True Space Mage is a rather refreshing story among all the copy-pasted web novels around. It tries to build its own unique world with lots of layers and mysteries, and it establishes a logical magic system that still allows endless possibilities. Truly a breath of fresh air if you're used to novels that keep reusing the same few settings over and over again.The main character, Aaron, also feels much more like a human than most protagonists. Despite his reincarnation advantages, there are always challenges waiting for him. He hesitates, makes mistakes, falls into slum**, and struggles against inner demons; through all of this, however, he slowly grows as a person and a mage.Sadly, while the ideas might be good, the actual writing... isn't. I'm not just talking about the technical aspects, the grammar, and whatnot (though a proofreader is definitely needed as well), but the overall plot and character development. It doesn't feel like the author has much of a plan, which ends up seriously harming the novel. It's what makes Aaron simultaneously one of the best and worst things about the story.As I said previously, Aaron's humanity makes him a compelling character, but only when the writer knows what they're doing. The problem here is that it's hard to get a good grasp on his character. He repeats mistakes even though he should have gotten over them already; he is supposed to be smart, but keeps getting dumbed down so that the plot moves in certain ways; he improves dramatically in many aspects, but still makes newbie blunders; his motivations are sometimes fuzzy and hard to understand.Many of these problems could be improved with forethought and planning. If say, character X (readers will know who I'm talking about) will be important in the future, then take some time to establish their relationship with Aaron; don't just suddenly add some drama involving X when neither the reader nor the main character has much reason to care about them. Maybe it makes sense in theory, but you need to *show* us these things, not just *tell* them. Give them more scenes, more characterization.Also, you need to give some thought to the main character's progression if you want to avoid testing the reader's patience. If he failed, learned his lesson, and became stronger, then move on. Don't keep retreading old ground unless you can add something genuinely new and interesting. Writing realistic, deeply flawed protagonists takes some serious writing skills, especially in a web novel, which we often read for easily digestible stories. So I would advise anyone to start ******.All in all, it could still be an enjoyable read for people who enjoy magic and worldbuilding. That's mostly what kept me hooked, at least. But the writing has much to improve and could hugely benefit from an editor, since the actual story falls short from what it could have been.
