it gets published someday. I loved all of the characters they all were so very well developed and I look forward to maybe reading more about them. The characters that I loved most were Rags and Tal I loved the slow burn romance and the payoff at the end was so great. I really loved Rags for his snark his hiding the fact the cares behind other things and how self sacrificing he is willing to get hurt to stop someone else from being hurt. What I really loved about Tal was his fierce protectiveness of Rags and how he fights to protect what they found I just loved him so much he was so well written. I loved the plot so much it starts out with a thief that was caught and then sent out to find something it became so much more a great romance a fight for survival and to fight another day. So overall I loved this book and I would really love for there to be a sequel someday soon.

Ok, enough of the alliteration. This is clearly intended as start of a series and I sincerely hope it goes to the six novels that seem to be set up. It has a good premise that goes deeper than good guys vs sadistic maniacs, and the core relationships are beautifully drawn. The prose is delicate and delightful and the world building is magical. The omni-sexual nature of the relationships (pretty much something for everyone, though Im waiting for a solidly lesbian pairing) is deftly done and not always obvious at first glance – tho Rags was really far too slow on the uptake and that one could have moved a lot faster without any loss. Still, I loved this and cant wait for the next one.

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