Great continuation to the first book . If you love dark academia, then you need to read this series. Unique writing style and plot

"The Atlas Paradox" by Olivie Blake is a great sequel to "The Atlas Six." The story picks up with the six magicians in the Alexandrian Society, where new secrets and challenges arise. The tension between characters keeps things interesting.

Blake does a fantastic job with character development, making each magician unique and engaging. The writing is clear and keeps you hooked. The plot is full of unexpected twists, which makes it exciting to read.

If you enjoyed the first book, you'd like "The Atlas Paradox." It's a gripping follow-up that inspires even more excitement for the future.

"The Atlas Paradox" by Olivie Blake delves deeper into the dark, intricate world of secret societies and magical academia. The story picks up with the six chosen magicians grappling with the high stakes and moral complexities of their unique powers and the hidden agendas of the Alexandrian Society.

Blake excels in character development, giving each magician a distinct voice and complex motivations. The interplay of their personalities and the evolution of their relationships add depth to the narrative. The tension and intrigue build as secrets are revealed, alliances shift, and the characters face increasingly perilous challenges.

Blake's prose is sharp and immersive, drawing readers into a richly imagined world filled with magic, mystery, and philosophical musings. The book's pacing keeps readers on edge, with twists and turns that keep the plot unpredictable and engaging.

"The Atlas Paradox" is not just a tale of magic and power but also a thought-provoking exploration of ambition, loyalty, and the ethical dilemmas that come with great power. Olivie Blake has crafted a sequel that is as intellectually stimulating as it is thrilling, making it a must-read for fans of the series.

As a follow-up to “The Atlas Six,” “The Atlas Paradox” by Olivie Blake brings a compelling continuation to the dark academia fantasy series. The story delves deeper into the characters’ psychological landscapes, making it a more character-driven narrative. One of the highlights is the dynamic involving Libby, Nico, and Tristan. Libby’s entrapment in the past and the efforts of Nico and Tristan to rescue her provide the novel’s most gripping and action-packed moments. Their evolving relationships and individual character developments add significant depth to the story. However, not all characters receive the same attention. While the Libby-Nico-Tristan arc is rich and engaging, other characters like Parisa, Reina, and Callum have less impactful plotlines. This imbalance made parts of the book feel slow and less engaging. Despite this “The Atlas Paradox” remains an intriguing read.

I did not enjoy this as much as the first one, it was still a good story, well written, I like all the characters, just missing that x factor for me though.

I received this book in exchange for an honest review - for a full review check out my YouTube or Goodreads account

I'm so sad but I think this series isn't for me! I've read the first book twice and tried to get into the sequel but I just can't seem to connect with the characters and storyline. It just doesn't work for me!
Such a shame as I enjoyed Alone with you in the ether and One for my Enemy!
Thank you for the eARC!

This was ok.

Still struggling with Blake’s writing and descriptions to be honest, and I lost interest in some of the characters in this one. It’s just so much faff and telling and not much showing.

This book ultimately fell a little flat for me.
The Atlas Six left on such a huge cliff-hanger and I was so excited to find out what was going to happen next but the book took a detour that made the stakes lower too much. I did enjoy this story and will probably read the next one but unfortunately I am in no rush.

I don't know if this one was rushed but the chemistry wasn't as strong this time around and I found the explanations and the world building to just be more confusing rather than adding to the previous book.

DNF at ~80 pages

I enjoyed the atlas six but this just became a bit too pretentious for me. The characters in the first book were interesting as you were discovering more about them but in this book it just felt like they were all trying to one up each other with philosophical intellect and this came across as not very enjoyable to read. There was also no real clear plot and I just wasn’t compelled to want to continue.

So I have to say that The Atlas Paradox has given me quite a hard time. With the first book I felt like I was in a philosophy class that I somehow mysteriously found incredibly entertaining, and with the second I felt like I needed to borrow the brain of a... theoretical physicist?

Whereas with the first book, it was enough for me that the book was driven by complex characters, who I completely fell for, and the relationships between them, It somehow wasn't enough in this sequel and I don't really know what to think or how to rate the book. Even when the first book felt very... abstract in places, which made the philosophizing intertwined with the physics (time, wormholes, etc), but here I was often... very lost. It's a really dense read that requires a lot of concentration, and will easily confuse your brain. I'm still able to perceive that the book is actually a brilliant example of dark academia read for adults (critique of the system! research!), but I wish the author had written it more like... for silly people like me who have never been good at physics and are generally more humanities-oriented than science-oriented.

Anyway... I still loved those characters and I'm incredibly enjoyed the Nico & Tristan duo. Their conversations were worthwhile, and their storyline reminded me of the premise of Flatliners.

Overall, maybe it was a momentary mood. Maybe I've gone stupid since March 2022. Maybe book two is really that different and even more... abstract.

This was always going to be a hard follow up book to produce, but I think Olivie Blake did a really successful job here. The story has expanded, the threats are larger and the brain power needed to understand what is going on is definitely much bigger! Dealing with a lot of conceptual physics, such as wormholes, time travel and quantum mechanics, there is a lot to take in, but the strength of the characters and their interactions served to carry me through the tricky bits. These are not pleasant people to spend time with, but they are brilliant, which seems pretty authentic to me when dealing with geniuses. I really enjoyed the way in which the different character pairings changed throughout the story and I enjoyed the discussion around gods. Overall, this was a good sequel and I am intrigued to see where the story will conclude.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Atlas Paradox, the second book in The Atlas Six trilogy, maintains Olivie Blake's unique blend of sci-fi and fantasy with emotionally charged characters. Serving as a setup for the trilogy's conclusion, the book delves into the initiates' changed dynamics and individual journeys. Blake's introspective writing style excels in character development, exploring the nuances beneath seemingly villainous personalities. While the plot is slower, the narrative remains compelling, leaving doors open for intriguing storylines in the final installment.

The Atlas Paradox is a great carry-on from The Atlas Six. I really did enjoy reading this, although the first half did seem to not have much pace, but the story line and the character development really did make this an enjoyable read! I am excited to see where this goes!

This book picks up almost immediately where The Atlas Six ended: Libby has been kidnapped and the question is not just of where she is, but when. The remaining members of the initiate class, whilst they realise this disappearance has saved one of them from being murdered, feel that a part of them has been unfairly taken (in varying degrees), afterall Libby was not supposed to be the sacrifice of this class.

The Atlas Paradox very much excels in developing characters individually as well as their relationships with one another. It also delves further into the struggles and mental impact of a group of young adults, acknowledged amongst the most powerful medians on the planet, who a year ago didn't know if or when they'd be killed before their first year was done. Naturally this lack of trust in the group has grown given the mysterious disappearance of their fellow initiate.

I did also like that some of the background characters of book 1: Reina, Gideon, and Callum had more pagetime, although Callum more out of interest because he's quite the character. Gideon and Nico are such a great combination!

The pacing of this book can get slow at times; compared to book 1's "one of you will die" storyline, the purpose of the story is less clear, and many of the POVs take their time revealing plot details. Whilst it could potentially mean the reader feels more connected with the protagonists - discovering more about the society and its rivals in "real time" - it can also be a little frustrating as the pace drags. It does however build up to a rather spectacular ending and the pieces fall into place.

I sadly did not like the first book of this duology, tried this one and it isn't my cup of tea either. Sad, because I do really like dark academia, but it just feels like not a whole lot is happening? Or maybe the magic system is just really not my thing? I can't really pinpoint where or how this story doesn't work for me, but it just doesn't, sadly.

I struggled this book, maybe I was not in the right head space. Or i'm just not clever enough to understand the writing.

This book is so much better the the first in the series; world building has already been established, so more time developing character relationships

As with the first book there are a lot of characters which can sometimes be hard/confusing to follow. I listened to the first book which helped distinguish the characters.

Great writing keeping me interested in finishing the book.

This book directly follows the events of the Atlas Six where Libby has gone missing and the rest have to deal with the fallout from this.

Libby has her own story in this seperate from the rest and I really enjoyed this part. The rest trying to find her and figure out what is going on was good, but I felt it didn't progress the characters as much as it should have. I'm hoping this gets fleshed out more in the 3rd book, as enjoy spending time with each of these guys

The different time lines and lots of characters can get a bit confusing (in any book that has them) and I found the Audio great for keeping track of this due to the different narrators