Adonis Trinder, Right Hand of the Blackfeather

Orion Callister, the King in White who must Fall

The Joker, Convener of the House of Cards

Artis Faulkner, the Genius Blade

Sister Elise Alinde, Someone who enjoys the Sun

Father Ainsworth Benedict, a Red Rose

Lumière Croft, The Magician, A Sinner

The author of this novel has a very unique writing style. While the grammar leaves a bit to be desired, it's not quite like anything I've read before- however, since I tend not to read much, this may be a moot point. As far as I was able to read (It's still a very fledgling novel), the author was able to introduce a few interesting key characters (mostly the supposed antagonist, who has a strange way of twisting the characters in certain directions). The world's setting is probably its strongest point, as well as to me, its most interesting point. Set in a late-90's crime-ridden las vegas, there's surely a lot of strife and contention to come from the main character's surroundings. This novel is pretty interesting so far, and it's worth a try for a few chapters. I can see how many could enjoy it, despite the character's interactions seeming a bit dry in the beginning.

This story uses a lot of general tropes that are seen often in webnovels- rank-based magic, magic academies, tragedy as a character motivator, and a 'weak' main character who wants to strive for more. The opening was genuinely very gripping, although the hype that was built up fell off after that. However, after some general exposition, the author was able to build that hype back up very quickly. This novel seems to have a very quick 'payoff' to all of that hype- as in that a reader will only have to read a few chapters at a time to experience some decently-cool moments without having to trudge through a lot of sludge content. The main character is a very general type of character. He's weak, a bit self-pitying, marred by tragedy, an orphan, and is generally bullied a lot. However, for some, this won't be too off-putting. After all, the coolest characters who reach the top are ones who weren't expected to. The world design is also very general- a world that was suddenly privy to magical extravagance, and adapted systems around it to try and combat its misuse. However, that doesn't mean it's bad. It's written to form, despite not straying from that mold too much. If you enjoy that type of environment, it's not a bad read at all. I don't think I enjoyed it any less than I enjoyed Solo Leveling's worldbuilding- which is to say, I didn't really. But maybe someone does, and I think this is probably a pretty similar read in that way. Overall, it's not a bad read. Definitely worth a try if you don't have a lot of time to read to get to the cool parts. Author seems to update quite often and has a very consistent writing style.

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The story written by this author uses a very general 'system' plotline. However, the 'twist' of this plot is the fact that the main character switches 'fates' with another character. This is a good way to turn such a diluted trope on its head. It's almost like a freaky friday situation, where the main character has to live out the life of this character. However, because of his haughty 'above all' nature, he's not too afraid to deviate from the other character's personality, creating a lot of situations where side characters look at him strangely. Moreover, because of his alignment with what is generally considered 'evil' by most characters, he has a soft spot for the monsters that the character he's posing as is supposed to kill. This too brings strange looks towards him. This novel is almost as if the main character is a wolf in sheep's clothing, except he forgoes the clothing altogether, and walks through the pastures as the sheep stare at him strangely. He hasn't shown any significant motivation towards a goal as far as I've read, although I suspect that the supposed 'secrets of the world' are a big point for him. Despite this, he has a pathway towards success, a leveling system that benefits him with bestowed powers. Someone so strong becoming so weak is sure to mess with their mind that is so used to the muscle-memory of a god. Overall, this novel has a lot of exciting points that could flourish in the future, almost like a planted seed sprouting. The most interesting character to me is shown very early on, so it's worth even just reading a few chapters in the beginning to see if you enjoy it or not.

The 'One of Spades' is the playing card that led to him receiving Heretical powers. 'Despair' is a power that he had prior to receiving the card, given to him by the Lord Sinner.

The author of this story has put decent effort into the worldbuilding, particularly around the 'royal' houses that seem to borrow the names of Gods. The MC borrows the power of a lofty figure that even the most powerful seem to view with reverence, which provides him with the assurance that he can obtain revenge against a certain group of people after a certain event that happens very early on. While it doesn't seem he's been provided a lot of character depth at the start, he's certainly been provided with the tools necessary to carry an exciting plot.

While I'm not too big a fan of the sort of system that this novel entails, I think the setting the author builds is absolutely marvelous. It reminds me of the shadows that need to be circumnavigated in 'Shadow and Bone'. Moreover, this brings up unique job occupations that one wouldn't normally consider to be 'important' to society as much as they are in the novel - being surfers and divers. Since the setting is very waterbased, these two individuals are seemingly adept in fighting, as many of the sea creatures we think about as not being a danger to humans are very much so in this world. While I'm not sure how the patron demoness connects to the main character yet, it seems like an enticing enough power system for a lot of readers. The grammar in this novel is very good, and the prose is quite understandable and paints a good picture of the events, especially the fight scenes against the creatures that lurk in the water. I would highly recommend giving this novel a chance, if only to experience a very unique atmosphere and world built by the author.

I know sci-fi isn't the most popular, and the author even mentioned this to me, but I feel like the love put into this story is obvious despite that. The grammar in this story isn't the best, but that can always be improved, and I'm not the type of person to hate on something like that anyway. I think as long as whatever combination of words you use can get a meaningful story across, then it's alright. The author was able to do that very well. From what I had read, it seems like the characters in the beginning, rather than being fully fleshed out individuals, are more meant to be like a 'vessel' to introduce the plot, which I think is fine. Very minutely, their personality traits are shown off, and it's more just to bring the reader to a sense of the world around the characters. I'm sure that they will be developed when the most majour plot point is introduced. As for the plot, I think it is absolutely wonderful. I think the idea of 'grand conspiracy' is always extremely entertaining, moreso when the individual who has to confront it is basically a normal person without any significant power, having to use their own intelligence to circumvent problems. The background of the story is extremely fleshed out, not by the sake of it being a very well-built world, but by the fact that the author has the knowledge of intricate detailing that allows them to make very realistic processions. Rather than spending time creating a very suspension-of-disbelief type of world, they spend their time being very true to the world we live in, and manage to make it seem extremely realistic. I'm sure that this will be subverted by the more sci-fi elements that seem out of this world, and draw an amazing parallel between the two elements of realistic vs. unrealistic. I highly recommend giving this novel a chance. It has a lot of good points that I think will be developed wonderfully.