The Strength of the Few (Hierarchy)
4.4 | 23 ratings
Price: 16.99
Last update: 12-01-2025
Product details
- ASIN : B0F2BBKX6B
- Publisher : S&S/Saga Press
- Accessibility :
- Publication date : November 11, 2025
- Language : English
- File size : 5.9 MB
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Not Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 736 pages
- ISBN-13 : 978-1982141257
- Page Flip : Enabled
- Book 2 of 2 : Hierarchy
- Best Sellers Rank:#74 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- Action & Adventure Fantasy (Kindle Store)
- Epic Fantasy (Books)
- Fantasy Action & Adventure
- Customer Reviews:4.64.6 out of 5 stars(722)
The Strength of the Few (Hierarchy)Top reviews from the United States
- Erin L.Excited!Very excited to read this book! There is a reversible cover, but there is a spelling error on the spine on the reversed side. “Hierarchy” is spelt “Heirarchy”. Silly! Love the option to flip the cover, though.
- BDThe Hierarchy series constitute the Best Books of the Decade.Islington is magical. I had my doubts about the three worlds. But he makes it work. He SO makes it work. And what a relief after the Sanderson disaster WOT. Great writing, great plotting, constant clever surprises with internal cohesion. Best book of the decade.
- SteveOverall this Kindle eBook is great and engagingOverall this Kindle eBook is great. This Kindle eBook is also engaging. I like the detailed descriptions, the characters, the dialogue, the pace, and most of the complex original plot in this novel. I like that the copy of Vis trapped in Luceum became practical. I like that the author typed Vis’ thoughts in italics. Some of the sentences in this novel aren’t grammatically correct. The author didn’t capitalize the first letter in the first word in three of the sentences in this novel. I rate this Kindle eBook four out of five stars.
- Goldens4LifeEnthralling - A Must Read and a Must Re-ReadThis second installment of Hierarchy was a riveting and engrossing. The Vis we know and love has been split into three persons on three different worlds. It was fascinating to see the individual character development of each of them throughout the story, even though they're the same person! The scale of this book is so vast, and Islington captures the stakes and grandeur of Vis's situations impeccably. I laughed, cried, and smiled through each of Vis's pair of eyes. I can't wait for the third book. My next read will be a direct re-read of the Strength of the Few, because I'm not ready to leave Res, Obiteum, or Luceum yet!
- LB SongAMAZING series, I’m hookedJust finished binging this book after it was released a couple of weeks ago. I absolutely loved it! It’s my favorite fantasy series so far. Excellent writing, world building, character growth, and just the right amount of complexity for me (I lose interest with complex series like the wheel of time). I loved it and am now convinced to join his patreon to keep reading more :)
- TomReally, really goodBuilds nicely upon book one while expanding into several new concepts. The "three worlds" concept was well done and I was always excited for more in each world. Can't wait for the next installment!
- Michael HarringtonRed Rising meets king killer chroniclesThis book is incredible. I felt like it was an interesting mix of Red Rising and King Killer Chronicles, which are two of my favorite series ever (light dash of Harry Potter vibes in the mix). Highly recommended!
- Amazon CustomerVery ambitious, still enjoyable despite falling shortI loved the first book, but this one tries to do a lot. It’s essentially three novellas woven together, chapter by chapter, rather than told sequentially. That structure means each story only gets one-third of the page count, while still needing to deliver world-building, political depth, character development, and plot momentum. Two of those worlds are almost entirely new to us—anchored only by Vis and little else. That’s a tall order.
Let me start with my critiques, then loop back to what worked and my overall impression.
1. Characters Suffer
The cast expands rapidly, but “screen time” for each is naturally limited. As a result, many characters feel underdeveloped or even reduced to stock roles—including some who were richly built in Book One. Vis and maybe a couple others remain dynamic and layered, but most don't get the depth they deserve. This was especially disappointing because we invested heavily in them before, and the book doesn’t give them space so they feel "thrown out". There’s simply too much going on, and the plot pushes forward at full speed.
2. Pacing & Structure
I read this book quickly—it is compelling—but the pacing felt turbulent. Every time we switched worlds, the emotional and narrative momentum shifted dramatically. Each setting has a different tone and energy, and the author has to reintroduce its history and context in rapid bursts. This sometimes made it confusing to follow: I would learn important information about a character before I had even firmly learned their name.
By the end, actions were happening so quickly that neither I nor Vis (the character) had time to process or absorb their weight.
There are also time jumps—I can't tell if they aligned across the three storylines—and the timeline isn’t grounded in clear marks of time (sometimes I don't even know how long its been). Particularly in the Res storyline, it felt, at times, like we were missing key narrative pieces.
3. The World Never Gets to Breathe
The acceleration of events and stakes means the world feels like it’s constantly being dismantled before we get to truly enjoy it.
For example— Vis never ends up doing anything meaningful with governance in this book, despite that being a major thematic setup. There’s simply no time; the story changes directions before anything can take root.
I kept thinking about Game of Thrones, where a world-ending threat like the White Walkers was developed slowly over multiple books, giving characters time to live inside their worlds. Here, it feels like everything moves at 3× speed, so the richness of the setting is constantly sacrificed for plot escalation.
What Worked
Despite all of that, I did enjoy this book. I think my frustrations stem from being so invested—which is a credit to the author. He kept interesting twists coming, sustained a consistent magic system, and built a puzzle-like plot that invites active reader engagement.
The ending, especially, does a great job laying out the “pieces” of this puzzle and challenging us to consider how they might fit together. I also enjoyed the idea of the diverging versions of Vis—though I’m not entirely sure how successfully the author pulled off believable character divergence while maintaining their core essence.
Final Thoughts
This book is fun, engaging, and deeply readable—but riddled with structural limitations and pacing issues. I don’t fully blame the author; he attempted something ambitious. But the format, word count, and perhaps his experience level made it difficult to deliver on the legacy of the first book, and I believe he fell just short.
Nevertheless, I genuinely applaud his ambition—he succeeded in crafting a fascinating world and puzzle-like plot, and I’m still excited to see where the story goes. I’m just trying not to over-invest emotionally, in case the next installment struggles with similar challenges.