High Class Fantasy at its finest!
The Will of the Many
Hierarchy
Fantasy
S&S/Saga Press
May 23, 2023
Ebook, paperback, audiobook
639
At the elite Catenan Academy, a young fugitive uncovers layered mysteries and world-changing secrets in this new fantasy series by internationally bestselling author of The Licanius Trilogy, James Islington.
AUDI. VIDE. TACE.
The Catenan Republic—the Hierarchy—may rule the world now, but they do not know everything.
I tell them my name is Vis Telimus. I tell them I was orphaned after a tragic accident three years ago, and that good fortune alone has led to my acceptance into their most prestigious school. I tell them that once I graduate, I will gladly join the rest of civilised society in allowing my strength, my drive and my focus—what they call Will—to be leeched away and added to the power of those above me, as millions already do. As all must eventually do.
I tell them that I belong, and they believe me.
But the truth is that I have been sent to the Academy to find answers. To solve a murder. To search for an ancient weapon. To uncover secrets that may tear the Republic apart.
And that I will never, ever cede my Will to the empire that executed my family.
To survive, though, I will still have to rise through the Academy’s ranks. I will have to smile, and make friends, and pretend to be one of them and win. Because if I cannot, then those who want to control me, who know my real name, will no longer have any use for me.
And if the Hierarchy finds out who I truly am, they will kill me.
James Islington’s The Will of the Many is so over-the-top impressive that it gave me anxiety. I was consistently worried that because of whatever “real life nonsense” I had going on would keep me from fully appreciating it. So I nursed this encompassing story like a fine wine until it left me profusely weeping on a flight, while the elderly couple next to me sat openly uncomfortable.
“There comes a point in every man’s life where he can rail against the unfairness of the world until he loses, or he can do his best in it. Remain a victim, or become a survivor.”
The Catenan Republic – the Hierarchy – killed Vis’s family three years ago in their quest to conquer the world. Now he’s being offered an opportunity to attend their most prestigious boarding school, a pipeline to power if he can succeed under his enemy’s nose. To do that he’ll have to solve mysteries within the Hierarchy itself, outwit more adversaries than anticipated while continuing to hide his identity.
PSA: Don’t shy away from the glossary. She’s thicc and beautiful and there’s no shame in appreciating that.
The world-building in this was a masterpiece of mature fantasy literature. Winning the Goodreads Choice Award, I’m hardly the first person to discover this gem, but I’m not convinced that too many good things can be said about this book. Dark academia perfection seems like the easiest way to describe it. The amount of twists and reveals paired with shocks of heart is simply incomparable.
Vis is our scrappy, damaged MC constantly walking the tightrope between survival and honoring his family and himself. The tension of this struggle is presented in the most articulately gut-wrenching way, while still leaving room for moments of humor, first love, and wonderfully complex side characters. The Hierarchy runs off a system of siphoning off the lower members of society’s lifeforce to fuel the powerful and prominent to superhuman levels. The ominousness of this threat –having your very self stolen from you– is woven both effortlessly and early in this story. This makes it all the more complex when Vis connects with his fellow students, many of whom have equally difficult motivations, leaving him to contend with the fickleness of complicity in flawed systems.
Honestly, writing this review is semi-stressful because I truly don’t believe I’m a skilled enough writer or articulate enough person to begin to explain how rich this book is. Its depth and general thoughtfulness paired with some off the walls cliffhangers will haunt me for the foreseeable future.
Gabi grew up moving around the world with her family, making books in English a bit of a luxury that had to be rationed. Nowadays she lives in East London, where books can be read as voraciously as she likes. Fantasy books will forever be her first love, and she’s always looking for the next series to consume both of her brain cells. Her days generally consist of working as a software developer, squeezing in a chapter at her desk, and pining after the Picadilly Waterstones.
