Junie's Reviews and Promo Book (Closed)

Review: The Last Philosopher

The Last Philosopher by NickfEast

Genre: Comedy/Fantasty.

Chapters Reviewed: 11 parts (currently has 122 parts)

Update Schedule: Weekly.

Quote: "The reason for all these unusual circumstances is that Huom's universe runs on forces much stronger than gravity...

Imagination and Ignorance."

Before I could even pick this book up to review it, I was intrigued by the cover. It's very dark and has this off-worldish feel to it. The cover is perfect for this as the book takes place in a world called Huom, a world somewhat similar to ours as it has life, but with magical creatures and philosophers that live there. By the comments, I could tell that this would be an interesting read as people have said...

"Amazing saying! *Vote for that"*" renn_ink

"This is a great beginning! It definitely leaves you wanting to read more!" HeatherPfeilfle

"Really enjoying so far!" smallish5444

After I started to read this story for myself, I realized that the writing matches that expectation. It's beautifully written with descriptions, and I love how everything is worded. It's like reading an art piece (if that makes sense). This just proves how much time and effort was put into writing of this story, especially since the humor was woven perfectly into this.

Humor is something that is very hard to grasp, and while the writer claims it's "attempted comedy" I say it's "comedy". By using the word "attempt," it sound like the humor is absentmindedly there, which is not the case when the book opens up with the description of Dick, a black hole who...is very much like his name sounds. If anything, the writer likes to use "adult" humor, but the humor is definitely there.

There's just a few things that can be fixed in my opinion. While the book is beautifully written in a way that the words are like a piece of art, many of the sentences are fragments. Sentence fragments should be used sparingly in a book to prove a point. Is it possible to have a fragment in every chapter of a book and have it not be distracting? Of course. It's just that when I've read this story, there were too many commas where periods should belong.

Another thing that was a bit confusing was the chapters. Everything had a title (which, I loved) but the "chapters" themselves were scattered. As an analytical person, I love knowing which chapter I left off on, even if it's titled "chapter 12 part 4". There were some chapters that were numbered, and others that weren't, which confused me as to where I was at when Wattpad glitched on me, sending me to the first chapter. It took me a while to find where I was at in the story. It would've been easier if all chapters were titled.

While I say this is a problem, each chapter that was titled with a number, it would contain a quote. That was it. I liked this stylistic choice as it gave the reader a bit of what to expect in the later parts, but I still wished there was some way to number each part. That's just a preference thing I have when reading, and it's something that can be easily overlooked.

The last thing I can say that needs improving is how slow this book moves. Don't get me wrong. I loved the intricate sentences and multiple storylines going on, but I wasn't exactly sure what the storyline was. The main problem didn't even show up by the time I stopped reading to write this review, causing me to wonder how long it would take for the main conflict to arise. True, from the first chapter, Dick, the blackhole, explains how darkness would soon make its way to the planet of Houm, but after reading the parts that I did, it never really came up. All I read was different POV's of different characters, going on about their day.

That last sentence sounds like this story is really boring, but this book is anything but boring as the characters are very interesting. The first character that's introduced is Dick. His character is introduced in the beginning as a black hole who is very power-hungry, yet comedic. Having an antagonistic character have a sense of humor is very relieving to see as it makes the opening scene entertaining to read. Most characters are like this too, where they're all unique and enjoyable to read. I just wished that there was one charactered that was concentrated on throughout the entire story rather than being exposed to so many so that I could get attached to at least one character. Being that I've only read eleven chapters, this problem could've been resolved or maybe had a reason for it. Regardless, they're all enjoyable characters.

Overall, The Last Philosopher is an interesting read as the characters are comedic and lovable and the different story-lines going on inside the story are very intriguing. It makes me wonder how these storylines intertwine, or, if they even do intertwine at all.

After reading and reviewing his book, I'm thrilled to say that NickfEast has agreed to do an interview to talk more about The Last Philosopher.

JunieWeathers: One of the most unique things about this book is the names. I've never heard of the names that are used, and I find it interesting when Lyeasrakardsul explains that sorcerer's come up with their own names. How did you come up with these unique names?

NickfEast: I had an idea once about the syllables of the names for sorcerers having different meanings making sorcerer names super long, but it got too complicated to keep track off. However, I still kept the names, and the idea that they make up their own names to "prove" how much of a sorcerer they are.

JW: That's interesting. Creating an entire new universe/world is something that can be challenging. While it seems the planet of Huom seems to be somewhat like our own planet, Earth, the culture and mechanics of it is very unique. How do you come up with this new world?

Nick: I take bits and pieces from all sorts of sources, whatever I come across that strikes me as fitting. And then I force the pieces together while they kick and scream :P

But seriously I will say that world-building, for me, takes more of my time than the actual writing.

JW: I can see where that would be time consuming. One thing I seemed to have noticed was how every single character is vastly different, but all very comical in their own way. What character is the most enjoyable to write and why?

Nick: I can't really say that I enjoy writing one character more than another. They all have their own appeal.

JW: What is the most challenging thing when creating this story?

Nick: Keeping track of everything, from places, to character motivations, to forces that act on the story that aren't even mentioned. It's sort of like a super complicated puzzle where someone(me) keeps throwing in new in pieces that may or may not fit with the overall picture :D

JW: I can see where that can be challenging. What is the most enjoyable thing about writing this story?

Nick: I think I enjoy the same things that make it challenging, if it wasn't challenging I'm not sure I would enjoy it, if that makes sense :)

JW: It does make sense. Thank you for taking the time for this interview. If you love comedic stories that take place in faraway places, then this may be a great book to check out.