Trial_of_Humanity

Now, I've read it all: the whole novel, all the 992 chapters, chapter for chapter, word for word, bar for bar. And I can confidently say... ...This is actually good! Is it a masterpiece? No. Is it perfect? Of course not. Is it as bad as the rumors and other reviewers make it sound like? Nope. This novel tells the story of Nick, a dirt poor homeless boy whose only property under his name are his own organs. He lives in the slums, the lowest of the low, but it's not like outside is that much better considering the world is set in a post-apocalyptic setting. We see the story from his perspective, not the narrator's POV; so, for anybody of you who likes to impersonate yourself into the protagonist's shoes... I'll make it quick, that's not going to happen. This isn't some sort of SI/OC novel, this is not YOUR story or the Author's, this is all about the aforementioned boy Nick – his own person – and how he struggles both among the poverty and the danger of the supernatural right behind the door. All of his decisions are his, all of his reasonings are his, all of his smart moments and terrible mistakes are all his and deeply tied to his character. There are many things Nick did in his life, things that would both put him on a pedestal, or beneath a guillotine. It is understandable and encouraged to get angry with Nick's decisions, as he is far from perfect. This is one of those novels where you aren't meant to idolize the protagonist above everyone else, but to doubt each and every one of his choices. The author himself does not condone Nick's actions, but he does write about it because he wants a story to be built, regardless of whatever moral message or any such thing involved; if there is any at all. Hence, if you read the story and feel like you want to drop it because you don't agree with the protagonist's actions, despite practically riding the hype train up to that point... Don't you p###y out, b###h. Read to the very end like a man. Now, with that put aside... Let's get to the rating! And be careful, for there will be spoilers. As you can see, maybe yes or maybe not, I've given this novel a rating of 4.4 after some thorough thinking. The novel is good and worth the read, yes, but there are still spots where I think can be improved. To start with, there's not really anything to say about the writing style. It's actually practically perfect as it is. It is direct, on point, short, and generally with no grammar error beyond a few rare mistypings. Story Development... I've given it 4 stars, actually, although it's not because I think the story is worth that. This novel isn't constantly good, and reasonably so; after all, it's about 992 chapters, practically a million words' worth of content if not more. There are a few parts that may feel lacking or not in line with the story's vibes, but that's only about those specific parts; if we're talking about the whole story in general, then I'd say it's almost perfect, with most of the past content having importance in the latter parts of the plot, and like a loop, the latter parts being relevant to the previous arcs. Still, I would say for the author to improve on both his consecutive timeskip chapters and on the epilogue, both of which I feel are suffering from a lack of attention. But beyond that, the novel's plot is about as good as it could possibly be! Now, Character Design... Well, almost perfect, if I have to say. Nobody can be considered "truly evil" for no reason, since this is a post-apocalyptic novel; everyone does evil not because they like it, but because the thing they gain from it outweighs the guilt and the morality of the action. People are greedy because the circumstances allow them to be like that, people kill others because of reasons that push them to commit atrocities, accidents happen to everybody, and there's absolutely nobody who acts like some cut-out cardboard. From the protagonist to the extras that appear for mere chapters, they all have roles to fit into, and the author writes them perfectly. Unfortunately, as much as I'd like to do it, I can't give it 5 stars for one reason alone. The protagonist... Well, there's one particular part in the story where the protagonist's character development seemed to have happened offscreen, since there were more important things going on in that moment. The development in question refers to Nick's ability to recognize his mistake of killing one certain fellow, which – while it has been several years since then – it was still unexpected to see how Nick went from thinking he did the right thing for taking revenge, up to acknowledging he did the wrong thing without barely even mentioning this change of mindset. Beside that, however, there are no flaws whatsoever. In fact, I'd say character interactions are the best part of the novel, excelling beyond other novels in the app. As for update stability, I got nothing to say since I just binge read the whole thing at once when it was coincidentally finished, but I trust in the author's capacity of keeping a constant release like he did in his last stories. And then there's the world's background... Well, honestly, in most circumstances, the narration of the world was on point with the necessary context needed to understand the gravity of the situation. There are a few chapters that don't really explain anything beyond some boring and unnecessary info dump, but there are also chapters where this unnecessary stuff still manages to elicit some humorous reaction after some tragic or dark arc. Long story short, the world's background is almost always on point, but in some rare times it gets a bit too heavy. All in all, the story has its ups and its downs, but there is not a single average moment in here. The battle choreography is great, the tragic parts left me speechless, and the way the characters react to their circumstances or against each other is something I feel like should be taken as an example for any starting author. This is the kind of story that CHANGES people. It is worth your time, trust me.