Top Ten Tuesday – Favourite Pre-2021 Novels

On December 7, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn List13 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. This week participants of Top Ten Tuesday get a freebie to list whatever topics they want. I am planning to take advantage of this by doing two lists. Not only have a done a movie-related list ranking the James Bond movies, but I am also going to start my annual end-of-year lists here by looking at my favourite pre-2021 novels that I read this year.

Each December I have a lot of fun looking at some of the best and most impressive books and comics that I have read throughout the year in a series of Top Ten Lists. While these lists usually focus on 2021 releases, for the last few years, I have also taken the time to list out some of the best novels with pre-2021 release dates that I have read in the last 12 months. There are some excellent older novels out there that I haven’t had the chance to read before this year, and it is always fun to go back and explore them. I ended up reading a bunch of awesome older books throughout 2021, including some pretty incredible novels that got easy five-star ratings from me and are really worth checking out.

To come up with this list I had a look at all the novels I read this year that had their initial release before 2021. This included several 2020 releases I only got a chance to check out this year, as well as a few older novels that I had been meaning to read for a while. I was eventually able to cull this down to a workable Top Ten list, with a descent honourable mentions section. This new list ended up containing an interesting combination of novels, although there was a bit of an overload of entries from the Dresden Files’ series by Jim Butcher, as well as some Warhammer 40,000 novels, both of which I really got into throughout this year. Still this honestly reflects the best pre-2021 novels I read throughout the year, so let us see what made the cut.

Honourable Mentions:

Trollslayer by William King – 1999

I have been meaning to check out the awesome Gotrek and Felix series of Warhammer Fantasy novels for ages and the recent release of the early entries on audiobook gave me the perfect opportunity to finally do so this year. The first book in this series was the fantastic, Trollslayer, which introduced the two mismatched companions, Gotrek the dwarven Slayer and Felix the human poet, and highlights some of their earliest adventures throughout the Warhammer Fantasy world in a series of exciting and fun short stories. This was an excellent initial entry by William King and it made me a massive fan of the unique tandem of Gotrek and Felix.

Skavenslayer by William King – 1999

I ended up loving Trollslayer so much that I immediately read its sequel, Skavenslayer, which proved to be just as fun as the first book. Skavenslayer has a more connected story that shows Gotrek and Felix getting caught up in a Skaven invasion of Nuln. I had an absolute blast with the humour in this novel, especially surrounding the bickering and backstabbing Skaven, and I powered through it in a couple of days.

The Return by Harry Sidebottom – 2020

An epic and clever historical read by the impressive Harry Sidebottom, The Return is a compelling read that sees a damaged Roman soldier return home only to encounter a series of dark murders. I was really glad that I got a chance to read The Return this year after missing out on it in 2020, and it ended up being a compelling read.

Either Side of Midnight by Benjamin Stevenson – 2020

Another 2020 novel I read towards the start of the year, Either Side of Midnight is a compelling Australian murder mystery that serves as a sequel to Stevenson’s first book, Greenlight. Either Side of Midnight had a brilliant thriller storyline, and it was one of the cleverest crime fiction books I had the pleasure of checking out this year.

Top Ten List (by original publication date):

First and Only by Dan Abnett – 1999

2021 was the year that I really dove into the Warhammer extended universe, a decision that I am very happy about as there are some exceptional works there. While the Gotrex and Felix novels were my go-to series for Warhammer Fantasy, when it came to Warhammer 40,000 the clear choice was easily First and Only by legendary Warhammer fiction author Dan Abnett. First and Only is the first book in the acclaimed Gaunt’s Ghosts series, which follows a group of Imperial foot soldiers as they fight and die across the myriad dangerous battlefields of the 41^st millennia. This first novel introduced the reader to the key Ghosts and takes them on a compelling and deadly series of adventures featuring war, death, and conspiracy. A wonderful and deeply exciting read, I cannot wait to enjoy the rest of the series next year.

Storm Front by Jim Butcher – 2000

Another series that I decided to really dive into this year was the exceptional Dresden Files series by Jim Butcher. Generally considered the gold-standard of urban fantasy novels, this series blends fantasy and crime fiction elements in the city of Chicago. I fell in love with this series last year when I checked out the awesome 17^th novel, Battle Ground (one of the best books and audiobooks of 2020) which convinced me to go back and read some of the earlier entries. As such, I read the initial novel, Storm Front, towards the front of 2021 and I had a wonderful time with it. Storm Front contains an excellent story that introduces the protagonist, rogue wizard Harry Dresden, and follows his investigation of a series of magical murders around town. I had an absolute blast with this novel, and while it isn’t Butcher’s best work, it was an excellent debut that serves as a great first entry in this iconic series.

Daemonslayer by William King – 2000

Out of the three Gotrek and Felix novels I have so far had the pleasure of reading, I think that Daemonslayer is probably the best. This cool novel sees the titular protagonists journey to the most dangerous place in the entire Warhammer Fantasy universe, the Chaos Wastes, to face daemons, monsters and warriors of Chaos. This novel has a more complete and linear story than the preceding two entries, which makes for a stronger tale. An extremely exciting and action-packed epic, I look forward to reading more of these novels in the future.

Fool Moon by Jim Butcher – 2001

The second Dresden Files novel I checked out in 2021 was the fantastic Fool Moon, which I found to be one of the strongest overall entries in the series. Fool Moon pits the protagonist against multiple tribes of werewolves, each of whom have their own magical origins, as he attempts to solve the murder of a friend and clear his name. This was a very clever and intense novel, and I deeply enjoyed the excellent story and powerful scenes that Butcher was able to craft together.

Grave Peril by Jim Butcher – 2002

I really got into the Dresden Files novel this year and quickly read Grave Peril right after finishing off Fool Moon. Grave Peril was another exceptional read that saw Dresden face off against vampires, elves and a nightmarish being of pure evil. This was another awesome novel that added in some great key characters, new antagonists, and substantial universe expansion. Featuring some truly dark moments and some major character development, this was an outstanding novel that I had a lot of fun with.

Summer Knight by Jim Butcher – 2002

The fourth and final Dresden Files book I managed to get through this year was the awesome Summer Knight. This book sees Dresden forced to work for the Winter Court of the elves who need him to solve a murder. Summer Knight has a great story that moves at an extremely quick pace and takes the protagonist to some awesome new places. I had an excellent time with Summer Knight, and indeed all the Dresden Files books I read in 2021 and I look forward to further exploring this series next year.

The Gray Man by Mark Greaney – 2009

Another series that I decided to go back and check out this year was Mark Greaney’s epic Gray Man spy thriller series. I have been deeply enjoying Greaney’s more recent Gray Man novels, such as Mission Critical, One Minute Out and Relentless, and I thought that it would be good to back and check this series out from the start, especially as there is a movie adaptation coming out next year. I ended up having an incredible time with The Gray Man which set’s the protagonist, Court Gentry, against a horde of professional hit teams. An exceptional and action-packed thrill ride, I cannot wait to see how the movie version of this turns out. I am also extremely excited for some other Greaney books coming out in the next couple of months, as they should be pretty damn awesome.

Star Wars: Maul: Lockdown by Joe Schreiber – 2014

2021 was a great year for new Star Wars novels, many of which were pretty damn exceptional. However, one of the downsides of this was that I had less time to read some older Star Wars novels. I did however get a chance to read Maul: Lockdown by Joe Schreiber, whose previous Star Wars novel, Death Troopers, was an awesome horror read. Lockdown has an awesome (and currently non-canon) story about Maul being sent to infiltrate a maximum-security space prison that runs a series of death fights. This was a great and compelling read, and I loved all the fun elements featured within. I am hoping to check out a couple more earlier Star Wars novels next year, and there are a few that I currently have my eye on.

State of Fear by Tim Ayliffe – 2019

Another excellent book I checked out this year was the 2019 novel State of Fear by Australian author Tim Ayliffe. I had been hoping to read this one for a while, especially after enjoying Ayliffe’s first novel The Greater Good, and I finally got the chance this year in the lead up to Ayliffe’s third novel, The Enemy Within. State of Fear was a great Australian thriller that set the protagonist against a dangerous terrorist threat both in Sydney and in London. Featuring some intense emotional moments and an impressive story, State of Fear is an excellent read and I look forward to checking out more of Ayliffe’s novels in the future.

Kal Jerico: Sinner’s Bounty by Josh Reynolds– 2019

The final entry on this list is the incredibly awesome Kal Jerico: Sinner’s Bounty, which is part of the Necromunda sub-series of the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Sinner’s Bounty was initially released in 2019, but an audiobook version came out last year, which was a lot of fun to listen to. Featuring one of the best characters in the Warhammer 40,000 canon, notorious bounty hunter Kal Jerico, this novel takes the protagonist and his team to an obscure Underhive town to get a rich bounty. Forced to contend against monsters, religious zealots, rival bounty hunters and an army of mutants, the protagonists have a cool and fun adventure, filled with intense action, fun humour, and a ton of treachery. An amazing and deeply enjoyable read, I am very glad I decided to check this book out.

And that is the end of this list. As you can see I have managed to check out a bunch of epic pre-2021 novels this year. Each of the above were exceptional and fun reads and I would strongly recommend them, especially if you are in the mood for some fun fantasy or science fiction adventures. I look forward to reading some other older books in 2022, and it will be interesting to see what makes my next version of this list then. I imagine it will end up looking a little similar, especially as I have plans to continue several of these series, especially the Dresden Files, as well as examining some other outstanding Star Wars and Warhammer novels. Make sure to check back in next week for some other end-of-year lists as I continue to highlight some of my favourite reads from 2021.

Quick Review – The Return by Harry Sidebottom

On December 7, 2021November 22, 2023 By The Unseen LibraryIn Historical Fiction, Murder Mystery, Quick Review6 Comments

The Return Cover

Publisher: Zaffre (Trade Paperback – 11 June 2020)

Series: Standalone

Length: 307 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars

Amazon

Bestselling historical fiction author Harry Sidebottom takes you on a dark and compelling adventure into the mind of a haunted Roman soldier as he returns home only to find more death waiting for him with, The Return.

Harry Sidebottom is an impressive author specialising in exciting and detailed Roman historical fiction novels, whose work I have been enjoying for years. Sidebottom has so far written two amazing series, the Warrior of Rome series, which followed a barbarian turned Roman general, Ballista, as he attempts to survive the machinations and wars of the Empire, and The Throne of the Caesar’s novels that examined some of the more obscure and chaotic Roman Emperors. In recent years Sidebottom has started experimenting with some compelling standalone novels. The first of these, The Last Hour, brought back Ballista and set him on a fast-paced adventure through Rome in a manner reminiscent of the television series 24. His next novel The Lost Ten, featured a group of 10 mis-matched Roman soldiers who are sent on an infiltration mission into enemy territory to break a high value target out of prison. His third standalone novel was The Return, which came out last year. I read it a little while ago and failed to provide a timely review for it. However, as Sidebottom’s latest novel, The Burning Road, has just been released, I thought I would take this opportunity to quickly review The Return so I have a clean slate when I get my hands on a copy of his latest book.

Synopsis:

He came home a hero.
But death isn’t finished with him yet . . .

145BC – CALABRIA, ANCIENT ROME. After years of spilling blood for Rome, Gaius Furius Paullus has returned home to spend his remaining days working quietly on the family farm.

But it seems death has stalked Paullus from the battlefield. Just days after his arrival, bodies start appearing – murdered and mutilated. And as the deaths stack up, and panic spreads, the war hero becomes the prime suspect. After all, Paullus has killed countless enemies on the battlefield – could he have brought his habit home with him?

With the psychological effects of combat clouding every thought, Paullus must use all his soldier’s instincts to hunt the real killer. Because if they are not brought to justice soon, he may become the next victim.

The Return was an intriguing and compelling novel that contains a brilliant and dark historical murder mystery. Like some of his previous novels, Sidebottom has blended some unique crime fiction/thriller elements with his traditional historical settings and storylines. As such, The Return reads like an interesting combination of historical fiction and a darker crime novel, specifically Scandi noir. This results in a clever and compelling character driven narrative that follows a dark and conflicted Roman protagonist who is forced to investigate a series of murders in his grim and forbidding village. The author does a wonderful job of blending his historical elements with the compelling crime fiction storyline, and the reader is soon treated to a harrowing and exciting murder investigation. There is some brilliant use of a darker location, including a forbidding forest, as well as a lot of focus on his haunted protagonist, especially through a series of flashbacks. All this comes together into an excellent narrative, and it was fascinating to see Sidebottom’s damaged protagonist dive head long into danger while trying to solve the murder and prove his own innocence. While I did think that the solution to the mystery and the culprits behind the murder was a little obvious, this ended up being an excellent and impressive novel. Sidebottom really takes the readers on a harrowing and enjoyable ride here, and I ended up getting through it in a few short days.

I was deeply impressed with the dark and guilt-ridden protagonist who Sidebottom set this great story around. Paullus is a recently returned soldier who received much acclaim during Rome’s war with ancient Greece, but he is also haunted by his actions there, particularly around the fates of two of his comrades. Thanks to his guilt he constantly sees the Furies, the Roman goddesses of vengeance and retribution, who remind him of the wrongs he commits. To avoid seeing them Paullus dives headfirst into danger, as the threat of death is the only thing that alleviates his guilt. This helps turns Paullus into a fascinating and deeply complex figure who has some interesting interactions with his own emotions and the people from his pre-war life who don’t understand what he is going through. Sidebottom utilises a series of flashbacks to showcase Paullus’ military career and you slowly get the entire story of the protagonist’s heroic past, as well as the event that led to his intense guilt and heartache. While I did think that Sidebottom might have been a tad heavy-handed with the flashbacks (it makes up nearly half the novel), I did really appreciate the sheer amount of work he put into his great protagonist. The author did an impressive job of simulating the guilt, fear and anger of a war veteran attempting to re-enter society and it was really compelling to see. I also deeply appreciated the author’s trick of personifying this guilt into visions of the supernatural Furies, especially as it is never fully established whether they are there or just figments of his damaged mind. The use of Paullus as the central protagonist really enhanced The Return’s excellent story and he was an outstanding investigator for this fantastic murder mystery.

I also really enjoyed the cool historical fiction elements contained within this novel. The Return takes place in 145BC, which is one of the earliest times that Sidebottom has explored in his historical fiction novels. I deeply enjoyed the exploration of this time, especially as Sidebottom features more obscure conquests and locations. The central location of the story, Calabria in Southern Italy, proved to be a fantastic and interesting setting, especially as this region of Italy contained two distinctive social groups, the Roman settlers and the original inhabitants. Due to their historical support of Hannibal during the Punic Wars which saw them forced to give up their lands, the locals are treated as second-class citizens by the Romans, who use them as slave labour. This adds some extra drama and intrigue to the story as these local tribes get caught up in the paranoia and despair around the hunt for the murderer. I also really appreciated Sidebottom’s examination of the Roman invasion of Greece that the protagonist fought in. This is one of the more obscure conflicts from Roman history and the author provides a detailed account of the causes, battles, and eventual consequences of the conflict. I deeply enjoyed exploring this period in the flashback chapters, as there were some detailed and powerful battle sequences which featured some distinctive clashes between Greek and Roman military styles. Throw in some Greek and Roman mythology as a potential cause for the murders or the protagonists’ actions, and you have quite a brilliant historical tale. These grim and bloody historical elements blended perfect with the darker story that Sidebottom was telling and it was absolutely fascinating to see how they were incorporated into The Return’s compelling, multi-genre style.

Overall, The Return was an epic and complex novel that continued to showcase Harry Sidebottom’s amazing talent as a writer. This fantastic novel ended up being one of the more unique historical fiction books I have ever read and I deeply enjoyed the cool combination of classic Roman history and darker crime fiction elements, especially when shown through the eyes of an extremely damaged protagonist. This book comes highly recommended, and I cannot wait to get my hands on Sidebottom’s latest novel, The Burning Road.

Amazon

Book Haul – 7 December 2021

On December 7, 2021December 7, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn Book HaulLeave a comment

I have been having an absolutely fantastic couple of week for books, as I have been lucky enough to receive several incredible and amazing new novels from some of my local publishers. These novels include some truly awesome new releases, several of which I have been eagerly awaiting for some time. This includes an interesting collection of late 2021 book, as well as some releases from early 2022, all of which should make for fantastic reading. I am extremely keen to check out all of the books below (indeed, I have already gotten through a couple), and they should make for some amazing reads.

Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil by Timothy Zahn

I got this one a few weeks ago and I was very happy when I did. Timothy Zahn is the undisputed master of Star Wars extended fiction and his current Thrawn Ascendancy trilogy, which has so far consisted of Chaos Rising and Greater Good, has been a detailed and fun-filled series. As such, I have been really looking forward to the final entry, Lesser Evil, that highlights the exploits of the future Grand Admiral Thrawn amongst his own people. I have already read this book and it is pretty damn awesome, review to follow soon.

It Ends in Fire by Andrew Shvarts

Another recent arrival I have already read is It Ends in Fire by Andrew Shvarts. Shvarts, who did such a great job with his Royal Bastards series (check out my reviews of City of Bastards and War of the Bastards), once again presents a brilliant young adult fantasy novel. It Ends in Fire has an amazing story that follows a powerful Wizard and rebel as she infiltrates a nation’s premier magic school in order to burn it down from the inside. A fun and clever novel, I should have a review for it up tomorrow.

The Liar’s Knot by M. A. Carrick

Earlier this year fantastic new author M. A. Carrick (joint penname of Marie Brennan and Alyc Helms) wowed me with her first novel, The Mask of Mirrors, which contained a bold story about a con woman drawn into preserving her city. I had a great time with this first book and I cannot wait to see what happens to the amazing characters and storylines next.

League of Liars by Astrid Scholte

I was also very excited when I received a copy of the latest novel from bestselling Australian author Astrid Scholte. This cool book has an awesome plot about a lawyer breaking several magically powered beings out a high security jail. I love the sound of this amazing novel and I cannot wait to see what happens within.

Only a Monster by Vanessa Len

I also received the fantastic sound young adult fantasy novel Only a Monster by Vanessa Len. Set to be one of the best debuts of 2022, Only a Monster follows a young woman who discovers that her family are actually monsters from legend, and must attempt to defend herself from a dangerous monster hunter. I really like the sound of this cool read and I look forward to checking it out in the new year.

Resistance by Mara Timon

An intense and powerful historical fiction novel that follows the French Resistance during World War II. I look forward to seeing what thrilling and compelling story this awesome book contains and I am sure that I am going to love it.

Dirt Town by Hayley Scrivenor

Another interesting 2022 debut, Dirt Town is an upcoming Australian crime fiction/drama novel set in small town Australia. Dirt Town has a fantastic and deep sounding story about a missing girl and I am sure I am going to have a wonderful time reading this dramatic and powerful novel.

Exit .45 by Ben Sanders

I was very happy yesterday when I received this excellent sounding crime fiction novel, Exit .45 by Ben Sanders. It looks like Sanders will be bringing back his protagonist Marshall Grade for another exciting adventure, this time involving corrupt cops and deadly murders. I am very intrigued to read this novel and I already know I am going to love it.

All or Nothing by Ollie Ollerton

The final novel I received was the awesome thriller All or Nothing by former special forces operative Ollie Ollerton. This second book in the Alex Abbott series will take its protagonist on an exciting and dangerous infiltration mission. I look forward to reading this fantastic sounding novel and I reckon I will be in for a fast-paced and ultra-exciting time.

Well that’s the end of this latest Book Haul post. As you can see I have quite a bit of reading to do at the moment thanks to all these awesome books that have come in. Let me know which of the above you are most interested in and make sure to check back in a few weeks to see my reviews of them.

Among Thieves by M. J. Kuhn

On December 5, 2021May 30, 2023 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, LGBT+6 Comments

Among Thieves Cover

Publisher: Gollancz (Trade Paperback – 14 September 2021)

Series: Standalone/Book One

Length: 343 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

Magic, betrayal and the ultimate fantasy heist await in Among Thieves by M. J. Kuhn, one of the most exciting and compelling debuts of 2021.

Welcome to the city of Carrowwick, where life is cheap and three powerful gangs fight for supremacy and control of its notorious underground. Out of all the thieves, rogues and assassins found within Carrowwick, no one is more feared than Ryia Cautella. Better known as ‘the Butcher’, thanks to her uncanny skill with her twin hatchets, Ryia is sworn to notorious gang-leader Callum Clem, and is the chief enforcer and hidden blade of his Saints gang. But while she seems content to spend her time fighting, drinking, and womanizing, deep down Ryia harbours a dark secret and a hidden past.

Thanks to an incredibly rough childhood, Ryia is in hiding from the most dangerous person in the entire realm, the Guildmaster, the powerful magic user who serves as the de facto ruler of the continent of Thamorr. The Guildmaster runs a continent-spanning organisation whose operatives locate, capture and bind every child with magical potential in order to sell them to the highest bidder. Forced to flee from city to city, constantly changing her identity, Ryia has no chance at a future while the Guildmaster is after her, and there is only so long that she can avoid her fate. However, a chance encounter soon reveals a potential way out of her desperate situation, although it will mean journeying to the most dangerous place in the world, the Guildmaster’s Island, to steal a powerful magical artefact.

Determined to gain her freedom, Ryia prepares to attempt the impossible and infiltrate the Guildmaster’s Island during the annual auction where the bound and brainwashed magic users are sold. However, not even the mighty Butcher can break into this impenetrable fortress alone. Reluctantly forced to work with a team, Ryia sets out with a motley crew of rogues and miscreants, including a forger, a conman, a fallen soldier, and a smuggler. But can this disparate crew pull off their impossible job, or are they all marching towards their deaths? Worse, who among the crew can really be trusted, as every member has their own reason for being there, and none of them would hesitate to stab the others in the back to achieve their goals. Let the heist begin!

This was a brilliant and outstandingly entertaining debut from M. J. Kuhn, who has done a remarkable job with her first book. Among Thieves has a fun and clever story that takes its fantastically motley group of protagonists on an intense and thrilling adventure. I loved the great blend of enthralling characters, an interesting new fantasy setting and an outstanding narrative, and this ended up being one of the best debut novels I have read in 2021.

Among Thieves has a really awesome narrative that I had an absolute blast getting through. Frankly, I was very keen to read this novel the moment I saw it was a fantasy heist novel, as I love it when dark magical settings combine with classic crime fiction heist storylines. Kuhn really did not disappoint as Among Thieves’ narrative is extremely well set out and does a great job bringing together its disparate genre threads. The world, the various characters, and the dark tone of the book are set out quickly in an entertaining and easy-to-follow manner in the first 100 pages. The reader gets a great sense of all the key players of this book, especially as the author makes excellent use of a multiple-perspective storytelling device, with all five members of the heist crew narrating several chapters within the book.

Once the scenario and the characters are established, Kuhn quickly moves into the exciting centre of the novel, which sees the protagonists infiltrating the Guildmaster’s island to find the treasure they seek and steal it. The characters face some major adversity here, from betrayals within and without, as well as the unfortunate attention of rivals, law enforcement and the forces of their target. This leads to several intense and entertaining scenes as the protagonists attempt to overcome these obstacles while their own personal demons and ambitions come to the surface. There is a major twist about two-thirds through Among Thieves that is not only fun and a little unexpected but which also sets up the final arc of the novel extremely well. This final third of the book sees the various characters make their final plays for the prize (if they still want it), while several revelations and twists are brought to the surface. I deeply enjoyed the way that the story turned out, especially the reveal of the book’s real winner, and Kuhn chucks in some great surprises towards the end. The entire story is an amazing blend of intrigue, action, thievery and relatable character interactions, which helps to produce a fast-paced and captivating narrative that I had a really hard time setting down. Kuhn also makes sure to leave a few storylines wide open, which would translate into a sequel extremely well. I really hope that the author continues this storyline in the future as I cannot wait to see how this awesome narrative finishes up.

Easily one of the best things about this amazing novel was the great mixture of unique and entertaining characters. As I mentioned above, Among Thieves’ story features five central protagonists, the members of the heist crew, each of whom has their perspective shown at various points of the book. This includes:

Ryia, a hardnosed and incredibly powerful killer who parties hard, flirts mercilessly with every female character and kicks ass in some incredibly violent ways. While Ryia appears to be a fun and entertaining character most of the time, she has a very dark past, filled with regret, betrayal, and the shocking actions of her father. Thanks to her tendency to use humour and crassness as a distraction to hide deeper pain, Ryia proves to be both an entertaining and tragic figure, and it was deeply compelling to see her storyline unfold. I loved the focus on her twisted loyalties, especially as she initially plans to betray her crew for her own ends. However, she goes through some major development as the book continues, and slowly establishes some emotional connections she has been missing throughout most of her life. A brilliant and fun central character, you will fall in love with this axe-wielding maniac.
Tristan, the youngest member of the group and their resident sleight of hand expert, specialising in gambling, cheating and pickpocketing. Tristan is bit of a dandy who was forced into the Saints after incurring a substantial debt, later sticking around due to his unrequited love with Ryia. Like Ryia, Tristan has a lot of secrets from his past and is also a bit of a fugitive. Tristan ends up being forced into some very unfortunate positions as the book continues due to various betrayals (his and other peoples), and he ends up being quite a major figure in the story. I deeply enjoyed some of the great twists surrounding him, and it looks like Kuhn has some intriguing plans for him in the future.
Nash, the smuggler, a ship captain of great skill and cunning who transports the gang to the Guildmaster’s Island and helps them pull off their heist. Nash is a fun character who has some interesting storylines surrounding her inconvenient relationship with gang leader Callum Clem. While I quite liked her as a protagonist, she was one of the least developed characters in the novel, mainly because she is the only one who didn’t have a plan to betray the gang. Kuhn does add some interesting details to her arc towards the end of Among Thieves, as she is forced to deal with her growing attraction to Ivan, her conflicted loyalty to the insane Callum, and her own ambitions and survival instincts.
Ivan, the forger who serves as another entertaining character with a compelling storyline around him. Ivan is ultra-talented master of all sorts of forgery, including documents, tattoos, disguises, and everything in between. A natural charmer and brilliant actor, Ivan manages to win the hearts of many, including Nash and the reader. However, he also has a secret past as a freedom fighter, and he sees this job as an opportunity to free his imprisoned brother and re-start his revolution. I found Ivan to be a funny and charming figure, and like I did with Ryia and Tristan, I deeply appreciated the inclusion of a hidden past which motivates his potential betrayal. Ivan ends up in an interesting place at the end of the novel, and it will be fascinating to see how his gamble will play out.
Evelyn, the former city guard of Carrowwick and Among Thieves’ final point-of-view character. Evelyn is a complex and intense figure, a former honourable officer who is dishonoured and disinherited partially thanks to Ryia’s actions. After a massive bender, she is convinced to join the heist crew by Callum Clem in exchange for being allowed to capture Ryia, whose imprisonment would restore her honour and position. Evelyn has one of the best character arcs in the entire novel, especially as she plays a fish-out-of-water character, as the former cop trapped among a group of thieves. This allows her to serve as an excellent foil to Ryia, and the two have a very adversarial relationship, which naturally develops some romantic overtones as the book progresses. I liked how Evelyn slowly became more devious and criminally minded as the book progresses, and she was an excellent addition to the story, bring some great humour, drama and integrity (briefly) to the narrative.

Overall, I felt that Kuhn did an amazing job establishing all these main characters, and each of them brings something unique and fun to the story. There was a pretty good balance between each of these characters, and it was very enjoyable getting to know all five of them. That being said, having five separate motivations/planned betrayals was a bit much on top of the heist storyline, and it muddied the main plot just a little. Still, I think that Kuhn made it work and it wasn’t too overwhelming. All five characters have great chemistry with each other, and their distinctive perspectives helped to highlight the various mad plans and ideas in a very entertaining light. I had an amazing time following these five rogues, and I look forward to seeing what happens to them in any future novels Kuhn writes. I am also very curious about the side character who was cleverly given a point-of-view chapter at the end of the book, and I am sure it will result in a brilliant and villainous performance in the next book.

In addition to the awesome story and complex characters, I also was quite taken by the intriguing new fantasy world that Kuhn came up with. Among Thieves is set in the continent of Thamorr, which is made up of five kingdoms who all pay homage to the Guildmaster, who controls the supply and demand of the magically powered supersoldiers each nation relies on. Kuhn does a great job of introducing and setting up this new fantasy world, and the reader is soon dragged into the great crime-riddled city of Carrowwick, with its warring gangs, and the eventual travel to the Guidmaster’s island, a grim and hopeless magical fortress. The interplay of the rival gangs, the political upheaval of several kingdoms, and the creation of obedient magical beings are all fantastic and add some great depth and background to the story. I also loved the cool magical system Kuhn works into the narrative really well, ensuring that the control of people with magical potential becomes a major plot point. This amazing setting serves as the perfect backdrop to the fast-paced and clever narrative, and it was quite fascinating to see the characters explore every compelling aspect of it. It looks like this fantasy world will be massively expanded in the future novels, and I cannot wait to what cool new elements Kuhn introduces next.

With her debut novel, Among Thieves, new author M. J. Kuhn has shown herself to be an outstanding and impressive new talent on the fantasy fiction stage. Among Thieves has an awesome and captivating heist-centric storyline, and I loved the cool combination of intense fantasy and thrilling crime fiction elements. This all results in a powerful and intense narrative based on five brilliant and complex characters, which proves to be exceedingly addictive and thrilling. I had an excellent time reading Among Thieves and this was easily one of the best debut novels of 2021.

Amazon

WWW Wednesday – 1 December 2021

On December 1, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn WWW Wednesday2 Comments

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Taking on a World of Words, where bloggers share the books that they’ve recently finished, what they are currently reading and what books they are planning to read next. Essentially you have to answer three questions (the Three Ws):

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

So, let’s get to it.

What are you currently reading?

All of us Villains by Amanda Foody and Christine Lynn Herman (Trade Paperback)

I just started reading the cool young adult fantasy novel, All of us Villains, by the writing team of Amanda Foody and Christine Lynn Herman. All of us Villains is an intriguing novel that follows seven magical teens as they engage in a murderous tournament to gain absolute power for their families. I love a good battle royale tournament, especially one loaded with magic and troubled teenagers, and I cannot wait to see how this fantastic novel turns out.

Cytonic by Brandon Sanderson (Audiobook)

I also just started listening to the latest Brandon Sanderson novel, Cytonic. Cytonic, which is one of my most anticipated reads of 2021, is the third novel in Sanderson’s epic Skyward young adult science fiction series. This series, which has already featured the outstanding Skyward and Starsight, follows a teenage fighter pilot as she attempts to save her planet from attacking aliens. I have deeply enjoyed the first two novels in this series, and I cannot wait to see what happens in this third amazing entry.

What did you recently finish reading?

It Ends in Fire by Andrew Shvarts (Hardcover)

Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil by Timothy Zahn (Audiobook)

Mind Bullet by Jeremy Robinson (Audiobook)

What do you think you’ll read next?

The Spy’s Wife by Fiona McIntosh (Trade Paperback)

That’s it for this week, check back in next Wednesday to see what progress I’ve made on my reading and what books I’ll be looking at next.

Waiting on Wednesday – In the Shadow of Lightning by Brian McClellan

On December 1, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Waiting on Wednesday7 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy. I run this segment in conjunction with the Can’t-Wait Wednesday meme that is currently running at Wishful Endings. Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them. For my latest Waiting on Wednesday I check out one of the most anticipated fantasy releases of 2022 with In the Shadow of Lightning by acclaimed author Brian McClellan.

In the Shadow of Lightning Cover

Few fantasy authors have reached the impressive heights that Brian McClellan has in recent years, as this brilliant author has produced two epic fantasy series. Debuting in 2013, McClellan wowed the world with The Powder Mage trilogy, an incredible trilogy which takes place in a kingdom that has just seen a brutal revolution by the powder mages, military mages who use gunpowder to gain various gun-related abilities. Unfortunately, many factions opposed their revolution, including the nation’s vengeful god, and the protagonists soon find themselves involved in a desperate fight for survival. The first book in this series, Promise of Blood, is pretty darn awesome, getting a five-star review from me, and it is one of my favourite debuts of all time. I still really need to get through the rest of The Powder Mage novels, as well as the sequel Gods of Blood and Powder trilogy, as all the books in this series have garnered rave reviews. However, McClellan is not slowing down as he has a new series starting next year, the first book of which is In the Shadow of Lightning.

In the Shadow of Lightning is another epic fantasy novel which has a current release date of 21 June 2022. This book will be the first entry in McClellan’s new Glass Immortals series and looks set to take readers on another intense adventure, laden with magic, politics, intrigue and murder.

Synopsis:

From Brian McClellan, author of The Powder Mage, comes In the Shadow of Lightning, a brand-new epic fantasy where magic is a finite resource—and it’s running out.

Demir Grappo is an outcast—he fled a life of wealth and power, abandoning his responsibilities as a general, a governor, and a son. Now he will live out his days as a grifter, rootless, and alone. But when his mother is brutally murdered, Demir must return from exile to claim his seat at the head of the family and uncover the truth that got her killed: the very power that keeps civilization turning, godglass, is running out.

Now, Demir must find allies, old friends and rivals alike, confront the powerful guild-families who are only interested in making the most of the scraps left at the table and uncover the invisible hand that threatens the Empire. A war is coming, a war unlike any other. And Demir and his ragtag group of outcasts are the only thing that stands in the way of the end of life as the world knows it.

This new novel sounds extremely fun, and McClellan is clearly setting up another rich and complex fantasy novel. Based on the awesome above synopsis, it looks like In the Shadow of Lightning has a lot of amazing features that should translated into an incredible read. A former noble turned grifter returning to get revenge and power sounds pretty cool, especially as it will see him get embroiled in a vast conspiracy, while also fighting to defeat rival houses and ambitious beings. Throw in a cast of outcasts and rebels, as well as a fascinating new magical system (what does godglass do, what is happening to it? I really want to know), and you have an intriguing hit, especially in the hands of a talented author like McClellan.

Based on how McClellan wrote The Powder Mage novels, I am expecting In the Shadow of Lightning to be particularly complex and impressive read, which will no doubt drag me in and get me obsessed with its fun characters and fascinating landscape. Honestly, I knew I would be grabbing this book the moment that I saw McClellan was writing it, and it will be great to get on board an ongoing series from this talented author. However, I also really like the fun story described in the synopsis, and I think this book has the potential to be one of the top reads of 2022. I cannot wait to see how this fantastic upcoming novel turns out, and I think I will have to try to read the rest of The Powder Mage trilogy before In the Shadow of Lightning comes out.

Top Ten Tuesday – Books on my Summer 2021-22 TBR

On November 30, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn List13 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. The official Top Ten Tuesday topic for this week was around Bookish Memories, however, I decided to instead move up my quarterly post about the best upcoming books to be read (TBR) for the following three months. This is a regular post I do at the start of each season, and as this is the first week or Summer (Winter for you folks up North), this is the ideal time to put this up.

For this list, I have come up with 10 of the most anticipated novels that are coming out between 1 December 2021 and 28 February 2022. There are quite a few very cool novels set for release in the next few months that I am very excited for, including some highly anticipated reads. I was eventually able to whittle these down into a Top Ten list (with a few honourable mentions). I have primarily used the Australian publication dates to reflect when I will be able to get these awesome novels, and these might be somewhat different to the rest of the world. I have previously discussed a number of these books before in prior Top Ten Tuesdays and Waiting on Wednesday articles and I think all of them will turn out to be some really impressive and enjoyable reads. I am incredibly excited for the next three months as there are some incredible novels coming out, several of which I already know are going to be amongst the best books of 2021 and 2022.

Honourable Mentions:

The Liar’s Knot by M. A. Carrick – 9 December 2021

Outcast by Louise Carey – 25 January 2022

Warhammer 40,000: Day of Ascension by Adrian Tchaikovsky – 1 February 2022

Age of Ash by Daniel Abraham – 22 February 2022

Top Ten Tuesday (by release date):

Armored by Mark Greaney – 9 December 2021

The Starless Crown by James Rollins – 4 January 2022

Star Wars: The High Republic: The Fallen Star by Claudia Gray – 4 January 2022

Over the last year, some of the best Star Wars novels have been part of the awesome High Republic publication range. Set hundreds of years before the films, High Republic fiction covers a whole new era of the Star Wars universe and has an extremely distinctive feel and some great new antagonists. The Fallen Star will be the third adult novel in this series and will continue the major storylines set up in Light of the Jedi and The Rising Storm. I am really looking forward to this new novel, especially as the plot suggests that the villainous Nihil will be launching an attack on the Jedi stronghold of Starlight Beacon, which will force the various characters into a desperate life and death struggle. I cannot wait to see how this book plays out, and I am excited to see another book from author Claudia Gray, especially after how her impressive last two novels, Into the Dark and Master & Apprentice (one of my favourite Star Wars books).

A Practical Guide to Conquering the World by K. J. Parker – 11 January 2022

I had to include the third and final entry in K. J. Parker’s brilliant Siege trilogy, A Practical Guide to Conquering the World, on this list. The Siege trilogy features three loosely connected fantasy novels that depict the comedic defence of a besieged city through unconventional tactics. This outstanding fantasy comedy series has so far featured Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City (one of the best books of 2019) and How to Rule an Empire and Get Away With It (one of the best books of 2020). While there are only minimal details about this novel now, I already know that I am going to laugh myself silly reading it and that it will be one of the most entertaining novels I will check out in 2022.

Dark Horse by Gregg Hurwitz – 8 February 2022

City of the Dead by Jonathan Kellerman – 8 February 2022

Usagi Yojimbo: Volume 36: Tengu War! by Stan Sakai – 15 February 2022

Sierra Six by Mark Greaney – 15 February 2022

The Misfit Soldier by Michael Mammay – 22 February 2022

The Justice of Kings by Richard Swan – 22 February 2022

Well that is the end of my Top Ten list. I think it turned out pretty well and it does a good job of capturing all my most anticipated books for the next three months. Each of the above should be extremely epic, and I cannot wait to read each of them soon. Let me know which of the above you are most excited for and stay tuned for reviews of them in the next few months. In the meantime, it looks like I have quite a few books to get through soon and they should all be pretty awesome.

Throwback Thursday: Green Arrow (2001): Volume 3: The Archer’s Quest by Brad Meltzer, Phil Hester and Ande Parks

On November 26, 2021August 23, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn Comics/Manga, Five-Star Books, Superhero, Throwback Thursday2 Comments

Publisher: DC Comics (Paperback – 1 September 2004)

Series: Green Arrow Vol. 3 – Volume Three

Writer: Brad Meltzer

Penciller: Phil Hester

Inker: Ande Parks

Colourist: James Sinclair

Letterer: Sean Konot

Length: 175 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

Welcome back to my Throwback Thursday series, where I republish old reviews, review books I have read before or review older books I have only just had a chance to read. For this week’s Throwback Thursday I check out an all-time favourite comic of mine, the third volume of the epic 2001 Green Arrow relaunch, The Archer’s Quest.

The late 1990s and early 2000s were an outstanding time for DC Comics, who produced an amazing number of epic and fascinating comic series that combined brilliant storytelling with fantastic artwork. While there are several great series I enjoy from this period (Teen Titans comes to mind), one of my absolute favourites was the awesome 2001 relaunch of Green Arrow. Also recorded as Green Arrow Vol. 3, this series resurrected the original Green Arrow, Oliver Queen, some years after his death. I have an amazing amount of love for this comic; not only was it one of the first series I ever really got into but it still really stands up after all this time. This is easily one of my all-time favourite comic book series, and the absolute pinnacle of this series was the simple, yet amazingly effective fourth volume, The Archer’s Quest.

While I probably should review some of the proceeding volumes of this series first before talking about The Archer’s Quest (such as the first volume, Quiver by Kevin Smith), I recently re-read this fantastic comic, so it has been on my mind all week. Containing issues #16-21 of this outstanding series, The Archer’s Quest is a brilliant and captivating comic tale that really gets to grips with the protagonist as he embarks on a journey vital to his identity and history. Featuring the brilliant writing of bestselling author Brad Meltzer (author of several amazing thriller novels, as well as some impressive DC Comics), and the artistic stylings of Phil Hester and Ande Parks, this is an exceptional comic which gets a five-star rating from me.

Following his unexpected resurrection after his violent death, Oliver Queen, the Green Arrow, has been returned to Earth, ready to continue the good fight. However, no man can come back from the grave without a heavy heart, and Oliver Queen has more skeletons in his closet than most of his fellow heroes. A chance discovery that the villain, Catman, attended his funeral leads Oliver back to his old friend, Shade, the immortal being Green Arrow trusted to round up certain artefacts of Oliver’s superhero career that could reveal his secret identity.

Discovering that Shade failed to get several of Oliver’s most precious keepsakes, Oliver embarks on a cross-country road-trip to recover them himself. Accompanied by his former sidekick, Roy Harper, Oliver begins visiting some of the locations most important to himself and his career as a superhero. From the ruins of the Arrowcave to the Justice League’s orbiting Watchtower and even the Flash Museum in Central City, Oliver and Roy will attempt to find these items from the past in order to safeguard their future.

However, this will be no simple road trip, as the two heroes encounter some unexpected dangers and surprising opposition, including fellow hero the Flash and the angry zombie Solomon Grundy. Worse, this journey will uncover some dark secrets from the past that Oliver has long hoped to keep quiet. Can Oliver recover his treasures without his friends and family discovering who he really is, or has the past finally come back to destroy this resurrected hero?

The Archer’s Quest is a fantastic and powerful Green Arrow comic that takes the protagonist and his former sidekick on a wild and extremely personal adventure. Before reading this, if you had ever pitched me a comic based around the idea of a recently resurrected superhero going on a road trip, I might have been a little dubious. Well, it turns out that I would have been dead wrong, as Brad Meltzer produced an intense, captivating and emotionally rich narrative that is not only extremely entertaining but which contains some excellent character work, some brilliant references to the classic Green Arrow comics, and which dives deep into the psyche of a troubled and complex protagonist.

The narrative of The Archer’s Quest starts extremely strong, with Green Arrow meeting Superman at Oliver Queen’s grave. This is a fantastic opening scene, especially once Superman hands over a series of photographs of the funeral, and I loved the focus on the harrowing realities following a resurrection. The sombre mood is broken when Green Arrow notices a stranger in his photo amongst his closest friends. This leads him to hunt down Catman, which also reveals the hand of Shade and the revelation that certain items from Oliver’s past are still out in the open. This forces Green Arrow into a road trip, hunting for his artefacts and dealing with friends, enemies and family. The first chapter packs in some much-needed action, as Green Arrow goes toe-to-toe with Solomon Grundy in an epic and brutal fight, that ends with a surprising, and gruesome, win from the protagonist. From there, Meltzer and the artists pile up the emotional and the feels by having Oliver encounter several fellow heroes who he has complex relationships with, while also building up the nostalgia factor, with the reveal of classic Green Arrow items, locations and characters. All this leads to some major moments, from an attempted proposal to a moving and long-awaited conversation between father and son. However, Meltzer saves the absolute best for last with a startling revelation about the past that shows Oliver’s true character and serves as a powerful end to the entire story. This was a beautiful, character driven story, and I think Meltzer hit all the right notes. The pacing is perfect and there is a fantastic blend of action, character development and emotional discovery, which all comes together into one outstanding story. The Archer’s Quest is addictive and dramatically intense from start to finish, I can read and re-read this comic for years (and I probably will).

One of the things that I really enjoyed about this amazing comic is the way in which Meltzer and the artists turned it into a homage to the Green Arrow comics. The creative team spend a substantial amount of time diving back into the history and lore of the character and his comics, working them into the story in very meaningful ways. So many key aspects of the Green Arrow comics are referenced or alluded to in some way, as the characters journey around some iconic locations, including the Arrowcave, to obtain the artefacts. Through this dive into the past, the creative team manage to perfectly capture the various eras of Green Arrow, including the classic Golden Age comics, the grittier Silver Age comics, the road trip era with Green Lantern (which this comic really tries to emulate), and The Longbow Hunters period. This wide range of references makes for a very intriguing and compelling comic, and it helps turn The Archer’s Quest into a must-read for all Green Arrow fans. I loved the clever range of different artefacts that protagonists are trying to recover, including the diamond-tipped arrow from Green Arrow’s first appearance in Justice League of America, his official invitation to the Justice League, and the truck that he and Green Lantern used in their iconic road trip. These cool artefacts really help to ramp up the nostalgia while simultaneously including key modern story elements hidden within. The cool funeral sequence at the start of the comic also allows the creative team to reference and include a vast range of supporting characters and allies from the original comics, with a range of different figures from Oliver’s career appearing to pay their respect. I deeply appreciated the modern analyses and descriptions of the items, locations, complex relationships, character designs, weaponry (why all the boxing gloves?) and prior adventures included in this comic, and it helps to produce a comprehensive account of these iconic events, while also bringing them up to speed with more modern comic lines. You can really tell that the creative team behind The Archer’s Quest had a lot of affection for the preceding Green Arrow comics, and this outstanding comic proves to be an amazing and captivating love-letter to the Emerald Archer.

I deeply enjoyed the epic characters that this amazing comic followed, especially as Meltzer uses this story to dive deep into the psyche and relationships of the protagonists, especially Oliver Queen, the titular Green Arrow. This version of the character is only recently returned from the grave, and this becomes a major part of his identity throughout the comic, driving him to fix some of the mistakes of his past while also ensuring that he never hurts his family again. Thanks to the entire comic being narrated by Oliver, you get some very intriguing insights into Green Arrow’s mindset during this period, and you really get to know who he is and what his motivations are. Rather than some of the typical portrayals of him as a liberal, generic arrow slinger, the creative team attempt to show him as a complex veteran hero, still deeply impacted by his resurrection and uncertain about his place in the world. A lot of The Archer’s Quest’s narrative involves Green Arrow attempting to find pieces of his past that are significant or potentially damaging to him, and as such you get an amazing look into key events of Oliver’s past, as well as his current priorities and concerns. I really enjoyed the storylines involved with him trying to reconcile or repair relationships with his former friends and allies, as well as an interesting development in his romantic partnership with Black Canary.

One of the best things about this comic is the way that Meltzer portrays Oliver as a more morally ambiguous figure, willing to make a deal with a supervillain, lie to those closest to him, and initiating undercover actions to protect identities. There is also some great evidence of the self-destructive tendencies that would be a major defining feature of this series, as well as the complex decisions that affect those closest to him. As such, he keeps many secrets, even from his former sidekick, such as his main motivation for recovering his old truck is to secure the Green Lantern ring Hal Jordan hid in there years ago. However, the biggest secret involves the revelation that he always knew that his son, Conner, existed, and that he pretended he did not know who he was when they first met. This revelation is slowly and cleverly revealed throughout the comic, first with Oliver subtly making the recovery of its hiding place his main priority, and then in the final scenes after he has a heart-to-heart with Conner, when he reveals the secret photo. The narration during this scene sums up Green Arrow in this series perfectly: “You’re a bastard Oliver Queen. You knew. You always knew. And the worst part is…. it’s still your secret.” and the entire sequence ensures you will never look at this character again in the same way. I also musty highlight the great inclusion about Green Arrow secretly coming up with plans to protect secret identities if a hero died. Not only is this vital to the plot of The Archer’s Quest, but it also hints at the great storyline that Meltzer would eventually use in his epic Identity Crisis, which features a proactive team of heroes mind-wiping villains and destroying personalities. This outstanding and layered portrayal of Green Arrow in this comic is one of the defining characteristics of The Archer’s Quest, and I am blown away with this brilliant character work every time I read this volume.

The other major character of this novel is Roy Harper, his former sidekick (now Arsenal), who Oliver calls in to help him hunt down Catman. I really enjoyed the inclusion of Roy in this comic, especially as he had been overly featured in this series (he was mostly appearing in Titans). As such, we had not really gotten a glimpse at the current relationship between former mentor and sidekick, which has always been strained since the infamous heroine incident. The Archer’s Quest did an amazing job bringing them back together again, and Roy really gets into the swing of the adventure, with the two characters getting back into their adventuring groove. However, the comic also deals with the inherent mistrust between the two characters, with Roy upset that Oliver trusted Shade more than him to protect his identity after his death. The two end up working through these issues throughout this comic, and it ended up being a fun and powerful reunion that long-term Green Arrow fans will deeply enjoy.

Aside from Green Arrow and Roy Harper, this comic also makes great use of several other supporting character who either bring the protagonist back to his past, or help to add some emotional weight to the story. This includes brilliant inclusions of two fellow superheroes, Kyle Rayner and Wally West, the versions of Green Lantern and the Flash who were active at the time. Both these younger heroes bear a major legacy that results in some complicated and moving interactions with Oliver. One of the most important is Kyle Rayner, who has taken over the mantle of Green Lantern following the corruption and eventual death of Green Arrow’s best friend, Hal Jordan. Since Oliver’s resurrection, their relationship has been strained, with Oliver having trouble accepting him. This all finally comes to a head with Oliver travels to the Watchtower and encounters the young Lantern, and they have a massive heart-to-heart. The revelations that Oliver has trouble accepting a new Lantern instead of his best friend, as well as the emotional burden Kyle also bears, especially around his first loss as a superhero (women in refrigerators man, that stuff will mess you up), all comes out, and leads to an amazingly moving scene.

I also loved the great interaction that Oliver had with Wally West outside the Flash Museum, after Wally is warned that Oliver is planning to break into it. The two characters have a great stare-down, which sees the usually jovial Flash incredibly serious at Oliver’s attempted trespass. Oliver’s narration about this event is pretty great, especially noting that Wally’s usual short attention span is overridden by his love of Barry Allen’s memory. These two interactions with Green Lantern and Flash are short but extremely powerful, and it was amazing to see the strain on Oliver at being still alive, while the roles of his friends have been passed on to the next generation. Despite the serious nature of these scenes, both had an entertaining ending with Oliver managing to outsmart his younger colleagues: “That old, lying son of a b…”. I also liked the inclusion of Superman at the start of the comic, which was both entertaining, and played into the resurrection storyline perfectly with Superman feeling guilty about not being able to save Oliver when he died, while also being a bit of an expert on coming back to life himself. I also enjoyed the fantastic conclusion of the Flash arc, especially as the entire break-in was to retrieve a costume-filled ring that the Flash made for Green Arrow years before, and which was a nice nod to the great friendship they used to have.

While this volume of Green Arrow does not have an antagonist per se (except for Solomon Grundy and Oliver’s self-destructive behaviour), it does feature a couple of great supervillains in a supporting role. The first of these is Shade, the immortal shadow-powered gentleman who, despite being a villain, gained Green Arrow’s trust years ago, and was entrusted by Oliver to fulfil his post-death wishes (always chose an immortal). Shade is a fantastic inclusion to this comic, especially as his inclusion enhances the implication that Green Arrow is a much more morally grey hero than you would initially believe. The interactions between Shade, Green Arrow and Roy Harper are really good, and I liked the explanations for why he was unable to fulfil all his duties (I wouldn’t want to annoy Jay Garrick either). I also really need to highlight the excellent inclusion of Thomas Blake, better known as Catman, in his first appearance in comic form in years. Catman has always been a bit of a joke character due to his gimmick (which simultaneously rips off Catwoman and Batman at the same time), but in this comic he is shown to be a shell of even his previous ridiculous self, who is looked down on by the entire supervillain community. Hired by Shade as his agent, Catman is hunted down by Green Arrow after attending his funeral, only to show him as an overweight and unthreatening loser. This entire comic paints him as quite the pathetic figure and shows the downsides of being a fourth-rate villain who turned on some very powerful people. While his appearance in this comic was more entertaining than deep, it does beautifully set up his later appearances in such comics as Villains United and Secret Six and serves as his inspiration for becoming the ultra-badass we see there. These two villains perfectly rounded out the main cast of The Archer’s Quest, and both inclusions were fantastic and intriguing additions to the overall plot.

This amazing and complex narrative is perfectly backed up by some excellent artwork from the team of Hester and Parks, who really bring this story to life in exquisite detail. This entire comic is drawn in fantastic detail with some beautiful scenes, fantastic backdrops (including some iconic Green Arrow locations, lovingly brought to life) and entertaining sequences. This includes some brilliant and powerful action sequences, and the artists pay particular attention to the flight, movement, and destructive potential of the arrows. I particularly liked the awesome fight scene between Green Arrow and Solomon Grundy, which was filled with some brutal action in the tight confines of the former Arrowcave and featured some great narration from the protagonist. I loved the character designs featured in the comic, and the classic look of Green Arrow and his companions was great. The artists do a great job portraying emotion on the face of the characters, especially surrounding Oliver and his multiple examples of anguish and conflict. I also appreciated the play of emotion on some of the other characters faces, especially Flash when Oliver arrives at the Flash Museum. Seeing the grim and dark look on Flash’s face as he tries to stop Oliver is really surprising and impactful, and the artists do a fantastic job of showcasing a tense stare-down between the two as the sun starts to rise. However, in my opinion, the best drawn sequence in the entire comic occurs at the front of the volume, when Oliver contemplates his funeral. Shown in a series of polaroids, you see the various grieving mourners and it was fantastic to see several obscure figures from Oliver’s past appear to pay their respect. This beautifully drawn scene is short, but it sets the scene for the rest of the volume extremely well and is an excellent way to start this fantastic comic. I loved the way the comics in The Archer’s Quest were drawn, and they ensured that the outstanding story reached its full potential.

Overall, I have an insane amount of love for this third volume of this classic Green Arrow series, and it comes highly recommended. The Archer’s Quest is a brilliant and powerful comic arc that perfectly combines a clever and nostalgic story, with some intense character development and a fun and enjoyable art style. Meltzer’s narrative in this fantastic Green Arrow comic so damn amazing, and I deeply enjoyed his take of this iconic character. I deeply enjoyed The Archer’s Quest, and it easily one of my favourite comic volumes of all time. I am hoping to review the rest of this Green Arrow series in some future Throwback Thursday series, and I look forward to highlighting all the amazing storylines that were contained in this incredible run.

Amazon

WWW Wednesday – 24 November 2021

On November 24, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn WWW Wednesday1 Comment

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

So, let’s get to it.

What are you currently reading?

It Ends in Fire by Andrew Shvarts (Hardcover)

I just started reading It Ends in Fire by Andrew Shvarts, a fantastic and compelling young adult fantasy novel that serves as a fun deconstruction of the classic magical school narrative. I have been looking forward to this book for a while, mainly because Shvarts’ last series, the Royal Bastards trilogy was pretty damn amazing (check out my reviews of City of Bastards and War of the Bastards). I am about 100 pages in It Ends in Fire at the moment, and the plot so far features a young rebel who infiltrates a fantasy nation’s premier magic school (essentially an evil Hogwarts) to kill everyone. I look forward to seeing how it turns out and I am expecting a fun and thrilling story.

Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy: Lesser Evil by Timothy Zahn (Audiobook)

I was also extremely excited to start listening to the third and final book in the Thrawn Ascendancy trilogy, Lesser Evil, by Timothy Zahn. Serving as a prequel to the author’s outstanding Thrawn trilogy (Thrawn, Alliances and Treason), Lesser Evil follows on from the great Thrawn Ascendancy novels Chaos Rising and Greater Good and seeks to wrap up this complex tale. I have been powering through this novel in the last few days and I am hoping to knock it off very soon. I am having a blast with this final book, especially as a lot of the overarching series storylines are starting to come together in some amazing ways. I am extremely excited to see how this trilogy ends and Lesser Evil looks set to be the best book in this fantastic trilogy.

What did you recently finish reading?

Among Thieves by M. J. Kuhn (Trade Paperback)

The Apollo Murders by Chris Hadfield (Audiobook)

Kill Your Brother by Jack Heath (Trade Paperback)

What do you think you’ll read next?

Cytonic by Brandon Sanderson

That’s it for this week, check back in next Wednesday to see what progress I’ve made on my reading and what books I’ll be looking at next.

Waiting on Wednesday – Rise of the Mages and The Justice of Kings

On November 24, 2021 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Waiting on Wednesday6 Comments

Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy. I run this segment in conjunction with the Can’t-Wait Wednesday meme that is currently running at Wishful Endings. Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them. In this week’s Waiting on Wednesday article, I look at two fun upcoming fantasy debuts that I think have an immense amount of potential.

Here at The Unseen Library, we have a lot of love for debut novels, and it is always awesome to read and review the first book a new author has produced or to see a writer break into a completely new genre. I have had a brilliant time reading some great debuts in recent years, with some proving to be quite exceptional reads. For example, two amazing debut novels of 2020, The Kingdom of Liars by Nick Martell and The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman, ended up being some of the best books (and audiobooks) of the year. This year has been no different, as I had read some exceptional debuts in 2021, such as The Councillor by E. J. Beaton and The Frenchman by Jack Beaumont. I have some other glowing reviews for debut novels coming up shortly, and I am planning to do a Top Ten List highlighting some of the best debut novels of 2021 in a few weeks. However, before I do any of that, I thought I would take the chance to look at two exceptional upcoming fantasy novels that are likely to be some of the best debuts of 2022.

Rise of the Mages Cover

The first of these books is Rise of the Mages by Scott Drakeford. Currently set for release on 25 January 2022, Rise of the Mages in an interesting epic fantasy novel that will serve as the first book in The Age of Ire trilogy. Rise of the Mages has an outstanding story of blood, magic and rebellion, as well as an awesome cover, and I really like the sound of this cool novel.

Synopsis:

Scott Drakeford’s epic fantasy debut, Rise of the Mages combines gripping, personal vengeance with compelling characters for an action packed first book in a trilogy.

Emrael Ire wants nothing more than to test to be a weapons master. His final exam will be a bloody insurrection, staged by corrupt nobles and priests, that enslaves his brother.

With the aid of his War Master tutor, herself an undercover mage, Emrael discovers his own latent and powerful talents.

To rescue his brother, Emrael must embrace not only his abilities as a warrior but also his place as last of the ancient Mage Kings—for the Fallen God has returned.

And he is hungry.

This book has an awesome synopsis, and I am deeply intrigued by the fantastic sounding story that Rise of the Mages looks set to have. Dark rebellions, rogue wizards and fallen gods are all excellent bases for great fantasy books and I very interested in the idea of a “Mage King”. Based on this synopsis, it sounds like Drakeford is looking to produce a pretty epic and intense read, and I look forward to seeing all the magic-fuelled action, adventure and blood shed that Rise of the Mages contains.

The Justice of Kings Cover

The other book I really want to highlight in this post is the brilliant sounding The Justice of Kings by Richard Swan. Set to be the first book in his proposed Empire of the Wolf trilogy, The Justice of Kings is Swan’s debut fantasy novel, after he previously wrote several intriguing science fiction novels, such as The Art of War trilogy. The Justice of Kings currently has a release date of 22 February 2022 and I think it has the potential to be one of the best books of next year.

Synopsis:

The Justice of Kings, the first in a new epic fantasy trilogy, follows the tale of Sir Konrad Vonvalt, an Emperor’s Justice – a detective, judge and executioner all in one. As he unravels a web of secrets and lies, Vonvalt discovers a plot that might destroy his order once and for all – and bring down the entire Empire.

As an Emperor’s Justice, Sir Konrad Vonvalt always has the last word. His duty is to uphold the law of the empire using whatever tools he has at his disposal: whether it’s his blade, the arcane secrets passed down from Justice to Justice, or his wealth of knowledge of the laws of the empire. But usually his reputation as one of the most revered—and hated—Justices is enough to get most any job done.

When Vonvalt investigates the murder of a noblewoman, he finds his authority being challenged like never before. As the simple case becomes more complex and convoluted, he begins to pull at the threads that unravel a conspiracy that could see an end to all Justices, and a beginning to lawless chaos across the empire.

This sounds like such an outstanding and compelling read, and I am deeply intrigued by the proposed combination of crime fiction, legal thriller, and epic fantasy fiction elements. The Justice of Kings’ plot about an honourable knight concerned only with justice, hunting through an elaborate conspiracy with magic and a sword has an amazing amount of promise, and I cannot wait to see what clever and complex mystery Swan has written around this. I have already heard some substantial buzz around this book, with several reviewers I follow raving about The Justice of King’s story and fantasy elements after receiving advanced copies. As such, I am extremely excited for this novel and I cannot wait to see if it lives up to all the hype.

2022 is already shaping up to be an excellent year for debut fantasy novels, especially with Rise of the Mages by Scott Drakeford and The Justice of Kings by Richard Swan. Both these exceptional sounding novels have an immense amount of potential and promise, and I know I am going to have a great time reading them. These two novels have amazing synopses, and I am extremely interested to find out how these compelling plots turn out. Out of the two, I think that I am a little keener for The Justice of Kings, due to what I have already heard about it, but I am sure that Rise of the Mages will prove to be just as epic and fantastic.