Ugh, I don't like being negative but I really didn't like this. While the first book had a lot of potential, this series felt like it fell off the rails. Really sad about this but I hope other fans can enjoy it.

Olivie Blake’s writing is just ugh *chef’s kiss*. The vocabulary is so enrapturing. All of the characters are written so well and Blake does such a great job of capturing the characters’ inner dialogue. It really feels like you’re in their heads. I liked that there was more background revealed about some of the characters that you didn’t get to know as well in the first book. The shifting alliances between the group was also a nice refreshing change.

One thing that did bother me is I felt like nothing of substance really happened for a huge part of this book and what did happen could have been summarized in 20 pages, which is why I didn’t rate it 5 stars. It seemed like all of the characters were stuck in limbo for a majority of the book and it got really tiresome. I think I was more excited for the second one than I am for the third unfortunately. Will I still be preordering the Atlas Complex? HELL yes 💕

Thank you for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook. I love the full cast and how they brought the characters to life. This is becoming a favorite series of mine!

I've realized that this series is just not for me. I struggled with keeping up with all the characters and found myself bored most of the time. I did like that the audiobook was a full cast.

As a huge fan of the first book in this series, I was pumped for this.

I couldn't finish it. I was very confused as to why the tone changed, and why every character became obnoxious to read through. This was not mirroring the same experience I had with The Atlas Six, where I really enjoyed half of the characters POVs.

Part of what made me dislike this book is because it felt pretentious and was extremely repetitive. You could read something in one paragraph and it would be said the same time two other ways 3 pages later. It felt like a chore to read. I'm quite disappointed.

The Atlas Paradox was a worthy sequel to a book that captured so many hearts - but even more mysterious, more dizzying, more cutthroat, and more full of new alliances and blooming love stories. That ending shocked me to the bone, and I was extremely sad for characters who just wanted what's best for the world and got burned for doing it the absolutely wrong way, but also excited about some who finally admitted their feelings (I KNEW there was something there, and I feel very vindicated knowing there really was hahah)! I am so curious to see how this story ends!

I can't wait to start The Atlas Complex now and I am crossing all my fingers that my new favourite ships make it! This series is brutal y'all!

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this book!

I enjoyed this one and I highly recommend. I thought the narrators really captured the essence of the characters.

This book picked up seamlessly from where the first left off. This is one of those stories where I cannot decide if I love every character or want to absolutely throttle them (in my opinion, this is the best feeling because aren’t actual humans a bit like this). It is inventive and includes depth to a story that already had so much going for it. I look forward to the conclusion in this series.

It was too many charcters. It was a little hard to keep up with. I feel if I read it second time I would appriciated.

The Atlas Paradox by Olivie Blake is a stunning sequel to The Atlas Six, one of my favorite books of all time. The story picks up right after the events of the first book, and we get to see the consequences of the choices made by the six magicians who were invited to join the Society of Alexandrians. The plot is full of twists and turns, secrets and revelations, and of course, magic and mayhem. The characters are complex, flawed, and fascinating, each with their own motivations and agendas. The writing is captivating, atmospheric, and witty, with a perfect balance of dark and light tones. The world-building is rich and immersive, exploring the history and lore of the Society and its mysterious leader. The romance is slow-burn, angsty, and delicious, with plenty of tension and chemistry between the characters. The Atlas Paradox is a brilliant book that will keep you hooked from start to finish. If you love dark academia, magic, and morally gray characters, you need to read this series!

"The Atlas Paradox" by Olivie Blake is another example of the author's brilliance and creativity, showcasing her ability to craft intriguing premises and write well. However, I find myself once again unable to fully connect with the story, and it is with a tinge of regret that I have another Blake book I did not enjoy.

Blake's talent for crafting unique and imaginative concepts is undeniable. The premise of "The Atlas Paradox" holds great potential, and the intricate world-building and attention to detail are commendable. The writing itself is solid, demonstrating Blake's skill in creating vivid settings and engaging dialogue.

Yet, despite these strengths, I struggled to become fully engrossed in the story. As with previous books by Blake, I found that the narrative failed to capture and hold my attention. While I can appreciate the appeal and recognize the quality of the writing, there was something missing that prevented me from fully immersing myself in the plot and connecting with the characters. It's worth mentioning that personal reading preferences and individual tastes can greatly influence one's enjoyment of a book. Although Olivie Blake's works may not resonate with me on a profound level, I still acknowledge their merit and understand why they might captivate others. The allure of each new release continues to tempt me, and I will likely give future books by the author a chance in the hopes of discovering that elusive connection.

In conclusion, "The Atlas Paradox" showcases Olivie Blake's talent and imaginative storytelling, but it falls short in terms of captivating my attention and creating a lasting impact. While I regret that this particular book did not fully engage me, I recognize the appeal it may hold for others, and I remain open to exploring more of the author's works in the future.

I read 60 something percent of this book and I just... I still want to know what happens but not if I have to read it to find out. I think I just don't like the characters when L isn't there to interact with them, ya know? And this is a deeply character driven story even if there is a plot. So it's not that I like, actually like all of the characters, but I find them interesting, and right now, I'm just not interested. But I know a lot of people like it so yay for you! Please feel free to spoil me.

The Atlas Paradox by Olivie Blake was both clever and well-developed. I enjoyed the audiobook narrator/cast.

I received a review copy of this book from the author/publisher through NetGalley for my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of the audiobook!! I am sorry this took me so long to review.
I DNF'ed this around 70% because I found it to be slow and with little character development. The plot of the book is the saving grace. However, it was not enough for me to complete this read. I did love the first book but I struggled with this one.

I loved The Atlas Paradox. I fell in love with the characters in The Atlas Six and could not wait for this book to come out. I enjoyed the writing style of both books and I am on pins and needles waiting for the third book in this series. The angst in this series draws the reader in and makes the love some characters and hate of the characters. I really enjoy that there are characters that are blunt and pull no punches. They are who they are and they don't hide behind fakeness.

This book was much like a quote from its interlude; “There was no science here, only vibes.”

If you’ve read the first book in this trilogy, The Atlas Six, then you probably understand. If you have not read the first book yet, then I don’t know what you’re doing reading a review for the second one.

Like the first book, The Atlas Paradox follows in the vein of a book that is deeply seated in character development. The “no plot, just vibes” theme continues in this book, a whole lot of 'tell' and no 'show'.

I was not particularly wowed by the first book, as I prefer more action and plot rather than just intense character development. But those that are huge fans of character study will probably have a great time with this series. The reason I continued on to this second book was mostly because the first book managed to suck me in right at the end with that plot twist/reveal (that I won’t spoil here in case you haven’t finished the first book yet). It felt like the last 20% of the first book was the only real plot that occurred, but it was enough to make me think that maybe there would be more plot in the second one. I think maybe there is more plot in this book, but it’s hard to tell because you are still bogged down in the plentiful conversations and a ton of (frankly unnecessary) character development, which trumps any small progressions in the plot that do occur.

These books first intrigued me because they sounded a bit like the Umbrella Academy tv show, but with the added element of 1 person having to be eliminated by the end (of the first book). Unfortunately, it was like if the Umbrella Academy was just characters and nothing actually happened beyond them interacting with one another. That may be for some people, but it’s not for me.

On to the audiobook itself. I am a huge fan of audiobooks, as it is my main format in which I consume books. I am not easily annoyed by narrators, as I typically listen at 2x-3x speed, which can sometimes hide some annoying characteristics of certain narration styles. Unfortunately, that was not the case here. As this book has many main characters and each character’s chapter is read by it’s own distinct narrator, there was a greater chance to dislike one (or many) of the narrators. And I did, dislike them, that is. At least half of the narrators rubbed me the wrong way. Parisa’s narrator felt very obnoxious and overdone, beyond just portraying her character the way she was. Callum's narrators would constantly ‘soften’ his voice to a weird whisper, then randomly switch back to speaking normally, with no real rhyme or reason (Parisa also would sometimes do this). Then Tristian was so annoying and talked so fast that I had to constantly slow the narration speed down just to be able to understand what he was saying. I also found that other narrators would not always give Tristian his accent when voicing his parts, but sometimes they would. Once again, no rhyme or reason, just inconsistency. It may have only been minorly bothersome, but on top of everything, it felt more bothersome that it should have been. Lastly, the voice for Reina’s plants felt like nails on a chalkboard to me. Overall, the second half of the audiobook had less of these problems than the first half of the book, but in general they nearly pushed me to DNF it.

All that being said, the book wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t for me. If you love deep diving into characters, and don’t read fantasy for the plot, then you’ll love this book. If you read the first book and loved it, you’ll probably also have a great time with this one. But if you struggled with the first book, or simply didn’t like it, then you probably will not have a better time with this one. This book has a niche and if you are a part of that niche, then it’s a great book, otherwise you probably won’t love it. Olivie Blake is very talented at creating stories with very real, fleshed out characters, but the expansion of her plots could make her books really something incredible.

This was just okay. I found the first bit of it very slow. Also, I had the same issue with the first: very little to no character development. Nothing felt like it was going to change. While I was initially intrigued by characters, now I’m rolling my eyes a bit on their lack of progress. The plot has me still interested, so I may try the next book. Here’s hoping this is just book 2 syndrome! Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of the audiobook!!

I loved book 1 and I was worried book 2 wouldn’t live up to it, and although I didn’t love it as much it was still a great sequel! I wished the stakes were a little big higher for the characters and a couple things felt anticlimactic, but I also devoured it and I’m extremely excited for book 3!

This story of dark academia, utter corruption and potentially the end of the world follows directly after the events of The Atlas Six – right after the Six seemingly become five. Only not through the murder that everyone expected to be committed.

And not that the expected victim of that expected murder, Callum Nova, is exactly anyone’s favorite person. Not even Callum himself. If anyone should have, would have been saved it was the missing Libby Rhodes. Who is equally not dead.

She’s furious. Or she would be if her captor wasn’t drugging her into oblivion.

So this story begins in fracture – and the characters just keep right on fracturing from a very inauspicious beginning to the bitter, deadly end.

The library at the heart of the Alexandrian Society may be sentient. It’s certainly hungry. It expects a sacrifice to its altar of knowledge every ten years. A blood sacrifice. A dead medeian (read as mage) to add body (literally) to its spice of knowledge.

Callum wasn’t killed, Libby isn’t dead, so the library spends the entire book getting its pound of flesh in any way it can, causing all of the characters to devolve and fracture over their second year at the Society. It’s not a pretty sight.

As each of the six descends down their own personal rabbit hole of self-involvement mixed with delusions of grandeur and/or inadequacy, refusing to acknowledge the gaping hole in their midst that should be filled by Libby Rhodes, Society Caretaker Atlas Blakely and his former friend turned rival, Ezra Fowler, plot and plan their way to oppose each other’s end-of-the-world scenario.

While Libby Rhodes applies a sharp rock to what’s left of her moral compass so she can power a nuclear blast that will bring her home. To a future that she may yet manage to destroy. If someone else doesn’t beat her to the punch.

Escape Rating C: I’m of two minds when it comes to The Atlas Paradox – even more so than I was after finishing The Atlas Six. Only more so.

Following the story of The Atlas Paradox was like doing “The Masochism Tango” – without even a scintilla of the joy that the masochist singing the song felt.

So why did I keep going? Because the voice actors were every single bit as excellent as they were in The Atlas Six. It’s a pity that they gave their excellence to a work which did not deserve it. (And I continue my frustration that there doesn’t seem to be a complete and definitive list of who is voicing whom.)

What helps make the narration so wonderful – while making the story so frustrating as well as frequently annoying – is that the whole story is told from the inside of the characters’ heads. Every single one of these people is a hot mess, and not in any fun ways at all. They’re also, individually and collectively, utterly morally bankrupt.

So I didn’t like any of them and I didn’t feel for any of them and most importantly, I didn’t CARE about any of them. They are, individually and collectively, self-indulgent, self-absorbed and shallow, and the entirety of this story is spent plumbing the teaspoon-like depths of their shallowness.

The Atlas Six was compulsively readable because so much shit happened, and the breakneck pace made it an absorbing page-turner no matter what genuinely awful people its characters were.

Little seems to actually happen in The Atlas Paradox until nearly the end, at least until it dissolves into a waiting game in preparation for the next book, The Atlas Complex. Which, I have to admit, I probably will listen to in spite of myself. I’m still curious to see how this ends. If it ends at all, and especially if it ends in anything other than the end of the world as they know it.

After all, I expect the narrators to still be utterly excellent, which is still the saving grace of this entire saga.

The Atlas Paradox takes the dramatic, character-study will-they-or-wont-they betrayal story of The Atlas Six and expands into a broader world and a deeper plot. We get a deeper view into the motivators of each character and get little droplets of hints as to the reasons for what happened in book 1.

This book is interesting in that it makes me vaguely dislike every character but keeps me invested in the story, all while following a meandering plot deeply embedded in character study. It was not my favorite book but it was certainly an interesting one, and I appreciate the dynamism of the characters