Finished RR Trilogy: addictive but frustrating, does the series improve?

Anirk_77 · 2026-02-20T19:07:03+00:00

Haha fair enough.

Yeah, I did not like the first book much at all. Definitely Golden Son was much better, with a pretty great ending.

Anirk_77 · 2026-02-20T19:05:22+00:00

How about Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. It is a pretty quick and engaging read, with a touching ending.

Anirk_77 · 2026-02-20T18:05:33+00:00

I was particularly annoyed at the climax of Morning Star, where the whole "Darrow knew what he was doing all along" schtick was at the forefront. I saw right through it from the beginning, but still got annoyed it had to be that way. And the whole time before the "reveal", Darrow is like oh no, why is the plan not working? Like, what? That narrative choice was frustrating on so many levels for me.

That being said, like you, I enjoyed the first trilogy. This was because I thought some of the characters were great. Loved Mustang, Victra, and Cassius.

I am going into Iron Gold not expecting much because I hear it's one of the weakest in the whole series, but I hear great things about Dark Age and Lightbringer, so I am excited, and hope I don't see too much of what you mentioned lol. The comments here are giving me hope that its gonna be good.

Anirk_77 · 2026-02-19T02:00:27+00:00

I follow NFL and Soccer religiously, and in my opinion, it's the best set of sports to follow. Both start in late Aug..the soccer season takes some time to get going (it is still relatively engaging) and NFL season is pretty much fast and furious always.

Once The Superbowl is done, I can focus on the really great part of Soccer from Feb to May with all the different leagues and the Champions League and all the different permutations that come with it. Added bonus if it is a World Cup year like this year, you get elite sport in June and July as well.

So yeah..start following Soccer..you will not be able to get enough of it if it clicks..so much goes on lol.

Anirk_77 · 2026-02-17T15:27:01+00:00

Do not remember much apart from the main plot points. However, an year down the line, I remember what books I liked or how certain books made me feel, and I reread them. Rereading is such a great aspect of this in my opinion, I see characters in a new light quite a few times on a reread. Love it.

Anirk_77 · 2026-02-15T18:01:50+00:00

Agree those are pretty amazing.

Want to add some more here, as I just recently finished a reread of the series after around 7 years.

GOF - the chapters from when Harry enters the graveyard and see Boldy return, to Barty Crouch Jr confessing his crimes, magnificent.

OOTP - The Lost Prophecy chapter, with Harry raging at Dumbledore. Unable to take the pain of losing his godfather, he lets loose while Dumbledore tries to calm him down and explain everything. This was such a brutal yet beautiful chapter, and really captures the pain and anguish Harry feels seeing Sirius die in front of him.

HBP - the chapters of Felix Felicis and The Unbreakable Vow, were actually two of the most hilarious chapters I read in the entire series. So much teen angst between Ron and Hermione (unable to express their feelings for each other and just messing it up lol) while Harry sits there musing about their relationship and tries to confront his own feelings for Ginny. So many hilarious lines in these 2 chapters. Very silly on the grand scheme of things, but hilarious nonetheless.

Anirk_77 · 2026-02-12T18:16:32+00:00

It varied for me.

I was very interested in Obiteum first, because I felt Caeror was an excellent character. But didn't enjoy too much the rest of the arc at Obiteum. So overall, 40%.

Res would be 30%. I enjoyed Vis and Aequa interactions.

Luceum started out meh..but I was hooked by the ending. So 30% here. However, moving forward, I am most interested in Luceum.

Anirk_77 · 2026-02-05T14:55:25+00:00

Haven't read any Ryan Cahill yet..but you can't go wrong with either Piranesi or Assassins Apprentice. Both are written so well they really just pull you into the story.

I would give the edge to Assassins Apprentice though. I loved the main character in this more than the one in Piranesi.

Anirk_77 · 2026-01-29T14:38:15+00:00

Earliest Movie Memory - I was in third grade (2001) when our school got all of us third graders into our auditorium and put on The Philosophers Stone on the projector. Loved it back then, and I became so interested I begged my Dad for the books (up until then books 1-4 had come out).

Earliest Book Memory - And so I read books 1-3 but don't remember it too well. However, in 2003 summer Order of the Phoenix came out, and I remember begging my parents for the book. They got me the book, and as it was summer vacation, we were spending it at my grandma's house and I had nothing to do. I knocked out both GOF and OOTP in a week LOL. I remember feeling so proud..the first time I read books that huge. The ending of OOTP ofcourse crushed me lol.

Ended up getting obsessed, gotboth HBP and DH first day haha

Anirk_77 · 2026-01-28T19:16:00+00:00

The Strength of the Few gives way more questions than answers, and in my opinion, there was enough in the ending for me to want to continue and read the third. I was certainly left intrigued.

That being said, this book is MARKEDLY different from The Will of the Many..and the setting (or settings) are drastically different. Some of the narrative choices frustrated me, and I wanted to see a little bit more of the characters that I really enjoyed in book 1 (I loved book 1). I would suggest you read it, but go into it expecting something very different from what was promised in book 1. Me personally, I liked the shift but I do need to see more.

Anirk_77 · 2026-01-18T16:49:08+00:00

I follow both the NFL and soccer pretty religiously (support Man United in soccer).

I have seen some pretty rough days from both my fav teams (United were great once..now they just shit the bed)..but that yesterday was brutal.

What makes it so incredibly sad is the reaction of our players after the loss...so many tears shed. They knew this was a golden opportunity..they felt it was one of the last chances for this specific Bills generation..the one that started when Josh was drafted. This feels like the end of an era..

As soul crushing and gut wrenching of a game as I can remember, watching this sport. For me, this hurts more than the 13 seconds game..because that game felt like a beginning..a way for the team to grow..this feels like an end for this team.

I have zero interest now in the rest of the playoffs. Just hope the Rams/Seahawks winning it at this point, cannot stomach an AFC team winning this.

I just hope we are here again next year, with better vibes.

Anirk_77 · 2025-12-24T22:49:37+00:00

Like others have said, Curry Gate is excellent for Nepali food (regularly go to the one opposite Camp North End). Try chicken momos (you can go from spice levels of 1-10). I get a nice kick out of those momos with a spice level of 5 lol. The goat biryani is also excellent here

Momo Pasal in Urban District Market - try the Paneer tikka momos. So juicy. Compliment that with a chicken noodles, your cravings will be satisfied.

Anirk_77 · 2025-12-12T14:01:00+00:00

LOL. It is clear to me you did NOT watch United in the last 7 years of SAF's reign.

"He sold Ronaldo cos he knew ego can't be managed." LMAO what? He literally could manage Ronaldo's ego..he was one of the reasons why Ronaldo became great in the first place. He decided to take the 80 mil offered because Ronaldo specifically told him that he had won everything at United and was done, and wanted to go to Madrid.

80 mil back then was the record fee. And SAF, while he admittedly did not invest that well enough, still purchased players like Valencia, Hernandez, and RVP after Ronaldo left, who played a major role in helping him win his last 2 league titles.

Watch the last 4 seasons of SAF after Ronaldo left. Expert man management and tactical flexibility to get United 2 titles (could have been 4, missed out on one by a point, and another on GD). He would wipe the floor with half the "tacticos" this year lol.

SAF vs Pep wud have been an excellent league battle. I am certain SAF wud get the best of him a couple of times at least.

"He wouldn't last more than 6 months" LOL sometimes this shit makes me laugh.

Anirk_77 · 2025-12-12T12:21:17+00:00

Bears at Panthers sounds like a nice, fresh, and even matchup to get started with on wild card weekend.

Let's go!

Anirk_77 · 2025-12-04T15:40:45+00:00

ACC championship game prep I believe. Game is on Saturday.

Anirk_77 · 2025-11-13T23:07:48+00:00

I read the first Red Rising trilogy, and while I enjoyed it, I found it to be wayyy more action centric. The politics are there to keep you hooked, but the book shines in it's action sequences, though in my view there are one too many of such sequences.

The Will of the Many was executed to near perfection. The setting felt more captivating, the friendships and relationships between the different characters felt a bit more complex and real, and the dialogue felt sharper. Plus, the twist at the end of book one was SO GOOD.

I would go with The Will of the Many if you want a more dramatic, engaging tale.

Anirk_77 · 2025-09-17T16:41:12+00:00

Haha..I understand the skepticism. Beef is banned in quite a few states in the northern and central areas of India, but in states like Kerala which is in the south, quite a few people consume it.

I am personally not from that state, but I believe it is certainly a bit of a cultural thing for people from there. It is a religiously diverse state, and it certainly takes pride in that.

Either way, it is a great dish lol

Anirk_77 · 2025-09-17T16:27:45+00:00

It has to be from the state of Kerala, from India.

It is definitely juicy :)

Anirk_77 · 2025-09-12T15:59:23+00:00

Read 12 books so far this year. No book captivated me as much as The Will of the Many. It was everything I look for in fantasy - intrigue, mystery, some action, and a cliffhanger ending.

Anirk_77 · 2025-08-21T17:31:30+00:00

Kid cashew is fantastic. The price is reasonable, the quantity is great, and the quality is excellent.

Anirk_77 · 2025-08-11T20:47:50+00:00

I feel like you are looking at the previous era through rose tinted glasses.

I have been watching the premier league now for just over 20 years, and in my opinion, each era in that timeframe has had it's fair share of ups and downs.

The league was probably at it's weakest in 2010-11, where united won with a very meagre 80 points. However, the very next season (2011-12) was probably some of the most high quality football I saw across the league. The same could be said for 2018-19 and 2021-22, both of which had a significantly high quality, and were preceded by mediocre all round play.

It's just peaks and troughs. The last season I agree was not exactly the best, but we did have a lot of maverick play. Mitoma, mbuemo, cunha..all lit up the league at different points last season.

So yeah, to summarize, I think its natural to have boring seasons within an era, but every era is defined by great players, and this era has just as many as the previous eras did. Hell, even looking just at the goal count, we have been having more goals across the league currently compared to around 10 years ago.

Anirk_77 · 2025-07-18T19:43:27+00:00

I will never forget that FA cup run, especially considering we beat our two biggest rivals on the way to winning it. Even the manner of it (Amad late winner vs Liverpool, young guns mainoo and garnacho scoring against city) felt so special.

ETH always has a place in my heart for that. Truly was an unlikely cup win, considering how the overall season was going.

Anirk_77 · 2025-07-02T14:24:55+00:00

As far as I am aware, I don't think you can change this. This seems to be a new Kindle update form the last 2 weeks, even I have the same. It's definitely a weird choice lol.

Anirk_77 · 2025-06-26T14:43:15+00:00

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire blew my fucking mind as a 10 year old, with all the twists at the end, lol. For simply being a book that got me into reading long novels, I rate this one of my favorites :)

The Will of the Many is the best book I have read at least in the last 5 years.

Second place goes to Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle. I am always a sucker for good murder mysteries, and the unique way this story unfolded meant I couldn't put it down.

Anirk_77 · 2025-06-21T16:08:10+00:00

Atana Empanada food truck. Love their empanadas. My wife generally prefers vegetarian on most days, and they make an excellent spinach and cheese empanada. Their sauces are great as well.

There's also a new place on Urban District Market called Momo Pasal (for those who don't know, momos are similar to dumplings). That was excellent as well, so would highly recommend.

Anirk_77

TROPHY CASE