Series: The Atlas #2
Author: Olivie Blake
Publisher: Tor
Released: October 25, 2022
Received: NetGalley

The Atlas Paradox is the long-awaited second novel to Olivie Blake’s The Atlas series. And let me tell you – I’d been counting the days to this beauty! Once again, I got into this series after Tor picked it up, so I can’t comment on how the first novel read when it was indie published.

The society of Alexandrians needed six new magicians to enter their doors. But they only needed five to succeed in their goals. Now the six, powerful and determined, are forging their own paths, creating new alliances, and breaking the rules.

They say that knowledge is power. But what if you had complete access to both knowledge and power? What would you do with the world, given that? Would you change it for the better? Or would you let all that power corrupt?

“To know what people really are and not destroy them is savagely remarkable. She has exceptional restraint.”

Sooo…I had been looking forward to The Atlas Paradox, and ultimately I’m feeling pretty disappointed here. I even took a week off before writing this review to give myself time to process everything that happened here. More specifically, to process what didn’t happen.

Where The Atlas Six was all intrigue and change, The Atlas Paradox felt like a long story about six characters talking but doing relatively little. Given the high stakes we were promised, it’s hard not to feel cheated.

Maybe I’m just feeling salty because of how my two favorite characters were treated. One was cast off, and while her story continued, it didn’t feel like it moved forward much. The other seems to be losing her grasp on humanity.

Admittedly, the latter could be a really interesting setup for the next book if we actually go that route. However, I’m afraid to hope for that, as I still maintain relatively little happened in this book. I was speeding through, waiting for the next big thing to happen. Only, it rarely ever did.

I’ll be the first to admit that every moment of significance requires setting up; otherwise, it lacks the weight. However, I would have expected at least part of the payout to show its face by the end of the book. Otherwise, there’s little incentive to read the next, right?

Now that I’ve written all this out, it sounds like I’m trying to trash The Atlas Paradox. I’m not. It’s not a bad book. It’s just not the book I had hoped it would be! It was thoroughly average, and that is the biggest disappointment.

Thanks to Tor and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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