I’ve been waiting a long time to write a review for this series and now that I’m sitting here, all I can think of is the fact that I would definitely read this series again. That in itself is quite an achievement for a series of 12 books. How often will a reader actually go back to a series and re-read the whole thing from start to finish?
Cradle is essentially the story of the underdog. A cliched trope in the fantasy genre but one that Will Wight still manages to use to surprising effectiveness. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t hooked from the beginning. I’d also be lying if I said I took my time with these books. I could not get enough of the world(s) that Will Wight seemed to have created. I loved the characters, grew up with them, felt their pain, and rejoiced at their victories. Very few books have made me want to go back and re-read sections while still reading the book, and by that of course, I mean because I want to and not because I may have spaced out a bit and lost the plot.
The story follows Linden who lives in an area called Sacred Valley which is cut off from the rest of the world. There is magic in this world and everyone can channel it to some degree. This opens up a variety of Sacred Artist paths from the everyday running of a town to more battle oriented futues. Children go through an initiation ceremony to determine what type of Sacred Artist they will grow up to be, and their subsequent career path, since in this sheltered valley your destiny is predetermined. When Linden steps up and shows no affinity whatsoever for any magic, he is cast as ‘Unsouled’ and effectively shunned by everyone outside his family. As is typical, our protagonist strives to train and work hard in the hope that something will change, but years pass and he remains Unsouled.
When a mysterious entity brings destruction to his little town, Linden is given a vision of a future where a catastrophe would signal the end to all life. For a child whose world was confined to this sacred valley, this vision showed him a glimpse of a world outside which went against everything his people believed in. A deep fear of the unknown has kept the people of this valley sequestered, oblivious to the outside world. Cradle is the story of how Linden leaves his home in Sacred Valley, and his pre-destined useless life, and journeys forth in the hopes of somehow preventing the catastrophic future he glimpsed.
What follows is a 12 book series of trials and tribulations, of friendships, of sheer will, and the unending desire to be strong enough. This was a very fast-paced story that just blew by. The world created was very intriguing, even if very little of it is spoken in detail. The concept of power, and the hierarchy, that exists outside of the Sacred Valley is interesting to note, as is how insignificant Linden feels when contemplating the sheer enormity of the task before him. This makes his eventual rise all the more satisfying as we go along with him on this journey.
All that being said the ending of the series left a lot to be desired, in that it felt rushed and could have been split into 2 more books wherein more details could have been provided and fleshed out. That could also very well be the case of me just wanting more of this world that Will Wight had created. All in all, it was still a very satisfying series to read, and one I am sure I will revisit at some point, if for nothing else but to experience the highs of Linden just proving everyone wrong and kicking butt.
Rating: 4/5
Links:
- Goodreads: Cradle – Will Wight
Liminal Ramblings 