Worm (Parahumans #1)

This is probably the best web novel of all time. It's writtten by a skilled author who natively speaks english, it's got unique powers, the characters feel like real people, the plot is incredible, it all feels very realistic and grounded (no wacky plot armour shenanigans). It has a massive word count, and yet it doesn't feel too drawn out or long winded. Wildbow deconstructs the superhero genre, analyses it, and reconstructs it with a masterful touch. You will never again enjoy a novel as much as this one. Plus, there's a really good sequel, and he's written a bunch of other novels as well.

It's quite a refresher, the author put a lot of work into thinking up the abilities and their origin was quite a good story. There's no mc who has a hidden power etc and all that other stuff. The novel doesn't focus all the spotlight on the mc but also gives some to other people cause you have to keep in mind that the world doesn't revolve around her somehow like in other novels. All in all, I'd be happy to see this get a movie or series adaption a it lives up to the standards and is by far the best superhero themed work I've ever seen

Well for starters the mc is a girl in an action novel who is not stupid The power levels are good Different gifts are unique and the way used are also good Overall a good novel But it's sometimes gets boring to read as there is many monologe and flashbacks So proced with caution

First off, completed novels I've read so far and would recommend on this website so that you can decide if my opinion is even worth a d*mn: LotM 1, Mother of Learning, Release That Witch, The Perfect Run. Others that aren't as good and have some obvious flaws but are still worth a read: My House of Horrors, Kidnapped Dragons. So, would I recommend this novel? No. Would I say it's still worth a read, tho? Maybe. but probably not. Now, as to why: (buckle up, this might be enough for 5 comments, but I just have to get this off my system. ) Pros: -Active world. People are doing their own stuff outside of the happenings of our MC and might or might not create certain situations, interfere, etc. There are mysteries concerning individuals, groups, or. . . things that are interesting to uncover. -It's realistic in the sense that, sometimes, sh*tty situations just happen and people's lives are lost. Even more so when superhuman abilities come into the picture. No second-hand plot-armor. Sometimes failing to anticipate stuff, getting outplayed, or just being unlucky may lead to certain doom. -Two antagonists are up there with the best I’ve ever had the pleasure of encountering. The group with a penchant for a certain number and the silbings that just really wanna see stuff till the end are amazing. The terror they radiate every time they are on screen is magnificent. -Even tho there are a ton of characters, they still manage to come off as unique. Cons: -The placement of some of the interlude chapters is horrendous. Some fights just get interrupted by flash-back chapters. Multiple flashback chapters, and these are pretty big later on. Best thing about them is that some of these interludes don’t even give you any real information as to why certain dynamics are the way they are. Most you get is something highly vague, or misleading, actually. One fight even gets interrupted in the middle of the chapter, in the middle of the fight. . . for a timeskip. . . was a really important fight with lots of new people and new abilities too. Now, granted, you can just skip the interlude chapters and come back for them later. And that one timeskip instance isn’t that detrimental. -The other con, and the one that trounces all of the pros, are the characters. Of all the characters that get introduced, major or minor, only a few (5 max. ) are actually decent/good characters. Everybody else, and there are a lot, is so stupid or behaves so irrationally that I really have to wonder if the author specifically made them to p*ss the readers off. And for the vast majority of them, that’s not even a me thing. There are enough instances that it’s just the objective truth. The only difference between them and the side characters of your run-of-the-mill Chinese revenge novel is the fact that they still have a personality instead of just being your copy-paste annoying-Imma-stand-in-the-way-of-the-MC-just-cuz typa guy. Literally being a**holes for the sake of being a**holes or making bad decision after bad decision and then wondering why everything falls apart. And character growth is virtually nonexistent in this (except for the very few actually good ones). So hoping for some of the characters to change will only leave you unsatisfied. Even though we spend interlude after interlude on certain characters and their problems only to then see them in a situation where they could change or take a step in the right direction, but nah. Right back to how they were. This happens soooo often. Even our MC isn’t an exception to this. Already read a few chapters and got a feel for her character? Well. . . she’s gonna stay that way till way after chapter 200. Again, there will be instances where you will think that now, finally, our MC has learned something, but nope, right back to the way it was. Even at the end, I’d say it’s highly debatable if our MC even changed at all. And naturally, as a consequence of all this, emotional scenes just don’t hit at all. Like, why should I feel anything for someone who constantly makes the wrong choice? behaved like a total id*ot the entire time we saw him? or even behaved irrationally by their own laid-out standards? even though it’s been proven time and time again that their way of thinking won’t help them attain their goal or even be close to a favorable outcome? Now, why did I still read this from start to finish? Well, I heard that the author of The Perfect Run took inspiration from MoL and this novel here, so I kinda had high hopes since those two were bangers. That hope sadly didn’t die fast enough. I also made the mistake of, for once, giving comments the benefit of the doubt and believing that this novel truly is at the ‘peak’ of the ‘fiction mountain’. Well. . . went about as well as expected considering the sh*t that gets upvoted from time to time on this website. Whatever. Maybe all the others are right, and I just don’t see the scriptures of God when I have them right in front of me. That’s it.

I think the story was pretty good. MC was wasn't some super overpowered protagonist that effortlessly wipes the floor with everyone else, but rather had to use strategy and their own intelligence to come up with possible solutions. Even then things didn't always work out perfectly. This novel really creates more realistic situations and outcomes rather than just plain simple happy endings where everyone lives and the big bad guy dies. The only thing I would say could be improved is the chapter length. The further you go in, the longer the chapters become until at some point they are astonishingly long compared to most other web novels. This kinda makes it seem as if you aren't really making a lot progress reading it. Instead, I just felt like the story could have simply been spread out over a larger quantity of shorter chapters. I think this would make it a bit more user friendly.

now THIS is a masterpiece if i have ever seen one -probably one of the best stories/novels that i will ever read, if you are reading this review then do know a few things beforehand. You may not like the bullying at first but trust me It gets good The characters are good -may it be villians or heroes or the small side characters, they are VERY well written and it is hard to find such good writing and consistency these days The chapters ARE very long but you will not lose interest in them Although i have not finished the novel yet , this review is genuine and this novel is good but underrated -really going you give this one a read THANK YOU !

This is a great novel about a girl who wants to be a hero but turns out to be an anti-hero. The first part of the story is a bit clumsy but it will always get better later on. The story setting is well built. Character psychology is clearly and impressively portrayed. 5/5

About The Writing: Top-tier novel. While a little jarring initially, the exposition is phenomenal. World-building is very solid objectively, but does not quite posses the same charm Mother of Learning had. About The Story: Its a Dystopian Superhero Epic. The story is very realistic. Magical solutions don't really exist, and the rare ones that do occur feel reasonable. This novel is dark, and can be pretty gruesome. Read at your own risk. Side characters are developed and have their own stories and motivations. About The MC: Rather than the main character using their so-called 'wits' to save the day, it would be more appropriate to say that the MC suffers through their problems. Half the story is about the physcial and mental trauma the MC goes through.

From what i can remember, it was a good read with solid world building. If you like a mc that uses its wits and intelligence to win against all odds and pull the win, this is for you

I’ve found this story to be a really good read, and personally it was just as enjoyable to read as The Wandering Inn. A lot of story elements are built up through time, so you won’t be facing many unfounded plot twists