I fell for the TikTok campaign with this one - it was everywhere and I was so looking forward to reading. however, a book with no substance and characters/plot that was just meh

I got about 200 pages into this back in May and then put it down thanks to a reading slump. However I was not going to end 2022 without finishing this and I'm so glad I finally picked it back up. The book was not the reason for the slump - every time I pick it up I'm hooked into it and I can't wait to get the second book and read that!

I really enjoyed the idea of this book with the Alexandrian Society and seeing how each member is chosen to join. Throughout I continued to enjoy the book until the author decided to include the cheating trope which was not at all necessary to further the plot. I came close to dnfing the book for that reason alone, the only reason I didn’t was because I was quite a way through, but will definitely not be continuing the series

DNF.

I really did not enjoy reading this book and had to put it down. While the premise of the story really interested me I could not get passed the writing style which I found to be pretentious and not in a fun way

This book has been absolutely everywhere and frankly I’ve been intrigued to see if it lived up to the hype. I think i went into it with too high expectations because although it was good, it was mediocre for me. I found the characters quite flat, some were completely forgotten or pushed to the side. The whole mystery of what happens to the 6th person wasn’t interesting to me as I could tell what would happen (they kill the 6th etc). I was however very interested by the ending and having Ezra come into it. So i will be reading the sequel, but I’m not sure if I’ll reread this again.
Thank you for the eARC! I ended up buying a physical copy anyway.

An interesting take on a magical school, 6 are chosen and only 5 will be initiated. Whilst I found the concept interesting, I didn’t feel that the book met its full potential and I can’t put my finger on what it was. The plot seemed to take forever to really start and, by the time it did, I didn’t really feel anything for any of the characters - most of the males were arrogant and self-obsessed and the women were just annoying.

This is clearly part of a series, however, I don’t feel invested enough to bother with the sequel. Mind you, this was still an okay read, edging more to a 3 star (good solid read) rather than a completely disappointing 2 star.

I feel that if the book really grips you, then your socks could be blown off by this series, but it just wasn’t for me.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t see any of the hype around this book, but it sounded intriguing so I went for it. A little tough to get into the flow of, but certainly interesting and captivating enough to warrant some interest in the next book.

I wasn't sure if I'd like this one, but I really wanted to. Unfortunately, while at time I found myself engaged and wanting to keep reading, I also found it pretentious and at times just didn't care for it at all. I actually forgot I'd picked this up and with so many characters, I couldn't even confidently name one. It's just not stuck with me but I'm sure this book will appeal to many

It took me a long time to get into this book. It was the kind of book that at times, felt like it was perhaps a little bit too intelligent for me. That is the best way I can describe it. I found the story to be very interesting for the most part and I have not read anything similar before so I really liked that. I didn't fall in love with any of the characters so that would be the big thing that let the book down for me. I love to feel a real connection with the characters and this book for me, was a lot more about the story but even that was difficult to get into because a lot of it didn't make sense to me at first. By the time I had slugged my way through to the end of this one, I was feeling a lot better about it. I did listen to the audio version of this for the most part which could be why I didn't feel the connection I wanted to feel. I would like to re-read this at some point before I read the sequel and see if my feelings can be changed.

I'm disappointed with this one, I was expecting to love it due to the hype but I just felt confused throughout. But I might have tried to read this too quickly, so I don't entirely blame the book. I've since read The Atlas Paradox and enjoyed it so I definitely think I'll give this one another try one day.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC to review. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I loved the storytelling, narrative voice, and the worldbuilding was so lush. Easily one of my favourite books of this year.

Thank you to Tor for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Plot: 1/5
Characters: 1/5
Writing: 1/5

I wish I could just write ‘a whole lot of pretentious nonsense’ and hit post but I know it’s unfair to say such things without any explanation so that’s what I’m here to do! It’s rare for me to dislike a book with such passion. This is an extremely popular book so clearly something it about it appeals to other people, but none of it appealed to me.

The Atlas Six is fantasy dark academia with the premise of the six most talented and promising medeians (which are just university educated magicians) in the world being invited to join the elite Alexandrian Society. The catch is, there are only five places. Being in this society unlocks all the doors to power. Apparently, it’s a society trying to be the ‘caretakers of knowledge’ and do good in the world but in the book all we see them do is hoard knowledge like a dragon hoards gold. They have all these rare and ancient texts, books on any subject that could cross your mind and they just sit on it being high and mighty. It felt like the book wanted to discuss the idea that it’s dangerous when a group of people control knowledge distribution because knowledge is power. But on the other hand, sometimes knowledge is dangerous in the wrong hands but what gives someone the right to decide who has access to what? I don’t think it did a particularly good job of exploring this idea though. There was another group opposing the Society which popped up a couple of times to say what they’re doing is wrong but beyond that the main characters barely questioned the way the Society works, they were too busy being obsessed about themselves and their powers.

The point of view shifted between the six main characters- I found them all obnoxious. The experience was pretty much just, “Oh no, it’s another Parisa chapter”. At the beginning I thought Reina was interesting, she had the ability to make plants grow, but I feel like she made barely any impact in the story compared to the others. I found Libby plain annoying, and Nico was alright, but I didn’t really care about him. They both could physically manipulate their surroundings. I will say I did like Libby and Nico’s dynamic because they were competing and supposedly hated each other but also knew each other better than anyone else and trusted each other the most. But like everything else in this book, it didn’t really go anywhere. Callum was just supremely obnoxious; he was able to manipulate people’s emotions and I feel like he was just too arrogant for his own good. Tristan probably left the biggest impression on me only because I liked his journey of understanding his powers. Parisa was such a nightmare and I feel like she was hogging a big chunk of the chapters. She was a telepath and extremely beautiful (as we kept being reminded) and she uses her powers to seduce people, sleep with them and take advantage of/ manipulate them. I’m not saying that’s wrong but with telepathy the sky’s the limit, there’s so much more she could be doing with it and isn’t. We just have to endure chapters and chapters of Parisa thinking she’s the coolest, smartest person in the whole world who’s oh so beautiful and it’s exhausting. The relationships between the characters also felt very shallow.

Reading this book feels like jumping between the minds of six self-absorbed, annoying, chosen one wannabes and it’s extremely frustrating. I can’t believe I managed to read the book until the end. It was trying so hard to have edgy, morally grey characters and ended up with a bunch on unlikeable, arrogant people drunk on their own power.

Most of this book was just sophisticated rambling, fancy words and pretty sounding writing and if you actually stop and think about the meaning of these words or what they’re adding to the wider development of the characters or story you’ll quickly realise that there is none. The characters also have a lot of long, pretentious conversations trying to sound all dramatic and philosophical but it’s really just nonsense and empty words.

This was a part I highlighted on my kindle when I was reading, it’s about Libby’s dead sister. I think it illustrates my point about the writing style pretty well. I remember when I was in high school I used to always use the word ‘juxtaposition’ when I wanted to sound extra fancy for no reason and I feel like that’s also what the author was doing. Bear in mind, the entire book is written like this and it gets frustrating very quickly.

“It was such an uncanny juxtaposition, so acutely timed: the familiar sliver of youthful ennui (ambivalence in a strapless dress) and the empty chair next to her parents.”

Here’s another example of what I mean (I just picked a random page of the book for this).

Callum rose to his feet with a nod. “What are we celebrating?”

“Our fragile mortality,” Tristan said. “The inevitability that we will descend into chaos and dust.”

It felt like the author decided if she used enough long words and complicated sentences, she would fool the reader into thinking it was a smart book with a deeper meaning for smart people to understand when the book had no plot.

Yes, the book really didn’t have a plot. Barely anything interesting actually happened, it was mainly the characters playing mind games with each other and being full of themselves. For some reason I was holding out for an amazing plot twist that would save the whole book and give everything that happened some meaning. Then the plot twist came and it was far from amazing- it was the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever read. I don’t want to go into spoilers, but I felt extremely cheated as instead of giving the book meaning, the ending made the book even more meaningless than it already was.

In summary, I really didn’t enjoy The Atlas Six and I don’t understand why it has gotten so much hype (I’m starting not to trust books that have gained popularity from TikTok) and it’s really not something that I would recommend.

The plot and synopsis of this book gave me so much hope but I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. I found it really slow and not in the slow burn way, just slow. I couldn't really tell you about what happened in the first half of the book.

I feel like the book had too many subplots that weren't fleshed out enough for them to be beneficial. I think they confused the plot a bit rather than aided it. I'm hoping in the next book these will be explored more so that we can learn more about what's actually going on in this book.

The magic in this book was really interesting so I ignored my doubts for the majority for the majority of this book about the characters and the writing style and read to the end. I'm really confused by this book because whilst at the time I felt like I didn't really enjoy it, I read it really quickly and looking back on it now, I feel like I enjoyed it and can't wait to read the next one. I think the book and the series has really high potential so I probably will pick up the next one.

Really didn't get on with this book I'm afraid. Didn't like any of the six main characters, didn't really engage with the plot. It's a shame as I'd heard a lot of really great things. Not for me, sorry.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for a review.

The Atlas Six is such a popular book, so I was really excited to see the new version on NetGalley.

I'm a bit unsure on this one. I enjoyed the premise and the world, but I felt like there were far too many POVs and not enough difference between them. I got lost at points. I also felt like the plot meandered a bit, and didn't have the drive I wanted it to.

It's really character-driven, which is fine, but I tend to want a bit more plot in my books.

I think there was a chance here to do a heavy edit for the traditional publishing that may have been lost, as a lot of people already loved it. And that's great, good for them! But it wasn't my cup of tea. I'm sticking with A Deadly Education for murderous magic school vibes.

3 stars.

Fantastic premise: dark academia, magic, and books! Six students, but only 5 can graduate. What could go wrong?
Well, first of all... the characters. For me, they were simply surface level and hard to get into their heads. Actually disliked all off them and they all disliked each other too, so wasn't very fun to be with them.
Plot... lost, completely lost. Meandering story that didn't know where it was going. It felt like it wanted to be something, but wasn't able to.
The writing was pretty... way too pretty maybe, but lacking depth for me.
Reading it felt like a slog, so I decided to put it down and leave it to someone else that might love it better.

I'm gutted I am one of them people that didn't like it!

I so wanted to love this book but I admit, I didn’t adore it…
Characters were interesting but perhaps too many point of views for me to keep up with?
The world of the Alexandrian society was fascinating and the hints of the Roman forum.
The ending though, was fab. I guessed part of it (the who dunnit aspect) but not how it would fit within the story. For that, I want to read the next book.

Obviously, I have seen all the hype for The Atlas Six. I no longer let hype suck me in nowadays as I've been burnt before, but nevertheless I was curious about reading this one. I don't read much dark academia as it's really not my genre, and I don't understand the enthusiasm for it (unless it's boarding school vibes, in which case YES).

I flew through the beginning of The Atlas Six, even though one could argue that the start of the book is the most boring. You follow Atlas as he goes around collecting the main characters to introduce them to this mysterious society, and it's all very monotonous and repetitive. That said, I liked getting to know the characters in advance, even though it was done in the least subtle way possible.

I read the first two hundred pages or so in good time. Then the book started to drag in the middle because nothing of note was happening. The characters spent a lot of time talking to one another, theorising about their powers, but at the same time other characters were completely absent. Nico and Reina, for example, were often conveniently off-page sparring because the author didn't want them in a scene.

I didn't like any of the ships - or potential ships - that were going on, apart from perhaps Libby and Nico. But even with their bickering, I really do see the two of them as friends more than anything else. I didn't care for the relationships between anyone.

I have a bit of a gripe with how Parisa, the only confirmed bisexual main character, was portrayed. I have noticed that in a lot of media that bisexual woman are often shown to be cheaters or overly sexual. Parisa in this book uses this to her advantage, yes, but it still felt like a stereotype and was very disappointing.

All that said, I did enjoy my time with The Atlas Six, and I was intrigued by the ending. I'm looking forward to reading the sequel when it comes out later this month, and it'll be particularly interesting to see how Blake's writing has evolved since writing this first book.

I’m still fairly new to this genre, I have to get used to the world building which always seems to take quite a bit of reading in the first book. But what I liked with this one is it’s character based. Which is something I love. Although there is a lot of flicking back and forth from one character to another at the beginning and I found myself getting a little confused as to who was who, but once I was further in I started to get used to this.

Six of the best young magicians are each offered a place to join the secretive Alexandrian Society, they are not allowed to tell anyone what or where they are going. They all have a place for a year, but at the end of that year there are only 5 places to be filled who will get a place and who will be let go.

Libby and Nico are enemies they can’t stand each other, they are both cosmologists and can control matter with their minds. Paris a is a telepath, Reina is a naturalist, Callum is an empath, and finally Tristan has powers that mystify even himself.

It’s difficult to give a review on this without giving away spoilers which I don’t want to do. I did find it very slow to read at the beginning. The main plot is the 6 have to compete for only 5 places so someone is going to be disappointed. So it’s basically a magic competition, in dark Academia, there are plenty of lies to unravel as the story progresses. Which character’s do you like? Who will get it together?

Each character stands out in their own rights, I latched onto Libby from the start for me she is a hero. I found Nico a bit full of himself, arrogant, but is it a love hate relationship with him and Libby really is that an act or will things change as the story progresses. Paris a has a lot of layers I am uncertain about her at the moment. Reina still has plenty more skills to come. Tristan is a puzzle to me, he is complicated, maybe more will come from book 2 for him. Callum I’m just not sure about can he be trusted? All of the characters are nicely fleshed out but I think book 2 may deliver more plot and story, especially now we know the characters.

Overall I enjoyed this despite it being a little slow to start, but it think it’s because I like character driven stories if it hadn’t been for that I am not sure I would have continued. Let’s see what’s to come in book two

Firstly, a huge thank you to Black Crow PR, Tor and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

After reading the description and the hype around the book, I was very excited to get started. The opening chapters held a lot of promise and I was very intrigued by the characters and the premise, however, at 36% I had to mark the novel as DNF. I do want to try and go back to the. novel eventually, as it's very possible that I'm just not in the right mindset for this novel right now, as I can see why so many people are enjoying it.

There were some moments that were exciting, however, the pacing was a little off which was a barrier for me to get into the novel. Additionally, whilst it was great to see the different characters reacting in this situation, and it was a great way to introduce them too, the constant switching between perspectives made it difficult to connect with any of them enough to care about them. I also found it very difficult to like any of the characters - they all felt like extreme caricatures of personality types, and yet, a lot of them felt the same. It's possible that they do develop and become likeable, or more substantial characters, as the story progresses, however, it's difficult for me to continue with a read when the characters don't appeal to me.

Overall, this novel has a lot of potential with an incredible premise and, as I said, I can definitely understand why people like these characters even if they aren't for me. Unfortunately, this time, the novel disappointed me rather than delighted me.