Nomads of the Sea

Information

Status

Completed

Year

2021

Author

Jacob A Zucker

• Prologue
  Feb 2, 2021

Reviews

Community Reviews(10)

• David TalonRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Reviewed to Chapter - 7
  Nomads is a well crafted, imaginative fantasy set in an empire plunging into war. The pacing is good, the grammer polished, and the world-building very well done. The prologue sets the stage better than I've seen in some published novels.
  The initial pacing is slower than some would like, yet I think it's perfect to show the differences between the two cultures, with the tension increasing as the story progresses. The characters themselves are well drawn, especially the main characters, and while the names took some getting used to, by the third chapter or so they began to sound natural.
  This is a story I plan to continue following as I really want to know what happens next...
• Derin_EdalaRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  I'm writing this five chapters into the story so I only have the beginning to go on so far.
  This story is fantastically written. It really gets the reader hooked on the conflict being built early on. The cultures and concerns of moth main characters are interesting and well-developed, nd the characters themselves likeable and distinct. Normally I like to point out a story's weaknesses as well as strengths in a review but there's very little that could be improved here; I'd say the prologue is unnecessary (they usually are) but in this case even that enriches Idalia's story (she doesn't know about her mother! :( ) and adds important context.
  The story juggles the two viewpoint characters well, keeping them each interesting enough that switching between them isn't frustrating for the reader, and keeping them clear and distinct. Exposition is quite cleverly woven into the story; at no point does the characters explaining their culture to each other drag or feel out of place. The cultures themselves, each dealing with their own insurrections, are equally fascinating.
  If you're in the mood for a bit of character drama, some complicated politics, and a good old-fashioned magical war, this story is definitely worth a look.
• TheChromaBooksRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Overall
  I read the Prologue and Chapter One. It seems very rich and well-thought-out overall, and the writing is of professional quality. My review may change in the future as I read further into the story. Perhaps unfortunately, this story is so well-written I almost don't have two hundred words to say about it; the style, story, grammar, and characters were all worth a straight five-star review with very few problems if any to complain about.
  Style
  The style is tight, well-grounded, and clear. The author has obviously found their voice and knows how to use it. I appreciate that the author seems to have given this a thorough edit before publishing it.
  Story
  The story seems to know where it's headed and grabs you by the scruff of the neck, wasting no time by bringing you right into the fold. I do think a prologue will turn out to be necessary for this story so I hope the author does not remove it.
  Grammar
  Grammar and spelling was near-perfect. No issues here.
  Character
  Both characters introduced were distinct and felt real. I enjoyed Genevieve's point-of-view and had warmed up to Sig by the end of his section. As an additional note, in general, I'm here for well-written WLW--which this story seems to possess at least in passing.
• azauRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Nomads of the Sea Spolier-Free Review Bases on ARC
  I thoroughly enjoyed Nomads as a new fantasty-take on the rarely explored indo-pacific region. The book takes a unique magic system and weaves it seamlessly into the lives of the characters. Without giving away anything, all I can say is that the book continued to draw me deeper the further I read, and I ended up finishing it in one sitting!
  Grammar: No grammar or continuity issues that took away from the reader experience. Dialogue flows easily between the characters and helps build a deeper understanding of their internal motivations.
  Characters: Rarely have a I read a story with multiple POVs where I was excited to get back to each of their storylines. Each POV is balanced throughout the story to give the reader a complex understanding of the world the author is building.
  Story Style: More fantasy than lit-fic (no blue boxes here), but a compelling tale that leaves you excited for the remainder of the series.
  Overall, I would highly recommend giving this story a read. The book takes worldbuilding queues from Sanderson and character development from Abercrombie, and while not on that level is a solid first take from a new author. Plus the book is complete so you're guaranteed a satisfying ending.
• Dylan KingRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  An incredibly original fantasy setting, with complex characeterisations and a well-built world.
  The story has an excellent flow, though the pace can drag at times, and the characters are engaging to follow. The story does suffer at times from 'white room syndrome' and at times I struggled to visualise the locations, particularly durign dialogue.
  Overall though, a fantastic story that really shows the author's talents. I look forward to seeing this story and it's author progress!
• D.C.VeilingRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  This one was a bit hard for me to judge. The pacing is slow while I prefer faster pacing and I couldn't really warm up to Sig yet. But I know that both of that is very subjective and I will try to rate the fiction objectively.
  Style:  The novel really reads like any professionally written fantasy book - beautiful descriptions that make it easy to visualise the environment and characters. As said, it is heavy on flowery descriptions but that's a feature for some and a bug for others^^. Thus, my objective score: 5*
  Story: Despite being only through chapter 6, I can already see a lot of careful worldbuilding and interesting foreshadowing events. I might adapt this score after reading further into the book, but as of now: 5* straight.
  Grammar: If there is anything to find, my English is not good enough to find it^^ 5*
  Character: as of now, I still really can't feel anything for Sig - neither bad nor good while most of the early chapters were about him. On the other side, the two chapters from Idala's PoV already brought her to life and I love her. I'm going to settle for 4* now but might change this as I read on.
  Overall I can only recommend the book for anyone who likes a beautifully crafted fantasy world with slow pacing (similar to Terry Goodkind's "Sword of Truth). 5*
• LadylibraryRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Zucker does a fantastic job toeing, but never crossing, the line of giving readers more rich worldbuilding than they can handle. The world is rich and complex but well thought out and introduced, avoiding the downfall of many fantasy stories.
  The Nomads of the Sea is a tale of two very different cultures interacting and Zucker introduces these cultures to both each other and the readers in a refreshingly natural way. Personally, I am a big fan of character driven stories which is what I would classify this book as from what I've read so far (5 chapters plus prologue). The only reason I do not give 5/5 stars for story is that the overarching plot has not yet been clearly revealed.
  Grammar is good and does not detract from readability at all. There are a few nit-picky mistakes but nothing to interupt the story.
  The character's personalities and cultures are what really shine. Madame Genevieve Gross from the prologue had me sucked into this story with her skillfully woven personality. Both Sig and Idalia are well-written as well with hopes and dreams that make them real. I look forward to seeing their meeting and what Zucker has in store.
• MShadowlawnRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 5.0

  Disclaimers: This was originally written as part of a review swap, but that doesn't affect my actual ratings. Also, my Overall is for my subjective experience as a reader, with category-specifics reflecting a more objective analysis.
  BLUF: A highly imaginative fantasy with creative and distinct worldbuilding and solid characters, that isn't afraid to take its damn time to focus on the actual worldbuilding. If you're Just Here For Godzilla, this might not suit your tastes(unless you view the worldbuilding as the real Godzilla, like my title says).
  Grammar: I think I caught a few artifacts here and there, but nothing that actually affected readability in a meaningful manner.
  Story: A bit on the slow side. I was definitely digging chapter 3, but it started to stack up some drag later-even if the lore's actually really cool. If my best impressions of the writing are true, though, there will be blood soon, but it also wouldn't surprise me if he found a way to glean an extra chapter or two of more worldbuilding before we get to see something happen. There's a lot of cool immersion aspects to the worldbuilding such as widely different cultures, magic science, and culture-specific powers and tech. It's very clear he took his time on that front.
  Character: Very good characters being written here, I like how they're distinct from each other, and even side characters feel like they have serious personality in one capacity or another. I can also dig his choices in what kinds of character's he's chosen to place in, as there's a lot of variety to go into there-we've got a magic scientist, two lieutenants who have a thing for each other, and Sig himself, who's also pretty cool, among a cast of other characters I could easily grow to really like.
  Style: A little wordy at times, and not unwilling to take its time, but it rarely feels like that time is actually being outright wasted, like I've experienced before in other works that seem to take this more traditionally-oriented feel i
• ~HOLLOW~Royal Road

  ★★★★★ 4.5

  Overall, 4.5/5, I reccomend it :)
  I do not like reading as much as I have used to because I do alot of it for school. It's jaded me. It's made me skim over entire paragraphs and simply zone out. However this story is the first in a long time that made me slow down and read something. It has made me remember why I like reading. I reccomend it to those that like high Fantasy, and those that are simply looking for something slightly different.
  Style Score 4.5/5
  The author clearly has his own voice, and it shows through his writing. My only qualm is that I wish he was more descriptive in some parts of the book, but I prefer descriptive writing myself. It is a small qualm, but the upside for giving generalizions in some parts of books is that it lets the reader imagine.
  Grammar Score 5/5
  Not much to say here. His writing is quite on point. I wish my grammar was as good as his. My brain is easily confused. Keep it up.
  Story Score 5/5
  The prolouge is interesting and sucks the reader right in. The story jumps out, no explanation needed and you can learn as you go. The setting affects the characters and their beliefs, which adds to the story quite alot. It shows that the author put effort into his world building.
  Character Score 4.5/5
  I would have given this a 5/5 if I didn't find Sig boring. I am so sorry. In fact, I find all the characters much more interesting than him. I find the women characters much more vibrant than the male characters, which to be quite frank is the first time thats ever happened to me while reading a book. It's a breath of fresh air. Good Job! :)
• ElechamRoyal Road

  ★★★★★ 4.5

  Nomads of the Sea is a gem that I'm very happy to have run across. It doesn't follow the lines of what you may be used to here in Royal Road. The pace is slow, the worldbuilding intense, and the plot has yet to rear its head by the point of my reading. Some minor editing issues notwithstanding, it's in every respect what you'd expect to see from a traditionally published book.
  The prose is flawless, and scenes are expertly set. The characters haven't had time to shine yet, but already they show a distinct shape. The only thing I'm worried about is the pacing, but I'll wait before making a judgement on this front.
  All in all, if the author can stick to this level of quality, Nomads of the Sea is a story that I'll definitely be following.