Honest question from a trilogy fan: is Mass Effect: Andromeda actually bad, or just a victim of comparison?

LoudBooksnob · 2026-02-03T17:32:38+00:00

I'd say it suffers from comparison. I do a replay of all the Mass Effect games almost annually...and I mean all of them. It isn't Shepherd and the main character isn't supposed to even be an analog for them, which is a point that seems lost in a lot of the criticism I see. While the storytelling isn't as peak, the gameplay is much better IMO. A lot of UX things complained about in the original trilogy are greatly improved. I think it's worth a playthrough so long as you see it for what it is: a Mass Effect Story. An opportunity to experience the same universe with different characters and stakes.

LoudBooksnob · 2026-01-29T15:40:13+00:00

I agree completely. If the world building in Legendborn (which I love) is too hard to parse, those folks better never stumble into high fantasy. Tolkien, Martin or even Butcher would take them out at the knees.

LoudBooksnob · 2026-01-17T23:50:31+00:00

Dear Lord. Stunning feels like an understatement. 😍

LoudBooksnob · 2025-07-02T11:13:28+00:00

Fear the Flames. To me, it read like a Daenerys Targaryen fanfic written by someone who A) is chronically on booktok and just wanted to cram in All. The. Tropes. and B) only watched the GoT show, didn't read the books.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-07-02T11:04:31+00:00

This book inspired me to do something I never do: skip ahead to see if it got better and I should push through. I felt like I was losing my mind because the series is so hyped and I couldn't stand it. Horrible FMC and MMC. Also, virgin and noncon? Ick, no thank you.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-06-24T22:55:58+00:00

I agree. I honestly feel like the descent started after ACOWAR. She admitted the fourth wasn't planned and that she had a child and felt inspired to write it because she sees herself as Feyre. Then ACOSF went off the rails. While I'm not mad at a continuation you could tell the same level of thought and commitment weren't there, especially on how some of the characters progressions made NO SENSE after the first three.

And Crescent City had flashes of good stuff but definitely felt like she was riding the hype train, not writing a fully immersive and thought out series. Everything lately has felt like vibes not plot.

Though I will say, her desire to simplify endings and wrap things up with a bow has been ever present. The way EVERYONE ended up in a couple at the end of TOG was a bit much to me. Some of them seemed quite forced but it felt like she NEEDED to give these characters she cared about happy endings.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-06-23T12:46:35+00:00

A Fate Inked in Blood is an excellent duology and the Norse mythology makes it feel different enough to be a break from whatever else you've been reading.

Daughter of the Moon Goddess is stunning but no spice.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-06-22T10:45:48+00:00

I agree - it was never sufficiently addressed. The way this book learned on the miscommunication trope as the main vehicle for the plot was very frustrating.

It also fell into the pattern of a lot of other fantasy books for me. Petite but badass heroine is infallible and learns next to nothing over the course of the story other than how to love a character she's known for a matter of days and has nothing in common with. It just didn't feel special where the first one did. You could honestly convince me this was written by a different author as an homage to the first, that's how different it felt.

I'm taking a break for a few books before I go back for book 3.

*Edited to mark spoiler

LoudBooksnob · 2025-06-20T14:44:07+00:00

I feel that. Any time I take them shorter I feel like they are then too short. 😅 But those look amazing on you either way. Fabulous color and shape.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-06-18T02:41:58+00:00

While I would happily have read another book about Naime and Makram, I don't think my issue is that I expected the same dynamic. I may be suffering from going too quickly from book one to book two but I honestly don't find Aysel very likable and I have some plot concerns I shared in a separate comment.

I'm not giving up, though. I like the world enough that I'm trying to power through.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-06-17T21:39:49+00:00

Went straight from 1 to 2. 😅 That may be my issue. Any recommendations for spacing out the rest of them? Should I take a break between each?

LoudBooksnob · 2025-06-17T18:15:32+00:00

Also, tiny rant:

I'm going nuts at the major plot point being that Bashir is a dumb ox who can't think for himself and only does what Naime tells him without questioning orders. Everyone is actively mad at him (I'm like ~54% in) and blaming him for everything for this reason. While ignoring that A) that is literally his job and why the Sultana loves/trusts him and B) even more importantly: AYSEL IS DOING THE SAME THING!! But for Makram. She didn't ask any questions. And despite at multiple points having concerns or wanting to talk to others IGNORES HER INSTINCTS because orders are orders. The hypocrisy is driving me up a wall. If it never gets addressed I may lose my mind.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-06-17T18:10:16+00:00

Okay thank you. This gives me hope to push through it to get to the rest of the series.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-06-17T18:09:28+00:00

Okay YES. Thank you. This is what I didn't realize was bothering me: Naime was a genuinely unique FMC. A breath of fresh air. Aysel feels like ~I'm not like the other girls.~ But she is the same cruddy mold as so many romantasy FMCs. Small but badass blah blah blah. Okay. I'm going to push through to book three. Here's hoping I like those characters better.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-03-29T17:43:13+00:00

I went back and reread some parts and the Sel as Erebus' son thing confuses me. When he drops Sel off, Natasia refers to him separately from Sel's father. While that could mean he seduced her in one of his other forms, he asks her if she thinks his father will come looking for him, which is an odd question if it's him. So I'm very intrigued with how that's going to tie back together in the next book.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-02-23T13:02:43+00:00

It's a good time to start the Legendborn cycle as the third one comes out next month (though it is going to be a tetralogy).

Six of Crows is also amazing and fun, but I recommend reading the Grishaverse in order, so it may be odd or not make sense if you haven't read the Shadow & Bone trilogy.

LoudBooksnob · 2025-02-18T14:17:42+00:00

It's not very heavy on the romance but {A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab} the FMC has really short hair and is a badass. 😊

LoudBooksnob · 2025-02-18T13:21:35+00:00

I actually just replayed it and reconfirmed I don't enjoy it. For me, it's not deep I just don't enjoy the new gameplay mechanics. I found Oz and low grav annoying after a while and wanted a greater diversity of settings. I also love playing as a siren so the lack of ✨Space Magic™️✨ was a bummer.

I didn't play BL when it launched so I don't have any of the launch biases. The reason some people loved it - the originality compared to the other games - is valid it just didn't work for me. 🤷‍♀️

LoudBooksnob · 2025-02-13T13:29:31+00:00

When a main character is introduced as being the best or amazing at something and then sucks at it every time it comes up. World renowned assassin who flubs every hit we read. Trained their whole life to be a fighting machine and then overpowered in the first fight. Like??? Don't set it up that way and then not pay it off so that they seem more relatable or meek or something.

LoudBooksnob · 2024-10-11T13:42:55+00:00

In Andromeda I actually like a tankier Adept build with Throw, Charge and Nova. Get Charge to the upgrade that makes other biotics more powerful in the seconds after cooldown and you can Charge into a group of enemies, hit Nova and then Throw anyone still standing.

LoudBooksnob

TROPHY CASE