ARC Review:

Wheel of the Infinite by Martha Wells

Publication: January 2000

Updated and revised: November 19, 2024

Summary from NetGalley:

ARC provided by Tor Publishing via Netgalley for an honest review.

Confession:

This was a really interesting book, with likable characters and a really intricate plot. But the pacing was pretty much on the slow side of things, so it was never what I would call riveting or a page turner. But the world building was amazing and everything I come to expect from Ms Well’s fantasy novels.

The story is told through both Maskelle and Rian’s point of view. I liked them both, and I even liked them as a couple. This is by no means a romance. They meet, Maskelle saves Rian’s life, he follows her, they have a mutual attraction for each other and the rest of the story goes on. All that said, I really enjoyed watching them form a bond and supporting each other through the difficulties they encountered along the journey. They also had some great banter and I liked how they protected and worried about each other.

There is a nice cast of secondary characters, namely the group of actors they are traveling with. Most are not super well developed, but you get a good sense of who most of them are. I did keep getting some of the royal and religious characters confused as they all seemed to have similar names. Two of my favorites were Rastim, the leader of the actors, who had some nice comedic moments to dark times. And Mali, who hardly said anything, but was always there and helping Maskelle.

The world building was phenomenal. From the start of the book you know that you are in a world unlike our own, yet similar enough that you are not totally lost. There are totally different cultures, religions and mythology that you learn about throughout the book, and it all feels so natural that even if you don’t quite grasp some of it, you just nod your head and go along with it. My main issue with this book was the pacing, it is slow, but yet steady throughout. But that sort of added to the overall effect of the book. The slow pace added to the feeling that this was a normal life for the characters. I kind of liked that even though it annoyed me a little and I just wanted things to move along.

As much as I enjoy the Murderbot series, I think I enjoy Ms Well’s fantasies more. They are full of worlds and characters that I just really like and enjoy reading. If you are a fan of her fantasies, you will probably like this one as well, just be aware that it is a bit slow moving. If you have only read her Murderbot books, I would recommend giving this a chance.