The Daughter’s War by Christopher Buehlman

On October 11, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Throwback ThursdayLeave a comment

Publisher: Gollancz (Hardcover – 25 June 2024)

Series: Blacktongue series – Book 0

Length: 389 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out 5 stars

Prepare for the most brutal of wars with the intense and impressive fantasy prequel from Christopher Buehlman, The Daughter’s War, an intriguing read that dives into the early life of one of the author’s more complex characters.

Most fantasy fans will be aware of author Christopher Buehlman, who has been very popular since 2021 when he released the acclaimed novel The Blacktongue Thief. An elaborate dark fantasy adventure story set in a series of human nations recovering from a devastating total war against goblins, The Blacktongue Thief was an exceptional read that very much lives up to the hype around it. I had the pleasure of finally reading The Blacktongue Thief earlier this year, and after finishing it I attempted to find a copy of the 2024 prequel novel, The Daughter’s War. After a long search through many second-hand bookshops in Australia, I was eventually able to find a wonderful hardcover copy of The Daughter’s War at the tail end of a road trip (thank you Wyrdbooks in Wentworth Falls), and I just got the chance to read it. A brutal war novel, The Daughter’s War was a great read that provides some additional history around a fantastic character from the first book in the series.

Plot Synopsis:

The goblins have killed all of our horses and most of our men.

They have enslaved our cities, burned our fields, and still they wage war.

Now, our daughters take up arms.

Galva ― Galvicha to her three brothers, two of whom the goblins will kill ― has defied her family’s wishes and joined the army’s untested new unit, the Raven Knights. They march toward a once-beautiful city overrun by the goblin horde, accompanied by scores of giant war corvids. Made with the darkest magics, these fearsome black birds may hold the key to stopping the goblins in their war to make cattle of mankind.

The road to victory is bloody, and goblins are clever and merciless. The Raven Knights can take nothing for granted ― not the bonds of family, nor the wisdom of their leaders, nor their own safety against the dangerous war birds at their side. But some hopes are worth any risk.

Buehlman brings the carnage in this compelling prequel novel. The Daughter’s War was an interesting and action-packed addition to this cool fantasy series that tells a powerful character-driven narrative, while also cleverly expanding on the lore his unique fantasy universe. A wonderfully dark and addictive novel, The Daughter’s War was an outstanding read you’ll have a hard time pulling away from.

I very much enjoyed the prequel narrative that Buehlman set for The Daughter’s War, especially as the author sets out a gritty war story rather than the classic adventure narrative in The Blacktongue Thief. Set several years before the events of The Blacktongue Thief, The Daughter’s War follows young noblewoman Galva dom Braga, the striking character from the first book who was introduced as a scarred war veteran and death worshipper. However, in this prequel Galva is a more innocent and hopeful figure who has volunteered to fight in the Daughter’s War against the goblins, so called because most of the new soldiers are women after most of the men died in the previous goblin wars. A member of the experimental Corvid Knights unit, an all-female band of warriors who fight alongside giant, magically mutated ravens, Galva travels to the goblin occupied nation of Gallardia, and fights in some of the most brutal battles of this latest war.

Told in a chronicle format primarily from Galva’s perspective, The Daughter’s War starts off with an effective reintroduction to Galva and starts to showcase the various complexities of her early life that you never saw in The Blacktongue Thief. This includes familial responsibilities and drama when she is reunited with her three brothers, each of whom is participating in the war in different ways. Buehlman soon embarks on the full intensity of his war story as Galva and her companions head towards the inevitable battles and tragedy to come. There is a good pace to this story, as the author expands the setting while slowly introducing both the protagonist and the reader to the horrors of war and the goblin enemies. After several smaller battles, and the build-up of several additional problems around Galva, you soon get your taste of the first true combat, which also introduces readers to even more complexity for the protagonist as she meets her love interest from The Blacktongue Thief for the first time.

After a more emotionally charged centre to the story, the second half of The Daughter’s War is defined by true brutality, as the protagonist and her comrades encounter the wrath of the goblins. Buehlman is in his dark fantasy element when it comes to this second half of the book, and he excels at highlight the horrors of the war through Galva’s constantly hardening eyes. After an escalating series of tragedies, there is a major battle sequence that was a highlight of the book, and which sets the protagonist down a darker path. This change in characterisation is showcased in the book’s climatic sequence, where Galva asserts herself in all the best ways, and becomes the figure we knew from The Blacktongue Thief. Throw in some intriguing wrap up which helps to bridge the gap between this book and The Blacktongue Thief, and this ended up being an outstanding prequel narrative, guaranteed to keep you hooked to the end.

I enjoyed how Buehlman utilised a different writing style for The Daughter’s War, which helped it stand out as its own novel. Rather than utilising the active first-person style of The Blacktongue Thief, this novel is told in a chronicle format, as Galva recounts her memories of the war to an unseen character (the protagonist of the first book). Primarily told from Galva’s immediate perspective, Buehlman also utilises several in-universe documents and letters, as well as other inclusions and rogue memories to paint a wider picture of events and help to recount the larger war. This chronicle style highlighted that The Daughter’s War was very much a prequel novel, and the author did an amazing job emulating the feel of a veteran recounting their most personal war story. This includes working in a sense of regret and sadness from the very first page, as the protagonist/writer lays down hints about the tragedies to come. This focus on the past ensures that The Daughter’s War works well as a prequel to The Blacktongue Thief, and readers have a choice of either enjoying this book after The Blacktongue Thief to see how the protagonist got the way she did, or by reading it first and then exploring the aftermath of the war with the original book in the series (with some potential spoilers). I will admit that, thanks to its unique style and narrative structure, The Daughter’s War might not be for every fantasy reader out there, especially those who enjoyed the more straightforward and humour-laden style of The Blacktongue Thief. However, for those looking for an intense and darker character-focused read with some epic and brutal battle sequences, The Daughter’s War has a lot to offer.

One of my favourite things about the original book in this series was the elaborate and dark fantasy world that Buehlman invented as the background for The Blacktongue Thief’s story. The various human nations still diminished and feeling the impact of the goblin wars made for a striking and bleak setting, and I loved following the protagonists on the map as they made their way across the continent. This setting was also a highlight of this prequel, especially as the author uses The Daughter’s War to provide an extended look at new parts of the world, while also showcasing some of the dark history mentioned in The Blacktongue Thief. Readers follow the sprawling campaign through the invaded kingdom of Gallardia and get to appreciate the dark impacts war has had on it. Multiple other kingdoms from the larger continent setting of the series are also represented in other ways, primarily from their soldiers fighting in the war, and the author’s portrayals of the different combat styles of these nations was very compelling. Additional details about the protagonist’s home country of Ispanthia, which was talked about but not seen in The Blacktongue Thief, were also mentioned here, and this context helps to expand on the character’s origins.

While the focus on the human participants in the war is excellent, Buehlman’s portrayal of the goblin antagonists is particularly awesome. Already shown as deadly and malicious creatures when nominally at peace in The Blacktongue Thief, the author does not hold back showcasing their true nature in this prequel as you see the goblins at their full war savagery. The scenes showing them fighting against human soldiers are so damn brutal, and their varying tactics, weapons and counters to traditional warfare add some major impact to the impressive battle sequences. However, it is the examination of how they treat humans, especially humans they have captured or conquered, that really showcases how terrifying the goblins are, with the goblins essentially considering them to be cattle that they can drug, mutilate, eat and find various uses for (human skin sails and mutated human warriors are a striking inclusion). This portrayal of the goblin ruthlessness really ups the stakes of The Daughter’s War, and it was very fun to have an antagonist group that is so irredeemably evil. These outstanding elements of the setting were perfectly utilised in Buehlman’s darker fantasy narrative, and I really appreciated this look at the war that caused all the scars in the original novel.

In addition to cool setting and dark fantasy features, another great highlight of The Daughter’s War was the author’s excellent character work, especially around protagonist Galva dom Braga, who enters the war as a hopeful Corvid Knight, leading two magically enhanced ravens into battle alongside her sister knights. Buehlman does an excellent job showcasing the young noblewoman in a very different light than when you see her in The Blacktongue Thief, as through her own telling, she was a somewhat naïve and uncertain figure with no experience of war. Thanks to the horrors of battle, interactions with several supporting characters, and various tragedies involving her three brothers, Galva is slowly turned into the experienced and death-worshipping figure that we encountered in the original novel, and I really appreciated the gradual and understandable transition that the author worked in. The use of Galva as both the main character and the narrator recounting her most brutal memories allows for some powerful storytelling and she ended up being an excellent centre for this book. Throw in some outstanding, if somewhat doomed, supporting characters, including comrades, rivals, cheeky talking ravens, an insane wizard, the princess Galva falls in love with, and her three brothers, each of whom has their own complex narrative in this book, and the cast of The Daughter’s War is extremely impressive and adds a lot to the overall story. I’m extremely glad that Buehlman decided to provide all of Galva’s story in this prequel, and I cannot wait to see what happens with this eventually brooding warrior next.

Christopher Buehlman continues to showcase his skill for dark fantasy fiction in this impressive novel. The Daughter’s War was an outstanding prequel to Buehlman’s The Blacktongue Thief, and I really appreciated the exploration of the past of his complex setting and one iconic scarred character. Shocking, intense and filled with inevitable tragedy, The Daughter’s War comes highly recommended, and I am very glad I finally got the chance to read this book. I cannot wait to see what happens in the upcoming third book in the series, The Thrice-Bound Fool, and I’m hoping to get that very soon.

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The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman

On June 27, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Throwback Thursday2 Comments

Publisher: Gollancz (Trade Paperback – 16 March 2021)

Series: Blacktongue series – Book One

Length: 416 pages

My Rating: 5 out 5 stars

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Prepare for brutal action and adventure in the highly acclaimed fantasy novel, The Blacktongue Thief, a modern classic from a fast-rising author of fantasy fiction.

Several years ago, I made note of an intriguing upcoming fantasy novel that had caught my attention, The Blacktongue Thief. Written by Christopher Buehlman, an established fantasy and horror writer who I wasn’t familiar with, The Blacktongue Thief had an awesome and intriguing plot behind it, and I was determined to read it when it came out in 2021. Unfortunately, due to time constraints I never got the chance to read it when it first came out. However, for the next several years all I heard from fellow fantasy fans was just how good The Blacktongue Thief and its prequel The Daughter’s War was. Despite this constant praise, which felt a little judgemental towards me, I kept failing to read The Blacktongue Thief, although I was lucky enough to find a good secondhand copy of it last year. With the sequel to The Blacktongue Thief announced for late 2026, I finally decided to take the plunge with this book earlier this year, and boy was I happy, if unsurprised, with how much fun I had with it.

Plot Synopsis:

Kinch Na Shannack owes the Takers Guild a small fortune for his education as a thief, which includes (but is not limited to) lock-picking, knife-fighting, wall-scaling, fall-breaking, lie-weaving, trap-making, plus a few small magics. His debt has driven him to lie in wait by the old forest road, planning to rob the next traveler that crosses his path.

But today, Kinch Na Shannack has picked the wrong mark.

Galva is a knight, a survivor of the brutal goblin wars, and handmaiden of the goddess of death. She is searching for her queen, missing since a distant northern city fell to giants.

Unsuccessful in his robbery and lucky to escape with his life, Kinch now finds his fate entangled with Galva’s. Common enemies and uncommon dangers force thief and knight on an epic journey where goblins hunger for human flesh, krakens hunt in dark waters, and honor is a luxury few can afford.

Whelp, it turns out that I made a big mistake not reading The Blacktongue Thief sooner. Featuring a powerful and dark take on the classic fantasy quest, The Blacktongue Thief was a compelling character-driven journey into an elaborate and war-riven fantasy world that effortlessly grabs your attention and refuses to let go. An utterly addictive read from Buehlman that gets a full five-star rating from me.

Buehlman hits the ground running hard with The Blacktongue Thief, quickly introducing you to witty and likeable rogue, Kinch Na Shannack, the book’s protagonist and point-of-view character, as he engages in a little light banditry in the forest. However, things quickly get out of hand for the protagonist as he fails to rob travelling knight and goblin wars veteran Galva in dramatic fashion. However, there is far more to Galva than expected, as Kinch finds himself tasked by his employers, the powerful Takers Guild of thieves to follow Galva on her quest to the remote, giant-ravished nation of Oustrim, where she seeks to find her lost friend and queen. Manoeuvring his way into Galva’s travel plans, Kinch soon becomes attached to his new friend, while the Takers Guild continue to control his actions. I liked how effectively Buehlman set up his narrative in the early pages of The Blacktongue Thief, as there is a lot of early hints and starting storylines that play out as the novel continues. The author also lays out some interesting details about the larger fantasy world, including much of its recent troubles and wars, which effectively draws you in alongside the compelling central narrative.

After this intriguing start, Buehlman gets into the story proper, as The Blacktongue Thief takes on many characteristics of a classic fantasy adventure story, with the protagonists travelling from one end of the continent to another. Picking up some interesting new companions, as well as hints of some of the shadowy motivations around the various players of the plot, Buehlman starts loading in the action, with several entertaining and bloody sequences. I personally loved the extended run with the protagonists travelling on a piratical whaling ship that takes up much of the centre of The Blacktongue Thief, especially as Buehlman litters this part of the book with feuds, monster fighting, multiple skirmishes and other nautical misadventures. There are some great moments here, and the author shows the reader what type of book The Blacktongue Thief is with plenty of brutal deaths and sudden changes of fortune. While much of this part of the book is focused on adventure and modern carnage, Buehlman also makes sure to continue providing intriguing dives into additional details of the setting, as well as some compelling character histories, much of which comes into play as the book continues.

After several dark encounters, tragedies and compelling dangers, the book enters its final third, which proves to be particularly compelling. Set in the giant-stalked ruins of Oustrim, this final part of The Blacktongue Thief is particularly intense, and you are constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop amongst the dangerous exploration, encounters and sudden sharp conflict. Buehlman cleverly drops some big revelations as you get towards the end of the book, with developments that change your entire perspective of events. It also leads to a final series of deadly confrontations, which proves to be quite shocking in places, even after the book’s various prior tragedies. Buehlman keeps you guessing about what will happen next right to the very end, especially with a final mind-blowing twist about a supporting character. I loved the intriguing note that Buehlman leaves The Blacktongue Thief on, especially as it sets up its potential sequel which will no-doubt expand on several loose ends from this cool book. All this is quite addictive, and I honestly got so hooked on all the crazy adventures that the author loaded into this novel.

I really enjoyed how The Blacktongue Thief came together, especially as Buehlman provides a dark take on the classic quest narrative. Bringing the reader into a beat-up fantasy world, The Blacktongue Thief has a very readable and edgy style that effectively draws you in from the start. It really doesn’t take you long to get stuck into the book thanks to the great combination of entertaining humour, distinctive worldbuilding and intense action, all of which blends in an excellent and intense manner. Much of this humour is driven from the amusing antics of The Blacktongue Thief’s protagonist, and the combination of other unique personalities adds a lot to the overall adventure aspect of the plot. The intrigue, mistrust and hidden motivations increase the tension of the plot nicely, with old mistakes and dark histories perfectly inserted into the main plot by Buehlman. I deeply enjoyed the multiple awesome action set-pieces that the author throws into The Blacktongue Thief, with so many intense moments of well-choreographed and described combat weaved into the plot. There is an amazing amount of brutality thrown into the book, which the darker nature of the universe and the desperate plot extremely well, and I was glad that Buehlman didn’t hold back any punches. I also really enjoyed how there were no slow or quiet moments in The Blacktongue Thief, with the reader constantly moving forward, much like the protagonists.

For me one of the big highlights that put The Blacktongue Thief on another level was the complex and grim fantasy world the story takes place in. While there are many classic fantasy elements within this book, Buehlman sets it apart with some very intriguing details. In particular, the book is set in the aftermath of a brutal war between the various human nations and an invading army of goblins. As such, there is a battered feel to the setting, with the remaining humans wary and militant, and distrust and change in the air. I loved how well Buehlman captured the desperation and despair of the inhabitants of the realm, as they attempt to survive in the post-war period, and it adds an even darker edge to the already brutal proceedings. The clever inclusion of several consequences of the war, such as the loss of all the horses in the world thanks to a goblin-wrought disease, and the necessity of woman to be called up to fight in the last war, further enhances the uniqueness of The Blacktongue Thief, and it was really cool how it impacted the current journey and the protagonist’s pasts. I also quite enjoyed how Buehlman set up multiple unique fantasy realms and kingdoms within the larger world, which the protagonists are forced to move across to reach their goals. The differing politics, cultures and allegiances that they experienced, as well as the realistic length of the journey across the large continent, ensured that the protagonist’s journey felt like a proper epic quest, and I really enjoyed following the journey on the map provided at the front of the book. Tracing the protagonist’s journey across the lands helped to enhance the enormity of the plot, and it also hinted at a ton of fun new realms that the protagonists will likely visit in the other entries in this series. Buehlman’s excellent world building in The Blacktongue Thief really was quite impressive, and it was a big factor in my eventual five-star rating.

The final thing I want to talk about with The Blacktongue Thief are the excellent and memorable characters Buehlman sets his plot around. The author ends up introducing a fun central cast that engage in the main quest, each of whom have their own demons and interesting quirks. The primary character is Kinch Na Shannack, a low-level thief who is indebted to the Takers Guild after they trained him and taught him some basic magic. The narrator and central perspective protagonist, Kinch entertains as the willey tricksters of the group, using his brains and talents for deceit and thievery to survive rather than brute force. Much of The Blacktongue Thief’s humour comes from Kinch’s funny jokes, cutting observations and somewhat unreliable narration, which blended surprisingly well with the darker setting of the book. While mostly always comedic, Kinch does have a serious side to him, especially when it comes to his many secrets and hidden motivations. Buehlman writes a great plot around Kinch finding his true purpose, as his loyalties to the group and his growing courage is forced up against the control of the Takers Guild and the general craziness of the world he encounters. An overall amazing main character who was the perfect depiction of the rebellious yet faithful rogue.

The other major character I really need to highlight is the striking Galva, a deadly female knight whose quest the plot is set around. A scarred and dangerous veteran of the goblin wars, Galva is a no-nonsense figure in the book, dedicated to her mission, as well as her worship of the setting’s death goddess. Buehlman ensures that Galva is set up as pretty badass character from the very start of the book, and you really get drawn to her honourable personality in this dishonourable world. While mostly serious and unforgiving, there is a certain lighter side to Galva at times, which makes even more likeable, and she ended up being the perfect foil and straight woman to Kinch, with the two having some great interactions. There is also a certain amount of battle-born trauma to Galva, much of which looks set to be explored in the prequel novel, The Daughter’s War, which added some extra complexity to her appearance. Galva truly was a great character, and I loved her use as the serious and militant heart of the larger cast.

While Kinch and Galva get most of the focus in The Blacktongue Thief, there are some other entertaining characters who add a lot to the plot. This includes the young witch, Norrigal, who serves as an interesting interest to Kinch, and whose overarching story had some clever and twisty moments to. I also must mention Malk Na Brannyck, a countryman of Kinch who adds a lot of drama to the plot due to his history with the protagonist. Another war veteran, Malk worked well as a minor antagonist who eventually morphs into a reluctant ally, and his various caustic interactions with Kinch added to the larger dysfunction of the protagonists. Special mention also needs to go to the stray cat, Bully Boy, who tags along with the group against all the odds, and whose appearance definitely isn’t sinister or mysterious. Throw in a range of rogues, thieves, killers and other dangerous figures that the protagonists encounter, and the cast of The Blacktongue Thief is stacked. All these characters, and more, have some great storylines attached to them, and I really enjoyed the entertaining and often dark interactions that occurred, especially as it added to the general chaos of the plot.

After finally reading this epic novel, I can confirm that The Blacktongue Thief lives up the hype surrounding it. Christopher Buehlman introduced a wonderfully dark fantasy world in this book and then moulded a powerful adventure story around it. Loaded with intense action, great characters and a captivating story, The Blacktongue Thief was utter fun from the very beginning, and I had so much fun getting through it. I am so glad I finally got the chance to read this novel, and I am hoping to read The Daughter’s War next, especially with the next book in series, The Thrice-Bound Fool, set for release later this year.

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The Devils by Joe Abercrombie

On June 9, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy, Five-Star Books5 Comments

Publisher: Gollancz/Macmillan Audio (Audiobook – 13 May 2025)

Series: The Devils – Book One

Length: 25 hours and 7 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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The master of grimdark fantasy fiction presents a bold and over-the-top new story with The Devils, an outstanding, addictive and highly entertaining read that you will not be able to turn away from.

Joe Abercrombie is an impressive and compelling author who has been wowing fantasy fiction authors with his complex reads for nearly 20 years. While he has written some other cool books, like his Shattered Sea trilogy, Abercrombie is best known for his iconic First Law series of dark fantasy novels, that followed a group of highly damaged people as they tried to survive war, magic and politics in a messed-up fantasy world. I really enjoyed the original First Law trilogy, and Abercrombie has cleverly expanded it out over the years, including with three standalone novels and his sequel Age of Madness trilogy. The Age of Madness novels were ones that I particularly enjoyed reading, and A Little Hatred (one of my favourite books of 2019), The Trouble With Peace (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2020) and The Wisdom of Crowds (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2021), were very highly rated by me, and I could not get enough of this series.

Needless to say, I am a pretty big fan of Abercrombie’s novels, and I have been eagerly awaiting a new book from him since I finished The Wisdom of Crowds. While I had hoped that we would be getting a new First Law novel, Abercrombie instead decided to present readers with something a little different with his new The Devils series. Starting off with The Devils, this series is another clever dark fantasy series, set in an alternative, magic filled version of medieval Europe. One of my most anticipated books of 2025, The Devils sounded so damn good, especially with its crazy plot and intriguing new setting.

The lands of Europe are in dire peril. Between the constant wars, dangerous monsters, ruinous famines and deadly plagues, the various kingdoms of Europe are in poor condition, barely held together by the fractured church. However, the real danger lies outside its borders, as the mysterious elves gather their power in the Holy Lands, preparing for another invasion of Europe that will surely lead to the destruction of all humanity.

In response to the growing threat of the elves, the church and its juvenile pope determine that a new ruler needs to be placed upon the Serpent Throne of Troy after its evil sorcerous empress dies. With all four of the empress’s duplicitous and power-hungry sons unfit for the crown, the church surprisingly finds that their ideal candidate is a lowly street thief from the Holy City called Alex. A ferrety sneak with no noble bearing or confidence, Alex is shocked to discover that she is really the long-lost Princess Alexia Pyrogennetos of Troy, destined to reunite the churches of Europe by claiming the throne.

Turning the reluctant and terrified Alex into a potential princess is one thing, but getting her to Troy is a far more difficult prospect, especially as her rival contenders to the throne are stalking Europe with their deadly, magically enhanced followers, determined to claim Troy for themselves. To succeed in marching Alex through the European hellscape and placing her on the Serpent Throne, the church will need far more than prayers and the blessing of saints; they are going to need devils. Luckily, such devils are close at hand.

Deep within the Holy City lies the Chapel of Holy Expediency, which binds dangerous heretics and monsters and forces them to seek redemption through holy missions for the pope. Led by the hapless Brother Diaz, the congregation of the Chapel of Holy Expediency is charged with getting Alex to Troy and placing her on the throne. But can a terrified monk, an immortal knight, an arrogant necromancer, an invisible elf, a sarcastic vampire, an uncontrollable Viking werewolf and the most experienced woman in Europe succeed in making a street-rat an empress, or will their new mission only bring even more death and destruction to the continent?

Joe Abercrombie once again shows why he is one of the very best authors of dark fantasy fiction with his captivating and deeply impressive new novel. The Devils was an ultra-entertaining read that perfectly introduced the author’s intriguing setting and populated it with highly amusing characters and dark deeds. Exciting, clever and loaded with over-the-top humour, The Devils was an absolute joy to listen to, and I loved every second I spent with it. One of the most addictive novels of 2025 so far, The Devils gets a very-well deserved five-star rating from me, and readers are guaranteed an extra fun time with this crazy novel.

I absolutely loved the cool and highly entertaining story that Abercrombie came up with for The Devils, which was essentially a fun dark fantasy iteration of The Dirty Dozen/Suicide Squad narrative with some amazing monsters. Providing a quick introduction to the key characters, the reader soon becomes highly invested in the narrative, as the memorable and very amusing protagonists begin their trek to Troy. What follows is a classic travelling adventure story with some dark and comedic twists, as the protagonists encounter all manner of foes on the way to their destination, which they are forced to dispatch with ruthless efficiency. While parts of this story start to become a tad formulaic, especially as the protagonists are intercepted multiple times by one of Princess Alexia’s cousins, with each encounter resulting in a deadly battle for survival against different occult forces, you are generally so entertained by the compelling characters, interesting interactions, and over-the-top action sequences, you don’t even really mind. Abercrombie works to break up these encounters with some fun side quests, as well as altering the circumstances by having the characters occasionally split up into unlikely pairings, exploring the fun alternate medieval Europe that works as such an effective setting for this book. This allows for some interesting changes of pace in the main quest narrative, while also allowing for some outrageous character moments as the reader gets to know the protagonists a little better.

Everything nicely leads up to the last third of The Devil, which sees the protagonists arrive at their destination against the odds. Without going into much detail, things naturally go to hell, and everybody is forced to fight for their lives. This chaotic series of events isn’t unexpected, as the reader is waiting for the other shoe to drop the entire book, but the who and the how of it makes for great reading. Some excellent twists come to life here, often revealed in a fun meta way, and, while you see a couple of them coming, the entire ball of surprises and reveals make for quite an exciting end sequence. These twists are well backed up by some of the grittiest action sequences in the entire book, and you are constantly on your feet waiting to see what happens next. The entire novel ends on a tragic, if thoughtful note, especially when you’re left to consider who the true monsters of the story are. An overall impressive narrative, that blends alternate history and classic adventure narrative threads with Abercrombie’s wild imagination to create something exceedingly entertaining and addictive.

The Devils was a very fun and well-written story as Abercrombie provides a very intense and hard-hitting tale, bound together by dark humour, over-the-top sequences, and complex characters. Abercrombie once again showcases his skill at balancing multiple distinctive perspectives to tell an integrated and ongoing narrative, with the story cleverly bouncing between the viewpoint of several impressive protagonists. The continued switches between the characters allows for a very elaborate narrative, and the reader is drawn into both the overarching plot and the more personal battles of the protagonists. I liked how Abercrombie was able to tailor the descriptive narration of each of the perspective chapters to suit the character it was following, and each chapter has a slightly different tone as a result. However, this is a very dark overall story, as the characters encounter outrageous scenarios of death and destruction, and the resulting carnage allows for some intense moments. I will say that The Devils did feel a little sillier than some of Abercrombie’s previous novels, although the author uses this extra layer of ridiculous energy to full effect to tell an extremely addictive story.

As you would expect from Abercrombie, the intense action sequences are a highlight of The Devils, with the many brutal sequences coming to life thanks to the author’s great descriptive style. There was a certain casualness to some of the fights, especially those featuring the plot’s more dangerous killers, and which was enhanced by the clever overall narration of the writing. I loved how Abercrombie set out all his scenes, with a lot of subtle humour revolving around cynical description of events, especially as the author provides some ironic results and meta commentary. This more subtle writing of events is counterbalanced by the over-the-top humour of the dialogue, especially when it comes to certain characters. A lot of the dialogue gets downright filthy at times, with some very adult discussions coming out in outrageous fashion. While this excessive crass language had the potential to distract from the story, I think that Abercrombie got the right balance, with the ridiculously rude dialogue fitting in well amongst the crazy events of the plot. While the combination of ugly events, adult humour and cooky carnage isn’t going to be everyone, I think most fantasy fans are going to have a ton of fun with it, especially as it plays into Abercrombie’s grimdark style. Throw in a clever alternative medieval Europe as the elaborate setting which will delight history buffs with the intricate differences, and The Devils was a very impressive read that perfectly plays the author’s strengths and talent for entertaining and dark fantasy fiction.

Fans of Abercrombie will know that the author specialises at making damaged and captivating characters to set his narratives around, and The Devils is no exception to this. The author introduces an amazing cast of complex and memorable characters in The Devils, and I love the very impressive storylines that emerge around them. This includes six separate perspective protagonists, two major supporting characters, and an array of interesting figures throughout Europe who play various roles in the outcome of the plot. Abercrombie does an excellent job of introducing and utilising this complex cast, with all the major characters getting their chance to shine in some impressive ways. While some of the characters in The Devils didn’t quite have the complexity of the protagonists from the First Law books, Abercrombie instead amps up the entertainment aspect of these figures, introducing several particularly hilarious, ridiculous and highly relatable monsters, each of whom added a great deal to the overall reading experience.

The first two characters I want to talk about are major perspective protagonists, Brother Diaz and the newly discovered princess, Alex. Despite neither being members of the titular devils, both have major roles in this book and are shaped by their experiences with the monstrous pawns of the church. Brother Diaz, a simple monk who is brought in to guide the devils, is initially shown to be a hapless and terrified figure, clearly out of his depth when it comes to the dangerous mission he has been entrusted with. Abercrombie has a lot of fun showcasing him as a useless social climber at the start of the novel, and he initially has more of a comedic role in the plot. However, as the story progresses, Diaz starts to gain a little confidence as he continues to survive, and you soon see flashes of the man he could be. Despite falling to temptation (repeatedly), Diaz ends up being quite a stalwart figure in the book, and I loved some of the scenes where he got to show off his intelligence (including one particularly entertaining legal battle). The way in which Abercrombie subtly added more and more depth to Diaz’s personality as the story continued was very impressive, and his growth as a character was a highlight of the book. The author also ensured that Diaz was one of the more relatable characters in The Devils, especially as he continuously makes mistakes, finds himself shaken by his fears and failings, yet continues to try to do the right thing.

Much like Diaz, the other non-devil perspective protagonist, Alex, is also shown to be an imperfect figure who finds themselves thrust into events outside of their control. Initially shown as a simple thief, Alex, or Princess Alexia Pyrogennetos, is ill prepared for the events before her, and is forced to rise to the occasion when she is declared long-lost royalty. Mostly shown as the book’s damsel in distress, Alex is generally scared and lacking confidence, especially as she knows she is not the princess everyone wants her to be. Like Diaz, Abercrombie writes Alex slowly rising to the occasion throughout course of The Devils’ plot, as she learns to fight back and become a leader. I really liked following Alex’s journey in The Devils, and while the journey to the character finding her self-confidence is a long and bloody affair featuring some good twists, it ended up being a powerful part of the book’s overarching narrative.

Outside of Alex and Diaz, a lot of time is also spent following the other perspective members of The Devils, including Balthazar, Sunny and Vigga, who are a necromancer, an elf and a werewolf respectively. These three characters are amazing, and I liked how well they played off each other and the rest of the cast with a great mixture of serious and more comedic elements. For example, Balthazar (or to introduce him properly, Balthazar Sham Ivan Draxi), is a highly arrogant figure who chafes at being captured and controlled by the church. Much of his story focuses on his many attempts to break the Papal binding compelling him to help Alex, while also dealing with the realisation that he is helpless against those he considers his lesser. Much of the entertainment around Balthazar is his complete lack of self-awareness or humility, especially within his own mind, and while there are times when it appears that he is going to become a better person, he usually returns to his old personality when he hits a wall. Sunny the elf, on the other hand, is a far more sensible character, who serves as the team’s shadow thanks to her ability to become invisible. Despite her nice and helpful personality, Sunny is shown as an alien creature, incapable of understanding the humans who generally hate and fear her. Imbued with a more subtle humour than her fellow devils, Sunny proves to be quite an interesting figure, especially when you examine her past and her dark experiences with humans. Probably one of the more likeable and selfless figures in the book, Sunny’s arc adds a lot to the overall story, especially through her unlikely romance angle, and Abercrombie clearly had fun writing the various scenes where she traipses around invisible.

One of the more memorable cast members of The Devils is Vigga, a former Viking raider who was cursed as a werewolf and then captured by the church. Crass, constantly controlled by her urges, incapable of self-restraint and particularly deadly, even when not a massive wolf, Vigga powers through the entirety of The Devils’ narrative, leaving a major impression whenever she appears. Featuring some of the more visceral and entertaining perspectives of the book, which includes a combination of hungry sequences from her wolf mind and her more entertaining insights as a human with no impulse control and an inability to focus on anything, Vigga is responsible for a large part of The Devils’ chaotic and outrageous tone, and the book would not be anywhere near as fun without her. However, as this is Abercrombie, there are quite a few darker moments in Vigga’s story, and you soon become absorbed with her attempts to pull together her fractured mind and control the monster within, especially when she gets close to her travelling companions. The dark depression that occasionally befalls her because of her uncontrolled actions adds some major drama to certain tragic parts of The Devils’ plot, and Vigga comes away as one of the more sympathetic, if scary, characters in the book.

While the above perspective characters are all particularly impressive, my favourite was the team’s resident knight, Jakob of Thorn. An old soldier cursed with immortality who has been fighting battles on behalf of the church and God for hundreds of years, Jakob is a tired and haggard figure bound by his many vows. Suffering from the degradation of his body due to age and the many injuries inflicted on him, Jakob is weariness personified as he attempts to deal with his pain, and the guilt from his long history of death and service to the church. Readers familiar with the author will know that Abercrombie specialises at writing tired old warriors who are sick of the death and destruction they cause, and Jakob of Thorn is one of his better ones (which is saying a lot). I loved all of Jakob’s scenes, especially as he doggedly continues to fight despite his pain, often providing some of the book’s best quotes and insights. Unsurprisingly, Abercrombie makes Jakob suffer a lot in this novel (what else would this sadistic author do with an immortal character?), and you learn a lot about his resolve and psyche as a result, especially as he knows he is the biggest monster of them all. I really think that Jakob’s grittier and more self-aware perspective chapters helped to balance out the more outrageous character arcs in The Devils, and he was a perfect addition to this outstanding narrative.

The final two major characters I want to highlight are Baron Rikard, an ancient vampire, and Baptiste, a rogue hired to keep the devils in check, who seems to have experience with every profession possible in Europe. Both these characters are excellent additions to the plot and manage to shine through, despite not being perspective characters. Indeed, I felt that their role in the book was enhanced by the readers not having direct insights about their motivations or actions, and instead you get to enjoy the mystery surrounding them as you see them through the eyes of the other characters. Baron Rikard, who serves as a fun, sarcastic figure who only helps when it suits him, proves to be a great inclusion in the plot, especially as his gentlemanly manners and demeaner makes him stand out amongst the other characters. While a ridiculously charming figure (especially when he starts talking about dumplings), you are initially given the impression that Rikard is another trapped monster keen to escape his binding. However, Abercrombie nicely turns this assumption on its head as the story continues, and I really enjoyed the character’s revealed motivation, especially as it shades all the character’s actions in a new light.

Baptiste, on the other hand, is a suave and entertaining figure whose impact on the book would be diminished if you got a deeper look at her thoughts, motivations or true history. I particularly enjoyed how well Baptiste served as a foil to Balthazar, and they had a great back and forth that helped to define them both. Throw in a range of other impressive supporting characters, including a barrage of outrageous or diabolical antagonists, and the cast of The Devils was something very special. I cannot emphasise enough just how much fun all these characters were, and their moving and complex arcs and interactions really helped to give some powerful meat to The Devils’ entertaining narrative. You really come away with some conflicted feelings for many of the protagonists, especially as none of your favourites have a truly happy ending, and it will be interesting to see what happens to the survivors in the future entries of the series. A special shoutout as well to the fun artwork depicting several of these characters in The Devils paperback, especially as the artist really captures how the author wrote these colourful protagonists.

While I did receive a physical copy of The Devils, I ended up listening to this novel on audiobook, which was a fantastic choice. Not only did the audiobook version allow for a fuller immersion in Abercrombie’s new fantasy universe and his crazy action sequences, but it also featured the superb voice of actor Steven Pacey. Pacey, who is one of my favourite audiobook narrators, previously lent his voice to the audiobook versions of Abercrombie First Law novels, and he frankly does a perfect job of capturing the author’s unique tone and style. Abercrombie’s complex writing, witty dialogue and excessive humour really come to the fore when read out by Pacey, and the narrator’s tone and cadence in The Devils always perfectly matched the intended mood of the scenes, no matter how dark or over-the-top they became. Pacey also does some very entertaining and highly fitting voices for the key characters of The Devils, and it is amazing how well he captures all these outrageous figures. All the defining character details, including the timid nature of Brother Diaz, the arrogance of Balthazar, the pain and weariness of Jakob, the wry amusement of Baron Rikard, the unearthly nature of Sunny and the sheer wildness of Vigga are all amazingly highlighted by Pacey’s various voices, and really come to love the characters the way that Pacey reads them out. Thanks to Pacey’s brilliant acting and evident love for the content, this was an incredible listen, and I really cannot emphasise enough just how effectively he narrated this crazy story. I flew through the books lengthy, 25-hour runtime due to this brilliant narration and epic narrative, and I honestly don’t believe that anyone but Steven Pacey could make Abercrombie’s amazing novels come to life in the same way. An exceptional audiobook and one of the best things I have so far listened to in 2025.

With his trademark blend of chaos, fantastic humour and complex characters, Joe Abercrombie presents one of the very best books and audiobooks of 2025 with The Devils. A unique and very entertaining fantasy adventure novel, The Devils pushed everything to 11 and beyond, ensuring that you couldn’t turn away. An exceptional read from start to finish, I had so much fun with The Devils and I cannot wait to see how Abercrombie will continue this series in the future.

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The Last Shield by Cameron Johnston

On October 9, 2024 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Five-Star Books4 Comments

Publisher: Angry Robot (Ebook – 13 August 2024)

Series: Standalone

Length: 376 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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One of the rising stars of dark fantasy fiction, Cameron Johnston, returns with an intense, gritty and addictive novel of revenge, desperation and brutal murder, with the brilliant novel, The Last Shield.

One of the more intriguing authors of fantasy fiction I have enjoyed reviewing in recent years is the outstanding Cameron Johnston, who has deeply impressed me with his small but excellent collection of works. Since his debut book in 2018, The Traitor God, I have grown to enjoy Johnston’s novels, especially as his first book was a brilliant story of dark magical revenge. Following up with the awesome sequel, God of Broken Things, Johnston cemented himself as an author to watch, and I have yet to be disappointed by him since. His third novel, The Maleficent Seven, was a fantastically bonkers read that saw a small town become the unwilling recipients of a band of monstrous defenders when a massive army comes to destroy them. I had an amazing time with The Maleficent Seven, and indeed all of Johnston’s books, which is why I was so eager for his latest novel, The Last Shield. One of my most anticipated books of 2024, The Last Shield had an epic and cool plot behind it, and I was so very eager to check it out.

In a world of warring realms and dark magic, the ancient forest realm of Sunweald survives by serving as a buffer country between two far mightier nations on either side of its borders. A realm of tradition and druidical magic, the heart of the nation lies in Sunweald Palace, where the Lord Regent, and the young heir to the throne reside, guarded by Sunweald’s elite warriors, the Shields. Rough and old, Sunweald Palace is an impenetrable fortress designed protect the nation’s royal family, as well as safeguarding a massive vault of unspeakably powerful magical artefacts.

Despite its peaceful status, Sunweald finds itself beset by a group of vicious brigands, the Wildwood Reivers, who have made a living stealing away magical artefacts and trading them across the border. Led by a mysterious witch, the Wildwood Reivers have grown bold, even launching an attack on the royal family. When word reaches the palace of the location of the brigand’s base, the Shields depart to destroy them once and for all. However, their mission is a devious decoy, as through treachery, dark magic and deceit, the Wildwood Reivers and their allies manage to take over Sunweald Palace.

With the Shields away and traitors holding the wall, the brigands plan to loot the palace’s ancient vaults and steal every magical artefact hidden within. However, the Wildwood Reivers face one substantial obstacle to their success, Briar, feared, if hobbled, commander of the Shields. Despite being outnumbered, wounded and near retirement, Briar is determined to perform her duty and reclaim the palace. Using her knowledge of the palace’s secret tunnels and ancient corridors, Briar sets about dismantling the invaders in brutal fashion. But battered, alone and loosing strength, can even a legendary Shield like Briar face the overwhelming odds and lethal magic set against her?

Gosh this was a very impressive and exciting read. Cameron Johnston has a real flair for fantastically over-the-top narratives, and The Last Shield is some of his best work yet. A complex and compelling tale of revenge and redemption, The Last Shield was a non-stop thrill ride, and I loved the deeply intense story that emerged. This was a truly outstanding book that gets a full five-star rating from me thanks to how much sheer fun I had reading it.

The narrative that Johnston pulls together for The Last Shield is extremely awesome, and it can best be described as a gender bent, dark fantasy Die Hard, with some amazing fantasy elements. An excellent standalone story, The Last Shield was a constantly moving book, which drew me in with its clever plot concept and the promised resulting violence. Part of the reason the story works so well is the initial setup, which introduces the new intriguing world, but more importantly effectively gets you across the central characters and the main setting of Sunweald Palace. There are some great early character moments here, especially when it comes to the main protagonist, Briar. The veteran leader of the Shields, Briar is badly wounded in the opening scenes of the book, which kicks off a great arc for her as she attempts to find her purpose after the injury potentially robs her of her position. Some other key character arcs and storylines are also introduced here, including around the young heir to the throne, whose brush with death drives him closer to the disapproving Briar as a mentor. Johnston also takes the time to explore the full extent of the conspiracy to takeover Sunweald Palace, and you grow to appreciate just how dastardly the plot is. As such, you are well prepared for the chaos and carnage to come, and the anticipation Johnston expertly builds up in first part of the book, really enhanced the overall impact of The Last Shield.

As such, the reader is very much ready to go when the villains initiate their plan around a third of the way into The Last Shield. The resulting takeover is as dark and brutal as you’d expect, and the reader is well prepared to despise the antagonists and root for any sort of victory from the protagonist. You don’t have to wait long as the despondent Briar quickly finds herself in the ideal position to fight back and begins her bloody and justified one-woman assault on the invaders. Johnston initiates a series of intense, powerful and increasingly desperate battles, as Briar encounters greater and great hurdles and opponents as she attempts to save the Lord Regent and stop the looting of the castle’s vaults. The author expertly ramps up the intensity every confrontation, and you really find yourself more and more off the edge of your seat as the story proceeds and Briar becomes increasingly injured. There are some brilliantly brutal confrontations all the way to the end, and the author throws in some great twists and major final threats. I honestly loved every second of the epic second half of The Last Shield, and Johnston wrote an amazing, blood-soaked story.

I felt that Johnston did an outstanding job bringing his cool story to life in The Last Shield, and readers are in for a great time if they check this book out. The excellent blend of dark action, intriguing fantasy, and powerful characters really worked for me, and I felt that Johnston perfectly blended storytelling elements throughout the entire book. The writing of The Last Shield is crisp, fast-paced, and well planned out, and it proves impossible not to be drawn into the fantastic scenario and intriguing storytelling. Cameron does an excellent job exploring the new fantasy world that The Last Shield is set in, and you really get drawn into the bronze-age Celtic setting, and the focus on a small kingdom with some intriguing gender roles. I particularly enjoyed how Jonston managed to emulate the feel of a classic action thriller like Die Hard or Under Siege and blend it with the dark fantasy setting. The resulting scenes, which forced a nearly retired badass female palace guard to crawl through the secret tunnels of the castle to save the male reagent while disrupting a magical heist, were so damn fun, and it was a fantastic take on a classic film trope. It helped that Johnston brought his typical, over-the-top mindset to the action sequences in The Last Shield, presenting the readers with an increasing bloody series of fights as the protagonist unleashed her inner fury. These scenes of carnage and brutality paired perfectly with the complex narrative and character arcs that Johnston built up, and the resulting book was so much fun.

I need to highlight The Last Shield’s awesome characters which were a fantastic part of the book. I have mentioned the main protagonist, Briar, a few times already, and frankly she was the heart of The Last Shield due to her intense personality and well-written storyline. Johnston very cleverly set up Briar’s story at the start of the novel, first showing the warrior in her prime, before hobbling her and forcing her to consider retirement before the main plot kicked off. As such, the version of Briar we see for much of the novel is a desperate, tired and absolutely pissed-off figure, especially when she realises the many betrayals that led up to both this current assault and her previous injury. I loved how well Johnston set up this character’s revenge arc, and it was so much fun to see Briar finally get her hands on all the people responsible for her misery. The author really dives into Briar’s mindset and emotions as the book continues, and it proves very, very hard not to root for her, especially when she is driven to her absolute limit.

While most of the focus of The Last Shield is on Briar, there are several other great characters featured throughout the book who also enhance the story. The most prominent of these is probably the heir to the Sunweald, Ves, who has excellent parallel character growth to Briar. Initially portrayed as a young fop, Ves grows due to the sacrifices he witnesses in his name and the brash mentorship of Briar, and he ends up proving himself in his own way. Aside from that, I really need to highlight the excellent group of villains who Briar finds herself up against. Featuring a band of traitors, brigands, an assassin and a dark witch, the antagonists of The Last Shield play off the stoic Briar extremely well, especially as each of them enrage her in a different way. Johnston does a fantastic job showcasing the antagonist’s perspective throughout the course of the story, and their early scenes really work to ensure the reader dislikes them. I personally loved seeing their point of view once they realised that Briar was loose in the castle with them, and the outrageous sequences of fear, anger and regret that followed are incredibly fun. These characters proved to be a great boon to The Last Shield’s plot, and I deeply enjoyed the fantastic and powerful storylines that Johnston built around them.

Cameron Johnston continues to greatly impress with his fourth novel, The Last Shield. An exceptional, addictive and gloriously over-the-top dark fantasy novel that takes inspiration from some classic action films, The Last Shield was pure entertainment and excitement, that I could not turn away from. With great characters, an awesome setting, and so much damn action, there is something for every dark fantasy fan in The Last Shield, and I cannot recommend it enough. One of my favourite fantasy books of 2024.

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The Maleficent Seven by Cameron Johnston

On April 6, 2024 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Five-Star Books8 Comments

Publisher: Angry Robot (Trade Paperback – 10 August 2021)

Series: Standalone

Length: 416 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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One of the fastest rising authors of dark fantasy fiction, Cameron Johnston, returns with his most entertaining book yet, the outstanding and epic novel, The Maleficent Seven.

Cameron Johnston is a great author who I was lucky to come across a few years ago with his debut novel, The Traitor God. Bought on a whim because it sounded cool, The Traitor God ended up being one of my favourite fantasy books of the year thanks to its excellent revenge storyline. The Traitor God was such an epic read and I ended up grabbing the intriguing sequel the following year, God of Broken Things. God of Broken Things (one of my favourite books of 2019) proved to be an outstanding sequel, and it ensured that I would be keeping an eye out for more of Johnston’s work. This included his 2021 novel, The Maleficent Seven, which had an awesome plot behind it. I honestly have been meaning to read The Maleficent Seven for ages but could never fit it into my schedule. That was until last year, when I managed to power through the entire book in a single plane ride. The Maleficent Seven ended up being a pretty darn exceptional novel that I wish I read a hell of a lot sooner.

It is a dangerous time in the lands of Essoran, as the Lucent Empire, a nation of apparent holiness and light, continuously expands, sweeping away all opposition and either burning or converting the survivors to their faith. Despite their apparent benevolence, the Lucent Empire has a dark side dedicated to destroying all magic, heretics, and anything it deems evil through fire, blood and death. The final stage of their invasion is set, but to proceed they first need to cross through the mountain road, which exits at the small town of Tarnbrooke. All looks lost for the inhabitants of Tarnbrooke, who are likely to burn in the Lucent Empire’s light, until an unlikely figure appears to lead them.

Forty years ago, the dread demonologist Black Herron led a black horde of bloodthirsty soldiers, dark creatures and monsters on a deadly campaign that rocked all Essoran. Total conquest of the realm looked certain, until she suddenly disappeared the eve of the final battle. Without the will of their leader to hold them together, the army fell to infighting allowing their enemies to prevail. No one knew what happened to Black Herron, until she reappears in Tarnbrooke, having lived there in disguises for decades.

Determined to stop the Lucent Empire and their fanatical leader no matter what, Black Herron takes over the town and prepares it for siege. But even a being as powerful as Black Herron is unable to stop an entire divinely infused army by herself. Instead, Herron seeks to bring together the six deadly captains of her army, whose skills and ferocity helped her to nearly conquer the world. Together, this assortment of dangerous beings, including a vampire, a necromancer, an orc chieftain, a war god, a pirate queen and a deranged alchemist, might stand a chance against the coming storm. But first they need to learn to work together once more, especially as each of them have a very different reasons to fight with Black Herron again.

The Maleficent Seven is a powerful, captivating and fantastically over-the-top novel that showcases Cameron Johnston’s impressive writing skill and ability to bring together great characters with dark fantasy settings.

Now, as you can probably guess from the name, The Maleficent Seven is a dark fantasy take on classic films like The Magnificent Seven and its predecessor, Seven Samurai. Johnston sets the scenario perfectly, first introducing protagonist Black Herron and her previous evil horde, which disbands in the starting chapter. From there, we get a time skip and are introduced to the book’s antagonists in the form of the Lucent Empire, their divinely empowered inquisitors and their leader, the Falcon Prince. Their initial actions are enough to paint them as dangerous religious zealots who use their divine light and apparent holiness as a shield for their dark ambitions. Their quest leads them on the road to Tarnbrooke, where the elderly Black Herron waits for them, having decided to make a stand and bring together her six former captains.

The first half of the book is dedicated to recruiting the six captains, who have scattered across the world. All evil or deadly figures, none of them particularly wants to fight another war, but each are drawn back for different reasons, including family, pride, revenge and more. Johnston does a good job of breaking up the recruitment process throughout the early chapters, and each of the revealed captains turn out to be crazier than the last, enhancing your anticipation for how they are going to act in the coming battles. At the same time, you get to know the Lucent Empire, as they send agents against the captains, trying to eliminate the danger they pose. Johnston lays down some very solid groundwork in this first half of the book, and you quickly get drawn to each of the seven main characters for various reasons. There are a great range of character arcs spread out amongst these unlikely protagonists, and while a couple of them are purposely irredeemable, the rest prove to be surprisingly likeable and complex. Johnston also takes the time to build up the antagonist, showcasing just how sinister they truly are, while also providing some slightly predictable revelations about their leader.

The second half of the book is dedicated to the battle for Tarnbrooke, which after seeing how crazy the first half of The Maleficent Seven is, you know is going to be good. There is some good additional setup once the captains arrive in town, with the building of siegeworks, the training of the townsfolk, and other unusual preparations, all of which is reminiscent of the films the book is an homage to. Johnston also builds up some additional character interactions that I really enjoyed, as certain townsfolk become connected to different saviours and there is some good follow-up regarding the protagonist’s prior adventures. The resulting siege is everything you could hope for and more. I am a huge fan of sieges in fiction (check out my previous list on the subject) and The Maleficent Seven is a particularly good example of an epic siege, especially as Johnston goes very over-the-top when it comes to the different weapons and methods the defenders employ. Everything from vampiric conversion, exploding pigs and drugged townspeople are used to hold the line against the enemy in several brilliant and brutal fight sequences, while a major sea battle simultaneously occurs, featuring, amongst other combatants, a giant kraken. All the fighting is fierce, desperate, and pretty damn bleak, while the characters each go through their own intriguing and powerful journeys. I honestly was enthralled once the main fighting started, and Johnston really did not let up until the end.

The final sequence of the main fight turns into an impressive and extremely horrific brawl for survival as the protagonists fight against increasingly desperate odds. There are also several betrayals as certain telegraphed plots from the evil protagonists come to fruition, and everyone fights to survive and come out on top. You will be a bit unprepared for who lives and who dies during the final few chapters as Johnston loads up some fantastic twists and cool revelations that constantly leave you guessing. Even when you’re sure you know who is going to survive, Johnston swiftly changes everything around with a few hilariously ironic reveals, as well as some more tragic deaths. I liked how Johnston imbued the story with a certain level of hope towards the end, even if that was somewhat overshadowed by the carnage surrounding it. There were also some darker moments in the conclusion, as certain characters realise just how damned they truly are. Throw in a final great twist that really tied together a hidden motivation from the very start, and Johnston ends The Maleficent Seven on the perfect note for the reader.

Johnston did a remarkable job with this awesome book, and I loved how dark, powerful, and compelling The Maleficent Seven turned out to be. Thanks to the unique array of characters, insane fight sequences and entertaining twists, The Maleficent Seven will prove really appealing to a wide array of readers, especially as Johnston got the right balance of action, tragedy, and humour throughout the entire read. I especially loved how well the author flipped the established concept of heroes defending a town from villains on its head with the inclusion of seven fantasy supervillains leading the charge against a holy army. The clever reveal that the apparently good warriors are far more sinister than the literal monsters is so well handled, and it was impressive to see a classic idea so well refreshed. Throw in some excellent world building, an interesting collection of fantasy creatures and the sheer overwhelming chaos of a desperate siege, and there is something in The Maleficent Seven for all fantasy fans.

Something I really loved about The Maleficent Seven was the cool collection of characters who made up the key cast. All the titular seven are very well represented throughout the book, and it proves very hard not to fall in love with each crazy member of the team; thanks to the narrative split, you get some intriguing insights into their motivations, actions, and history.

Of these characters, my favourite was probably Tiarnach, the fading war god who has fallen on hard times. Thanks to the death of all his followers and his inability to fight against the Lucent Empire, Tiarnach starts the book off as a broken, drunken figure with barely any power left. Joining Black Herron’s cause to get revenge and some form of redemption, Tiarnach becomes the defenders’ nominal drill instructor, trying to whip the townsfolk into a fighting force. The connection Tiarnach forms with the townsfolk, his journey towards redemption, and the fact that he is one of the few characters without ulterior motivations, ensures that readers are drawn towards him. He easily has one of the best, most tragic character arcs in the entire book, and I really enjoyed how Johnston utilised him. The same can also be said for the legendary orc warrior, Amogg. Amogg leaves her responsibilities behind to sate her desire for battle and alleviate her restlessness. Thanks to her blunt and entertaining personality, Amogg was another character the reader connects to. However, Johnston ensured that she became a true favourite when she begins to turn the women of Tarnsdale into an effective fighting force against their will. Watching her empower and lead a band of fighting women into battle was very impressive, and her storyline was heartwarming and bleak in equal measures.

The other five characters each have their moment to shine. The vampire, Lorimer Felle, was a suave and brutal figure whose inability to die, connection to his one loyal servant, and desire for destruction left a major impression. Verena, the pirate queen, was also really good, although she kind of gets overshadowed by the other characters. Jerak the alchemist was the most unhinged, and I loved how he ended up becoming more of a danger to his friends than his enemies thanks to his gruesome experiments. Maeven, the necromancer, has one of the more complex story arcs in the book as she blurs the line between ambition, revenge and a desire for family. While she fights alongside the others, her own need for vengeance and power leads her down a dark path, especially with her connections to the Lucent Empire’s leader. Maeven’s entire story goes in some very dark directions, and I appreciated the dark note Johnston left it on. Finally, the leader of the group, Black Herron, has a very interesting storyline that runs the gambit from dark queen to unlikely hero. Johnston does a great job showcasing her rise and fall throughout the story, and the question of why she chose to abandon her conquest and her army is a fantastic part of the book. All these protagonists are outstanding in their own way, and I loved how Johnston was able to weave together some compelling, entertaining, and occasionally sad storylines around such wonderfully outrageous figures.

Look, with a story this awesome there was no way I wasn’t going to love The Maleficent Seven, and I think my lengthy review above proves this point extremely well. Cameron Johnston was on fire when he wrote his third full-length novel, and The Maleficent Seven proved to be a particularly intense, clever and impressive read. Bringing together entertaining characters with insane violence amid a classic story scenario, The Maleficent Seven proved near impossible to put down and I loved every second I spent reading it. A highly recommended read for all fans of dark fantasy, I cannot wait to see how Johnston’s next book (coming out later this year) turns out.

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The Malevolent Seven by Sebastien de Castell

On June 6, 2023 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy22 Comments

The Malevolent Seven Cover

Publisher: Jo Fletcher Books (Trade Paperback – 9 May 2023)

Series: Standalone/Book One

Length: 373 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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Rising fantasy star Sebastien de Castell returns with a bold and highly entertaining new fantasy novel, The Malevolent Seven, that takes several dangerous and dastardly characters on a magical journey of death, deceit and despair which is so much fun to behold.

Magic is power and only the strong can hope to wield it, especially if they can make a profit out of it. Cade Ombra is a powerful wonderist, a magic user who makes his living as a war mage, selling his services to highest bidder to fight in their wars and kill their enemies, even if his employers are monsters. Cade has long struggled with the ethics of his job, and when his latest employment ends badly, with Cade framed for murder resulting in a relentless band of holy enforcers hunting him, he knows he needs to find a way out.

Luckily, a lucrative new job is looking for wonderists, and the payment is something he’s always desired, an artefact capable of changing everything about his life. However, to get paid he needs to do one last very bad thing: kill seven heroic mages attempting to take down a corrupt noble and survive everything that wants to kill him along the way. Determined to win no matter the cost, Cade and his violent colleague Corrigan set off to claim the reward before any of their rivals can. But to succeed, they’ll need to recruit five more mages capable of taking down their powerful enemies and who have no moral qualms about killing heroes for money.

So begins a deadly recruitment mission as Cade and Corrigan seek out five mages just as crazy as they are. But even with a mentally unstable blood mage, a fallen angel, a moral demon knight, a charismatic rat mage and a mysterious jackal, can even this mismatched bad of rogues hope to survive against the seven most deadly magic users on this plane of existence? However, nothing about this job is as it seems, and Cade and the Malevolent Seven find themselves caught up in a deadly game between gods, demons and monsters, with the fate of the world lying in the balance.

Wow, now this was a very, very fun and addictive novel. Sebastien de Castell wasn’t an author I was too familiar with before this point, although I had heard good things about The Greatcoats series. However, I am now going to have to go out of my way to read more of his stuff, especially after reading the epic and entertaining The Malevolent Seven.

The Malevolent Seven was such a great read as de Castell pulls together a dark fantasy reimagining of heroic stories like Seven Samurai and The Magnificent Seven. The book starts of strong with a great introduction to the main character, Cade Ombra, the rules of magic in this realm, and the author’s very entertaining and outrageous sense of humour. Expertly and hilariously told from the first-person perspective of Cade, whose observations about the insane events going on around him adds so much value to the story, you soon get a great sense of what to expect from this book and de Castell does not disappoint. The story initially focuses on Cade and his friend Corrigan’s efforts in a brutal war for a mad ruler, but things go south when their employer is killed, Cade is betrayed by his fellow wonderists, and a band of ruthless religious warriors, the Glorian Justiciars, arrive determined to hunt down Cade for his use of demonic magic. Forced to take a new job with Corrigan to save his skin and quickly get out of dodge, the two take up the mysterious contract to kill seven heroic mages in exchange for a powerful artefact, and begin a recruitment drive for five additional mages.

I love a good recruitment montage in heist or action fiction, and this one is pretty damn fun as de Castell writes in a particularly eclectic and insane group of mages for the protagonists to recruit. Naturally nothing goes as plan, as the two are forced to take along a half-insane junior blood mage who Cade feels responsible for. Their subsequent recruitment attempts land them in all manner of trouble as they rescue a highly chivalrous rat mage, save a mysterious fallen angel from a pleasure ship, journey to hell to recruit a demon knight, and end up in the middle of a wasteland, chased by everyone. This recruitment period took up more of the plot than I thought it would, but it works really well to tell a great overall narrative. Each scene introduces the reader to more of the world and it allows a compelling dynamic to grow between the various protagonists, especially as they grow to understand each other crazy tendencies. De Castell also builds up several intriguing long-running storylines of manipulation and betrayal as it becomes clear that someone is influencing their mission and has set gods and demons against them. This middle section of the book is a lot of fun, and I loved how de Castell keeps up the same blend of humour, intriguing character development, and insane over-the-top moments, that really draws you in at the start of the novel.

Everything perfectly leads up to the final third of the book, when the protagonists arrive at their destination. Of course, as can be expected by the theme of this story so far, nothing is what they thought it would be, and instead they find themselves facing off against a mysterious foe with very different motivations to what they expected. I loved how de Castell turned the plot a little on its head at this point, as the characters find themselves in the unexpected position of being the good guys. This leads to some amazing scenes in the final third, loaded with magic, chaotic confrontations and more, all of which is a ton of fun to see. There is some great character growth as several storylines come full circle, as well as a ton of twists and turns. I loved some of the epic reveals that came across, and while I saw a few coming, de Castell managed to surprise me in places, which I really enjoyed. The final twists about why the characters were on the job and who really wins were pretty damn epic and it sets the story up nicely for a sequel, which I am definitely going to grab a copy of. I loved how de Castell really enhanced the drama in this final third of the book, especially as several character relationships or conflicts come to the boil in some explosive and captivating ways. This combines really well with the continued craziness of the story and the inherent humour of the plot, and you really get drawn into all the fantastic elements of this book. The Malevolent Seven ended up being an incredible read, and I managed to power through this entire story in a couple of days and had a ton of fun doing so.

I loved the dark and despairing world that served as the cool new setting for The Malevolent Seven and de Castell has a ton of fun showcasing this new fantasy landscape throughout the book. Loaded with petty tyrants, warring nobles, and wandering wonderists who dish out death to the highest bidder, this land is the perfect backdrop for the crazy and self-serving narrative, and I loved seeing de Castell’s great characters traverse it causing trouble. While there are some outstanding locations, including a magically blasted wasteland and several deadly battlegrounds, the highlight of this setting is the complex magical system that the author came up with. This magical system is primarily predicated on wonderists breaching dimensional barriers and utilising magic that they have an infinity for. This results in several unique rules and abilities that de Castell did an outstanding job of effectively introducing, and I loved how weird some of the abilities were, especially those that played into the novel’s humour. Some of the more interesting realms require the magical users to interact with the associated denizens, including this world’s equivalent of angels and demons, all of whom have a stake in the mortal realms. Several of the best scenes in the book require the protagonist to make dark and forbidden deals with his demonic contact, and the manipulation of the various mystical entities from both heaven and hell becomes a key part of the book. The author makes sure to utilise all these fantastic and lethal abilities to their full extent throughout The Malevolent Seven and the epic, ultra-destructive battles that emerged, as well as the clever combination of talents, resulted in some amazingly, electrifying sequences. It will be interesting to see what crazy abilities de Castell brings to the table for the sequel, but it’s going to be good.

The final thing I want to highlight about The Malevolent Seven are the excellent and compelling damaged characters featured throughout the plot. De Castell really went out of his way to make his main seven protagonists as random, broken and insane as possible, and this really works in the context of this brilliant story. The main protagonist is point-of-view character Cade Ombra, a wonderist with a secret past whose current magical ability comes from deals with a literal demon (nice guy actually). Because of this and many other mistakes in his life, Cade is pretty alone and damaged when the story starts, and he is constantly trying to balance his survival instincts and desire for power, with his conscience, something that keeps getting him in trouble. De Castell builds up Cade extremely well throughout The Malevolent Seven and I liked his constant growth as he tries to do the right thing, even though it usually makes life even harder for him. The author sets Cade up as a reluctant leader and hero, and it was intriguing to see the dynamics that form between him and the rest of the team fate brings together around him. The rest of the titular Malevolent Seven are all pretty entertaining and uniquely crazy in their own way, and the range of diverse and entertaining personalities makes for a great overall dynamic to the story. My favourite character in the group was the excessively violent Corrigan Blight, whose thunder magic matches his outrageous personality. Corrigan served as the straight speaking, highly reactive and trigger-happy organiser of the group, who plays off the more reserved Cade perfectly, especially as they form a unique and fragile friendship. Other highlights include the highly charismatic and surprisingly noble Aradeus, whose rat magic proves to be highly effective if a little weird, and the novice blood mage Galass, whose spunky personality is only matched by her deadly abilities that are slowly driving her insane. I loved this impressive and very entertaining cast and I cannot wait to see what happens to them next.

I think it is very clear that I loved The Malevolent Seven as Sebastien de Castell’s outrageous and inventive dark fantasy tale was a real joy to behold. The great blend of fantastic humour, twisty storytelling, brutal magic and over-the-top characters, works exceedingly well and I loved the witty and extremely fun story that emerged. The Malevolent Seven is a great read and if you are in the mood for a cool and highly compelling fantasy adventure than this is the book for you.

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Son of the Poison Rose by Jonathan Maberry

On May 18, 2023 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy, Five-Star Books24 Comments

Publisher: Macmillan Audio (Audiobook – 10 January 2023)

Series: Kagen the Damned – Book Two

Length: 25 hours and 55 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazon

One of my favourite authors, Jonathan Maberry, returns to his intriguing fantasy world in a big way with the second Kagen the Damned novel, Son of the Poison Rose.

Readers familiar with my blog will know I am a massive Jonathan Maberry fan, and the path to my current obsession with his work is well documented throughout The Unseen Library. I started off by reading his fantastic 2018 novel, Deep Silence, quite early in my blogging career, and this ended up getting me into the rest of his exceptional Joe Ledger series, including The Dragon Factory, The King of Plagues, Predator One and Dogs of War. I have also had a great time reading his sequel Rogue Team International series, which featured the epic books Rage (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2019) and Relentless (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2021), as well as the fun standalone novel Ink (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2020). Needless to say, I have deeply enjoyed his cool books, and this only increased when he made his impact into the fantasy fiction world last year with Kagen the Damned.

Kagen the Damned was an amazing and exceptional dark fantasy novel that took the reader on a wild ride. Set in a brutal fantasy world of Maberry’s own invention, Kagen the Damned followed the titular character of Kagen Vale, a highly regarded hero and palace guard of the Silver Empire who loses everything in a single night when the armies of the dread nation Hakkia invade with dark magic, led by the powerful and deadly Witch-king. Forced to watch his parents, his empress, and the royal children he was sworn to protect die terrible deaths, a haunted Kagen flees, only to be further destroyed when he beholds his gods turning their back on him, damming him for his failure. Now known as The Damned, Kagen travels the world in a daze before finally regaining his senses and launching an attack on the Witch-king at his coronation. However, this reveals secrets that shock Kagen further and spelling doom for the entire world. I had an epic time reading Kagen the Damned last year, and it ended up being one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2022. Between this and the cool Kagen the Damned novella I Say Your Name in the Dark Nights, I have been eagerly awaiting a second novel and I was very excited when I heard that Son of the Poison Rose was coming out. Son of the Poison Rose was one of my most anticipated books of 2023 and I finally managed to read it a short while ago and it was everything I hoped it would be and more.

“There is blood on the ground between us!”

Following his failed assassination attempt on the Witch-king of Hakkia, Kagen Vale, better known as Kagen the Damned, is once again the run with his companions, Tuke Brakson and Filia alden-Bok, attempting to find safety and come up with a new strategy of survival and revenge. While their plan to kill the Witch-king failed, their attack stopped the return of the Hakkian God, Hastur, while also opening up the possibility of war, as the Witch-king’s fellow monarchs see the Hakkians as vulnerable. However, Kagen also uncovered the terrible secret that the Witch-king is his older brother Herepath, who has turned his back on everything he once believed in to unleash great evil upon the world.

Wandering the wilderness, Kagen, Tuke and Filia attempt to come up with a new way to strike back against the Hakkian forces. Their journey eventually leads them to the north of the continent, where they attempt to recruit an army of nationless-rogues, mercenaries and fighters to their cause. But force of arms alone will not be enough to stop the Witch-king, instead Kagen and his allies will need magic. But with magic long banned within the Silver Empire, only the Hakkians have any real knowledge of the mystic arts. To that end, Kagen turns to former nun turned spymistress, Mother Frey, who sends Kagen on a deadly mission to a long lost city in a dangerous jungle in the hopes of recovering ancient books of dark magic.

However, the Witch-king is far from idle while Kagen is working against him. With his army spread thin and the nations of the former Silver Empire all gearing up for war, the future looks grim for the usurper and his advisors. But with new dark allies arriving every day, called to his side by magic, the Witch-king plans to unleash a magical plague, one that will turn his enemies into a ravenous, unthinking horde. With such power at the Witch-king’s command, will Kagen’s quest reveal something powerful enough to defeat him? And even if he does, will Kagen be able to fight his own brother?

Wow, wow, wow, what an epic and exceptional book! Maberry can really do no wrong when it comes to his writing and this impressive sequel really hammers home what a talented author he is. Masterfully expanding on the narrative set up in the first book, Son of the Poison Rose contains Maberry’s trademark blend of intensity, awesome action, complex characters, and dark world building that I love so much. I absolutely powered through this lengthy novel, and it earns Maberry another easy five-star rating from me as I loved every single second I spent with it.

Maberry continues his sprawling and dark narrative in Son of the Poison Rose, as this book takes the reader in some great and captivating new directions. Taking place in the explosive aftermath of Kagen the Damned, Son of the Poison Rose starts off in a big and action-packed way as Kagen and his allies find themselves being hunted by everything the Witch-king can throw at them. Maberry quickly establishes his usual practice of featuring a huge number of different perspectives to showcase not only the adventures of the protagonists, but also the actions and schemes of the antagonists and the impacts that their machinations have throughout the world. The main story of Kagen is pretty epic as it sees the protagonist and his friends struggling through new lands in the search of allies and magic. While this results in some great scenes for Kagen in the first two thirds of the book, including a great haunted house sequence, his story here feels a little meandering at times without too much progress being made. However, this is more than made up from the various alternate perspectives and worldbuilding that occurs in the same period. It is so damn fascinating and entertaining to see the various dark and often horrifying plots of the antagonists come into effect as they plot for war. These storylines blend spy thriller and dark fantasy elements together really well and you are drawn into these storylines, especially as Maberry takes the opportunity to strengthen the followers of the antagonists in some big ways. The simultaneous build-up of other complex supporting characters, as well as the many examinations of various corners of Maberry’s new fantasy world adds to the impressive tapestry of the first two thirds of the story, and I was pretty damn hooked during this part of the book.

Maberry ramps up the intensity in the final third of the book as the various intriguing storylines he set up in the start of the novel really come to fruition. This is headlined by Kagen and his allies travelling into a dangerous jungle nation to find a legendary ancient city where magical texts are hidden. While I was initially concerned this part of Kagen’s story was going to be rushed, it ended up being very well written and awesome, as they encounter all manner of evils out in the jungle. This final third of the book was again firmly enhanced by the continued dive back to the antagonists, where you see their evil plot to fill the jungle with zombies and other deadly creatures to kill Kagen and his comrades. This results in an epic series of battles which keep you on the edge of your seat, as you know Maberry will not hesitate to kill off his characters. The author chucks in several massive revelations around this part of the book, including finally showing the motivation behind the Witch-king’s actions, and the entire narrative ends on a big note while also expertly setting the stage for even more chaos in the following novel. This ended up being a particularly epic story and I was firmly hooked the entire way through.

Those who are familiar with Mabbery’s novels will know that the author has a very distinctive style which has worked wonders in his many thriller novels. Maberry successfully transported this style across to the fantasy genre last year with Kagen the Damned, and I felt it really enhanced his already impressive story. Naturally he continues it in Son of the Poison Rose and it is still really effective at conveying the vast scope of his tale. The main basis for his style is the utilisation of a vast number of shorter perspective chapters which showcase events from multiple characters across the narrative. This results in a vast and complex story that not only allows the reader to see the adventures of the protagonist but also highlight the other players throughout the realm, including the antagonist, his court, the members of the resistance, and even several kings and rulers from unaligned nations who are making plans for war. Maberry further expands out the plot by including a series of intriguing, often standalone interludes, which showcase smaller, self-contained stories within the wider universe. These interludes are usually pretty cool, both by themselves and as extensions of the larger story, and I love how inventive and dark Maberry can be at times. This mass of perspectives really helps to create an extensive and complex plot that has so many different aspects to it. Seeing the protagonist and antagonist constantly reacting to the actions of each other, as well as other figures in the book, really ups the stakes and intensifies the plot, and I loved how Maberry gave this fantasy novel a strong thriller feel, especially with the continues focuses on politics, espionage and revenge.

Now, one thing about Maberry’s writing style that is not going to appeal to everyone is just how dark and disturbing the author makes the story. Maberry is a particularly over-the-top writer at times, as he really does not hold back on the gore, violence and depravity, with the characters witnessing or causing all manner of mayhem or gruesome acts. While this excessive violence and brutality fits the dark fantasy realm that Maberry has created, particularly as it highlights just how evil the antagonist and his legions can be, it is not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. The torture, abuse and sadism of many scenes can be a bit much at times, and anyone that dislikes that sort of inclusion is probably best served to avoid this series. However, for those that remain, I will point out that Maberry’s attention to bloody detail does ensure that the action sequences are extremely awesome. The author has a gift for bringing the brutality and intensity of the battlefield to life in some truly glorious scenes, and you will be enthralled by every swing of the dagger or sword that he writes. These action scenes are a beautiful, if bloody, highlight of this book, and the overall excessiveness of some of the scenes, especially when focusing on an over-the-top villain really plays into the wider narrative and setting.

I am still in love with the cool new dark fantasy world that Maberry created in Kagen the Damned, especially as the author took his time to populate with evil creatures, Lovecraftian gods and so much damn despair. His first book served as a brilliant introduction to the various intriguing nations, and I deeply appreciated the intricate depictions of the Hakkian invasion, as well as the subtle and slow reintroduction of magic into this world. Maberry continues to build up this world in several ways throughout Son of the Poison Rose, which results in some amazing story elements. The focus on several of the other realms not seen in the first book is pretty interesting, as is the examination of the complex politics of the land as these now independent nations contemplate war with Hakkia after the concluding events of Kagen the Damned. This builds up several great storylines as these rebelling nations and the Witch-king’s court plot different strategies to win any future wars. Maberry also has a lot of fun exploring several new lands that were only hinted at in the previous books, and the protagonists soon end up in several unique and deadly landscapes, including cursed snowscapes with mysterious creatures, lethal jungles, and massive ruined cities dedicated to overthrown gods. All of these locations are expertly introduced and described by Maberry, who uses them to his full advantage to increase tension and ensure that all the inevitable battles have a compelling new edge to them.

Another excellent thing that Maberry continues to do in Son of the Poison Rose is show how magic is slowly returning to the land due to the machinations of the Witch-king. Thanks to several great chapters and interludes, you get to see the full horror as old magical creatures re-emerge, including the always reliable zombie, which plays very heavily into the plot. Maberry is no stranger when it comes to zombies, having featured them in several books before (Patient Zero and Code Zero for example) and he uses to them to great effect here, both as political tools for the antagonist, and as rabid obstacles for the protagonists. Other awesome features include the unstoppable, demonically powered, Razor Knight, which has a great showing at the end of the book, and it will be interesting to see how that, as well as some of the other magic unleashed in Son of the Poison Rose, come into effect in the rest of the series. I also really appreciated how Maberry kept including a few references to his other series throughout Son of the Poison Rose, which is always a lot of fun for his established fans. The hints of connection between this world and the settings of other books from Maberry is noticeable and fun without being too mysterious for new readers. I especially loved the inclusion of a fantastic new villainous character who readers of the Joe Ledger books will be well familiar with under a different name, which I thought was an awesome touch for those who have read his other books. I deeply enjoyed the impressive world building that Maberry did in Son of the Poison Rose, and I look forward to seeing how else he expands it in the rest of the series.

As always, one of the absolute best parts of Son of the Poison Rose were the exceptional, complex, and well-written characters that Maberry has expertly crafted together. This includes a great combination of established figures from the first book, as well as a good collection of new characters who add some outstanding original spice to his second book. Thanks to huge number of perspective chapters, the Kagen the Damned series features a pretty massive cast of damaged or sinister figures that Maberry uses to full effect to tell an elaborate overarching narrative.

Unsurprisingly, most of the focus of the book falls on series titular character, Kagen Vale, better known as Kagen the Damned. Kagen had an outstanding introduction in the first book, where you see him lose everything, including his gods, in a single night, which drives him to great despair. While he has managed to mostly recover from this thanks to his friends, he is still haunted by that dark night, especially after learning the truth about who the Witch-king is, as well as the identity of his heirs. Driven by even further guilt, confusion, and anger towards his brother and his treachery, Kagen continues his impressive and emotionally rich journey in Son of the Poison Rose, and I had an outstanding time along the ride with him. Maberry writes Kagen in an outstanding way throughout this book, and you really feel his pain and continued anger as he tries to deal with everything that has happened to him. While he does bear some noticeable similarities to Maberry’s other major protagonist, Joe Ledger, especially when it comes to lethal prowess and severe psychological damage, I think that the author does enough to set Kagen apart, especially as his painful motivating event is a lot more raw and personal, resulting in some emotionally charged sequences.

Aside from Kagen, Maberry sets up a great supporting cast who add a lot to the main storyline while also introducing their own intriguing character moments. It was great to see the return of Kagen’s main associates, Tuke and Filia, who continue to follow him into hell. These three characters have great chemistry together and they form an impressive emotional centre to the story, especially as Tuke and Filia serve as Kagen’s conscience and voice of reason. I also liked the return of Mother Frey, the clever spy mistress who is attempting to control the resistance against the Hakkians. Her insights into the world and its political players often expands the intrigue of the story and she serves as a compelling figure in the plot. I did find it interesting that one of the major figures from the first book, Ryssa, barely appeared in this novel after her fantastic storyline in Kagen the Damned. However, her few appearances seem to hint at some sinister things in the future, and I look forward to seeing what Maberry organises with that. Some of the more complicated and disturbing scenes of Son of the Poison Rose revolve around the captured Alleyn and Desalyn/Gavran and Foscor, the royal twins who were captured during the invasion, psychologically broken down, and forcibly given new identities. These two mentally mutilated children spend the entire book trying to retain and regain their memories in some pretty dark scenes and thanks to their affliction, they run the gauntlet from sweet and damaged, to homicidal maniacs. I felt that Maberry really showcased the twins’ mental state perfectly, and their dark storyline was an excellent addition to the plot.

However, to my mind, some of the best characters in Son of the Poison Rose are the villains, who add an entertaining and impressively sinister edge to the book, while also expanding out the political intrigue aspects of the plot. These complex antagonists are led by the evil and destructive Witch-king, who was revealed to be Kagen’s long lost brother Herepath. Empowered by dark magic, vengeance, and a need to keep his true identity hidden, the Witch-king continues his mission to kill Kagen and ensure that and opposition to this power is utterly destroyed. The Witch-king proves to be a particularly malevolent figure throughout Son of the Poison Rose, even after his motivations are revealed to the reader, and he is the perfect foil to Kagen and his companions.

The Witch-king is backed up by a court of loyal, terrified advisors, each of whom are dedicated to the Witch-king’s plans, while also trying to stay alive and gather their own power. This includes the fantastic trio of Lord Nespar, Lady Kestral and Jakob Ravensmere, each of whom have their own reasons for serving the Witch-king, and who each suffer for it in different ways, especially Kestral. Nespar and Ravensmere deeply enhance the political thriller focus of Son of the Poison Rose, as their analysis, plotting and attempts to keep the Hakkians strong on behalf of their master results in some fantastic and powerful moments. I also must call out the mysterious new evils that join the Witch-king’s side during Son of the Poison Rose, especially as many bring their own form of magic and despair with them. The highlight of these new characters is the fantastic and devilish Prince of Games, a mysterious figure who comes to the Witch-king’s side to give advice, counsel and chaos. The Prince of Games really stood out to me, not just because of his portrayal in Son of the Poison Rose but because of the great, universe-spanning implications his appearance has, and I cannot wait to see what havoc he creates throughout this series. All of the antagonists are pretty great, and they all bring their own horror and darkness to the story, especially as they all do some pretty terrible and gruesome things to stay in power. Honestly, every character in Son of the Poison Rose is awesome and memorable in their own way, and Maberry once again shows himself to be the master at effectively bringing together a truly complex cast of damaged and misfit figures.

In my opinion, the only way to properly enjoy a Jonathan Maberry novel is to listen to its audiobook, especially if that audiobook is narrated by the legendary Ray Porter. This has been the case for pretty much every Maberry novel I have had the pleasure of reading, including Son of the Poison Rose, and all these epic audiobooks have been something special. Not only do Maberry’s elaborate storylines and settings get the gravitas and exposure that they deserve in this format, but Porter’s narration really amps up the dark nature of the narrative and provides perfect depictions of the characters. Porter, who is easily one of my favourite audiobook narrators, does another exceptional job in Son of the Poison Rose and I absolutely powered through this audiobook thanks to it. His voice really lends itself to every dark and deadly scenario that Maberry envisions in this novel, and the way that he can convey fear, hatred and pure evil with his voice is just amazing. His real talent lies in his ability to bring all Maberry’s complex characters to life in a particularly fitting way. I especially love how he portrays the main protagonist, Kagen Vale, and he really captures every bit of pain, despair and resolve that this battered character contains. Throw in a series of particularly disturbing voices for all the inhuman and horrifying creatures that the characters encounter, and this is a perfect narration that adds so much to my enjoyment of an already epic book. With a run time of nearly 26 hours, Son of the Poison Rose is a particularly long audiobook (it would come in at number 14 on my latest Longest Audiobook I Have Ever Listened To list), but it is well worth the time investment especially once you get caught up in the twisted story. I personally powered through it extremely quickly, as the combination of the amazing writing and impressive narration ensured I was listening to it continuously and loving every damn second of it. As such, I must once again strongly recommend the audiobook format to anyone wanting to check out Son of the Poison Rose, and you will not be disappointed if you do as this is easily one of the best audiobooks of 2023.

I could go on for ages about Son of the Poison Rose, as Jonathan Maberry has done another exceptional job with this second Kagen the Damned novel. Featuring an electric and addictive dark fantasy narrative, loaded with carnage, battles, great characters and an elaborate world on the brink of war, Son of the Poison Rose was a joy from start to finish, especially in its audiobook format. This is easily one of the best fantasy books I have read all year and I cannot wait to see how Maberry continues this epic story in the future. A masterful second book in one of the best ongoing dark fantasy series!

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Waiting on Wednesday – Son of the Poison Rose by Jonathan Maberry

On August 17, 2022March 5, 2023 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, Waiting on Wednesday9 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 look at the dark fantasy book I most excited for in the early days of 2023 with the second Kagen the Damned novel from Jonathan Maberry, Son of the Poison Rose.

Son of the Poison Rose Cover

Amazon Book Depository

Earlier this year I was very excited to read and review the first fantasy book from one of my favourite authors, Jonathan Maberry. Maberry is a very talented and impressive author who most people would recognise from his excellent science fiction, thriller, and horror novels. I have had a brilliant time over the last few years getting through some of Maberry’s exciting, clever, and often exceedingly brutal novels, with pretty much all of them getting five-star ratings from me. This includes the novels in his incredible Joe Ledger series, such as Patient Zero, The Dragon Factory, Code Zero, Dogs of War and Deep Silence, the fantastic Rogue Team International sequel series, which has so far featured Rage (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2019) and Relentless (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2021), as well as some standalone reads like Ink (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2020). However, even after enjoying all that I was unprepared for the awesomeness that was Kagen the Damned.

Kagen the Damned was Maberry’s first full foray in the fantasy genre, which turned out to be an exceptional and high octane read. Set in an elaborate new fantasy realm, the book follows former hero Kagen Vale, who loses everything in a single night when the forces of the Witch-king of Hakkia invade his empire, kill the Empress and butcher the children he was sworn to protect. Forsaken by his gods and broken inside, Kagen wanders the countryside in a haze, now calling himself Kagen the Damned, before eventually regaining his senses and launching an assault on the Witch-king and the dark powers he commands. However, while the final battle is partially successful, it reveals several dark secrets that push Kagen even further as he tries to understand the full implications.

I had a remarkable time with Kagen the Damned and it is easily one of the better books I have had the pleasure to read in 2022. The exceptional blend of powerful narrative, intense action, complex characters, and outstanding world-building was extremely impressive, and I loved every second I spent listening to it. As such, I am now a pretty major fan of the Kagen the Damned series, and I was very excited to discover that I really don’t have that much longer to wait till I get my next fix of it.

The second entry in the Kagen the Damned series will by Son of the Poison Rose, which is currently set for release in January 2023. Son of the Poison Rose will continue many of the storylines from the first novel and set the protagonists on a dangerous adventure to try and understand the enemy they are facing.

Plot Synopsis:

Son of the Poison Rose marks the second installment of New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Maberry’s epic, swashbuckling Kagen the Damned series.

The Silver Empire is in ruins. War is in the wind. Kagen and his allies are on the run from the Witch-king. Wild magic is running rampant everywhere. Spies and secret cabals plot from the shadows of golden thrones.

Kagen Vale is the most wanted man in the world, with a death sentence on his head and a reward for him—dead or alive—that would tempt a saint.

The Witch-king has new allies who bring a terrible weapon—a cursed disease that drives people into a murderous rage. If the disease is allowed to spread, the whole of the West will tear itself apart.

In order to build an army of resistance fighters and unearth magical weapons of his own, Kagen and his friends have to survive attacks and storms at sea, brave the haunted wastelands of the snowy north, fight their way across the deadly Cathedral Mountains, and rediscover a lost city filled with cannibal warriors, old ghosts, and monsters from other worlds. Along with his reckless adventurer brothers, Kagen races against time to save more than the old empire… if he fails the world will be drenched in a tsunami of bloodshed and horror.

Son of the Poison Rose weaves politics and espionage, sorcery and swordplay, treachery and heroism as the damned outcast Kagen fights against the forces of ultimate darkness.

Well damn, now this sounds like it is going to be incredibly awesome. I already knew that I was going to really love Son of the Poison Rose, but some of the details revealed above have made me even more excited, which I didn’t think was possible. The mentions about a rage disease are pretty interesting, especially as that is something that Maberry has utilised in several of his previous novels, and its frankly terrifying to see every single time. In addition, you have politics, espionage, battles on the sea, cannibals and so much more, which I am extremely keen in seeing unfold. The idea of sea battles is particularly intriguing to me, and I am going to love seeing how a Maberry-written sea-battle turns out.

I am also very excited to see what sort of character development or emotional damage occurs amongst the various protagonists in this second book. Maberry unleashed some deep personal bombs at the end of Kagen the Damned, and these are going to really hit Kagen hard, especially the reveal about who the Witch-king is and the two prisoners he is holding. Both revelations are going to rattle the already unstable Kagen, and I know that Maberry is going to spend a lot of time breaking Kagen down again. I am also quite interested in seeing some scenes from the Witch-kings perspective, and I am extremely curious to see what events led him to take up this dark mantle and stage an attack on the Silver Empire.

So, I doubt anyone is too surprised that I am really, really excited for Son of the Poison Rose by Jonathan Maberry. This book was already one of my most anticipated reads for 2023 even before I started reading Kagen the Damned, just because I love Maberry’s writing that much. However, the extra plot details revealed about have raised my anticipation levels even higher, and this will probably be one of the first things I read next year. I have no doubt in my mind whatsoever that Son of the Poison Rose will be one of the best books of 2023 and I cannot wait to see how the epic Kagen the Damned series continues.

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Throwback Thursday – Warhammer: Van Horstmann by Ben Counter

On July 22, 2022February 27, 2023 By The Unseen LibraryIn Extended Universe, Fantasy, Throwback Thursday, Tie-in Novel, Warhammer6 Comments

Van Horstmann Cover

Publisher: Black Library (Paperback – 1 February 2013)

Series: Warhammer Fantasy

Length: 415 pages

My Rating: 4.75 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 my latest Throwback Thursday I review another awesome Warhammer Fantasy novel, the compelling and unique Van Horstmann by Ben Counter.

Another week, another Warhammer tie-in novel that I must review. I have been really diving into this franchise over the last year; to be fair, there are some incredible books there, including the two 2022 Warhammer 40,000 releases that got a full five-star rating from me, Ghazghkull Thraka: Prophet of the Waaagh! by Nate Crowley and Assassinorum: Kingmaker by Robert Rath. Some of the best of these books are tie-ins to the now destroyed Warhammer Fantasy universe, including the novel from last week’s Throwback Thursday, Runefang by C. L. Werner. Well, my current obsession with all things Warhammer continued again as I recently read the awesome Van Horstmann by Ben Counter. Counter is a well-established author of Warhammer fiction, having made a ton of impressive contributions to the franchise, including his Grey Knights and Soul Drinkers series, as well as his entries in the massive Horus Heresy series. I was really drawn to Van Horstmann when I picked it up, not only because it has a great cover (love a cover with a dragon on it), but because of its intriguing plot, which sounded extremely awesome.

In the human realm known as the Empire, magic has been feared and mistrusted through most of its history, with practitioners hunted down and burned at the stake. However, following the Great War against Chaos, the elven mage Teclis was allowed to train various talented humans in the use of magic, establishing the eight Colleges of Magic that train scholars and battle mages to help the armies of the Empire. Out of all the colleges that were formed, the most revered are the College of Light, whose powerful light magic can be used to push back the darkness of Chaos.

Years after its formation, a young wizard manages to find the College of Light, hidden behind a magical barrier in the Imperial capital, Altdorf. This wandering wizard, Egrimm van Horstmann, is a talented young mage whose desire for knowledge and skill at manipulating the Wind of Hysh immediately impress his new teachers, and many believe that he will rise high in the order. However, van Horstmann has a dark secret that burns deep within him, and knowledge, power and ambition aren’t the only reasons for his joining the Light Order.

As van Horstmann rises in the ranks of his order, it soon becomes apparent that he has a diabolical plan. Working with dangerous forces, including daemons, cursed items and even the Chaos god Tzeentch, van Horstmann begins to manipulate his order, the other colleges, and even the emperor to get what he wants. But the closer he gets to achieving the goal, the more enemies he makes, and soon factions within the Light Order and the greater Empire begin to move against him. Can van Horstmann succeed in his mission before his dark purpose is discovered, or will his dastardly designs unleash the great and uncontrollable power hidden at the very heart of the College of Light?

This was an impressive and deeply captivating Warhammer Fantasy novel, and I absolutely loved the elaborate and clever narrative that Counter came up with. Focusing on an intriguing villainous figure and crafting an addictive story around him that also explores key aspects of the franchise’s lore, Van Horstmann was an outstanding novel, and it was probably the best Warhammer fantasy novel I have read so far.

Counter has come up with an excellent and impressive narrative for Van Horstmann, which, as the name suggests, is completely focused on the character of Egrimm van Horstmann. For those who don’t know, van Horstmann was a minor special character for the Chaos army in some of the earlier editions of the games, but he didn’t have that much background or lore surrounding him. I personally knew him due to his name being associated with one of my favourite magical items available to Empire armies in the later editions, Van Horstmann’s Speculum, which is a very fun surprise for an unwary foe (I have fond memories of using Van Horstmann’s Speculum in a game to switch stats between my Master Engineer and my brother’s Manfred von Carstein in a duel. The look on his face as his ultimate general was suddenly weaker than my minor hero was just hilarious). However, Counter manages to take the short background summary of the character and uses it as the basis for this novel, expanding on the tale of van Horstmann and showing how and why he infiltrated the Light Order and ended up betraying them, which results in an epic story.

Van Horstmann has a bit of a slow start to it, as Counter takes the time to set up key parts of the story, including an intriguing prelude that examines the first wizards of the Empire and their darkest secret. From there, the story introduces the main character, van Horstmann, and shows his entry into the Light Order and his start as a student. The story gets quite interesting after this, especially as you see van Horstmann involved in a demonic exorcism, which quickly highlights just how ruthless and cunning he can be. The story picks up pace from there as you begin to witness van Horstmann’s inevitable rise to power as the full scope of his desire and despicable nature become fully apparent. Most of the middle of the book showcases the characters careful and evil manipulations, as he manages to fool everyone and become more and more powerful through deals with daemons and the Chaos gods. There are some brilliant scenes here as you witness the full scope of his plans, from a great battle scene against the skaven, to organising several duels between the various magical factions, all in the name of gaining power. Counter really does a good job of showcasing this viewpoint through multiple perspectives, and while much of the focus is on the gloating van Horstmann, you also see how his actions impact several supporting characters, many of whom start to get suspicious. The entire narrative has a great dark fantasy edge to it, that occasionally borders on horror (especially when the character interacts with some of the daemons and their dark gods), and I found myself really getting drawn into this story once everything had been set up.

This leads up to the epic conclusion that sees van Horstmann’s master plan enter its final phase while his enemies begin to realise his evil nature. This ended up being an extremely impressive conclusion, and it really becomes apparent just how much stuff Counter had set up in the first two-thirds of the book. Everything comes together here, as compelling story elements such as van Horstmann’s long-term plans, his troubled past, all his terrible actions while part of the order, the revelations about the foundation of the Light Order, several great secondary character arcs, and the attempted investigation by van Horstmann’s enemies, all pay off. I really appreciated the brilliant and dark way that these storylines worked out, and there are some great revelations, especially around van Horstmann’s motivations and the full scope of his careful actions. I loved the deep and very personal reasons behind the events, especially as van Horstmann has some extremely fantastic revenge planned, which was pretty epic to behold. The entire novel ends on a brilliant note that sets up the character for his future appearances as a special character in the tabletop game, while also stabbing home that van Horstmann isn’t the absolute master manipulator that he thought it was. This clever conclusion was the perfect ending to this gripping plot about a conniving and dangerously intelligent villain, and it was so much fun to see how everything ended. These final pages and the outstanding conclusion they contained, definitely increased the overall awesomeness of the entire narrative, and seeing just how well every great twist and turn was set up is incredibly awesome.

This ended up being an excellent addition to the overall Warhammer Fantasy canon, and Counter did a wonderful job of working this elaborate and impressive story into the wider universe. As I mentioned above, Van Horstmann adapted basic character notes from an older game book, and I felt that Counter expanded on all these details extremely well, working them into the wider history of the Empire. There are some great explorations of several key factions throughout this novel, particularly the Empire and some of the forces of Chaos, and the reader really gets an impressive view of the iconic setting of Altdorf, where much of the narrative takes place. However, the most detailed and fascinating part of Counter’s dive into the Warhammer Fantasy world revolves around the exploration of the Colleges of Magic in the Empire. Without a doubt, Van Horstmann contains some of the best explanations of how human wizards perceive magic that you are every likely to see in a Warhammer novel and Counter spends a ton of time examining this. While some of the explorations surrounding magic do get a bit overly metaphysical for their own good, they are always pretty compelling to see, and I loved how there is a fun focus on the various different orders of magic, especially Light and Gold magic, as there are some awesome fights between these groups. However, it is the Light Order that gets the most attention in this novel, as the main character is nominally a member of this group. There is so much detail put into showcasing the Light Order’s elaborate, hidden headquarters, as well as how their particular brand of magic works, and you come away with a pretty intense understanding of this, which I deeply enjoyed.

Now, due to the sheer level of intriguing detail and Warhammer Fantasy lore contained within this novel, Van Horstmann is a book best enjoyed by those already a fan of the franchise. Counter dives into some fantastic and occasionally obscure parts of the lore, and established Warhammer fans will really appreciate the clever touches and revelations featured within. That being said, Counter also spends time ensuring that new readers will be able to follow the narrative rather easily, and a lot of the book’s exposition is spent establishing the history, magical elements, and some of the key factions for new readers. As such, pretty much anyone who loves a good dark fantasy story can easily enjoy Van Horstmann as a novel, and I am sure that most people will have an excellent time with its very clever and intense narrative. However, Warhammer fans are going to get the most out of it, and this probably isn’t the best first book for those readers interested in exploring the Warhammer Fantasy universe (the Gotrek and Felix novels, such as Trollslayer, would be my recommendation). Nevertheless, this is an exceptional Warhammer Fantasy read that will appeal to a wide cadre of readers.

There is some great character work featured in Van Horstmann, which naturally focuses primarily on the titular character. Counter really gets into the mind of van Horstmann in this book, and while most of the time you only see the supremely confident wizard who delights in manipulating men, wizards and daemons, there is a lot more under the surface. This includes a tragic backstory that serves as the motivation that drives him to do all the terrible things he wants to do here. While it would be rather easy to hate this character, especially with his inherent arrogance, I found myself getting drawn into his multiple plots and machinations, and you end up rooting for him just to see how all his plans unfold. Despite that, it is also quite fun to see misfortune strike him, especially the fun twist at the very end of the book where his overconfidence comes back to bite him in a big way. I had an outstanding time following van Horstmann in this fantastic novel and he proved to be a very fun central figure in this book.

Due to the massive focus on van Horstmann, Counter doesn’t spend a lot of time building up a lot of the side characters. Despite that, there are a few interesting supporting characters and storylines that add a fair bit to the narrative and which have some compelling connections to the main plot. Various members of the Light Order are featured throughout, and I liked the way that Counter portrayed them as mostly being quite full of themselves and unable to consider treachery from within their order. Watching them get taken down a massive peg by van Horstmann is a little satisfying at times, especially when their fates are well deserved, although there are a few tragedies thrown in at the same time. Other great characters include the manipulative Skull of Katam, a sentient magical skull who guides van Horstmann for its own reasons, and who served as an untrustworthy accomplice for a good part of the book. Finally, there is also the interesting character of Witch Hunter Argenos, a rabid religious zealot who hunts agents of dark magic and the Chaos gods. Argenos serves as a good counterpoint to many of the more magical characters, and his deep drive and desire for religious justice, helps to turn him into an excellent threat to van Horstmann. These side characters, and more, have some interesting moments in the book, and I liked their excellent contributions that combined with Van Horstmann’s main tale in some fantastic ways.

Containing an addictive, powerful and brilliant story, Van Horstmann by Ben Counter is an incredible and awesome Warhammer Fantasy novel that follows a fantastic villain as he dives deep into the world of magic. I loved the elaborate and captivating tale of revenge and dark power that Counter came up with here, and readers will swiftly get drawn into this amazing novel. An excellent in the Warhammer Fantasy canon, Van Horstmann is an exceptional read that comes very highly recommended.

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The Hunger of the Gods by John Gwynne

On May 14, 2022August 14, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Fantasy, Five-Star Books18 Comments

Publisher: Orbit (Audiobook – 14 April 2022)

Series: The Bloodsworn Saga – Book Two

Length: 22 hours and 57 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Extremely talented dark fantasy John Gwynne returns with one of my most anticipated fantasy novels of 2022, The Hunger of the Gods, the epic second entry in The Bloodsworn Saga.

Last year, the fantasy world was aflame with discussion about a certain novel from acclaimed author John Gwynne, best known for his The Faithful and the Fallen series and its sequel Of Blood and Bone trilogy. While I wasn’t initially intending to check this book out, the sheer amount of positive feedback and reviews convinced me that I was clearly missing out, so I grabbed a copy and ended up being deeply impressed by the elaborate fantasy saga it contained. That novel was The Shadow of the Gods, a Norse inspired dark fantasy tale that saw three intriguing protagonists explore a deadly new fantasy world wrecked by the last battle of the dead gods, and filled with monsters, warbands and powered humans tainted by the divine ancestors. I had an exceptional time with this great book, which really met all my expectations and ended up being one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2021 (it also topped my favourite new-to-me authors list and best covers of 2021 list, it was just that damn awesome). I deeply enjoyed the fantastic and elaborate tale this novel contained, and I could not wait to see how it would be continued. As such, when I received a copy of the sequel, The Hunger of the Gods, which featured another awesome fantasy cover and plot synopsis, I immediately started reading it and was once again thrust into world of gods and heroes.

The dread dragon god, Lik-Rifa the soul-stealer, has been released from her ancient tomb and now all of Vigrid lies in peril. Determined to unleash a new era of blood, death and conquest upon the lands, Lik-Rifa immediately begins to gather around her horde of Tainted warriors, including her own descendants, the dragon-born, terrible monsters and a cult of followers, all slaved to her will. Hope looks bleak, especially as the warring human kingdoms remain unaware that Lik-Rifa is free and about to unleash fresh horrors upon them.

Amongst this chaos, the deadly Orka continues her hunt for her stolen son, taken by Lik-Rifa’s followers. Now revealed as the legendary and infamous warrior, the Skullsplitter, Orka will not rest until she has her son and her vengeance, no matter the obstacles. While Orka continues her quest, her former warband of secretly Tainted warriors, the Bloodsworn, head south, determined to rescue one of their members, while their newest initiate, Varg, continues his attempts to find vengeance for his sister. Meanwhile, Elvar is forced to fulfil the blood oath she took to rescue another child from the dragonborn, and needs to convince her now leaderless warband, the Battle-Grim, to follow her.

As these brave warriors each take their own steps to destiny, they will all face dangerous challenges and horrendous odds. Orka will need to come to grips with the wolf lying deep in her heart as she attempts the impossible: defying a god. Varg and the Bloodsworn will travel to a distant land to achieve their goals, only to meet tragedy and loss. Elvar finally attempts to claim the responsibility of leadership that she has always desired. However, despite all their bravery and skill in arms, none of these heroes are going to be capable of fighting Lik-Rifa directly. Instead, Elvar and her company will attempt a desperate plan, using forbidden magic to bring a dead god to life and bind it to their will.

Wow oh wow, what an incredible and awesome read. Gwynne continues to showcase why he is one of the best current authors of fantasy fiction with The Hunger of the Gods, which perfectly continues the impressive Bloodsworn Saga in a big way. Featuring tons of bloody action, impressive new fantasy elements, complex characters, and a powerful and elaborate narrative that is the very definition of epic, The Hunger of the Gods was another five-star read from Gwynne that is easily one of the better books I have read so far this year.

The Hunger of the Gods has an outstanding and impressive story that instantly grabs the reader’s attention and ensures that they are unable to put the book down until the very last page. This sequel kicks off right after the epic conclusion of The Shadow of the Gods and quickly follows up on all the big revelations and events that occurred there, especially the release of the giant dragon god, Lik-Rifa, who serves as a suitably sinister and epic main antagonist for the series. Just like the first book, The Hunger of the Gods’ narrative is told from a series of split storylines, each one focused on a specific point-of-view character. All three character-specific storylines from The Shadow of the Gods are continued here, following Orka, Varg and Elva. These existing storylines go in some exciting and interesting directions in The Hunger of the Gods, and I loved how the author expanded on the character’s growth and individual journeys from the first novel, while also keeping some of the existing dynamics and elements. Gwynne also adds in two new point-of-view characters, as antagonists Gudvarr and Biorr, who were good secondary characters from The Shadow of the Gods, get their own intriguing storylines here. These new character arcs are impressively entertaining, providing great alternate perspectives to deepen the story, while also working into the existing storylines extremely well. All five storylines go in some great directions throughout the course of the novel, and there are some absolutely brilliant moments, twists and revelations that occur throughout, especially as many of these storylines started to come together more. I had an excellent time seeing where everything went, and Gwynne really did a great job taking all these character stories in some appropriate directions. Every single storyline end on an amazing note and the conclusions are guaranteed to drag readers back for the third Bloodsworn novel.

This second book in The Bloodsworn Saga is written pretty damn perfectly as Gwynne continues his magic to produce an addictive and distinctive read. The Hunger of the Gods retains the excellent tone introduced in the first novel, ensuring that everything comes across as a Norse adventure story set within a unique, dark fantasy realm. Everything about this book is handled extremely well, from the exceptional pacing, which ensures that you fly through this massive novel, to the intense and brutal action that is installed in every section of the book, guaranteeing that readers get that much needed adrenalin rush. Gwynne utilises an interesting writing style here that really emphasises repetition and unique dialogue to help to make the story feel more and more like an epic Norse saga. Just like the preceding novel in The Bloodsworn Saga, I think that The Hunger of the Gods had just the right blend of action, humour, character growth, world building and darker elements to create an excellent and enticing read. I also have to say that I was quite impressed with how Gwynne was able to avoid middle book syndrome here, as in many ways The Hunger of the Gods was even better than The Shadow of the Gods. While the story does slow down in places to help build up certain settings or plot elements, there is always something interesting or compelling going on, and I can honestly say that I was not bored at any point in the book. You could almost read The Hunger of the Gods by itself with no knowledge of the preceding book and still have a brilliant time with it, especially with the detailed synopsis of the prior novel at the start.

The best thing about how this story is written is the exceptional use of multiple character perspectives. The story perfectly flits between the five separate characters arcs throughout the novel, with a different character being focused on with each new chapter. Thanks to the inclusions of two new characters, readers of this sequel get to enjoy a much deeper story here, especially as the new characters are associated with some of the series’ antagonists, providing some fantastic new elements. I think the additional characters worked really well, as while the existing three protagonists are great, their storylines needed to be spaced out more in this sequel. All five separate character storylines play off each other perfectly as the novel continues, telling an immense narrative that, while connected, still contains a fair bit of individuality as you follow their specific adventure.

I liked finally being able to see some interactions between the various protagonists and I loved seeing these outstanding and well-written characters finally come together in some intense scenes, allowing the reader to see these distinctive characters viewed through the eyes of the other protagonists. The author had a great sense of which perspectives needed to featured at certain times, and there were some amazing contrasts as certain exciting storylines were played off each other, especially when you were able to see two sides to certain major battles or events. In addition, this is one of those rare multi-narrative fantasy novels where it is near impossible to choose a favourite storyline or character to follow. Each of the five storylines offers the reader something different, from a bloody revenge story, to an intriguing look at the book’s main antagonists, and all of them work extremely well in the context of the wider story. I will say that Orka’s brilliant quest for her son has some amazing action scenes and powerful character moments, while the camaraderie and excellent larger-scale battles of Varg’s storyline ensured that I was excited to hear from this character. In addition, Gudvarr provides some great political intrigue from the perspective of a true weasel, which was so very fun to watch. However, I honestly had a great time with every single character, and there was not a moment that their individual stories did not enhance the overall quality of The Hunger of the Gods.

I really must highlight the incredible dark fantasy setting of The Bloodsworn Saga that is expertly used again in The Hunger of the Gods after Gwynne took the time to set it up in the first novel. The harsh land of Vigrid, with its warring Jarls, terrifying monsters, long-dead gods, glory-seeking warbands and the feared and exploited Tainted, works so well as a background to this epic story and it really helps to expand the bloody adventures featured within. I loved how Gwynne uses classic Norse elements like shield walls, longboats, weaponry and mindsets, and I still really love seeing this in a fantasy context, especially when combined or used against the monsters and Tainted characters. This is further enhanced with the continued use of Norse inspired terms and dialogue throughout the novel, and it helps to give this entire series such a distinctive feel (although I kind of wish that he would stop trying to continually make “thought cage” an alternative to a person’s skull). While the author spends a bit of time continuing these elements from the first book, The Shadow of the Gods also features some brilliant world building as Gwynne provides intriguing enhancements to the existing gods, land and people, which were already extremely intriguing. There are also some examinations of the neighbouring nation of Iskidan, which was mentioned a few times in the first book. Iskidan, which has elements of historical China, the Middle East and the Byzantine Empire in its construction, serves as an intriguing counterpoint to Vigrid, and it was fascinating to learn more about it. I also loved a couple of cool, if freaky new monsters, that were featured in this book, although the flesh burrowing insect monster and the nightmare inducing tongue eaters, are a bit on the gruesome side (readers who don’t like body modifying monsters are warned to stay away). All these awesome elements are fitted in the book perfectly, and I loved this continued dive into the dark and gruesome world Gwynne has lovingly created.

While the awesome narrative, clever storytelling and dark fantasy setting are amazing parts of the book, I would be extremely remiss if I didn’t highlight the incredible character work that Gwynne did within The Hunger of the Gods. Just like the first book in The Bloodsworn Saga, The Hunger of the Gods features an impressive and captivating cast of characters, each of whom are expertly featured and who add some fantastic elements to the overall story. This is particularly true for the wonderful and memorable characters from whose perspective this epic tale unfolds. Gwynne did an incredible job introducing these excellent characters in the first book, and it was great to see two previous supporting characters promoted up to the central cast. All five main characters are exceptional and their unique personalities and goals ensure that every chapter is different from the last which helps to produce an awesome and expansive read.

The first of these characters is Orka, an incredibly dangerous warrior who is hunting for her lost son and vengeance for her murdered husband. Orka is a brilliant and complex figure who is easily one of the most exciting and enjoyable characters in the entire series. Due to her single-minded determination and bloodlust, pretty much all Orka’s chapters read like a bloody revenge trip that is essentially a dark fantasy version of Taken. Gwynne continues this excellent trend with Orka in this second novel and it was great to see this implacable warrior travel across this land, killing everyone who gets in her way as she takes big risks. However, Gwynne adds in some extra elements to Orka’s tale in The Hunger of the Gods, especially following the revelations made at the end of The Shadow of the Gods that Orka is both Tainted and the former leader of the Bloodsworn, the legendary killer known as the Skullsplitter. Orka actually comes across as a lot more bestial in this second book, especially after the big massacre she created at the end of The Shadow of the Gods that unleashed her inner monster. As such, there are more scenes of Orka trying to contain her rage and anger, and there were some fantastic and clever portrayals of her inner beast throughout the book. We also see some of Orka’s guilt and regret as the novel explores how she left the Bloodsworn and the relationships she sacrificed for the sake of her unborn son. I also quite enjoyed seeing her as a reluctant leader in this novel as she finds herself in charge of a small team of warriors and monsters. This enhances her sense of guilt and remembrances of her previous time with the Bloodsworn, and it adds some fun drama and even a mentoring arc as continues her work with her young student, Lif. Orka’s storyline goes in some great directions throughout The Hunger of the Gods, and you will be enthralled with her tale right up until the last line of this book.

I also had a lot of fun with Varg in this book. Varg, or as his warband knows him, Varg No-Sense, was probably my favourite character in The Shadow of the Gods and he continues to be an excellent part of this sequel. While he doesn’t develop as much as some of the other characters in The Hunger of the Gods, Varg still remains an enjoyable figure. Most of the appeal revolves around his friendship and growing sense of acceptance with his fellow Bloodsworn, and I liked seeing him continue to develop as a warrior and a free person, especially as starts to create some meaningful relationships. Like Orka, a lot of Varg’s personal storyline deals with his desire for vengeance, as well as his issues controlling his Tainted rage, and I liked seeing how this complemented and contrasted with Orka’s experiences. This is particularly noticeable when it comes to how he deals with loss, something he is not good at, especially when some good friends fall throughout the story. As a result, there are some great moments for Varg in this novel, and his chapters are filled with some of the funniest supporting characters and best battle sequences. I did find it interesting that Varg didn’t have the biggest impact on the overall storyline in this novel, even during his own chapters, but Gwynne is clearly planning some big things for him in the future, which I am really looking forward to.

Elvar, also has a great storyline in The Hunger of the Gods, and I honestly think that out of all the characters, she has the most development in this book. Due to where her story from The Shadow of the Gods ended up (dragon gods rising and all), I was extremely excited to see more from Elvar in this novel, and it really did not disappoint as she immediately gets into action, resurrecting gods and bending them to her will. Quite a lot of major plot elements occur through Elvar’s eyes, and she proves to be an excellent focus for all these key storylines. I liked how Elvar grew up quite a lot in this sequel, especially after the traumatic betrayals of the previous book, and she ends up with a very different mindset throughout this sequel, especially when it comes to leadership and her need for fame. Watching her grow and take control of the Battle-Grim is a compelling part of this novel, and it was awesome to see her come to terms with her new responsibilities. It was also great to see how a lot of Elvar’s story comes full circle in this novel, especially when it comes to her personal history and family, and her final chapters in this novel are some of the best in the book. I am once again extremely keen to see how Elvar’s story continues in the rest of the series, and Gwynne has left her in an incredible spot for the future.

Like I mentioned above, I was really impressed with Gwynne’s decision to start utilising two additional point-of-view characters in The Hunger of the Gods, and it really helped to turn this sequel into a much more detailed and compelling read. Part of the reason this works so well is that these two additional characters are both complex and excellent characters, and their chapters act as a great continuation of some of the minor storylines from the first book. The first of these characters is Biorr, former member of the Battle-Grim who was revealed to be a spy planted by Lik-Rifa’s followers and who ended up betraying and killing the Battle-Grim’s leader. While it would be easy to hate Biorr for his actions, he becomes quite a sympathetic character. Not only does he spend most of the book feeling intense guilt for his actions, but he also paints a pretty grim picture of his previous life as a slave, showcasing the hardships he and his fellow Tainted have suffered. As such, you can understand many of his reasons for why he is helping Lik-Rifa, especially as she is promising a new world order for people like him. Despite this he is still quite conflicted, and he acts as a more moderate antagonist. This changes towards the end of the book, especially after he meets a certain divine being, and he starts to become a bit colder and more determined to support Lik-Rifa. Despite being one of the least action-packed storylines in the novel, Biorr’s chapters were an excellent and entertaining part of the novel. I particularly enjoyed the intriguing alternate views they gave of the main group of antagonists, making them seem more reasonable and complex, and the inclusion of Biorr greatly enhanced the entire narrative for the best.

The other new point-of-view character is Gudvarr, the conceited lordling who hunted Orka in the last book and was a particularly annoying antagonist. I must admit that I was initially surprised that out of all the great supporting characters, Gudvarr was the one who was upgraded to main cast. However, it soon became apparent why he was used, as Gwynne had some real fun turning him into one of the entertainingly despicable characters in the entire novel. Gudvarr is the absolute epitome of arrogance, petty cruelty and cowardice throughout this book, and it is near impossible to have any respect for him, as he lies, brownnoses and attempt anything to gain power and reputation, often with disastrous results. Gwynne goes out of his way to make him seem as conceited and cowardly as possible throughout the novel, mainly through his inner monologue, where he constantly hides all his insults and most cowardly thoughts to avoid getting into trouble with actual warrior. He is such a little arseling in this novel, and you can’t help but hate him, especially as he has the devil’s luck and frustratingly manages to wiggle out of every single disaster he finds himself in. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, I grew to really enjoy Gudvarr’s chapters as everything he did was hilarious in a sneaky and spiteful way, and it is just so damn entertaining to see him get pushed around then overcome more powerful and confident characters. The Gudvarr chapters also provide some fantastic insight into another group of antagonists, loaded with political intrigue and deceit from one of the main courts of Vigrid. I had an absolute blast following Gudvarr throughout the novel, and the way that his storyline in this novel comes to an end is just so perfect and really showcases what an absolute cowardly snake he is. I cannot wait to see him get his eventual just deserts (or maybe he’ll be the only survivor), and he ended up being on of my surprisingly favourites in The Hunger of the Gods.

Aside from these main five characters, The Hunger of the Gods is filled with a massive raft of supporting characters, with a distinctive cast associated with each of the point-of-view storylines. Gwynne handles these supporting characters beautifully; despite the cast list going on for six pages, you get to know all of them and fully appreciate everything they bring to the story. Most of these characters support their respective storylines incredibly well and many of the characters either stand on their own as distinctive figures or have some brilliant interactions with the main characters. Many of my favourites were members of the Bloodsworn band, with the hilarious and witty Svik being the best example of this with his tall tales, love of cheese, and calming attitude towards Varg, while an additional storyline about his connection to Orka adding some intriguing depth to his character. You really get to enjoy many of the key Bloodsworn members, although this does mean you become way too emotionally strained when they get hurt or killed. I also really grew to enjoy returning character Lif in this book as he continues to grow as a warrior through Orka’s tutelage. Watching him develop is a great part of the Orka chapters, and he proves to be an excellent foil to the brutal main character. I loved the deeper look at many of the series’ main antagonists throughout The Hunger of Gods, especially with the two new character perspectives, and it was great to see a different side to their plans and motivations. The multiple resurrected or freed god characters proved to be an excellent addition to this second novel, with the main characters brought into their renewed war one way or another. These gods really changed the entire story, and it was fascinating to see their interactions with the main characters, as well impact they have on everyone’s psyches. These great characters, and many more, all added a ton to the story, and I loved how their various arcs and storylines came together. It will be fascinating to see if anybody else becomes a point-of-view protagonists in the future (my money is on Lif), and I can’t wait to see what happens to these brilliant characters in the future.

While I was lucky enough to receive a physical copy of The Hunger of the Gods, I ended up listening to the audiobook version of it instead, which was an extremely awesome experience. With a runtime of just under 23 hours, this is a pretty lengthy audiobook (the 19^th longest audiobook I’ve ever listened to) and requires a substantial investment of time. However, this is more than worth it as hearing this epic tale read out to you is a brilliant experience. Not only does it ensure that you become deeply trapped in the elaborate story and are able to absorb all the great detail, but it also fits with the book’s inherit theme of an oral saga. One of the best features of this audiobook is impressive narrator Colin Mace, a man with a ton experience narrating elaborate fantasy and science fiction audiobooks (such as The Black Hawks by David Wragg). Mace has a commanding and powerful voice that really fits the theme of this universe and perfectly conveys all the violence, grim settings and powerful elements of the dark fantasy world. He does a particularly good job with the character voices as well, as every character has a distinctive tone that fits their personality and actions extremely well. I loved some of the great voices that he comes up with, including deep-voiced warriors, snivelling cowards, strange creatures, ethereal gods and more, and it helped to turn The Hunger of the Gods audiobook into quite an experience. As such, I would strongly recommend this audiobook format as the way to enjoy The Hunger of the Gods, and I fully intend to check out the rest of this series on audiobook when it comes out.

John Gwynne continues to dominate the fantasy genre with his incredible Bloodsworn Saga. The amazing second entry, The Hunger of the Gods, is another exceptional read that takes you on a wild and deadly adventure through Gwynne’s impressively put together dark fantasy world. Containing an epic and powerful story, chock full of action, Norse fantasy elements and impressive characters, The Hunger of the Gods was one of the best reads of 2022 so far and I had an outstanding time reading it. In some ways The Hunger of the Gods ended up being a better novel than the first entry in the series and is an absolute must read for all fantasy fans.

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