2 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
The Wall by Some Guy narrates the life of Forge, a.k.a Gunns, as he battles humans and non-human creatures in an action-packed, fantasy story sprinkled with a touch of historical allusions. This is the first installment in an intended series.
Forge is the Captain of a team of soldiers known as the Wrecking Crew. The Wrecking Crew was dispatched to Pakistan to neutralize terrorists belonging to the notorious Al Qaeda Network. Although heavily trained and well-armed to battle humans, the Wrecking Crew was not prepared to battle an otherworldly creature. Faced with a gigantic monster with bat-like wings, the Wrecking Crew experiences the horrors they never imagined.
Years later, Forge now goes by the name Gunns, and the Wrecking Crew now works as personal bodyguards to the President of the United States. President Jonathan Rothchild has earned popularity by ordering the building of a wall that serves as the permanent boundary between the United States and Mexico. The Wrecking Crew continues forward in their new lives, leaving the events in Pakistan in the past. However, just as their lives are finally normal again, the horror begins to haunt them once more.
I picked this book from the list because the cover artwork and the title immediately reminded me of Hajime Isayama’s manga, Attack on Titan. The monster’s penchant for eating humans is indeed similar to the Titans in Attack on Titan. But although there is a reference to a ‘wall’ in both stories, their inspirations are different. The 'wall' in Some Guy’s book is probably influenced by Donald Trump’s project to create an impenetrable barrier between America and Mexico. The Wall was released just this year and the topic regarding Donald Trump's project is still hot in the media.
If you are a fan of military-themed, action fantasies with a little bit of gore, then this book may be along your lane. Please be reminded that this book is not for the light-hearted. And if you are like me, who expected a story as striking as Attack on Titan, please lower your expectations before you start reading.
The book begins with a nice, brief note from the author saying that his goal is to make his readers smile. I did smile reading the funny banters of the Wrecking Crew members. I can tell they were a group comprised of friendly, witty men. Nonetheless, the evident grammatical errors and some issues in the plot kept me from smiling all throughout the book.
My biggest problem in the book is that the narrative seems to be more ‘telling’ than ‘showing.’ Descriptions are also heavily lacking, that until the end of the book, I can’t quite picture any of the characters. The author provides some background information regarding the Wrecking Crew—including their ages and a few bits about their appearances and their families—like a character glossary at the end of the book. I wish the author integrates these details within the book itself. I wasn’t even aware there was a character glossary. Otherwise, I probably would have read that first.
In addition, the scenes with fantasy elements—like the introduction of the monster, and Gunns’s first meeting with Leviathan—were supposed to be some of the key parts of the book. However, due to the lack of vivid descriptions, these scenes didn’t affect me that much. I couldn’t share the Wrecking Crew’s horror when they saw the monster or feel Gunns’s awe when he saw Leviathan’s true form.
Although it contains references to certain real-life events, I can’t really classify the book as historical fiction because I can’t even tell which year the book is set. I know it is set in America, but America in what particular time? I have done my part as the reader and researched some facts. The Boundary Treaty between America and Mexico was signed in 1970, the Al Qaeda was formed in 1988, Osama bin Laden died in 2011, and Trump is the current U.S. President. I still don’t know where The Wall fits among these events.
The timelines of the events in the book are also a bit confusing. The first part starts with the Wrecking Crew being tortured in a cell, the next they’re in Pakistan; and then they’re within the boundary of America and Mexico. I can tell many years have passed, but the author should probably be clearer with regards to the transition of settings and timelines.
Due to the lack of descriptions, confusing scene transitions, and the book's short length, I honestly think The Wall would have been better off as a comics series, similar to Attack on Titan. As a reader, I need more source of imagery, and the illustrations in the book—which were actually beautiful I must add—could not suffice.
Overall, I appreciate the author’s effort in adding some real-life events in this book; thus, I give this book 2 out of 4 stars. But although the book has a promising premise, I think it just fell short in a lot of aspects including writing and plot progression. I am not sure how many books will comprise this series as I believe the others haven’t been published yet. Nonetheless, I don’t think I’d fancy following the continuation of this story.
******
The Wall
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Like jvez's review? Post a comment saying so!
Yes the book confused me too. I wish the author spent more time describing details.
