The Will of the Many
It’s been a while since I’ve sunk into a big, sprawling fantasy/sci-fi novel, and The Will of the Many reminded me how much I love disappearing into a richly built world, especially since it’s Dark Academia. Sign me up. This book was everything I wanted: expansive, detailed, emotional, and surprisingly fast-paced for how long it is.
The story follows Vis Telimus, a young man hiding his true identity while navigating the brutal hierarchy of the Catenan Republic, a society where power is literally drawn from the submission of others. The more “will” you control, the stronger you become.
It’s a fascinating, terrifying system, and Islington takes his time building out the rules of this world—how it functions, why it exists, and how every choice reverberates through society.
It can be dense at times (and easy to overlook or bypass), but I still appreciated the amount of work, time, and energy Islington obviously put into this book to make it feel like it could be real.
The worldbuilding felt carefully considered, like there was a reason behind every structure and ritual, and it made the book immersive from page one.
One of the strongest elements for me was how the book balances action with mystery. There’s a ton of build-up around Vis’s true past, the empire’s secrets, and the bigger forces at play.
Every time I thought I had a handle on things, Islington would throw in another twist and more stakes that made things even more difficult for Vis and full of life-or-death tension.
For such a long novel, the pacing is spot on. Every chapter had me wanting more, and I never felt like it dragged, which is impressive and difficult to do (except for the first one or two chapters).
Instead, I found myself savoring it. There’s something comforting about having a chunky fantasy novel to turn to, knowing you can sink back into that world whenever you want.
Even the “slower” moments were layered with intrigue or character development that kept me hooked.
Vis himself is… complicated. On the one hand, I really liked following him. His grief, his secrets, his determination to survive—they made him relatable and gave the story emotional weight.
On the other hand, Vis is good at everything. Like, unreasonably good. Yes, the book explains this through his regal upbringing and training, but it still sometimes stretches believability. He walks that fine line of being a little too much of a “chosen one.”
Still, his relationships with other characters, particularly the emotional moment with his father near the end, hit me hard—I actually cried, and any book that can do that automatically earns my respect.
The supporting cast is just as compelling. Everyone feels nuanced, with their own motives and flaws, which raised the stakes and made the conflicts feel genuinely tense.
Even though Vis dominates the spotlight, the world around him feels populated with real, fully fleshed-out people with their own desires and motivations, especially Ulciscor, Relucia, Belli, Emissa, and Veridius, among others.
I also appreciated that the writing style wasn’t overly complicated or pretentious. Some fantasy authors try so hard to be “literary” that they end up dense and inaccessible.
Islington balances clarity with depth, making this a highly readable epic that still feels smart and layered. What a breath of fresh air.
My only real complaint is Vis’s over-competence, but honestly, that’s a small quibble compared to how much I enjoyed this book overall. The combination of detailed worldbuilding, addictive pacing, and high emotional stakes made this one of my favorite fantasy reads in a long time.
That said—the ending? Oof. Confusing as hell. I turned the last page and immediately thought, “Wait, what just happened??” I had to go online and look up explanations, and even after reading them I still don’t feel like I fully get it.
The big reveals felt like they needed just a bit more clarity—Islington definitely could have tweaked that part. It didn’t ruin the book for me, but it did leave me slightly frustrated after such an amazing buildup.
Recommendation: Is the second book out yet?
Score: 8/10
