Haptic Imperative

Information

Status

Completed

Year

2022

Author

AMBLE

• Chapter Thirty-Five
  Mar 23, 2022
• Chapter Thirty-Four
  Mar 21, 2022
• Chapter Thirty-Three
  Mar 18, 2022
• Chapter Thirty-Two
  Mar 16, 2022
• Chapter Thirty-One
  Mar 14, 2022
• Chapter Thirty
  Mar 11, 2022
• Chapter Twenty-Nine
  Mar 9, 2022
• Chapter Twenty-Eight
  Mar 7, 2022
• Chapter Twenty-Seven
  Mar 4, 2022
• Chapter Twenty-Six
  Mar 2, 2022
• Chapter Twenty-Five
  Feb 28, 2022
• Chapter Twenty-Four
  Feb 25, 2022
• Chapter Twenty-Three
  Feb 23, 2022
• Chapter Twenty-Two
  Feb 21, 2022
• Chapter Twenty-One
  Feb 18, 2022
• Chapter Twenty
  Feb 16, 2022
• Chapter Nineteen
  Feb 14, 2022
• Chapter Eighteen
  Feb 11, 2022
• Chapter Seventeen
  Feb 9, 2022
• Chapter Sixteen
  Feb 7, 2022

Reviews

Community Reviews(10)

• Beans98Royal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  This is a wonderful story. The magic system is extremly satifiying and intriguing, with a basis on changing things, rather than pure displays of power and destruction.
  I believe that the chracters also share the spotlight on what makes this story great so far. I really enjoy seeing each chracter's flaws and emotions, adding to the imersivness of this story.
• Leahcim ZanathaxRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  This book is simultaneously one of the best novels I;ve read on RR AND one of the most infuriating.
  The take on magic is amazing!  My only knock on it is that it never feels like its introduced properly - we get to see the MC using it and then have it vaguely explained afterwards.
  The main characters, are interesting ones.  Not perfect, by any means, and very intentionally.
  My only real complaint about this novel - the thing about magic is more an observation than a complaint - is that the MC spends 95% of the novel being savvy and smart, and does some REALLY dumb stuff only as the most important events in the book are happening!
  It's basically the opposite of Deus ex Machina, and annoying for the same reason - the MC does incredibly stupid things for no obvious reason, other than the fact that it pushed the story in the direction the author desires!
  Its frankly infuriating, and it happens repeatedly, which would normally be more than enough to get me to drop a story instantly!  Haptic Imperative was good enough to get me to not do that in other ways, though... and good enough to get me to give a 5 Star Rating! If I could give it a 4.9, I would, but the writing, character development, and magic system make up for its flaws!
  Give it a read.  Its relatively short by RR standards, and very good!
• Dreamwolf969Royal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  This is a both infuriating and wonderfull story, finished in 56 chapters and highly read worthy. Technicaly it's completely plot driven and the characters jump and twists between hopeless despair and "deux ex machinas" continuosly.
  That said the author has an excellent grasp of language and despite currying the text with words and phrases from a dozen foreign languages makes no grammatical errors at all.
  The story is a timeloop dito, following Orton, the protagonist and Gentry, the villain while they each build strenght and gains compatriots and worldy possessions by mostly magical means.
  The magic system is one of the most complex and visionary I have seen anywhere and sometimes feels like an word sallad with no limits but in the end works really well and have sharp limits.
  Neither of the characters are full likeable and the MC have, imho not learnt enough in previous loops but they are all given motivations and mostly reasonable reactions except when the plot needs them to lose their heads completely. I also question the speed by wich the villain gains knowledge and power but even that seems likely directed by the plot.
  Don't let this critique warn you off from the story though. It is really good and bingeworthy with a fast pacing and constant twists.
  I found out, late in my reading, that the story is set in a world connected to a RPG in development and now I look forward to that.
• hmdrakeRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  This has the bones of a really great story, I'm really enjoying it so far. The main character is interesting and flawed, while still relatable and likeable. The author mentions basing this on a tabletop system, and it's apparent in a very good way. The magic system is a good mix of Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman, Invisible Sun, and a dash of Unknown Armies or Mage the Ascension. You can feel as they magic is described, thought has been put into how it interacts with itself, the world, and how it balances out in consequence. Definitely worth the read, I hope it continues as well aas it starts.
• DraddockRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  "The problem with magic," said Orton, stuffing a handful of french fries into his mouth, "is that it's both too powerful and not powerful enough."
  Julie frowned, sipping her chocolate shake. "That doesn't make any sense."
  "Magic usually doesn't."
  Story:
  Basically a timeloop adventure, where we start with our MC losing the final boss battle (for the fourth time), and spending his last few moments of consciousness to send his mind backwards in time to his 18 year old body. And it seems to be off to a really great start.
  Orton seems like a badass from the very start, but the Final Boss, Gentry, seems like a towering, impassable wall. Once we get back to the past, we see Orton start his journey to reacquirring his previous level of power. He seems knowledgeable, smart, and dedicated. We also get a few glimpses of Gentry acquiring power. But then you have to remember that Orton has already had four tries at stopping Gentry, and he's failed so badly that he had to reset time. How can the enemy be so powerful that even if you know the future, know what he'll do, and start at the same time, you still can't win?
  Setting:
  I didn't know about anything about the setting of "Entangled Shadows" before starting this, but I like the uniqueness of the magic system. Basically magic is intrinsictly related to quantum weirdness. Magic just doesn't just change reality, it changes you fundamentally.
  > "You'll change, and in changing, the person you are will stop existing."
  Grammar:
  Seems solid. Haven't noticed any problems, and sentences flow nicely.
• Skylark (Dion Sky)Royal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Haptic Imperative is a strikingly impressive classic urban fantasy straight out of the 1990s, despite being written well after the fact.
  The first thing you'll notice is the incredible quality of prose and complete lack of any grammatical errors (I can't think of another story on Royal Road that doesn't have at least one), which is noteworthy on its own. This really does fall solidly into the 'established professional author' benchmark rather than the typical indie RR offering, and frankly, does prose better than most examples I can think of even of the former. A couple of the previous reviews mention the language can be confusing, but I disagree. Stylistically, it's easy to read and the more unusual vocabulary can be figured out from context.
  Story-wise, main character Orton - a very powerful wizard - is travelling through his fifth iteration of a time loop in order to defeat an even more powerful wizard trying to destroy the world. I liked the unusual choice of the fifth loop as the focus, seeing as the genre typically tends to either zoom in on the first loop or out on the macro picture as a whole.
  It's otherwise classic urban fantasy with classic pacing. Expect gritty, dark bursts of rapid-fire action offset by lulls for the characters to gather their bearings, plus exotic locations and well-researched multicultural lore. I'm unfamiliar with the RPG system the story is based on, but it manages not to feel like it was built around one at all, and wouldn't have guessed it if it hadn't been stated.
  Characters again have that classic urban fantasy feel - all of them interesting and leaving you wanting to learn more. Probably my biggest issue (and not a major one) about this story is that one prominent character's arc simply stops halfway through in a way that seems to completely negate their prior buildup. But that's an issue with the story rather than the character.
  I note other reviewers mention the mistakes or oversights characters make re: loops - yes, this happ
• LR-FenwickRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 4.5

  When it comes to time-loop stories, it is incredibly easy to riddle your plot with so many holes it ends up unrecognizable as a coherent story; or worse yet, make it an uncompelling read. Haptic Imperative avoids that quite deftly I'd say, but that's far from the only thing it's got going for it.
  If I were forced at revolver-point to describe it in one word, 'Unique' is certainly my first choice. It is Strange with a capital S. It's tangled web of worldbuilding, character motivations, and magic system took some time for my head to wrap around(I'll admit, I'm still a bit off even as I write this review). It's strange in a good way though, and it's short enough that the off-putting oddness of it doesn't overstay its welcome.
  For Millenials(Old enough to remember the 1990s in America) Haptic Imperative's world oozes with the style of the era, mixed with a hyper-spiritualistic, mythologic, and Religious coat smeared all over it. It's grimey, sometimes ugly, and glazed in a very unhealthy sugary frosting.
  Note: If you're not at least a little bit of a myth, history, or spiritualism nerd(like me), a lot of the jargon will go straight over your head. It didn't impact my experience much, but your mileage may vary.
  There are absolutely no grammatical mistakes as far as I noticed. Though my simple English only brain can't even approach the absolute chad-like polyglot you'd have to be to actually understand all the languages used in this book. That in itself is pretty impressive. I am totally unfamiliar with the setting of the TTRPG setting this is based on, so either it's excruciatingly detailed, the author is a painfully dedicated myth, and history nerd, or both.
  The story I must say is a tad confusing at times. There are time skips, and the character perspective often changes—though never unannounced—and the plot generally heads in unexpected, and mind-bending directions. Quite frankly, I'd probably need to read it all again to properly get everything. This isn't necessaril
• Ethernet StoryhunterRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 4.5

  Your regular looper a few rounds in.
  Weak early in energy and allies.
  Tries something new but we'll things go askew.
  Best quote yet.
  ("Aw no" "You were supposed to run"
  "Sorry" "I guess shouldn't have stopped for snacks first?" )
  Worth a read yes.
  If you don't mind fade to black sex and a questionable set of relationship choices.
  The main character is well fleshed out and interesting. The villain is excellent 👌. The supporting cast keep getting better.
  The story also is so off the rails of his previous rounds that it doesn't really count any more.
  Events are not occurring as he expects. It's quite fun to watch a looper go"... Uh um... That's not how that's supposed to work"
  Or " he didn't just say that"
  Personal favorite "this isn't happening right now"
• IapetosRoyal Road

  ★★★★ 4.0

  The Story is about a wizard, traveling back to his weak teenage self, to beat the villain, but this time for sure!
  Contrary to some novels in this general theme, the MC is not overpowered but needs to work hard to win.
  The magic system is on the one hand interesting, it has some interesting and intriguing features, or rather, consequences of casting magic.
  On the other hand it does sometimes feel like an infodump of obscure terms you would never hope to understand, the vast majority of which will never be explained in subsequent chapters. Now, it does add a sense of mystery, a sense of magic, but in fighting scenes it can get quite annoying. So annoying infact, that I began to skip over the paragraphs, just filtering out the pure necessities to comprehend the story. That's the reason for the 3/5 Style.
  The story was good, it just never captivated me like some other stories did. I was never fully absorbed to the story, never so addicted I'd forget sleeping or eating, and while the ending wasn't particularly bad, it wasn't that great either. Good story, 4/5.
  Grammar was good, the worst I noticed were a missing word and the misspelling of Edinburgh. I am no native speaker though, so you may take that with an grain of salt. 4,5/5
  The characters.
  Well. Our MC, Orton is written quite well. He feels like a realistic human, his actions normally have reason, but he's also human and can be emotional at times. His backstory makes sense, he feels fully fleshed out.
  You can see the character progression with the side characters.
  There is one side character I was annoyed with, but her being annoying was totally in character. She is a 17 year old teenager, of course she wouldn't just spend every waking hour to help our MC. 4,5/5
• luda305Royal Road

  ★★★★ 4.0

  I'd like to think that after a few hundred, I've pretty good at this whole review thing.  But I can't help but feel that I've been on a long streak now of reading (and reviewing) weird shit that I can't make heads or tails of. And yet, this one seems to take the cake.
  An anecdote first. Back in high school (mid-aughts), my friend had a book which was basically a high school power fantasy chock full of pop culture references.  It was a strange irreverent thing involving a quantum computer in your brain that told the protagonist how to be the ideal teenager he couldn't hope to be by himself. And while it's a power trip for most of the book, it all comes crashing down in the end when the "cheat" reveals itself to be flawed and leads him into some serious trouble. In that sense, it has a bit of that heroic Greek tragedy brought down by hubris.
  Haptic Imperative reminds me a lot of that.  Not just in some of the broader story themes, but particularly in the surreal magic of 90s and 00s suburban pop culture. Orton (the protagonist) is a little bit of a man-child with a love of, well, pop culture and the occult. And both get thrown at the readers in dump truck fulls as we get references to Pokemon and more occult gibberish (technobabble?) than you can swing a stick at.  It's amusing for like a handful of chapters, but unless it really tickles your fancy, your eyes start to skim past that at some point to pick back up the plot.
  The magic system has very, very few rules. And the world appears to have an infinite number of useful McGuffins that can be pulled out of a hat to save the day. Not quite unlike the occult gibberish, at some point you may also tend to skim over these matters. If you have an issue with deus ex machina, strongly pass this because you will have a bad read of it both generally and especially in the end when the last (or is it?) McGuffin is gotten from the Statute of Liberty. (No, really, it's unclear whether or not that counts as the last relevant plot o