Description

Hodgepodge is a collection of stories set in a realm where planes fly, immortals walk, people summon weird animals, a rabbit uses a traveling shovel of death, a man and his dog try to change the future, and the underworld decides to send someone to calm things down to stop the flow of the dead.

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Community Reviews(1)

Andrew B. SalmonRoyal Road

★★★★★ 4.5

Instead of a single, linear narrative, Hodgepodge lives up to its name by providing wonderful vignettes all across space and time. From fascinating twists on the underworld to flying battlestations, prepare for entertainment and poignant moments of pain and regret -- and unexpected joys. Connections between the characters being to emerge the longer you read, but the story is more about bonds of family life, the resiliency of people in the face of loss, and the exhaustion of immortal warrant officers.
The mythos of the world is surprisngly well-developed, given that the story unfolds as a series of slice of life short stories. While csyphrett doesn't necessarily spell everything out for readers, the details and clues we find along the way help piece together a beautiful, often whimsical puzzle. This is a rich world, but not an overly-complex one. It feels consistent, yet always has room for growth and surprises. There's plenty more to explore!
My favorite arc involved Zacheriah Eight Arms and his little family (I'm making the call that Bolan is adopted now, haha). I won't include spoilers, but I love the way that they approach teamwork and tinkering. I'd happily read an entire novel just devoted to their ongoing adventures.
In terms of composition: the language is simple, clear, and largely free from clutter and distraction. The story reads smoothly and easily. One of my complaints, however, is that question marks and exclamation marks appearing at the end of a quotation are followed by a comma. An example: “How do you do?,” said the dead man. This is not standard use according to any manual of style (Chicago, MLA, etc) with which I'm familiar. Otherwise, grammar and word choice are generally solid.
If you're looking for a new experience that doesn't involve the tired tropes that litter RR, take some time to enjoy Hodgepodge. You'll be glad you did -- I know I am!

Hodgepodge

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Chapters(114 total)

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Community Reviews(1)