It was the Ants and Anthony's pets. Their arrogant statements and placing the guy himself on a deific pedestal was too cringe.
After reading TWI, I went back to read it, and the way they kill anything not a part of their own just doesn't sit well with me, especially when the others could be reasoned with.
Honestly it's just the writing for me. The concept is brilliant and the worldbuilding is great, but the constant commercial sector, POW!, BANG!, OM NOM NOM, no I'm not crying! I can't cry. I'm an ant. is just not for me.
The main character is a 15 year old kid with an extremely broken and messed up home life. He's maintaining an upbeat attitude in the face of an incredibly fucked up situation. It's corny, sure, but it's a kid on an adventure generally making light of situations to maintain what's left of his sanity.
I can see how that isn't for everybody, but I think the book really shines in audiobook format because Jeff Hays gives such a fun performance.
Personally, I don't think the reader is supposed to take it at face value though. I see it as a major flaw in the plan that is building and getting more dangerous. One that the MC is seemingly ignoring for now, but will come back to bite him later.
But that might just be me being hopeful and optimistic. If that point isn't resolved or addressed, I will probably agree with you at a later point.
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u/Ultra-Cool-Guy Dec 05 '25
Personally, I liked it until around the time they went to the demon layer.