The Will of the Many (1) (Hierarchy)

I give this book all the stars, 5, 6, 10, 20... because it has everything I look for in a story. 684 pages of goodness, entertainment and theme.You’ll find:-An action-packed plot with layered context to include inner struggles, moral conflict, secret identities, deceptions, friendship & enemies, political & religious agendas-Strong character development-Adequate structure and pacing-Jaw dropping reveals - All the way to the very last PAGE!! Trust me, you won’t see them coming-Insightful nuggets (my personal favorite)I loved every single page of this story! I am counting down the days, to see DIAGO (MC) again in BOOK 2, release date, November 11, 2025!

The Will of the Many showed up on my suggested books on Kindle yesterday evening, and after reading the sample in record time (even for me), I decided to buy the full book. I’m so glad I did! The characters were well-developed, the worldbuilding was solid and detailed without overwhelming info-dumps, the themes were thought-provoking, the general imagery was fascinating, and the plot was twisty enough to surprise me. (And as a writer myself, that’s fairly rare!)Go figure I mostly want to talk about the characters, but Vis is amazing! I really enjoyed having a competent—if slightly inexperienced at times—protagonist going into a new series. He’s intelligent, intriguing, courageous, and generally manages to avoid the stupid mistakes that most teenage protagonists tend to fall into so easily. He’s definitely not perfect, but I was rooting for him almost immediately.Briefly described, the setting is a “Post-Cataclysmic,” Roman-Empire-reminiscent world with a strict hierarchy that is rather caste-like. Everyone in the empire “cedes” a portion of their “Will” to the levels above them in a pyramid-like structure, leaving the highest levels with tremendous power and influence. This raises interesting questions of autonomy, as well as leading readers to consider the impact (and tacit complicity) of staying silent and complying with “the system.” As one character says in the first quarter of the book, “—should we not hold others to the standards to which we hold ourselves? Anyone who does not resist them… is lending them their strength. Is complicit in all that they do.” Granted, we are not ceding actual tangible power in our daily lives, but the concept still made me think more deeply about how many things we lend our silent support to, simply because of our unwillingness to take a stand and risk the loss of our comfort zones and social popularity.The last characteristic of this book that I enjoyed was its length. I strongly appreciate long fantasy books (when done well). At no point when reading The Will of the Many was I bored and wanting the story to end. On the contrary, my only fear while reading was that it would end before I was ready. As it was, the ending was satisfying and certainly a cliff-hanger, but not as bad a one as I’d feared. I will certainly be on the lookout for the sequel!If you’re looking for an adventurous fantasy with fascinating, multi-dimensional characters, thought-provoking themes, and dark political academia vibes with fierce competition between individuals and classes, this book might just thrill you as much as it did me :)

Throughout most of the book I couldn't put it down. The Will of the Many's first person perspective, violent and detailed action sequences, great world building, layered political plots and exceptional protagonist make this an enjoyable read.There are flaws, though. (No spoilers.)The setting of Ancient Rome with magic might not work for some. Latin words and neologisms throughout.You *really* have to suspend your disbelief at times, especially in the second half of the book. Some characters willingly believe something when they would have relentlessly questioned it a few chapters before. Or an act of compassion becomes a predictable but essential plot point. At times I was shaking my head at the apparent laziness of the plot devices.The biggest flaw, though, is that our hero cannot fail. At all. Failure is always death or worse. This leads to a lot of false tension and belabored conflict since you know he will succeed.The influences of Dune, Mistborn, Kingkiller and Count of Monte Cristo or Demolished Man are quite apparent. I was unpleasantly surprised at the similarities to Harry Potter in the middle of the book.Pacing suffers at times while the author details what it's like to trudge through a thick forest. Again. And again.Ignore other reviewers' accusations of it being a romantasy. While there's some of that it's by no means dominant nor detailed. This is adult fiction not some YA romantasy trash.All that said, I recommend it. I can't wait for the next book.