Yes, I'm still procrastinating, but it's not as if I've given up, yet. I feel like I've built up the will to start writing again, and I hope to have Sin Judge Knight finished before the year's over (I actually haven't made any real progress since I got hired) I won't make any promises, but that's what I want to do!
This Words About Another is gonna be weird... and not in the "I'm talking about SRX again" way. Anyway, I've come to you today to introduce you three to yet another writer. Minique Morado. Now, yeah, he has a lot of stuff up there, but for today, let's just focus on one: Krillexia Chronicles, the first book he published through Amazon. (Also, he has told me that this is meant to be the first in a series but if I were you I wouldn't expect a sequel to this anytime soon.)
The description of the book pretty much lets you know what you're getting into. Evil empire takes over the world, yadda yadda yadda, chosen one has to stop him. Granted, Morado here can tell how cliche this premise is and does try to spice it up in his own way, adding in a few curve balls here and there, and lots and lots of comedy, almost to the point of making it an out and out parody. Trust me, that's not a bad thing.
But uh... I can't lie to you guys. I don't want to be too brutal to this guy, but really, in spite of the things he does to make Krillexia Chronicles a fun read, it's not that great. I can't really heap glowing praise on this book like I can some others. It's littered with all kinds of little problems that will eat at you until your enjoyment of the book is damaged. Morado doesn't always use the right punctuation at the end of his sentences, much of the grammar just doesn't seem right, huge walls of text that don't really say much abound and his vocabulary is just plain weird, sometimes using words that probably wouldn't fit too well once you think about it, but he used it anyway he because he thought it sounded cooler and things like that.
And this is just my opinion, but many of the characters in this, while fun to read about at times, can be an absolute pain to read about at others. Roel, our hero, for example, has his moments. I actually like the guy overall, but I couldn't help but feel that almost everything about his character screams "Gary Stu".
And yeah, he kinda is one. I hate using that term, and he's not an especially bad case, but what else am I supposed to call this teenage boy who discovers his existence is central to the fate of the world, gains exceptional skill and rank in far less time and with far less effort than anyone else, and is able to win the hearts of people just by being kind and being the chosen one? None of the other characters have it that bad, but some of the scenes between Roel and Lia, the badass female love interest, made me cringe hard.
So yeah, while it can be fun, Krillexia Chronicles has too many problems for me to strongly recommend it, and I honestly would go ahead and tell you that it wasn't worth reading... if it wasn't for Chapter 16.
This chapter is different from the rest. Spoiler alert, but unlike most of the book, this chapter instead focuses on the villain Dezmith and his close friend Kezzler, the characters from the prologue. I was surprised at first. Throughout the book, Dezmith's character had been getting built up as something Roel wasn't expecting. Still, even when I realized what the chapter was going to be about, I was expecting something like the other chapters, something both intentionally and unintentionally funny (and I admit, it is, in parts), something that would probably end up making me think less of the characters, but no, the chapter almost perfectly nails getting across Dezmith's feelings.
Feelings about following the Evil Emperor because he honestly thinks it's the right thing to do, and seeing this young upstart, Roel, coming out of nowhere, mucking everything up. He's desperate, he's pissed, he has mixed feelings about having to kill someone who is less than half his age, and, feels like he's just as right as he does. He's worried about the citizens he's had to watch over. He worries that the Emperor no longer trusts him...
I'd say it's a legitimately good chapter, to the point that, if not for the occasional bizarre choice of words and a few walls of text, I'd think he had someone else write it. I had liked Dezmith and Kezzler before, but this chapter quite easily boosted them up to my favorite characters in the book. It's surprisingly emotional, and since I already knew Dezmith was gonna die, having read an earlier draft years ago, it just made me feel even more for the guy.
(Spoilers end here.)
(Spoilers end here.)
So there ya go. Does that sound like it's worth $3 to you? Personally, I'd say give it a shot, and if you don't like it, at least try to make it to Chapter 16 before giving up. I think it's the best part of the book, and kinda wish he could have written like that more often.
The rest of his stories are much simpler, shorter comedy stories that are pretty much just for fun. Oddly enough, they remind me of... SRX's work. More in that they're E S O T E R I C and they have a similar, bizarre sense of humor but Morado's other books have more of a "kid's cartoon" feel to them that I'm too lazy to describe right now. There's a part of me that feels he'd do a good job if he got to make one of those.
Alright, I've said all I can say. Give Krillexia Chronicles a look, give Morado's other stuff a look if you're curious, look forward to Sin Judge Knight. See ya later!
