The Black Prism
-
-
4.4 • 1.3K Ratings
-
-
- $9.99
Publisher Description
THE BLACK PRISM begins a brand new action-packed tale of magic and adventure ...
Guile is the Prism, the most powerful man in the world. He is high priest and emperor, a man whose power, wit, and charm are all that preserves a tenuous peace. Yet Prisms never last, and Guile knows exactly how long he has left to live.
When Guile discovers he has a son, born in a far kingdom after the war that put him in power, he must decide how much he's willing to pay to protect a secret that could tear his world apart.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
With this complicated fantasy about family politics, bestseller Weeks (The Way of Shadows) moves into familiar territory. An unloved, orphaned boy is the offspring of someone important; twins assume each other's identities; an aged ruler clings to power. Weeks manages to ring new tunes on these old bells, letting a deep background slowly reveal its secrets and presenting his characters in a realistically flawed and human way. Gavin Guile is facing his final five years as leader of a magical college whose members turn colors of light into various materials. Seeking to rectify the lingering wrongs from the war against his twin, Dazen, he is instead forced to acknowledge a bastard son, face down a corrupt governor, and stop a challenge to the state religion. Frequent perspective shifts keep the reader guessing as to who is heretic and who is hero. Author tour.
Customer Reviews
Some fun stuff, some cringe stuff
Good writing, fun magic system, the main kid is a little in-celly to me. Hopefully it’s a loser to hero story and the author is just making him ultra pathetic at the beginning of his journey
Black Prism - Incel Power Fantasy
Black Prism has some interesting and unique ideas. Color drafting is really neat as a concept. But it’s ruined by the fact that Kip, the “hero” of the story, is entirely unbearable. He’s a stereotypical weak, clumsy, extremely awkward pre-teen kid who is hopeless in every social situation, especially when facing the opposite sex (and the author seldom fails to put Kip in situations that underscore these faults—for example, the scene where he helps a girl pack her underwear nearly made me stop reading altogether). You know, the sort of kid that’s an easy target for bullies. Every one of his chapters is cringe-inducing.
Yet, Kip is also an all-powerful drafting prodigy that always magically comes out on top when threatened, often by accident. Imagine reading Harry Potter, but instead of Harry, the main protagonist is Neville Longbottom, but with less depth. It would still likely be better than this book, and I’m not even a fan of Harry Potter.
Which brings me to the real reason that I dislike this book. Kip never improves as a character. He doesn’t mature or overcome his faults. He’s just as pathetic at the end of the book as he is at the beginning, except he has superpowers by the end. I haven’t read any other books in the series because according to most sources I’ve found, Kip doesn’t really improve much throughout the series, and I honestly can’t be arsed.
Black Prism is a YA book that seems to be targeted at the very specific and marginalized segment of that demographic that can identify with the protagonist. But even when I was an awkward tween, I don’t think I would have enjoyed this story. I give it two stars only because of the unique aspects of the setting.
Unique and interesting
It's hard to put a finger on what makes Brent Weeks' writing so hard to put down. One thing I can say for sure is that there are plenty of unique ideas. Moreover, here is an author unafraid to break the norm and reverse stereotypes. I have to say that I did see all the twists coming, but it was a good "hah, I guessed right" sort of feeling.