I tried this for the high ratings. Listened to the first 5 chapters and thought it would be a safe and boring progression book. Perfectly suited for some older children, but boring for adults.
I put it down for 2 years.
I was WRONG. After encouragement from many fans saying the start is the weakest part, I tried it again. If you get through the start, this story gets dramatically better. If isn’t just good, it becomes great. I’m flying through the series now.
It seems like it is going to be a terrible cliche, then throws that idea out and goes in a different direction.