A World of Monsters

It's not bad, ok. It's just a sort of slice of life with a smattering of philosophy and religion, but no real plot and the barest of descriptions of anything. Things happen in a way that lean towards it being a real world, but it acts more like a video game. Why do insects take injurious fall damage? Why can a snail, despite being slow, bite and tackle? Why can a caterpiller furrow it's brows, dilate its pupils and and have heart palpitations? Uh... they just can because that's how the universe works.

It's the sort of story where things happen, but the reader needs to fill in all the blanks, events, objects, places (and everything else, really) because nothing is described, and if it doesn't really make sense? Eh, hand wave it away. It happens because the narrator said it did.

Author even created a character whose purpose is to beg for a review at the end of every chapter, too, which might explain why there are so many reviews gushing about the story. Begging seen here:

-X-

Within a desolate desert, inside a dilapidated shop, on a simple chair, a youth seemingly slept.

-X-

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Now.

Cringed a little every time I saw it. Just... why? I suspect people might disagree with this assessment. They'd be wrong, but they are free to disagree. At least I'm not being mean about it, but you asked for it.

A buddhism-influenced story about an MC reincarnated into a caterpillar. So there are some usual tropes, but overall this is well written. The grammar has no issues and the pace is steady. You get the feeling the author has a proper outline for this and knows where he wants to go. Looking forward to where this takes me.

We delve into a world of system-using monsters, cultivators, and deific beings through A World of Monsters, following two main characters (so far). The story is meticulously crafted, with every action precisely described -- and yet herein lies the problem. The world is lifeless.

Teeming masses of characters are recorded in punctual detail. The prose railroads us with description after description, never allowing the reader to imagine fanciful imagery or catch glimpses of motives. Skills are acquired, described, and redescribed; ignoring the advantages of what's left unsaid. Each paragraph reads as if a stream of conciousness was transcribed verbatim, ever quickly, ever steady. The rhythm of the text marches on, and on, and on. Monotony. 

The author attempts to circumvent this, of course, utilizing scene cuts and shifting viewpoints, but even the changes feel predictable. We're told about unseen plans and mystery, but they don't feel enticing. In fact, the intent and the execution clash on a fundamental level, splitting the narrative in twain: a layer of chalk-like description and a flowery gloss of allegory.

It's disappointing, because the concept has a lot of potential. I truly enjoy the set of circumstances set up for the protagoni, but their development dessicates in their textual cradle. They're left as nothing more but leather dolls puppeteered in the name of ephemeral meaning. Yet I feel nothing.

Reviewed as of chapter 11 (~100 pages in) as part of a review swap.

overall : 4/5

A World of Monsters is a story with some very real potential. It is focused on the slow progress of a monster that starts really small, however the world has some very unique mysteries and greater picture stuff that I really liked.

style 4/5 :
Style-wise, the author has a good handle on description and good character interactions (in the human centered chapters)

However, the story comes with some heavy mystical lore that I'm personally not a big fan of.

Also the pacing of the early chapters is really slow. With the few options available to the MC given its unique reincarnation, the author made the choice of still showing all its progress. Which took a while of much of the same.


story 3.5/5 :

The world-building (well, multiverse building, really) is really cool, there are some mysteries that really have me wondereing where this is all going.
However, the mc seriously lack a goal besides , the character motivations aren't very clear.
I also took some points off because there are some situations that feel inconsistent with the worldbuilding. While it is cool to see the mc overcome his problem (short life expectancy) through cunning, the mc form is not unique, so, how are the normal individuals of the specie living and evolving? The experience shown by mc indicates that they simply don't have the time to grow into adults before dying in infancy of old age.
Finally, I liked the system, as it is more an obstacle than the main focus but it works well nonetheless. It strikes a nice spot where it feels fair, giving some perks but also refusing to let the mc be overpowered.


grammar 5/5 :
very few mistakes, there are a couple typos but they are quite far in between. The english is about as clean as it gets by RR standards.
Extra kudos for making the mystical munbo jumbo heavy yet readable.

characters 4/5 :
So i'm giving this a tentative 4, but that's really because the characters on the human storyline are definitely 5s and the character on the monster storyline is more like a 3...

Sadly, it's the mc. The thing is, it makes sense, this mc is a human soul whose ego is being eroded by living as an "immortal". It has little possibilities, starting as a very weak being almost at the bottom of the foodchain. But yeah, basically, it's not a very likeable or relatable character, and it physically can't do really cool things.

It's still a 3 cause that situation is objectively well crafted. But I'm certainly not reading this story for its MC...

An amazing story about the progression of a being that doesn't belong but struggles for survival for he not Mortal and only Mortals can grow in peace. This being is Immortal and Immortal grow through the odds that have been stack against them. A beautiful tale of metamorphosis both internal and external.

Style:
This is a third-person story of the primary MC, who is unnamed, and beings his life as a caterpillar, and a secondary MC, who is a boy trying to achieve a class for himself. The story alternates regularly between the two, with longer chapters being about the main MC and her/its life as an insect and shorter chapters being about the boy. Now, sometimes the story may come off as a bit wordy but that is because its intentional, its meant to stretch your brain and get you to think beyond your normal scope as the author is also leading you on your own journey of internal growth.

Grammar:
Because the grammar can get wordy, you either wind up with things that make no sense due to a typo. Or there is a lot of repetition that leads to some confusion as well.

Story:
As I stated, this is a story about self-discovery. A marvelous tale of a creature transforming into a greater version of itself. As of this review, the creature has morphed into a being capable of unlocking hidden potential that is strongly foreshadowed in the boy's part of the story. The MC not only has to battle with other animals for its survival but also itself.

The boy's story is very much one of mental self-discovery. As of now, it seems like the boy's story helps the reader understand more about the world and the things the primary MC will be able to do. It serves as a good way to build upon the world without feeling forced. It is unknown how the two stories will link if they do.

Character:
The primary character is the nameless MC who is an insect. We learn about the former life of this being and how the her of its past will help shape its future. The reader gets to witness the cleverness and growing intelligence of this bug. Not only do we witness its body changing but also its ego, its sense of self. The next character is a bit duller, which is the boy. He has been sent to learn a hard to get class by his family. He struggles to earn this class as he is given knowledge about the world the is also convenient for the reader when comparing what the boy just learned to the life of the insect. There are other great characters as well, one that puzzled me and I hope to see more of is the Tier 4 teacher from the boy's story. This character was introduced in a bonus chapter but his creepy atmosphere and how he lives are really bizarre even in this world.

The system used in this novel is unique and refreshing. It utilizes concepts in Buddhism and Hinduism which is not often seen. The system has many intricate facets of it to be explored in the story. The author does a good job of explaining the system when it is needed and cleverly drops hints about it as well. The grammar is also very nice.

Another unique feature of the story is the main character themselves as they are wholly monstrous as apt to the summary of the novel in both their physiology and their mentality which are both distinct from what would be expected of a humanoid character while still retaining an interesting personality that is entertaining. In addition, the level progression of the main character is also done well. Their growth throughout the story feels reasonable and very earned.

Something that does seem lacking is the absence of an apparent larger narrative outside of the main character's survival in the early chapters as the story slowly hints to what is to come later. However, the human side of the story works well in giving a nice change of pace from this along with providing greater knowledge about the world the story takes place in.

After a prologue written in 6 dimensions, the story begins very slowly when the MC becomes aware of himself and his new condition. He has become a weak and pitiful creature (a caterpillar) and begins his adventure by eating all the leaves he can crawl to, trying to survive predators who like to feast on tender flesh like his.

The MC caterpillar, takes advantage of the system of an immortal (allowing him to change his carnal envelope), although the system is unusual, a bit messy, and sometimes looks like an avalanche of blue windows, if you like this kind of slow progression story in which the Grind holds an important place, sprinkled with slices of life of a humble creature, then you'll be comfortable with it.

The narrative mixes a lot of inner dialogue and an MC who grinds his teeth at the philosophical messages that are very present, but that's the price you pay for this type of narration.  Honestly, I preferred the human pov, but it's a matter of personal taste.

I think the story would benefit from being shorter, containing fewer windows of status, and avoiding adding so many idioms inherited from oriental literature, which would make a story in which one is regularly confused clearer, and the reader's experience more comfortable.
The Caterpillar MC's way of thinking is quite regularly confused, as if he sometimes forgets his human memory, which sometimes makes the narrative confusing. The format that alternates between povs also requires the reader to memorize a lot of information, which makes the task of understanding the plot more complex, and quite difficult if your attention is easily overwhelmed by something else.  

Well, give it a try, and you'll quickly know if it suits your personal tastes.

So overall the story is pretty damned amazing and for your style of writing is great too! The descriptions you do and the clear pictures you evoke is very very good. It gets etheral at tines and spooky or earthy in others. Its in the top ten i have ever read! Seiosly your story keeps me wanting to learn more and to keep coming back even though its 4 am here. The skill leveling and such is so cool! Your blending of india pratices with thier religion and reincarnation and castes and mana etc. is wonderful. It has lit a fire in me to research india and all these things in their culture now. So thank you for that.

Now for your grammer it has only a few simple mistakes and is easily ignored. Like for example you said ranches in one chapter and the next line or two you spelled branches with the b like you left off the first time. I of course knew what you meant so no big deal. I just know some people are pretty anal about that stuff.

now for your characters they actually feel like real flesh and blood beings and are very very good too. Anyways i feel privileged to have been able to have read this. Thank you

Not actually sure why I didnt review the story back then. But that isn't really that important anyway. What is important is that this story has apparently been edited since I last read it. Might mean that my comments wont make sense. Who knows?

From what I remember, the style was pretty good. At times, there were a few problems with the pacing issues. More specifically, it went wrong on both sides, going either very slowly or way too quickly.

Characthers are fine enough. No real complaints from me. Story took a while before it actually got interesting but it got good at the later parts(in my personal opinion. Pretty sure I remember somebody complaining about it). Good enough to read. 5/5 from me.

I am making this review more as a way to tell the author what I think than to advise potential readers. So prepare yourself to a lot of SPOILERS.

My review can be resumed in a short and non-spoilery way into: Begins confusing, but the author improves. Brillant side characters, but peaks in the middle and ends disappointing. Overall, I liked it, but not everyone will.

Ok, with that out of the way, let's begin.

The beginning is confusing, both because of the spiritual themes and the weird way it is written. Even now that I understand most of what was happening in that scene It still feels confusing to read, because the sentences just don't flow nicely. 

Then the main story with our protagonist begins. It was nice I guess. There were some interesting twists and it was great that the main character didn't get an ultrarare evolution and got OP super quickly like other novels. The quality of the writing also rapidly increased as the writer gained experience, but it was overall a normal moster evolution story.

It could have been better, I just feel this part of the novel didn't benefit from any of the good points of the world or the author. The MC becoming a immortal in mind and body was a nice touch, but made it hard to relate with her. The neverending struggle she goes through also don't help. I love a good underdog story, more than a OP protagonist just face slapping others. But a character needs to rest, calm down and feel positive emotions (I know doind this is hard with the MC being immortal, but still) so that their suffering has meaning. Struggle can be entertaining, but struggle without anything else gets boring quickly.

Now, the side stories is where this novel really shines. They kids working hard to get a rare class was a great way to show the worldbuilding, the author's ability to write interesting dialogue and explain the system. When the girl died I was devastated, the story was just so gripping.

But then another problem appears. When the first "important" character died I was shocked, when the second died, I was I little less, when every important side character just dropped dead I didn't care at all. It even felt a bit pointless having to read about people that would die without impacting the main plot in any meaningfull way.

That was my main problem in the boat arc, well that and some other minor details. I didn't really care about Kiran anymore, the MC I knew would survive and I couldn't relate to their suffering, the slaved prince creeped me out and I didn't have enough time to form a real connection to the moster tamer family, so when they all died I just felt my time was wasted getting to know them. The only good parts during the arc was the MC species change and the final chapter with the youth that sleeps. But even in a arc that felt so pointless like this one the worldbuilding was still as amazing as ever, a pity that worldbuilding can't save an arc.

Killing important characters is great. it shows to the readers that the character actions have consequences and it can be a incredibly emotional moment, but do it much and getting attached to characters starts to get harder and the plot becomes pointless without interesting people to guide it. Some characters should survive and deal with the consequences, after all, the dead only matter if there is someone to mourn them.

I feel like I went a bit overboard when talking about the negative points, but I needed to say this so that the author can improve.

Because I really love this novel, and every criticism I make comes from my will to see it grow into it's full potential.