 So today we have a Patreon requested review, and this time the patron, Lawrence Hicks, actually wrote the book in question. It is called Festival of the Azure Moon. I actually forgot the title there for a second, but I'm not doing another take. Let's go on. This is the introduction song. It's not very good, but it's not too long. So Festival of the Azure Moon, my overall thoughts, I can't really summon anything more than just saying, it's alright. You know, like, there's parts of it that I liked decently well, and there's parts of it that were pretty annoying to get through, I'll be honest. But overall, I can just say, yeah, it's alright, and I'm leaning a little bit more towards it being subpar or bad than I am towards good. Because there are good things in here, like I said, and I will talk about them, don't worry, but it's definitely a first novel. Or at least it feels a lot like a first novel, because there's just a lot of things in here that are clumsy. Like it's creative, certainly. That's one thing I've noticed about a lot of early writers is that they'll come up with something that is super creative and out there, but it doesn't necessarily make sense, and they don't know how to make it work in the story that they're trying to tell. And so while I give it credit for that, it doesn't quite pan out the way they were probably planning it to. And this one, there are some creative bits in there, and there are some bits that are executed pretty well as well, but overall, while I did like a lot of it, it just never quite grabbed me. It was never able to quite pierce the veil of cynicism that I have and that everyone has to one extent or another. It was never able to pierce that and grab hold of me and have me going, yes, I need to know what happens next, I need to know what's going on with these characters. And so overall, I just have to say, yeah, it's okay. So the story here is about this guy named Shulnark, or at least it starts off following him and then the cast expands a little, because he seems like the protagonist, but there's really kind of two or arguably three even. But anyways, this guy named Shulnark, who years ago stowed away on a ship and then wound up getting in a shipwreck and he washed up on shores of this strange country that he had never heard of and people there have never heard of his home country either. And so he's just going around trying to steal enough money in order to try and find a ship that will take him home, because he is a thief. He was a thief back home and he's a thief here. And he also has this magical ability, which allows him to change his appearance at will, which is helpful for him trying to sneak in and out of places or to just blend into crowds and stuff like that, which is pretty neat. And he also has this voice in his head, which is kind of just a whole other personality that he doesn't even treat as weird or anything. We'll get more on that in the character section, but yeah, he has that. And then one day he tries to rob this guy named Dawn, who is a wizard, and Dawn is like, ah, I lured you in on purpose because I need a thief who's really good at stealing and I need you to help me with something. What do you say? And then Schoenlark basically agrees to it, and then they go off on their own adventure and, you know, they're being chased by police and bounty hunters and stuff, and then eventually they find a bad guy who's up to bad things and so they decide to work together to save some people. And, you know, it's a fine plot. It's extremely simple, which is both a benefit and a detriment, but I have to lean more towards it being a detriment, because so in terms of benefit, yeah, it's really fast paced and there's usually something going on. It's not always something interesting, but it's always something going on. And the main characters right at the beginning, their motivations and their goals for what they're going out and trying to do are set right out for you. So it's very clear from the beginning what sort of story this is going to be and what's going to go on. And yeah, that means there's not really many surprises and my expectations aren't really subverted or twisted in any way, but, I mean, as long as you know that you're doing a simple story and you just do it well, that's fine. However, I'm leaning towards detrimental mostly, because, hmm, how do I even put this? There's a lot of this story that's taken up by what I will affectionately refer to as pointless nonsense. Like, a huge chunk of the story is action scenes, which while they're fine at first, they go on way longer than they need to. A huge chunk of the story is training, which is really just an excuse to have low stakes action scenes and then those lean into more action scenes later. And exposition. Like, those three combined take up, oof, over half the book, I think. And that's, well, that's just not a good thing. So, the plot, while I will say, the plot does leave itself open for a sequel, but it is more or less contained to this one book, so you can just read this one and not feel like you get ripped off or anything. So, that's a plus, I think. But overall, yeah, the plot, it could have used some work. Like, it could have used Don and Sean Mark perhaps going off on little, maybe, side quest. I don't know if that's the word, but doing that. And it could have had a lot less focus on the people that were chasing them because they just weren't as interesting. And, you know, just little things like that. And that's what I mean when I say it feels like a first novel because first-time novelists usually don't quite understand how to plot well. And I'm not trying to put myself into some other category. I've had that same issue myself, but it's just, you know, it's a problem, so I'm bringing it up. However, the best part of this book by far, I think, are the two main leads. Like, most of the characters in this book, they're fine. They serve their purpose. Like, there's this woman, Holy Knight, who's chasing after them named Sophia, who a lot of people see her and they're like, a woman can't be a Knight and she's like really good at it. And that, you know, she's fine, she serves her purpose. There's a villain, bad guy who is mostly after his own power, but he also kind of has a point for what he's trying to do. But overall, he's fine. He does his purpose. But Sean Lark and Don are genuinely really, really fun characters that I loved following them. Like, whenever other characters were the focus, I was kind of hoping, ah, come on, let's hurry up and get back to Don and Sean Lark, which is mostly a good thing. Like, I mean, it's kind of bad because the other characters aren't as interesting, but it's good in that these characters are really fun and really good. Because Sean Lark, like I said, he's a thief who just kind of washed up in this strange land and wants to go home. So like, right from the beginning, you know what he's after and what he's trying to do. That's great. And he also, like I said, has another personality in his head and the book and him don't even treat it like it's a big deal. You know, to him it's just, yes, I've always had this thing in my head. Other people find it weird, but to me it's just, that's how things are. So to him it's really casual. And he's also, while he is sympathetic, you know, he wants to go home, he's kind of an asshole. And I liked that about him, you know. He is rude to people, he swears a lot, he has a tendency to snap at people, but he never really goes over the top with it. You know, he usually only snaps at people when they deserve it and he's only rude to them when they're rude first or when they do something to really deserve it. And I also like that even though he is a really good thief and even though he has some magic powers, he's not infallible. You know, he doesn't instantly become a badass warrior or anything. Like, he can kind of fight and you see that in a couple of action scenes. But for the most part, when he wins fights, he has to think his way out of it. Like, because he's not some powerful warrior with a million spells that can level buildings with sword swing or anything. He's just, for the most part, a good thief. And, you know, I liked that. And especially near the end when he realizes, like, okay, fine, I'll save the people. Like, he's not like a traditional hero who's just doing it because it's the right thing, but in the end he does do the right thing and he does right by the people he needs to save. So, yeah, he's a really fun protagonist or deuteragonist, whatever you want to call him. And then there's Dawn, who admittedly Dawn is a little less well-defined on his own, but watching him just bounce off of Shalnark and the other characters is great because he's kind of this overly friendly wizard or, for the most part, overly friendly. Like, he tells Shalnark at the beginning, like, hey, I don't know about ships, but I can teleport you home if you help me out here. And so that's why he gets Shalnark to go with him. And he is, you know, a really good guy for the most part. He always tries to go out and help people to the point where he's kind of stupid about it. Like, oh, this person needs help. I will go help them. And Shalnark has to say, what are you doing, you idiot? That's a trap. And he realizes, oh, yeah, I guess you're right. And, you know, moments like that are a lot of fun. And again, he is not super well-defined on his own. And there are parts where his stupidity is a little more obnoxious than it is endearing. But watching him bounce off of the other characters is a lot of fun. It really is. Like, he wouldn't be all that good on his own, but he is good with others. And he makes Shalnark better by comparison as well. Or not by comparison, but he makes Shalnark better as well, because we get to see different aspects to their personalities. And so, yeah, the two main leads are a lot of fun in this. And I, if I ever read the sequel, it'll be because of those two. Now, this is a fantasy story. And so, like with all fantasy stories, the world-building is super, super important. And it's not great here. Like, that sounds a little uncharitable, so give me a minute to explain. So essentially, this world, it does explore some aspects of it. Like, there is some neat stuff in here. Like a tree that is like the size of a mountain and stretches up into the heavens. And the base is gigantic, but it also causes plague around it. And it's the source of life and all, you know, stuff like that. It's really neat and interesting. And there are like different races of people here. And we find out a little bit about how magic works. But everything we learn is just on a surface level. Like, there's not really a deep dive into any topic at all. It's just, oh, this thing exists. And now we're moving on to the next thing, which, oh, it exists. And it's, like, it's annoying because I see potential there. And I think that if this book were to maybe be rewritten and made a little bit longer, which I'm not saying it needed to be longer necessarily, but it could use some focus on different things. But if it had just gone more into depth with some of these neat ideas, then I think it could have had a really neat setting, a really memorable setting. But as it stands, I only remember one or two things about it and everything else is just kind of background noise. And I think a part of the reason for that, and this also ties into issues with the plot, is that this book has mysteries and revelations about the world, which it treats like their, you know, treats like their mysteries, like their plot twists, but they really aren't. And what I mean by that is I kind of have to put some minor spoilers in here to explain this properly. I apologize, but, like, I just cannot think of a way to explain it without going into any sort of detail. But for example, when Schoenark appears in this new land and he's talking to people and none of them have ever heard of his old home and he has never heard of this place, he's wondering how he got here. And later on in the book, a character just says, oh, you must have hit the eternal hurricane. You must be from the other side of the eternal hurricane. And Schoenark's like, what? What is that? And the guy's like, oh, it's this big hurricane, massive storm out in the middle of the ocean, which no one has ever been able to cross, so we don't know what's on the other side. And the book treats it as though this is like a big twist, like, oh, okay, that's what's going on. But we've never heard about the hurricane before, before this moment. So, like, the revelation that, oh, that's what hit him is just sort of, oh, okay, I guess that happened. And it doesn't really add anything to the story because you easily could have put that near the beginning and it wouldn't make a difference. Like Schoenark could say, yes, we hit a storm and then I shipwrecked and later I found out that, oh, there's actually, it's a massive never-ending storm. Or he could even say, we must have run into that massive never-ending storm and that must be what's keeping me away from home. And then we would know, okay, he needs to go through that. He needs to find a way to go through that. And that would be his goal rather than finding a ship. And it wouldn't make that much difference either way. So it's just a really clumsy way of doing it. And another explanation, or another mystery, which isn't really a mystery, comes in much later on when this mercenary band pops up and the bad guys are like, oh, they are supposedly a mercenary band, but they actually work for the church. Yes, they're there to give us some plausible deniability when we want to do something untoward. And again, it's like, oh, okay, that just sort of exists. You know, like had the mercenary band been mentioned and built up and featured in the story before this, and we just thought like there were a bunch of thugs, and then later on it turns out they were working for the church, that could have been a decent twist and it could have been a decent bit of lore that increases the depth of the world. But as it stands, again, it's just sort of, oh, okay, I guess that happens. Like, I know that's minor spoilers, but it's not major spoilers because they don't really tie it into the plot. And well, that's something that a lot of early writers do, especially those who write as they go, because they'll come up with a neat idea and then they'll just insert it in there without really thinking about how it would fit into the story around it and how it would fit into the world around it. Like, you see it a lot on stuff like Wattpad and Fiction Press. Like, there's just, you know, new writers who aren't quite sure how it works. And so a lot of the stuff just comes off as earnest, but it's still clumsy. And really that's my verdict on this book as a whole. Festival of the Azure Moon is earnest, but it's clumsy. And while overall, like I said, I'm leaning more towards it being kind of subpar, but overall I just say it's okay, you know, it's all right. It's not worth getting upset about or angry about or anything like that, but it's also, there's not a lot in here worth celebrating. You know, the only thing that I really liked about this were the two main leads, but beyond that it was just, yeah, like, I can't complain about it really. It's just, it's there. So if you want to check it out, like if you're a fan of fantasy, that is a little, I don't even know how to explain it. Like fantasy that's a little lower in stakes, that's a little more personal, that has a huge focus on action and less of a focus on world building. Like if you're into something like that, then I think you'd enjoy this book just fine. But for the most part, for most people, I just think, yeah, it's fine. Maybe if you're bored you can spend a day or two going through it because it's not that long. But overall, yeah, I can't say I really strongly recommend it to anyone. Sad Martigan, Tobacco Crow, Tom Beanie, Vacuous Silas, and Vaivictus. You guys are great, and if you want to get your name anywhere on this list, then consider going to my Patreon and becoming a patron. You know, that's how that website works and all. Like you get your name on here, you get to vote on video topics, you get to see stuff early, it's great, it's amazing. And if you're too poor to afford that, then well, I hate you, but as long as you like the video, comment, subscribe, and continue watching my stuff, then well, you know, I'm fine with it. You know, you're okay if you can do that. Anyways, I'll see you later. Bye.