Synopsis

Darrow returns as Pierce Brown’s New York Times bestselling Red Rising series continues in the thrilling sequel to Dark Age.

“The measure of a man is not the fear he sows in his enemies. It is the hope he gives his friends.”—Virginia au Augustus

The Reaper is a legend, more myth than man: the savior of worlds, the leader of the Rising, the breaker of chains.

But the Reaper is also Darrow, born of the red soil of Mars: a husband, a father, a friend.

The worlds once needed the Reaper. But now they need Darrow. Because after the dark age will come a new age: of light, of victory, of hope.

Review

Thanks to David at Penguin Random House and Del Ray for the review copy. Of course, this review copy had no bearing on the review itself, anyone who knows me will know I’m madly in love with Red Rising as a series, and this entry was no different in that fact. As you can see from the rating, it only just missed the top mark by a little, and I’ll try to explain why below. I’ll try to find the words to describe just how I felt about this behemoth.

There may be some spoilers ahead, but only for the previous entries in the series. I’ve kept it spoiler-free for this current book, for those who haven’t read but want to know how the book felt to read, from my point of view.

Light Bringer in itself is a twister of emotion – a torrent so raw and aggressive it scratched away at my psyche only to pick at the scab chapter after chapter. It was brutal, but not in the way of Dark Age. If the previous book was huge, total war in its bloated and truest of forms, then this was personal, a knife in the dark, twisted. 

Okay, so Light Bringer was quite different from what we’ve seen for a while, the scope of the series has always been large, how can it not be when it spans the known solar system? In Iron Gold we saw Darrow facing off against the Society Remnant, headed toward the last fleets of the Ash Lord, only to find him already dead and a knife in his back in the form of his Scepter Armada headed by his surviving daughter, Atalantia au Grimmus, in the orbit of Mercury. In Dark Age, Darrow and the Lost Legions are marooned on Mercury and face orbital bombardment, an Iron Rain, torture at the hands of the Fear Knight, and the wrath of the Storm Gods, at the hands of an insane Orion. It is army to army, dogfighting in the desert, nuclear warheads firing and terraforming-scale storms smashing and destroying … and then Light Bringer comes along. These are quiet moments, bonds formed. There’s action, but on the back of character work and not leading it. It solos in on the individual, focuses on the smaller fights, the personal battles. It was a complete change of pace but for good reason. We needed a breather from Dark Age, our heroes needed to regroup, make new bonds and mend old ones. The book itself felt like the largest by a long way, just through the sheer number of places visited, conversations had, moments taken. If you’re looking for a book that follows on from Dark Age in spirit, then this one might surprise you. But for good reason. I can’t go into too much detail on the POV or even the character relationships, because I realise at the point we left off in Dark Age, the despair and destruction, it’s very easy to spoil Light Bringer by even mentioning one character who spoke to the other. There’s always the how and why they got together etc.

For the POVs that I can talk about, I’ll say I enjoyed Mustang’s and the action that we got to see her in. Since Iron Gold, she’s stood as a figurehead that didn’t really come into her own as Virginia, but rather as the Sovereign. In Light Bringer, we explore a lot more of Virginia, what makes her tick, and what she will do to protect those she loves. I feel like this is the first book we’ve really got to see her intelligence in action since the Institute, it had an element of Red Rising in that respect in this book. Each character came into their own again. In a sense, we stepped back from the Solar Republic’s war against the Society Remnant and got to feel, know and see Virginia’s war against those who would see her dead. And oh boy does she not disappoint. Lyria also has grown on me, though I can’t yet tell entirely where her character arc will end up. She was a very, very intriguing part of this book, but really, she is the centre of a lot of spoilers, so that is all I’ll say. I’m glad she came into her own.

Darrow, Darrow, Darrow … just how do you pick yourself up after the events of Dark Age? You don’t do it alone, you do it among friends. You listen to people around you and take support, you do not shoulder it alone: and we see a lot of that here. Again, I’m going to compare Darrow’s story here to that of the Institute in Red Rising. Though matured through the years and battles since the first book, the story comes full circle in Light Bringer. His point of view at times is very introspective and slower-paced, it focuses on relationships, rebuilding that character, and doing away with the warlord, ArchImperator Darrow, and again focuses on Darrow the Red, Darrow the man. Pierce did a fantastic job at repositioning and refocusing Darrow’s purpose – forgotten as it had been through the grit and horror of war. Though, in those slow, personal, and talkative moments, it is where Pierce best knows how to tear your heart out.

There was only one downside for me, and I felt that was this time the characters did a lot of their working-out-of-problems in many many long and drawn-out conversations, there was a lot more telling the reader what was happening through this conversation, and a lot less letting the actions and words speak for themselves. It did seem like at times there was an attempt to force us as a reader to feel the way the story wanted us to feel, rather than making our own minds up. But that really is my only complaint in the field of compliments.

Though this book was not my favourite in the series (I really, really do love the full-metal, war-on-steroids masterpiece that is Dark Age) it is the first book in the series that truly, truly broke my heart. I won’t be afraid to say this book made me cry and properly. It is the first book to do so. I can’t go into the why or how, but for a book to really capture my emotion like that, it proves it is something special. Pierce did not earn that in cheap writing, or careless death, he earnt that in masterful character work. In order to make someone feel, you have to make them care. And I certainly did care.

Overall, you won’t learn much about the book from this review, you won’t get snippets of what’s to come, I couldn’t do that to any of you. But I will conclude by telling you, though we waited long for it, Pierce Brown has certainly not lost his mojo. Light Bringer truly earns its place as the penultimate book in the Red Rising Saga, which I cannot recommend enough.

Rating: 7/10

Synopsis

There has always been a darkness to Ilmar, but never more so than now. The city chafes under the heavy hand of the Palleseen occupation, the choke-hold of its criminal underworld, the boot of its factory owners, the weight of its wretched poor and the burden of its ancient curse.
What will be the spark that lights the conflagration?
Despite the city’s refugees, wanderers, murderers, madmen, fanatics and thieves, the catalyst, as always, will be the Anchorwood – that dark grove of trees, that primeval remnant, that portal, when the moon is full, to strange and distant shores.

Ilmar, some say, is the worst place in the world and the gateway to a thousand worse places.

Ilmar,
City of Long Shadows.
City of Bad Decisions.
City of Last Chances.

Review

A huge thank you to Cassie and Head of Zeus for including me on this blog tour!

Tchaikovsky’s City of Last Chances weaves complex family structures, pantheons, and warring factions into a gloomy, occupied city-scape – Ilmar has long been without hope, long been a city of divided beliefs and downright debauchery and crime, now occupied by the perfectionist Pals. This work wore its inspirations on its sleeves, heavily reminiscent of the Black Iron Legacy and The Last War. Immediately, I was transported back to Jia and Guerdon in these pages, but it was only a passing whiff of their scents because Ilmar itself was a blend of something in itself.

IIlmar takes on a life of its own, just like Guerdon, and Mordew, it seems to breathe a life of its own, though the breaths are wretched and filled with Demons, despair, and knives that will slit your throat. I really do love a city setting in a fantasy, but only when it is as grim and full of its own life as this is. The way Tchaikovsky writes the city as its own living and breathing animal only adds to the intrigue. There’s buildings and walls and brick that are like drunkards slouched and it all comes alive as something that splutters and just barely clings to life with the characters in it. More specifically, it reminds me of Guerdon from the Gutter Prayer, for all its layers and magics and different people sandwiched on top of each other. And below the depths, worse. Demons.

The gods: God, Zenotheus, both of different faiths and both lacking in worshippers and followers because the School of Correct Thought stamped them out. This too bares its resemblance to other works and perhaps I couldn’t help but let this flavour my opinion of the work: the gods here are manifested by their followers, or lack-of and their power relies directly on how many followers they have. If they have few followers, they too are reduced to a ghoul, a lowly sprite.

I won’t begin to examine all the characters, families, and factions because that was one complexity that didn’t stick with me. When there seemed like as many POVs as there were chapters, all belonging to as many families, gangs, and resistances, all with beliefs and old gods and Demons-or-beasts lurking, there was ALOT to take it. All of this is great and shows a real depth of world-building, I even like stories that require you to do all the heavy lifting, as with The Locked Tomb etc, but it didn’t relent. The Occupiers, the Pals, belong to as many different factions themselves, so when you’ve got ten different enemies turning up from ten different sects within their hierarchy and they are arresting, attacking, or talking to people different people, it was safe to say I got lost. I felt overwhelmed. I couldn’t come up for air.

The plot itself was intriguing and followed the catalyst of the trip in the woods, amongst the Indwellers, and well, a demon fish.

Overall, it is an ambitious book that didn’t quite hit the mark for me. It felt like I was waiting for that moment in fantasy where you break the surface, and everything clicks together but it never got there for me, unfortunately. I spent the entire book above the water trying to see the bottom of the lake.

Synopsis

Her city is under siege.

The zombies are coming back.

And all Nona wants is a birthday party.

In many ways, Nona is like other people. She lives with her family, has a job at her local school, and loves walks on the beach and meeting new dogs. But Nona’s not like other people. Six months ago she woke up in a stranger’s body, and she’s afraid she might have to give it back.

The whole city is falling to pieces. A monstrous blue sphere hangs on the horizon, ready to tear the planet apart. Blood of Eden forces have surrounded the last Cohort facility and wait for the Emperor Undying to come calling. Their leaders want Nona to be the weapon that will save them from the Nine Houses. Nona would prefer to live an ordinary life with the people she loves, with Pyrrha and Camilla and Palamedes, but she also knows that nothing lasts forever.

And each night, Nona dreams of a woman with a skull-painted face…

Review

Nona the Ninth is tremendous—there’s maximum intrigue right from the start in true Muir fashion; in the form of, we don’t know who Nona is and neither does she, though there’s rubbish meals, cool t-shirts, a dog with six legs and a looming Ressurection Beast. It reeks of … something punk—cyberpunk?—punk something as we’re treated to a hopeful story of a person called Nona, and her minders Palamedes-and-Camilla, and the ten-thousand-year-old Pyrrha. Our favourite necromancers-in-space series stops off for a break in a desolate city, in the desert of a world besieged by blue light.

I’d like to just stop for a second and ask everyone to admire the cover—Tommy Arnold is a genius of art. When I first saw the reveal, obviously I was taken aback because this is no necromancer and where are the swords, and the animated skeletons? But it perfectly fits the tone of the novel. And now, I will try to put into words what I like about this novel, but it really is just a load of rambling about things I liked and trying to unpick a book that is far too complex for me to unpick. Mostly, I’ll tell you I LOVED this.

In true Muir, we find ourselves surrounded by water and drowning in plot and intrigue and we have to clamber through the pages and get deep into the book before there’s any semblance of understanding and order amongst the chaos and this is what makes the Locked Tomb great and what keeps me coming back. I read an interview where Muir said that she thought the readers knew enough about the series now for her to ‘blindfold the POV’ and we certainly do get that with this novel. Upfront, and coming from the last novel, there’s not a lot we’re familiar with. There’s an ’Oh hey … wait … why are you here?’ moment when you meet Palamedes-and-Camilla, and then stranger so when we see Pyrrha, though these questions were asked at the end of Harrow, it does not get any easier at the start of Nona. Though, the one thing I do like about this series—this book in particular—is that it requires the reader to pay attention and do a lot of the heavy lifting and the guessing and the noticing that is usually given to us as readers. For instance, there’s clues throughout the book regarding exactly who and what Nona is, and it seems obvious, then it doesn’t and you question it, but only if you’re paying attention. While this novel is a discovery of self—which is interspersed into a House and Blood of Eden stand-off where the Sixth are … somewhat indisposed and Palamedes cannot find them, and Nona becomes friends with some teens that are also a lot to do with BoE, and we’re wondering all the time why there’s so much of the … enemy? about—and also a question of what family is. Which is great, wholesome and there’s necromancy and guns and … other things that also keep us going. One of my favourites is the relationship between Nona—the Teacher’s Aide—and her group of kids (Hot Sauce et al.)

The very biblical—in the way it’s set amongst the other chapters and what actually happens—story of John Gaius, the Emperor Undying, is something I was so excited about; it’s safe to say, I did not think we were going to get the backstory of The Resurrection ever and certainly not from the POV of the man himself, so Muir delivered in a big way on this one!

The plot was jovial, unlike the setting. It isn’t grimdark, because there’s hope despite the planet being a crock-of-shit. Setting is something that always delights me in the Locked Tomb series, even if it is in the most despairing way. Muir’s imagination, paired with beautiful writing, takes us places, and ever-mixes subgenres into the melting pot. By that I mean in Gideon (book #1) we got locked room mystery in a gothic space mansion; in Harrow (book #2) we are aboard a spaceship hurtling through the stars as a Resurrection Beast follows—so some kind of cosmic horror mixed with an exploration of grief, and in Nona, it’s that perfect blend of hi-tech and low-living (eating mush, buildings are falling down, people dead in the streets, robbed in the streets, a terrorist cell lurking) that gives you cyberpunk on an over-crowded planet. But, it’s all okay, because we’ve been given Nona and she’s a joy to read and she’s so happy everyone is there. And … just read and find out who Nona is because you’ll love her and there’s a HUGE, fantastic, and intriguing mystery to unfold.

Dialogue. Dialogue. Dialogue. I believe it is always the sign of a master, such natural Dialogue where characters don’t always talk about plot points and you can’t tell who is speaking sometimes and it’s broken and great and this is exactly what you get here. I love the broken speech, I love the way Hot Sauce talks to every other one of the kids, and the nuance in the way Palamedes talks vs Camilla Hect. I mean, you’re never going to get me to say a bad word about one of these books because there’s simply not one to be had.

All-in-all, perhaps I did not make a lot of sense there, or very many points, but it has to be said this book is more than worth your time. If, somehow, you haven’t read the Locked Tomb at all … well, I implore you to do so!

Synopsis

As someone who loved Ringlander, this little extra story was fantastic. I devoured The Battle That Was Lost in one sitting, Staegrim’s humour and the little bits that expanded the world I knew from Ringlander, added new depth to the world.

Jackson’s deft hand paints the strokes of this action-packed battle novella in blood and graveyard humour.

My favourite part about this novella were the tid-bits of worldbuilding that played their part to add intrigue to the story I’d already read were excellent: like Kemen sandseller with fork like daggers and psy-powers; this immediately made me want more from the world, more of it. In terms of doing the trick to bring more readers to the main story.

Known faces like Tactician Laeb made this for me, perhaps if this was your entry into the series, it wouldn’t hit as well as it did with me. But, getting to see more from this character hit the mark for me; also, I don’t know whether it was my fast-reading or whether it wasn’t as spelled out in the main book, but this is a great starting place to understand the Bohr a little better. I felt the picture painted of them here in this novella was more striking and clearer than in Ringlander; I’m not one for making my own images of characters, I do prefer when it is given to me, so this increased my enjoyment overall and I think when I reread book 1, it’ll sit a lot better. I’m known to miss stuff though, so that might just be a me point.

I would have liked to see more of Laeb’s tactical prowess – as we heard a lot about this battle in the main series, and I thought it would be some of his genius that shone through the passage, but my expectations were subverted when we got more Forbrngr action. Though, I can’t really complain about that. I’d never have guessed how this battle was decided from the events of book one, so that might be a bonus point.

Overall, it’s a great little story that paints a clearer picture of some events and characters from book 1, Jackson’s writing really does carry this with its clear and concise telling, and easily readable prose. I feel like this is going to be a series that I’ll certainly stick with.

Synopsis

As someone who loved Ringlander, this little extra story was fantastic. I devoured The Battle That Was Lost in one sitting, Staegrim’s humour and the little bits that expanded the what I knew from Ringlander, added new depth to the world.

Jackson’s deft hand paints the strokes of this action-packed battle novella in blood and graveyard humour.

My favourite part about this novella were the tid-bits of worldbuilding that played their part to add intrigue to the story I’d already read were excellent: like Kemen sandseller with fork like daggers and psy-powers; this immediately made me want more from the world, to hear all these extra, smaller stories Jackson must have up his sleeve. In terms of bringing more readers to the main story, this is certain to do the trick.

Known faces like Tactician Laeb made this for me, perhaps if this was your entry into the series, it wouldn’t hit as well as it did with me. But, getting to see more from this character really hit the mark. Also, I don’t know whether it was my fast-through of the first, or whether it wasn’t as spelled out in the main book, but this is a great starting place to understand the Bohr a little better. I felt the picture painted of them here in this novella was more striking and clearer than in Ringlander; I’m not one for making my own images of characters, and I do prefer when it is given to me. So, this increased my enjoyment overall and I think when I reread book 1, it’ll sit a lot better. I’m known to miss stuff though, so that might just be a me point.

I would have liked to see more of Laeb’s tactical prowess – we heard a lot about this battle in the main series, and I thought it would be some of his genius that shone through the passage, but my expectations were subverted when we got more Forbringr action. Though, I can’t really complain about that. I’d never have guessed how this battle was decided from the events of book one, so that might be a bonus point.

Overall, it’s a great little story that paints a clearer picture of some events and characters from book 1, Jackson’s writing really does carry this with its clear and concise telling, and easily readable prose. I feel like this is going to be a series that I’ll certainly stick with.

Synopsis

The first in a gripping new historical fantasy series that intertwines Irish mythology with real-life history, The Children of Gods and Fighting Men is the thrilling debut novel by Shauna Lawless.

They think they’ve killed the last of us…

981 AD. The Viking King of Dublin is dead. His young widow, Gormflaith, has ambitions for her son – and herself – but Ireland is a dangerous place and kings tend not to stay kings for long. Gormflaith also has a secret. She is one of the Fomorians, an immortal race who can do fire-magic. She has kept her powers hidden at all costs, for there are other immortals in this world – like the Tuatha Dé Danann, a race of warriors who are sworn to kill Fomorians.

Fódla is one of the Tuatha Dé Danann with the gift of healing. Her kind dwell hidden in a fortress, forbidden to live amongst the mortals. Fódla agrees to help her kin by going to spy on Brian Boru, a powerful man who aims to be High King of Ireland. She finds a land on the brink of war – a war she is desperate to stop. However, preventing the loss of mortal lives is not easy with Ireland in turmoil and the Fomorians now on the rise…

Review

First, I’d like to say thank you to Paige and the team at Head of Zeus for sending me this work and including me on the tour – this in no way affected my opinion of the book.

The Children of Gods and Fighting Men is a mix of political intrigue, intimate character-work, and vast, effective world-building; it was a joy to read and would certainly appeal to those fantasy fans who don’t necessarily need their action upfront and overwhelming, for its pages are etched with rich characters and a complex storyline.

The plot is as vast as the sea of characters that popular it, but the POVS number two main characters: Fodla, a Tuatha De Danann, a sect of mages that have manipulated and protected Ireland from the shadows, a sect that grows smaller in number and members born with actual power. These legendary magicians are first and foremost foe to the Fomorians, ‘descendants from the line of King Balor himself, and with fire-magic in our blood.’ Both characters are a part of a war, fought by Viking convert Kings and Irish Kings as they butt heads and act unknowingly as proxies to this war that has been going on for hundreds of years. For me, the pace was a lot slower than I’d normally read, with a lot of the initial fifty-percent of the book focusing on political maneuvering between both POV characters, manipulating from the shadows, and a lot less on the brutalities of war, battle, and everything in between. Yes, there’s bloodshed, but I’m someone who usually enjoys the odd duel or two and certainly a lot more throwing-of-magic, that isn’t to say this book isn’t beautifully written.

When it comes to efficiency of sentence and delivery of world-building Shauna is an expert; there were passages, and sentences that were both deliberate and absolutely magical in terms of world-building:

‘The way Fomorian descendants aged was strange. We lived hundreds of years in the blood of youth, and then in the last year, age rotted us like over-ripened fruit.’

Simple, powerful, and only in the first chapter are we told enough to get through the book knowing exactly what Fomorians are and how they can wield fire-magic; often, writers are told to show, and this can dilute the sense and increase confusion but – from a world-building point of view – I felt comfortable right away. These speak of a writer comfortable with their craft; there are many examples of why this book is so efficiently world-built, but I wouldn’t want to spoil them for you. I found myself many times jealous of the craft that went into this book, and this is why primarily I’ve focused on this in my review.

With efficiency of world-building comes clarity of writing and so that flows into character-work and the depth that is presented. Both characters you’re forced to follow, forced to turn the page because of their very human motivations, despite their other-worldy powers. Both have family, often in the form of sons, they want to see thrive and protect, which you cannot help but want to see out until the end.

Overall, if you like your fantasy doused in political intrigue and maneuvering, your plots complex, and that steer away from outright violence, this would be the perfect read for you. Couple that with Shauna’s writing prowess, and you’re in for a great read.  

Synopsis

Forged in betrayal. Tempered by the stellar winds. Chosen by the stars.

For five hundred years since the Sundering, the order of the Shaluay Starbinders has been dwindling. With their Starwells lying dormant, key artefacts of their order lost and their seers driven mad by the powers that broke the world, only one hope remains to the man who leads them; a fifteen year old girl.

Born to a clan of Wanderers, Reiana has been raised by a harsh grandmother who blames her for the death of her daughter, Reiana’s own mother. When bandits attack the clan’s camp, Reiana leaves the safety of the caravans to pursue the abductor of her younger cousin, heedless of the dangers.

But when a creature of the Void takes notice can Reiana’s own untapped abilities save her, or will the truth of a betrayal see her lost forever?

Starbinder is an action-packed prequel novella to The Blood of the Spear. If you like flawed heroes, fast-paced storytelling, and intricate world-building, then you’ll Love Mark Timmony’s character-driven introduction to the epic fantasy series, The Eye of Eternity.

Review

Starbinder is the magical, deftly written introduction to Timmony’s An Eye of Eternity series, in novella form; it’s an action-packed morsel of expert world-building that will surely have you coming back to read book one: The Blood of the Spear.

In this short but magnificent piece of writing, we meet Reiana, a girl ordinary who travels with her grandmother among others, who is from the fallen Nemisdrillion, and who is setting about enacting prophecy, and forcing Reiana into the woman the world needs her to be. Now, I don’t want to go too much into the plot or what makes this work such a page-turner, despite its size, but I’ll try to summarise what makes it so cool:

‘His armour was made of Kharidium, the lightest and strongest metal in the known world. Bandits couldn’t afford Xious’bisan forged steel.’

That sentence is an epic-fantasy fans dream (or mine), you’ve got rare, strange armour worn in a place it should not, by a mysterious figure our characters should not have met; at the same time, the sentence speaks to mysteries within the character and the very world itself. This is just one aspect of the novella and Timmony’s writing skill that made me immediately hungry for more and made this a one-sitting kind of book.

Along with the above, you have a prologue that speaks of a daemon trapped in the Face, The Elder Gods, Starbinders; an event called The Sundering, that stretches into the history still beyond this novella, the Void and many more intriguing terms you really just want to know more about. And what Timmony does here is he throws out all the epicness, but only answers a few of the questions. The rest of which I’m sure will be answered in the first book … so I’m just going to have to read that.

In summary, Timmony is a true talent, the way in which he’s woven this particular set of words together speaks to the long-time epic-fantasy fan, evokes nostalgia of the great epic fantasy series’ of old and paints those tropes into an entirely new epic picture of their own. And all this in a novella? I’m going to go ahead and tell you to read this and then read the next book … I’m about to start it very soon and I am happy to recommend it even just having read this book.

Synopsis

The war is over. The enemy won. Now it’s time to fight back.

For generations, the people of Jia – a land where magic has long since faded from the world, clinging on in only a few rare individuals – have been protected from the northern Egril hordes by their warrior caste, but their enemy has not been idle. They have rediscovered magic and use it to launch an overwhelming surprise attack. An invasion has begun.

And in moments, the war is over. Resistance is quashed. Kings and city leaders are barricaded in their homes awaiting banishment and execution, the warriors are massacred, and a helpless people submit to the brutality of Egril rule.

Jia’s heroes have failed it. They are all gone. And yet… there is still hope. Soon the fate of the kingdom will fall into the hands of a schoolboy terrorist, a crippled Shulka warrior and his wheelchair bound son, a single mother desperate enough to do anything she can to protect her baby… and Tinnstra, disgraced daughter of the Shulka’s greatest leader, who now lies dead by Egril hands.

A brand new epic fantasy: gritty and modern featuring a unique ensemble of characters who will lead a revolution against their overlords.

Review

First of all, welcome to a new series we’re (Justin and Dan) starting; it’s something we’re very excited about. Both of us have such a passion for great SFF series; we’ve cultivated such a great friendship through book recs and general book talk, we wanted to somehow combine our love of reviewing and also our constant chatter about books together … and this series was the perfect place to start.

Dan: Justin and I thought we’d try out something a little different with this review, considering we are buddy reading the entire The Last War trilogy, where we combine our thoughts and make it a little more interesting for you guys reading. We’re both about two-thirds through A Fool’s Hope (book #2), so as far as the series goes, I feel like we’re in a good position to tell you it’s a must read – for one, I’m absolutely blown away by the first book and I hope perhaps I might be able to distill this into a short review.

Justin: If you follow me on Twitter or we talk in any capacity you’ll know that I’ve become somewhat of a broken record recently. Truthfully, I’ve been kicking myself for the past few weeks over having waited this long to start this series! As Dan says above, We are the Dead and The Last War trilogy as a whole is an absolute must-read. Mike Shackle has to be one of the most criminally underrated authors currently writing.

Dan: We Are the Dead is at times a visceral masterpiece of action, explosions, and blood; at others, it’s a critique of class systems. And much further beyond that. But at face value, it’s bleak, grim, and does not hold back on the true horrors of war. I love this book for many reasons and it’s certainly sitting happily in my top five books I’ve ever read.

In summary, the Shulka (the Jian’s elite warriors) have long been the most formidable warriors on the continent, protecting Jia from the barbarian hordes of the Egril, that is until the Egril infiltrate their country with monsters, magic, and a more organized and advanced fighting force that the Shulka had ever seen before, leading to their utter defeat. From then on, the Egril occupy Jia’s many towns and cities, keeping the Jian’s at bay with an iron fist.

And all of that happens in the prologue, or thereabouts. From there, the story explodes at a rapid pace – pace being what I think Shackle is the absolute master of, every 20% where we stopped to talk about the book, there had been something major that happened.

We have spoken at length about the plot, and I think both Justin and I have realized that buddy reads enhance the overall reading process in that you’re looking for things to talk about. So, I’ve got a lot of notes for this one, that mainly involve whoa, explosions! Even though we’re in a medieval-esque world, there’s still plenty of explosions. I think my favorite thing about the plot is the way the characters’ stories intertwine, and how they act toward each other. This – between Dren and Jax’s POV – boils down to class distinction.  The way that Dren tells the Hanran, the dregs of the Shulka that have formed a freedom fighting unit, that Jia was no less violent for the lower class to live in now than when the Shulka ruled really hit home for me. It was one of those plot moments when you’re nodding and are also completely jealous of the writing skill at work. From a reader’s point of view, I was led to believe that the Egril are evil, the worst thing to ever happen to the Jians. So it was a bit of a shock to hear this from Dren. What are your thoughts, Justin?

Justin: First of all, I have to say that I didn’t expect the story we received when we first went into this. I don’t know what I expected exactly, but the nonstop pace and the general level of dread and feeling that no one was safe wasn’t it. Needless to say, they were a pleasant surprise! I won’t say much more about the plot itself, as I think Dan did a good job of summarizing it, but I will say that it kept me on my toes throughout the entire book. From the very beginning, it’s made abundantly clear that no one is safe from the Egril and this feeling that the floor could drop out from under you at any moment stayed with me until the end. I would also be remiss in not mentioning just how many twists and turns this book has! It’s not often that a book’s plot can keep me guessing as much as We Are the Dead did! Also, I would say the book consistently toes the line of something I would consider Grimdark, which was a surprise to me as I had never heard it described as such. For me, the only thing that saves it from going fully into that area are the protagonists and feeling that not all hope is gone.

The dueling perspectives between points of view was one of my favorite things in the book. The intersection of culture and class is not something I rarely see explored in fantasy and this is probably one of the best examples of how to weave that into a narrative that I have ever seen. As Dan mentioned, even amongst our heroes there is a clear divide caused by their class. The Shulka, Jia’s warriors, are held up as the paragons of what a Jian can be. They’re lords, the only ones that have family names, and have an almost dynastic place above the common folk. At the start of We Are the Dead, their place in Jian society is that of protector and ruler and it has been that way for millenia. Until the chapter from Dren’s PoV, we’re led to believe that they’re just and fair, but it’s soon apparent that not everyone shares the Shulka’s own view of themselves. I really appreciated how Shackle was able to show that depending on the culture and class a person belongs to, their perspective is going to be different than that of someone else’s who doesn’t belong to their culture/class. It’s something that we know is true in our own society, but not something often explored in fantasy where so often the hero is so obviously set apart from everyone else. Shackle deftly explores all facets of the characters: who they think they are, who the world sees them as, and who they really are. We Are the Dead is a masterclass in subtle worldbuilding.

Dan: We’ve already spoken about this above, but the class distinction is just one of the many facets to the world. We’ve got the Egril and Jians who both believe in different gods; the Egril have their One god, Kage who rules over the Great Darkness, the only god, whose son Raaku, the Emperor of the Egril has set them on their bloody path, while the Jians believe in the Four Gods: Alo, Xin, Ruus, and Nasri. There’s also the Chosen, Egril mages gifted their power from Raaku; Daijaku who are flying men-turned-monsters that drop bombs; kyoryu, great wolf-like monsters born out of the sacrifice of their handler’s children. There’s a lot to unpack and a lot that really sets this series up to be great. And Although there are many facets, Shackle writes it in a way that leaves no question in the story-telling, it is crystal clear and incredibly cool.

There are many great characters in this book, even the side ones leave a lasting memory on me, but there are four main POVS: Tinnstra, our cowardly warrior who failed to be a Shulka; Yas, the single mother of Little Ro, living alongside her ma, forced to take action to feed her child; Jax, the leader of the last dregs of the Shulka, the Hanran, and last but certainly not least, Dren, the boy making sure the Egril pay explosion by explosion for the land they’ve taken.

My favorite character was of course Dren, he’s the antithesis to the Shulka story of heroics and a country cruelly invaded and taken from their hands by bloody force. He’s the character that lets the reader know the Shulka were no better, not in his eyes; I think he’s likable if only for the fact he’s leading the charge against the Egril, and does not give a damn whether the Hanran like it or not. Unfortunately, he also doesn’t care how many innocents get caught up in his plots. He’s a very great, well rounded and written character that has flaws, but you can’t help follow the potty-mouthed and murderous brat.

Justin: While Dren is probably a close second (murder goblins, ftw!), my favorite character has to be Tinnstra. Just everything about her is expertly written, with nuance and subtlety galore. Weighed down by the pressures of being born into a famous family, with a legendary father to boot, Tinnstra carries with her a crippling secret. Despite having been raised to be a warrior like every member of her family before, Tinnstra is a coward. Her PoV is riddled with self-sabotage, an inner dialogue filled with disgust and self-hatred, and, as most Jian’s can relate, loss. However, there comes a point where we finally see Tinnstra through the eyes of another and, I won’t spoil it for you here but, I got major chills!

We also have to talk about the Egril! Their primary reason for invading Jia is to forcefully convert or slaughter everyone who doesn’t worship the one true god, Kage. Religious zealotry is such an interesting (and oftentimes scary) motivator for characters to have. Our primary antagonist, Darus Monsuta, is one of the Chosen, a special group of Egril who have been gifted powers. He is well and truly cracked and having an enemy that seems one step from wholesale slaughter at any given time definitely ups the tension a bit!

We Are the Dead does so many things right that it’s nearly impossible for us to find fault with it. From the pacing to the atmosphere, worldbuilding, character work — the list goes on and on. The brilliant depth and nuance of the writing will stick with us for some time and even weeks after finishing it, we’re still coming to realizations that leave us breathless. Shackle’s debut novel has been firmly cemented in our Top 5 and we urge everyone to give it a try.

Synopsis

Game of Thrones meets Mahabharata and Ramayan in India’s first epic-grimdark fantasy series

“Through humor, torture, gore, lust, magic, dangerous power games and bloodcurdling battles, Sons of Darkness takes us on an unforgettable wild journey set in re-imagined Vedic India.” –SF Book Review

A brilliantly imaginative talent makes his exciting debut with this epic grimdark fantasy saga inspired by ancient Indian epic Mahabharata and filled with treachery, war and vengeance, in the tradition of Steven Erikson’s Malazan Book of the Fallen Series and George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire Series.

SOME BALLADS ARE INKED IN BLOOD.

Bled dry by violent confrontations with the Magadhan Empire, the Mathuran Republic simmers on the brink of oblivion. Krishna and Satyabhama have put their plans in motion within and beyond the Republic’s blood-soaked borders to protect it from annihilation. But they will soon discover that neither gold nor alliances last forever.

They are however not alone in this game.

Mati, Pirate-Princess of Kalinga, has decided to mend her ways to be a good wife. But old habits die hard, especially when one habitually uses murder to settle old scores. Brooding but beautiful Karna hopes to bury his brutal past but finds that destiny is a miser when it comes to giving second chances. The crippled hero-turned-torturer Shakuni limps through the path of daggers that is politics only to find his foes multiply, leaving little time for vengeance.

Their lives are about to become very difficult for a cast of sinister queens, naive kings, pious assassins and ravenous priests are converging where the Son of Darkness is prophesied to rise, even as forgotten Gods prepare to play their hand.

Review

I haven’t reviewed in a long time, but this is a book that I just had to come out of hiatus to review (in the interest of being spoiler-free, I’ve kept this as an overview, rather than speaking about particular events):

Sons of darkness smashes open the fountain of originality, spilling insidious plot, incredible characters, and grim violence. I loved this book. Described as the Indian ASoIaF, it has feuding families, politics, war, and deceit in equal measures, but tops this with inspired world-building and a plot that starts as embers and ends as a blazing inferno.

I don’t usually mention prologues, but this one was incredible in execution. Very good, very bloody. Very necessary. It sets the tone for a book so epic in scope and grim in its nature. It is perhaps the most effective prologue I’ve seen used since the Rage of Dragons and that’s because it does two things, very effectively and efficiently: tells us the ‘why‘ and I mean the ‘why is anyone here in the main plot doing anything’ and the ‘what‘ as in what’s to come. What happened. What will happen. As a bonus, it explains the state of the world, gods, magic system and that’s without really telling us, but showing by way of a cool, badass opening sequence.

It is centered around Princess Panchal’s Swayamvar: heroes from all around the lands are being called to test themselves in the swayamvar and see whether they will win the Princess’ hand in marriage. The many heroes and hopefuls make up the POV, in some respects. These points of view have their own issues, like war etc, but for now, they turn their attention to the beautiful princess, that is after we’ve met them all in stunning fashion. In many ways, the stories centre around this but it isn’t the main plot point. Now, I’m not about to spoil what is, you’ll have to read that, as the story expands many pages beyond this. But it is the core and what comes after could be said as a ripple that comes from the stone thrown in the pond of this event, based around an Indian wedding. It truly was one of my favourite sequences from a book ever. How the character paths are interlaced here is truly genius. In the backdrop, there’s a prophecy linked to the prologue. My favourite part of the book was perhaps the duel of arrows, but you’ll see. At its depths, the plot is grim and fully embraces the staples of the grimdark genre, throughout there are depictions of gore and bloody, brutal battle scenes … nearing the end, there’s little hope to be had. Just how I like my reads.

A plethora of character involved, I feel like we’re only just getting to know through the end of the book which does promise an epic series; my favourite POV (of which there are many) is Karna, a student of Parshuram (oh boy, just wait until you find out about Parshuram and the history that stretches behind that man), who has been inflicted by not one, but two shraps (read on for a look into the magic system) and has a golden breastplate fused to him: he’s the picture of a hero, he wants to be remembered and is a guy who stands at the bottom of society, holding his bow upward to those who stomp from above. He represents the Reshts, those born poor to stay poor – Gourav builds quite the complex society and this is just one part of it, that I perhaps don’t have the skill to explain, but include Namins, Ksharjas who are higher class – and he’s valiant, but holds a deep anger within him. Perhaps, something waiting to emerge. I love how honest and sincere the character is while being surrounded by snakes. He is kept so by his nephew, Sudama and their relationship paves the way for his character, his beliefs, strengths, and hopes rest upon the child who sits on his shoulders. And he is just one of many characters, like the plotting Krishna who I don’t very much like; Shishupal the disaffected Claw of the Magadh Empire; Shakuni, the tortured spy-master, and Nala, the girl risen again. There’s so much about the characters that make this story epic, lovable, and page-turning, but I can only prick the surface here because I wouldn’t want to spoil the magic. 

Now, about the magic, for those of you who like strict magic systems, with rules and well-thought-out uses, this is one of them. Well, I say one, but there’s perhaps a handful. Or a handful of different ways to use the same energy. Though I’d be no great explainer of them all, I have to say it really hits the right balance of magic for my tastes, that being said there’s a lot of it. Shraps are one very intriguing magic where (as I understand it) the saving up of soul-energy can allow a person to inflict a shrap on someone, which I believe comes in the form of a curse, something that follows them. But I’m not sure that’s the extent. However, this usually kills the caster, because it spends soul-energy. These are unlike elemental Mandalas that only use said energy, and do not expend it, but elemental mandalas are gone, anyway. Humans can no longer use them. The point of telling you all of this is to give you a glimpse of the time and effort Gourav has gone to craft this world – not only are there many peoples and cultures interwoven here, but there’s much magic, with many rules and uses, and a lot of awe and wonder and discovery. Each magic system itself here isn’t a way for characters to find new ways to harm each other, but it’s another facet to the story, something else to trip and stumble on, to turn the storyline slightly, to twist our characters, or to add something there for later. Something you read and forget. Something which might come back and cause despair. Who knows, that’s the magic of this epic, grimdark adventure.

Fantasy suffers from the same cultures explored, the same western histories interspersed into the stories over and over again, so we need books like the Sons of Darkness that build their stories from a different foundation. It was a refreshing read and also a crucial read for epic fantasy fans wanting to diversify their reading and shed light on new, upcoming authors from different areas of the world. When we call for variety on our shelves, books like this are important and should be consumed voraciously (especially when they are this good.)

Overall, please read this. It is fantastic and I definitely need to get myself a physical copy for my shelves – it is that amazing.

Rating: 8/10

Synopsis

Michael Duckett is fed up with his life. His job is a drag, and his roommate and best friend of fifteen years, Stephanie Dyer, is only making him more anxious with her lazy irresponsibility. Things continue to escalate when they face the threat of imminent eviction from their palatial 5th floor walk-up and find that someone has been plastering ads all over the city for their Detective Agency.

The only problem is: He and Stephanie don’t have one of those.

Despite their baffling levels of incompetence, Stephanie eagerly pursues this crazy scheme and drags Michael, kicking and screaming, into the fray only to find that they are way out of their depth. They stumble upon a web of missing people that are curiously linked to a sexually audacious theoretical physicist and his experiments with the fabric of space-time. And unless Michael and Stephanie can put their personal issues aside and fix the multi-verse, the concept of existence itself may, ironically, no longer exist.

Review

Duckett and Dyer: Dicks for Hire is great, interdimensional fun … wait, interdimensional? Yes, and they’re amateur detectives. This is a great, quick read for anyone who loves books like the Stranger Times series and Rivers of London – both of those being series I enjoy so I immediately felt comfortable, cozy reading this book. The characters are real, flawed and the plot entertaining.

One of my favourite things about the book was how Duckett and Dyer bounced off each other – on one hand, you’ve got super serious Michael, who really cannot be bothered. He wants a quiet life, maybe even a girlfriend if his garbagemobile and its brick parking system will get him to the date on time, but that is not the plan life has set out from him. Not with a friend like Steph Dyer. She’s a woman always with a plan, but perhaps not the right one. They have a good cop, bad cop dynamic, but only if the bad cop is fedup and the good cop is enthusiastic. You can tell Nair spent a lot of time getting the feeling between these two right and it hits the right spot of being natural while at the same time being surrounded by the paranormal.

The plot went to different places than I imagined – different world, or at least differing places in different timelines. While I enjoy a little bit of the paranormal, I’m never a fan of multiverse type settings. And while this doesn’t feature one per say, it was enough to slightly put me off the end of the book. Having said that, it adds to the general wackiness of the book – if I only mention ‘cow people’ it will give you an idea of how crazy it gets.

The writing is confident, sure of itself and for good reason, Nair knows how to write a story. There’s always a good balance between serious writing and gags and it certainly kept me reading until the end. I’d recommend this book if you’re into the genre or you need a lighter, happier read in between all of the tears and gore I know us SFF readers drench ourselves in daily.

Rating: 8/10

Synopsis

The Sachem has fled his Fortress. Many fear that he intends to turn on the Decayer Device.

Hoping to stop this, Annilasia resolves to track down the Sachem. But her plan falters when she discovers that, should the Sachem succeed in turning on the Device, the dokojin attached to her will rip her apart. Before she can save the world from the Sachem, she must first find a way to save herself.

Meanwhile, Jalice sets out to locate her long-lost brother, Kerothan. It is only with his help that she can hope to save the Sachem from his own wickedness. But the sins of the past are not soon forgotten, and Kerothan has no intentions of mending old wounds. He’s more concerned with the infestation of twisters that scheme to unleash a new evil…

…a new evil that eludes detection and festers in a forsaken place.

Review

The Spawn of Spiracy is every bit the successor to the Jealousy of Jalice; the world expands in every direction, the world bigger, the characters familiar. Without needing to really mention it, Nolan Bailey is a great writer, the pages atmospheric, drawing me in once more. The world is rich, and there’s plenty new problems for our cast: the Sachem is banished, but the danger not gone. And there’s an experimental Dokojin that might be the answer. Though, somehow, Spiracy is loose.

My favourite part of Nolan Bailey’s books will always be the world-building and the depth at which they explore this; there’s an answer for everything, and it is redoubled in this sequel. We get to explore the aether in more detail; glass wands and how they’re made; the twisters and the Dokojin, even seeing Annilisia at a school for twisters, learning the aether, and many more … secrets. She’s probably my favourite character, I like how headstrong and capable she was in the first, for it then to be flipped on its head slightly toward the end of the book. In the sequel, we have her in a very unfamiliar situation with regards to the first, but she doesn’t disappoint, being at what I would call the forefront of the most intriguing part of the book: Spiracy. Though, I will not go into too many details there.

I’m not entirely sure I enjoyed this book as much as the first: Jealousy focused on Jalice discovering what happened in the black house, and I thoroughly enjoyed the sense of discovery as the character moves through the fog, and at times despairing at what she finds. And what she had forgot; this one, as I’ve said, expands on the world a lot more but I wasn’t so invested in what was happening. Though, I’m a mood reader and I can’t help but let this affect my opinion on what I’m reading. It might be that it wasn’t the right time for me to revisit this series yet and says nothing about what I feel for Jesse’s writing.

One thing I’ve said before and I’ll say again, the author knows their craft.  The pacing is on point, there is truly not a dull moment, and the action intersperses nicely with the exposition. I’m rating this one highly because I know that sequels are a different ball game and this one is executed very well. If you’re looking for a great dark fantasy series, this might just be what you’re after.