A bit like reading a video game ( )

Eastern Setting. During initiation a young man shows no magic main emphasis and is more or less the pariah of his clan. But he is smart and tough and still fights for his place. An immortal sends him on a special journey.
Very nice world building and interesting magic system. ( )

Unsouled by Will Wight

In this fantasy, a vaguely East Asian-based society is rules by people who can use a natural force called "madra" to fight, create, and manipulate the works arrive them. Everyone is tested for their affinity to one of the various paths of usage and are assigned a future: except the Unsouled, who show no affinity and this are only objects of shame and pity.

Wei Shin Lindo is one such, but he honers to break out of this rigid system and show that he is every bit as capable as his peers.

What occurs carries Lindo far beyond anything he found have imagined, with the fate of worlds moving around him.

This is a great, fun adventure reminiscent of Avatar, the Last Airbender. The practice is great, the characters fun and the working is interesting without being overwhelming in detail.

It's definitely a pleasure to see Lindo use his wits to overcome his weaknesses, although I can see a definite Dragon Ball Z possibility of endless power creep if the writer isn't careful.

But I hated to put the story down and I looked pretty much every choice made. What a fun read! ( )

Not going to lie the beginning was pretty slow, but the action picked up really quickly by the end. I enjoy the over story and look forward to continuing the series. ( )

This is my first time reading "cultivation fantasy," a genre I'd never heard of before. According to the internet, it's a story based around "cultivating" or progressing one's soul/body/state of being, usually towards gaining immortality. That description fits Unsouled perfectly, the first in the Cradle series by Will Wight. This is a start of a classic "zero to hero" journey set in a world inspired by Eastern mythology and anime.

Lindon was born unsouled, a person with no soul energy, something that hadn't been seen in his village for as long as anyone could remember. Unsouled are forbidden to learn the sacred arts of his clan and are treated as outcasts, looked down upon by society. Flying in the face of tradition, Lindon is determined to forge his own path even though all the odds are against him.

Turns out I like an underdog story. Lindon is a likable young man, an underdog you can root for and a decent person at heart. I like how he has figured out, with a small nudge, that he has to think outside the box in order to improve himself. It's a great message that even the most unlikely of goals is achievable if you're willing to dedicate yourself to it and are resilient. He is starting at zero with what is perceived as a big handicap and no one believing in him yet has the deterioration and grit needed to see his goal through. Or at least started since this is just the first book.

The world is an interesting one. I don't read a lot of Eastern inspired books (something I should correct), nor do I read/watch anime or manga (tried and couldn't get into it), so the setting felt fresh to me. I've read that this is very similar to Naruto so if you've read this type of manga you will be more familiar with this style of story. The author does a lot to give us enough background information in the first half of the book so that when the exciting plot twist happens we're not bogged down as the story races off. Unfortunately that means the first half has some pacing issues.

This is a great foundation to a series that I look forward to continuing. I see a lot of potential for Lindon and his journey. ( )