The Ascent to Godhood

When I finished The Descent of Monsters, I assumed this book would be a continuation of that storyline and I didn't even bother reading the blurb. But this one turned out to be something very different and unexpected.

I've read someone describe this book as a drunken monologue and that's just perfect. It's very conversational but we only get to hear one side of the dialogue, however that didn't take away from the story at all. I quite liked this style of storytelling. And the best part, this is almost like a combination of lovers to enemies and villain romance trope, and it's something I've never read before. This book also doesn't have a lot of world building because it's a very personal story and I quite liked this change of pace.

The Protector has always been on the fringes of the series as a terrifying character but we never get to know much about her, so this origin story of hers in the words of someone very close to her was very fascinating to read. At the same time, this is also Lady Han's story and how the Machinist movement came to be - so the overall vibe of this book is like a historical account. It's also a very interesting look at how circumstances change a person completely and how much power can corrupt anyone - to such an extent that love and relationships don't matter anymore. Sonami is another character who has remained very mysterious throughout the series and I can't wait to get to know her better.

To conclude, this book may not have had the story I wanted, but it was still an amazing read. The author has managed to immerse me in this sometimes cruel world through four very unique novellas, and my only hope is that we get so many more books in this series because I'm not done with these characters and want to follow them through so many more stories.