Soil and Stars

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

Another world is dying, and none know how to stop it.

Minoru Takahashi, a Japanese Ainu youth, is whisked away from his everyday life into a new world the likes of which only exist in fantasy. He learns that this new world- Gaia- is infected. A goddess given form, the planet has been wounded, and the infection is giving birth to violent, ravenous creatures never seen before, threatening human civilization.

Without any bearings or any sense on how this unfamiliar world works, he must navigate this foreign land on his own, discovering the reason behind his sudden arrival, and the many secrets this world keeps hidden underneath the shifting lands

New chapters every Saturday at 12:00 PM PST!

Information

Status: Hiatus
Year: 2022
Author: OrangeyPeel

Royal Road Stats

Rating: 4.6/ 5.0
Followers: 29
Views: 7,361

Chapters(18 total)

Reviews

No reviews yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!

Community Reviews(3)

Rookie12Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
This review is based on the nine chapters that were available at the time.
The plot revolves around a young man who is dragged into a D&D-like world. This story is extremely well made, we are given just enough time to get to know the MC in our world to understand why the MC would want to come back, it helps that the MC has a family who are actually likeable, and the problems in his class stem not from "other kids evil" but from a combination of factors. Such nuance to the story is something that I rarely see.
Then we are getting into another world, which is rich with life and has its own character. The MC does not have any inherited OP talent, in fact, he is the weakest member of the group that took him in, but he pulls his weight otherwise, not coming off as arrogant or smug. The members of his group also come across as extremely likeable, and they have their own reasons for acting as they do. All in all, with great worldbuilding to boot, and an extremely well-crafted description of the events and surroundings, the story deserves a solid five for now.
Style. It's great. From easy-to-follow action scenes that are nonetheless detailed, to switching between POVs mid-flight without disrupting the cohesive story, to the quirks of the characters, to the world itself. Everything is done with care and effort in mind, and it really pays off.
Grammar, I am not a native English speaker, so I can hardly judge the grammar. But it was easy to read and understand. The descriptions of events and actions make sense and allow you to visualize what is happening in your head. All in all, a solid five from me.
The characters. They are great. From Petra, who has inner demons but comes across as incredibly likeable, to Milo, who comes across as weak at first before completely subverting your expectations of him as a fighter, to one-chapter villains like Carne, who manages to convey a threat while fighting smartly, all of them feel like living people. Five here as well.
Story. The story h
drifter265Royal Road
★★★★★ 5.0
Overall
Minoru is taken to another world. He’s another Japanese high school student with a sketchy past who lacks valuable skills but now has the potential to show what he’s really worth in a more action-adventure setting. Maybe this is where he belongs to unleash who he really is.
Style
There’s a blend of slice-of-life in between the story’s significant events that act as decent transitions. His conversations with the students, girls, and others reveal Minoru’s character in interesting ways other than just outright stating them in narration. We get to know the world and characters by interacting with it instead of being told it. A great example of showing and not telling.
Grammar
Some sentences can overuse clauses with commas everywhere. What could benefit is using more conjunctions to replace these commas and to make the writing more clear and easy to read. Though it’s not worth anything to to down vote this subcategory.
Story
The story begins in an ordinary world and then right as we transition into the new world, we meet two cool voyagers who welcome and introduce Minoru to this new and strange world. Action and adventure quickly transpire to show just what this story will be about and that we’re leaving the old mundane world that involve only studies behind to something more.
Character
While Minoru is almost too much like your typical high school student who is just ordinary enough to start as a blank slate in a new world where he’ll develop and learn many new skills and lessons, he has a good heart and possibly some historic flaws with his past that can make for good contradictory conflict later on. I have no doubt this combination will be taken advantage of.
Benjamin MwakonyaRoyal Road
★★★★ 4.0
As an avid Isekai enjoyer, I realize just how much I take for granted minute world building details and certain fundamental mechanics. All of these details are covered and clearly explained in the world of "Soil and Stars", allowing me to get even more immersed in the fantastic, but wounded world.
Style - OK, this is a bit tricky. The way the story is presented is very... wordy, to say the least. I can see how a person might not like the fact that half an entire chapter is dedicated to lore and world building, but as a lore junky I ate it all up. If you're into deep lore, fascinating and original concepts and history, this is the story for you. The prose is fluid and easily guides us through the world quite effectively.
Story - It's an Isekai except... instead of killing the Demon Lord we're a.) Trying to find our way home and b.) Trying to help heal a wounded world. There is something fantasy writers often neglect. The "World" is often used as a backdrop for cool progression systems or dramatic battles, but, for me, the best fantasy stories are ones in which the world is its own character. (Although the author may have taken that concept one step further, lol). Minoru isn't just taken to generic fantasy world Nr. X, he is dropped into a world with its own unique history and ongoing plots and machinations and that's always lovely to see.
Grammer - not much to say. Only found like 1 error and it was minor, so yeah.
Character - A lot of the times in Isekai, what we end up getting is a group of trope based caricatures. Shells void of personally or drive that exist to please certain demographics. In this fiction, we have characters that actually feel like poeple. I absolutely love the opening moments where Minoru and his father interact because it's jam packed with charm and is overall wholesome. This sense is maintained all throughout the story and I find myself questioning some of the things characters do, not because their decisions are bad, but just because I want t