Review of Yichen's Journey

[Justine Ocsebio]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Yichen's Journey" by S. L. Beste.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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A magical orb finds its way into the hands of a seventeen-year-old boy named Yichen. An extraordinary system unlocks within him, and Yichen gains access to his status as an extraordinary human. Yichen then finds himself fulfilling quests, which grants him incredible improvement in intellect and physical strength. But with incredible skills and abilities come immense responsibilities. Is Yichen ready for the great adventure ahead of him?

Yichen's Journey by S. L. Beste is a young adult fantasy novel. The story takes place in a futuristic world where there are significant changes in technology and ways of life. It is pure escapism, with characters tangled in fantastical adventures. To simply describe the reading experience, it felt like I was in a virtual reality game. The narrative reports Yichen’s status like he is a character in a game. The status updates and improves as the story progresses and Yichen acquires new skills or rewards. This was a unique way to tell a story, which was what I liked the most about the book.

This book delivers a great deal of action. There are battles among men, goblins, and ogres, and a battalion of zombies is at the forefront of wars. The book could’ve had the potential to deliver an epic fantasy and adventure story if only the objective aspects of the book weren’t lacking. The author mostly uses the third-person narration and sometimes slips in some first-person thoughts of the main character. Although such a technique is not uncommon, I don’t think it is executed well in this book. It felt kind of clumsy, especially when the author tended to reduce actions into short phrases with asterisks.

I also dislike it when a fantasy novel preoccupies itself with the events happening on the surface and does not delve very much beyond that. I find the characters in this book lacking in depth. There is not much inner turmoil or deep sentiments to be invested in. The book’s focus is on a hero going through all sorts of adventures, so it becomes rather unsatisfying when the story does not explore much development for the main character.

I will give Yichen’s Journey a rating of 2 out of 4 stars. I’ll say that the book has excellent editing, as there is only a single error in the text. The premise has potential. I appreciate the attempt to explore a different manner of storytelling. I deducted stars because of the objective shortcomings in the narrative that affected my enjoyment of the book. Regardless, I will recommend this book to readers who aren’t so inclined to read long narrations. Maybe other people will like the book despite its issues. This isn’t the best choice, however, for readers looking for a fantasy novel with flawless writing.

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Yichen's Journey
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[TheGayOne12]

Your rating is definitely justified, but I feel like I'll still give it a try. Fabulous review!

[Essy Nma]

I just love the aspect that fantasy lovers can enjoy this book but was turned off when you said"flawless writing". Work well done by the author. Thanks for the review.

[Ellylion]

The main character's status upgrade got me intrigued, but the issues this book has sound discouraging. Thank you for this insightful review!

[Sharon Christanto]

I also find this book kind of disappointing. I put my expectations high on this book. But the characters are underdeveloped and I don't find the 'uniqueness' since it has similar story plot with another fantasy novels.

[Amy Luman]

Maybe reading this book would help me to understand why my son enjoys spending so much of his time playing video games.

[Hyacinth Bella]

I believe that this book could have been written better, I hope the editor would take your views into consideration. I also think that I think you are truly a great writer if you can write just exact, not overwhelming, and not underwhelming. Just exact. Thank you so much for your review!

[Aisha Yakub]

Thank you for the honest feedback.

[Precious Amarachi Nzeakor]

A wonderful review!