The Will of the Many

Dark Academia has been one of my favorite genres ever since Harry Potter.

The Will of the Many takes this trope to a darker place, along the lines of Red Rising or The Hunger Games. It develops not just a school, but an entire society that I wanted to learn more about on every page.

In this society, people can cede their "will", either consensually or non-conceptually, to others making them stronger. I loved the symbolism of this societal structure with our own, while also trying to understand how to change the system from within.

This is an elegantly written, powerful story built into a Roman-inspired fantasy novel. It has characters with hidden depths, a magical school, and engraved lore etched beautifully into the background of a young man’s tale as he seeks to right the wrongs of his past.

It’s a book that never stops giving and never quite goes where you think it will, right up to an explosive ending that has you begging for a sequel. 

The Will of the Many seizes you by the throat from the start and never lets go. Suspenseful, ruthless, and thrilling in its plot and pace, it's everything I love in a story.

Our protagonist, Vis, is flawed yet likable. Better still, he's smart and dogged, accomplishing the impossible in clever ways, and yet always paying a toll.

The world-building is simply astounding. This is only the beginning, but I think it's a new favorite series of mine in the making.

This book was quite a surprise to me. It was recommended by Audible for those who liked Red Rising, and it is definitely in that same vein- science fiction/fantasy with a Roman Empire theme.

Yet it is very well-written with an interesting premise, though quite similar to the first book in the Red Rising series, where the outsider protagonist has to compete in a school of elitists. I don’t typically read science fiction, but I enjoyed this book because the characters were relatable, and the world-building was unique.