Feet of Clay by Terry Pratchett

On June 29, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Audiobook, Comedy/Satire, Extended Universe, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Murder Mystery, Throwback ThursdayLeave a comment

Publisher: Gollancz/Penguin Random (Audiobook – 6 June 1996)

Series: Discworld – Book 19/City Watch – Book Three

Length: 12 hours and 20 minutes

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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Even after many, many re-reads, the awesome fantasy satire novel Feet of Clay remains one of my favourite Discworld novels by the late, great Terry Pratchett, with its intricate crime fiction narrative, compelling characters, and even a cool new audiobook version.

I’ve done a lot of Discworld re-reading recently as I have been checking out several of the best books in the series on their new audiobook formats, which featured cool new narrators. This new format has proven particularly awesome for books like Mort, Pyramids, Moving Pictures and Small Gods, as well as for entries in my favourite Discworld subseries, the City Watch books.

While I have a lot of love for all the books in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld, my absolute favourites come from the City Watch subseries. Following the unlikely members of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch, a rag-tag team of guards who go from losers to an effective police force, the City Watch books features an exceptional combination of fantasy and crime fiction elements, wrapped up in Pratchett’s usual satirical humour. The first two books in this series, Guards! Guards! and Men at Arms are quite exceptional, and it was a very easy decision to also check out the epic third novel in the series, Feet of Clay.

After several unlikely but successful investigations, things are looking up for the Ankh-Morpork City Watch. No longer a home for the dregs of society, the City Watch is now a respected crime-fighting unit. Led by Commander Sam Vimes, the Watch’s enthusiastic, if unusual, members are determined to bring some law and order to the city of Ankh-Morpork, whether it wants it or not.

However, even with their new resources and members, the Watch find themselves troubled by a series of brutal murders occurring throughout the city. All the victims were bludgeoned to death, but there is no evidence of anyone alive, or undead, having been at the crime scene. At the same time, the Patrician of Ankh-Morpork has been poisoned by unknown methods and is only barely clinging to life. If the Patrician dies, sanity in the city will be the next to fall.

To solve both cases, Vimes and his watchmen will need to investigate an overlooked underclass in the city, the golems, whose ancient secrets and desires may lie at the heart of the killings. But with desperate conspiracies, unlikely noble heirs and a new deranged king coming to light, can the City Watch uncover the figures pulling the strings in the darkness of Ankh-Morpork before it’s too late?

Wow, how is this book still so damn good? Feet of Clay was another outstanding read from Terry Pratchett, who once again deeply impresses with his exceptional writing, unmatched humour, and deeply relatable characters. This third City Watch book is probably some of Pratchett’s very best work, and it gets an extremely easy five-star rating from me.

I absolutely love the great narrative that Pratchett came up with for Feet of Clay, which I personally thinks has one of the author’s best crime fiction narratives behind it, as the complex characters humorously manoeuvre around the gritty streets of Ankh-Morpork. This book features a fun start that perfectly sets the scene for several of the key characters, including protagonist Sam Vimes’s daily routine of assassins and high society. You are also quickly thrust into the Watch’s new case involving two elderly academics bludgeoned to death. These initial investigations, as well as some other great sequences, set the scene for much of the rest of the book, with the narrative becoming even more hectic when Vimes discovers that the Patrician has been poisoned by unknown conspirators.

Afte the initial set-up, the rest of the story flows by extremely fast, with several character-driven storylines that flow together perfectly. The primary focus is on the two seemingly separate investigations into the murders and the poisonings, with Captain Carrot and Vimes taking control of each case. Both these major storylines go in some very interesting directions, with Vimes desperately trying to work out how the poisonings happened, while Carrot and Angua begin investigating the city’s golems, one of whom seems responsible for the murders. At the same time, Pratchett also provides some fantastic character-based storylines around several of the supporting Watch characters. This includes the unusual proclivities of the Watch’s new dwarf officer Corporal Cheery Littlebottom, Corporal Nobby Nobbs’s unbelievable reveal as a potential noble, one golem’s journey towards self-determination, and Angua’s continued feelings of alienation at being a werewolf.

All these storylines cross over perfectly in the final third of Feet of Clay, as the protagonists finally put together the subtle clues for the main two cases. While the reveal about who or what is behind the murders is fantastic in its own way, I must highlight the extremely well-hidden poisoning method that Pratchett devised for this plot, which is just so damn devious and cleverly set-up by the author. This leads to an excellent, action-focused collection of sequences that eventually pull together into an intense confrontation.

Pratchett wraps this up perfectly, with some amazing final reveals about who was ultimately pulling all the strings. While the mastermind of the conspiracy isn’t too surprising (especially if you listen to one of the audiobook versions), the way that Vimes works out their identity is so much fun thanks to some ironically hidden clues, and I love the big reveal scene between Vimes and the main antagonist. Pratchett also wraps up the remaining storylines perfectly, providing some great final touches to each of the characters’ respective arcs, and ensuring that the readers come away extremely satisfied. I honestly cannot emphasise enough just how addictive and clever this narrative was, and every single aspect of this plot was perfectly set up and utilised by Pratchett as he wove his fantasy, crime fiction magic.

I’ve always felt that Feet of Clay was one of Pratchett’s best-written novels, as he manages to expertly balance a range of competing storylines inside this highly entertaining, hybrid novel. As with all his City Watch books, the way that Pratchett manages to blend fantasy and crime fiction elements with his usual brilliant humour is just incredible, and I love how well this mixture of elements works to tell an effective narrative. I must particularly commend the great mystery in Feet of Clay, which is just so damn intricate with all its clues and mixture of compelling character storylines. Feet of Clay easily has some of Pratchett’s best mystery writing in its plot, and there is an outstanding amount of complexity built into both cases, with the truly elaborate poisoning arc being a particular highlight. The sheer amount of cleverly crafted and often humorous clues that the author scatters throughout the book is so damn awesome, and it is so much fun to pull them all together.

The book’s outstanding crime fiction elements are perfectly enhanced by the background fantasy elements of the setting, with the protagonists forced to investigate the crimes in the context of a chaotic city populated with different species. Compared to previous books, the investigation in Feet of Clay is much more like a modern police procedural, with classic forensic concepts enhanced with fantasy elements like scent tracking done by a werewolf and crime scene photos drawn by imps. The protagonists also need to deal with various fantasy creatures, such as golems, vampires, dwarfs and a very angry gnome, and understanding their motivations becomes a key part of the plot. Pratchett also uses these fantasy elements to address and lightly satirise contemporary social trends. For example, one dwarf’s attempt to find herself leads to a complex, nuanced and thought-provoking discussion on gender identity, which can still be readily applied to modern discourses on transgendered rights and modern gender norms. Another storyline focusing on golems gaining free will is also highly relevant, especially when you consider artificial intelligence. Throw in the general chaos and disorder of the city, which results in additional fun conflicts and incidents (Vimes’s one-sided battle against the Assassins Guild is particularly amusing), as well as a focus on the changes that have occurred to Ankh-Morpork thanks to the actions of the Patrician and the Watch, and you really have to appreciate just how fell the inherent fantasy elements of Feet of Clay enhances the plot.

While both the mystery and fantasy elements of Feet of Clay are very compelling, what really turns this into a five-star read is the clever humour that Pratchett adds to his books. There are various layers to the humour in this novel, although much of it lies in classic fantasy or murder mystery scenarios going in particularly absurd directions, or being artfully dissected by self-aware protagonists who find the situation and its real-world historical precedent very absurd. There are also the brilliant footnotes that seek to enhance the story and showcase just how ridiculous the Discworld is by providing additional details about the universe and the people within it. Finally, you have humour driven by the outrageous characters scattered throughout the plot, with ultra-sarcastic figures rubbing shoulders with entertaining parodies of terrible people. The more direct humour drawn from the storylines of several of these characters, such as Corporal Nobbs’s foray into the upper class, and Sergeant Colon unfortunate agricultural experiences, blends well with the rest of the complex novel, and ensures that there are entertaining moments, no matter where in Feet in Clay you are.

This great combination of humour, fantasy elements and a crime fiction narrative helps to make Feet of Clay one of the more appealing novels in all the Discworld series, and so many different readers will end up getting a lot out of it. As such, Feet of Clay works incredibly well as a standalone novel, with new readers easily able to enjoy this book without any prior knowledge of the Discworld or previous City Watch books, especially as Pratchett covers any relevant history or characters quite effectively. However, I do feel that to get the best experience with Feet of Clay, readers would benefit from checking out Guards! Guards! and Men at Arms first. The continuing storylines, history of the city and character arcs all come into play extremely well in Feet of Clay and you get a much more complete experience viewing all City Watch novels in order.

As with all of Pratchett’s novels, one of the real joys of Feet of Clay is the complex and comedic characters the author weaved such incredible, entertaining, and often extremely heartwarming tales around. Featuring a great combination of the well-established cast of the previous City Watch books, as well as a couple of awesome new figures, Pratchett did an exceptional job diving into the cast of his novel and the resulting depth to their characters was so damn impressive.

At the centre of Feet of Clay lies main character Commander Samuel Vimes, the recently ennobled and married commander of the City Watch. Transformed from a drunken and hated figure to the leader of a respected police organisation, Vimes has been forced to up his game, especially as he now finds himself being targeted by the elites of the city which he does with some comedic vigour. Feet of Clay is probably the book where Pratchett twists the focus of the City Watch fully towards Vimes. The definite centre of the plot, Pratchett really dives into Vimes’s obsessive nature, his simmering anger at the upper classes, and his determination to bring justice to everyone equally. Vimes dogged, yet cynical, approach to investigation and crime solving comes face to face with a particularly dastardly plot in Feet of Clay, and there are some wonderful sequences as he tries to puzzle out the poisoning. Pratchett also provides some extra detail about Vimes’ poor upbringing and the history of his family, which really showcases his motivations to a great degree. All this allows for a much more complicated figure then we saw in previous books, and it was an interesting change of pace for this central character that Pratchett would expand on in later books.

In addition to Vimes, there are some interesting focuses on Captain Carrot and Constable Angua, who led the investigation into the murders in the city, and Pratchett wraps some compelling elements around them. Carrot remains the charismatic and skilled leader of men for much of the story, with a continued focus on his love for the city and ability to charm anyone he encounters. However, Pratchett does attempt to break his seemingly perfect facade in this novel by having him struggle to come to terms with Cheery Littlebottom’s identity issues. The author also continues to shift away from Carrot as a perspective character, instead allowing his many appearances to be mainly told from the view of other, more cynical members of the cast. This gives his actions and motivations a little more mystery and allows the reader to wonder just how perfect he really is. For Feet of Clay, most of this narration was done by Angua, the Watch’s werewolf officer and Carrot’s love interest. Angua proves to be a very practical and sarcastic personality foil to the upbeat Carrot, which helps to humanise both to a degree. Pratchett also adds in a compelling underlying storyline of Angua struggling with how others perceive her as a werewolf, and her certainty that her relationship with Carrot can’t last.

While Carrot and Angua represent the more serious side of the Watch, Pratchett continues to have fun by focusing on the always amusing and comedic duo of Sergeant Fred Colon and Corporal Nobby Nobbs. Their narrative in Feet of Clay is particularly good, especially for Nobby, who finds himself elevated to nobility status when it is discovered he is the long-lost descendant of the Earl of Ankh. Suddenly forced to hobnob with other nobs, Nobby has some fantastic reactions and interactions, especially going from despair at being a penniless noble, to trying to fit in with the city’s elite. While this seems like a mostly comedic storyline to undercut the tension of Feet of Clay’s serious crimes it fits into the main narrative in some clever ways, although Nobby’s reaction when he finds this out is so damn funny and perfectly reflects his own mentality and his knowledge of Vimes’ reactions.

Sergeant Colon, on the other hand, is somewhat less used in Feet of Clay, although Pratchett has fun satirising the ‘policeman three days away from retirement’ trope through him. Keen to get out of the Watch because his wife wants him to buy a farm (another subtle and fun joke from Pratchett), Colon inevitably runs into insane trouble in the second half of the book, and it was fun to see the craziness of the other storylines literally stampede over him. I have loved these two characters since their first appearance in Guards! Guards! and this is one of their funniest books (although their next appearance in Jingo is also peak comedy).

While these recurring characters are awesome, special mention needs to go to the new members of the Watch that Pratchett introduces in Feet of Clay, who have major impacts on the plot. The most significant of this is the new dwarf forensic officer, Corporal Cheery Littlebottom (a very traditional dwarf name). Cheery serves as a compelling outsider figure, with Pratchett moving her across both investigations. However, it’s her characterisation as a female dwarf who wants to acknowledge her gender rather than act like a male dwarf, as is tradition, that really sets Cheery up as a standout character. Naturally working in aspects of identity and overcoming established mindsets are a big part of Cheery’s character, and it was wonderful to see her gain confidence and skill as a Watch officer. Pratchett did such an excellent job of handling these complex cultural elements through Cheery, and it’s amazing how significant Cheery’s actions are in the larger Discworld narrative, as well as how relevant they are today.

Other characters I need to mention as I finally wrap up this section include the mysterious golem Dorfl. A voiceless and dutiful figure that is part of the city’s exploited golem underclass, Dorfl has a compelling connection to the murders in Feet of Clay and serves as an unlikely witness and suspect. Pratchett writes a particularly compelling motivation around Dorfl’s actions in this novel, which cleverly ties into discussion about self-determination and artificial intelligence. I also had a lot of fun with Dorfl’s later scenes, especially as he becomes the city’s most unexpected and dramatic revolutionary. Other highlights for me include Lord Vetinari, who takes his role as a poison victim with his usual special interest. Throw in an ancient vampire with a love of terrible puns, an extremely angry gnome, and other compelling characters dragged into the narrative’s web, and the cast of Feet of Clay was one of Pratchett’s strongest, especially with all the emotional impact they add to the plot.

As with all the other Discworld novels I have reviewed, I have enjoyed Feet of Clay on various formats over the years, but my favourite is once again its audiobook version. The various audiobook releases are always the absolute best ways to enjoy a Discworld novel, and the fantastic humour, compelling characters and entertaining locations that Pratchett comes up with, always come across in impressive fashion when read out. This is especially true for Feet of Clay, which, like many of the series, has had several different audiobook versions over the years. This includes the classic version released back in 1997, featuring narration by one of my favourite audiobook narrators, the legendary Nigel Planer. I have raved about Planer in several previous reviews, including for Guards! Guards! and Men at Arms, and few narrators can capture Pratchett’s style and comedic charm with their voices like Planer did. His work narrating Feet of Clay was particularly impressive, especially with his portrayal of all the cool characters, including an over-the-top vampire, the new dwarf member of the watch, and more. The Planer narration of this novel is probably the definitive Feet of Clay audiobook, and I have been in love with this version since I was a child.

I also need to highlight the new audiobook released a couple of years ago. Featuring the very impressive cast of Jon Culshaw, Peter Serafinowicz and Bill Nighy, this more recent Feet of Clay release was also very exceptional, building off the great work these three narrators did with their Guards! Guards! and Men at Arms audiobooks. Coming in with a runtime of 12 hours and 20 minutes, this Feet of Clay audiobook is a bit longer than the Planer release (which had a runtime of 9 hours and 38 minutes), although listeners are still in for an exceptional time. Much of this is down to British radio and television personality Jon Culshaw, who once again made this audiobook his own with his take on the story and his characters. His gritty and entertaining voices for the cast are very fitting, and like Planer, he excels at showcasing their complicated personalities, as well as the overall humour of the book. I am once again very impressed with just how excellent Culshaw was for the City Watch books, and he is my favourite narrator from these new Discworld audiobooks.

As with all books in this new collection of Discworld audiobook’s, Culshaw’s main narration was perfectly backed up by recuring voices of Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz. These performances were once again perfect, and I especially loved Nighy’s excellent work with the vital, comedic footnotes. Serafinowicz’s role in Feet of Clay is also very fun, as he brings the fan-favourite character of Death to life. While Death only has a few scenes in Feet of Clay, Serafinowicz makes the most of his appearances, and hearing the actor’s deep Death voice suddenly appear amongst the general narration really increases the impact of the character. Both Bill Nighy and Peter Serafinowicz’s inclusions were extremely fun, and I felt that they were combined with Culshaw’s main narration in a very impressive way. These three brilliant British talents ensured that the new version of Feet of Clay was particularly impressive and while my heart will always belong to the original audiobook with Nigel Planer, this new multi-cast audiobook will likely inspire a new generation of Discworld fans.

With an incredible and winning combination of charm, mystery and comedic brilliance, Feet of Clay was another exceptional and classic read in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld. Providing an ultra-addictive story that also perfectly adds in some great new characters, Feet of Clay is one of the very best Discworld books, and one of my personal favourites. An exceptional read I will recommend until the day I die!

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Hollow Empire by Sam Hawke

On January 3, 2021August 19, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, LGBT+4 Comments

Publisher: Bantam Press (Trade Paperback – 1 December 2020)

Series: Poison War – Book Two

Length: 560 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

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After a two-year wait, we finally get to see the epic sequel to Australian author Sam Hawke’s impressive debut novel, City of Lies, with her blockbuster new novel, Hollow Empire.

Two years after the siege of the city of Silasta, where the oppressed Darfri minority were manipulated into attacking the capital by an unknown outside force, the city has started to recover. While the city focuses on rebuilding and reconciliation with their former besiegers, the poison-eating siblings Jovana and Kalina Oromani, secret protectors of the Chancellor, continue their efforts to work out who was truly behind the attack on their city. However, to their frustration, no-one else in the city shares their concerns; instead they have grown complacent with the returned peace.

But no peace lasts forever, especially as Silastra celebrates the karodee, a grand festival, to which representatives of all the nations surrounding the city state have been invited. While the focus is on peace and forging ties between nations, the siblings begin to suspect that their unknown enemy is using it as an opportunity to launch a new attack against Silastra. In order to determine what is happening, Jovana attempts to hunt down a dangerous and deadly killer that only he seems to have noticed, while Kalina navigates the treacherous world of politics and diplomacy as she works to determine which of their neighbours may have been involved in the prior attack on their city.

Working together with the Chancellor Tain and the Darfri mystic Hadrea, the Oromani siblings get closer to finding some of the answers that they desire. However, both siblings find themselves under attack from all sides as their opponents attempt not only to kill them but to discredit their entire family. Determined to protect Silasta no matter what, Jovana and Kalina will risk everything to find out the truth, even if the answers are too much for either of them to bear.

Hollow Empire was another awesome novel from fellow Canberran Sam Hawke, which serves as the compelling and enjoyable second entry in her Poison War series, which follows on from her 2018 debut, City of Lies. I am a big fan of Hawke’s first novel; not only was it one of my favourite books of 2018 but it is also one of my top debuts of all time. As a result, I have been looking forward to seeing how the story continues for some time now and I was incredibly happy to receive my copy of Hollow Empire several weeks ago. The wait was definitely worth it, as Hawke has come up with another impressive and clever novel that not only serves as an excellent sequel to City of Lies but which takes the reader on an intrigue laden journey into the heart of an exciting fantasy city filled with great characters.

Hawke has come up with an excellent narrative for this latest novel which takes the protagonists on a wild journey throughout their city and beyond as they attempt to uncover a dangerous conspiracy threatening to destroy everything they love. Told from alternating perspectives of the two main characters, Jovana and Kalina, Hollow Empire’s story was a clever and exciting thrill-ride of intrigue, lies, politics, crime and treachery, as the protagonists attempt to find out who is targeting them and plotting to destroy their city. This proved to be a fun and captivating narrative, and I liked how Hollow Empire felt a lot more like a fantasy thriller than the first book, which focused a bit more on the siege of the city. The protagonists must dig through quite a few layers of lies, hidden history and alternate suspects to find out what is happening in Silasta, and while there was a little less focus on the fun poison aspects that made the first novel such a treat, I really enjoyed how the story unfolded. Hawke comes up with several great twists and reveals throughout the book, some of which really surprised me, although I was able to guess a couple of key ones. I did think that the eventual reveal of the ultimate villain of the story was a tad rushed, but it resulted in an intense and fast-paced conclusion to the novel which also opens some intriguing avenues for any future entries in this series. Readers may benefit from rereading City of Lies in advance of Hollow Empire, especially as there has been a bit of gap between the first and second novels’ releases. However, for those wanting to jump right in, Hawke did include a fun recap at the start of the book, which sees the protagonists watching a theatrical recreation of the events of City of Lies. Not only is this a rather entertaining inclusion (mainly due to how Jovana is portrayed) but it also serves as a good summary of some of the book’s key events, and readers should be able to follow through this second book without any trouble, even if they have not had a chance to read City of Lies. Overall, this was an epic and impressive story, and I really enjoyed seeing how the Poison Wars continued in Hollow Empire.

I really enjoyed some of the cool writing elements that Hawke featured in Hollow Empire which added a lot to my overall enjoyment of the book and its great story. The most noticeable of this is the use of the split perspectives, with the main protagonists, Jovana and Kalina, each getting alternating chapters shown from their point of view. These split chapters worked extremely well in City of Lies, and I am really glad that Hawke decided to use them once again in her second book. While the primary use of these alternate chapters was to show the different angles of investigation that the siblings were following, it does result in some additional benefits to the narrative. I particularly liked the way in which the author uses the split perspectives to create tension and suspense throughout the novel, such as by one protagonist lacking information that the other character (and the reader) has knowledge of, or by leaving one protagonist’s fate uncertain. It was also interesting to see the different opinions that the protagonists had on various characters and the specific relationships and friendships that they formed. I also liked the way in which Hawke placed some intriguing in-universe poison proofing notes before each chapter, which recounted various poisonings that Oromani family has prevented or investigated over the years. These notes were quite fun to check out and it really helped to highlight the importance the main characters place on protecting the Chancellor and their city from poison attacks. These clever elements enhanced an already compelling narrative, and I imagine that Hawke will continue to utilise them in some of her future novels.

One of the major highlights of this book was the return to the author’s great fantasy setting that is the city of Silasta and its surrounding countryside. Silasta is an extremely woke city full of artists, inventors and scholars who believe in equality between genders and acceptance of all sexualities and gender identities (for example, Hawke introduces a non-binary character in Hollow Empire). While this was a fun city to explore in the first novel, especially as it was besieged for most of the book, I quite like how the author has altered the setting for Hollow Empire. There is a significant focus on how Silasta has changed since the ending of the siege two years previously, especially on the attempted reconciliation efforts between the somewhat elitist citizens of Silasta and the Darfri, who were previously treated as second-class citizens doing the menial jobs. While there have been changes to this relationship since the end of the first book, much is still the same and the difficulties in reconciling these two groups becomes a major and intriguing plot point within Hollow Empire. Hawke also adds in an intriguing crime element to the novel, as several criminal gangs have used the chaos following the siege to build power within the city, peddling new drugs to the populace. These new elements make for a different city than what the reader has previously seen, and I really liked how Hawke explored the negative elements of the aftermath of the first book and implemented them in Hollow Empire’s narrative, creating a fantastic and intriguing story.

In addition to focusing on the changes to the main city setting, I also really enjoyed the way in which Hawke decided to expand out her fantasy world. This is mainly done by introducing emissaries from several of the nation’s neighbouring Silasta and bringing them to the city, resulting in the protagonists learning more about their respective histories and cultures, especially as they are convinced that one of them is responsible for the attack against them. The story also explores the history of Silasta itself, with several storylines exploring how the city came into existence and its hidden past. The author also worked to expand the magical system present within her universe by examining the spirit magic that was introduced in City of Lies and exploring more of its rules and limitations. This results in several intriguing scenes, especially when one of the major characters, Hadrea, finds new ways to manipulate her magic. In addition, some new forms of magic are introduced within the book. These new magics have an origin in some of the new realms that are further explored in Hollow Empire and included an interesting and deadly form of witchcraft that differs wildly from the magical abilities that the characters utilised in the first book. Not only are these new and inventive world-building elements quite fun to explore, but their inclusion becomes a key inclusion to the narrative. All of this results in an enjoyable expanded universe, and it looks like Hawke has plans to introduce further lands and histories in the next Poison Wars book.

Another great part of Hollow Empire is the complexity of the characters, all of whom have evolved in some distinctive and compelling manner since the first novel. As mentioned above, the main protagonists are the Oromani siblings, Jovana and Kalina, who serve as the book’s point-of-view characters. Jovana is the Chancellor’s poison proofer, his secretive bodyguard who prepares his food and ensures that everything he eats is poison-free. However, since the events of City of Lies, Jovan has become a lot more well-known throughout the city due to the role he played during the siege. This requires him to adjust his role in society, especially as many people are now questioning how he and his family gained such prominence. Jovan is also a lot more cautious when it comes to the Chancellor’s security after several near misses in the first novel, so that he appears almost paranoid at points throughout Hollow Empire. This paranoia serves him well as he is forced to fight against an assassin who is using some clever means to attack his family and allies. Jovan has also entered into a mentoring role within this book as he takes his young niece, Dija, as his new apprentice, teaching her the ways of proofing and ensuring that she has an immunity to toxins by poisoning her himself, in a similar way to how his uncle raised and taught him. All of these add some intriguing new dynamics to Jovan’s character, and I really enjoyed seeing how he has changed since the first book. Kalina also proves to be an excellent character throughout Hollow Empire, and I quite enjoyed reading her chapters. Like her brother, Kalina has become a much more public figure in Silasta, although she is seen more as a hero than a suspicious poisoner like her brother. Kalina’s chapters mainly focus on her attempts at finding out the truth through diplomacy as she interacts with the foreign delegations visiting the city. Her investigations are just as dangerous as Jovan’s, and I really enjoyed seeing how her distinctive narrative unfolded, as well as how her character has also evolved, including with a fantastic new romance. Both protagonists serve as excellent centres for the story and I look forward to seeing how they progress in later books in the series.

Hollow Empire also boasts a raft of fantastic side characters, many of whom have some exceptional arcs throughout the book. The main two supporting characters are probably Chancellor Tain and Hadrea, both of whom were significant figures in City of Lies. Like the main protagonists, Tain has also changed a lot since City of Lies, where he was the young and bold ruler thrust into a chaotic position. Now he is a much more measured and cautious man, especially after narrowly avoiding death by poisoning in the first novel. Tain continues to be the focus of the protagonist’s advice and protection throughout the novel, and the friendship he has with Jovana and Kalina becomes a major part of the book’s plot, resulting in some dramatic and powerful moments. Hadrea, the young Speaker whose spirit magic saved the city in the first novel, also gets a lot of focus throughout Hollow Empire and is quite a major character. In addition to being Jovan’s love interest, Hadrea also serves as the protagonist’s magic expert as they attempt to understand some of the mystical elements attacking them. Hadrea’s magical power ends up becoming a major story element of Hollow Empire as she attempts to find new ways to use her magic while also chafing under the instruction of her superiors. It looks like Hawke has some major plans for Hadrea in the future books, and I am curious to see what happens to her next. These characters, and more, end up adding a lot to the story, and I quite enjoyed the way that Hawke portrayed them.

Hollow Empire by Sam Hawke was an impressive and deeply enjoyable novel that serves as an excellent sequel to City of Lies. Featuring a thrilling and clever main narrative, great characters and an inventive, if damaged, fantasy setting, Hollow Empire was an epic read from start to finish that proves exceedingly hard to put down. I had a wonderful time reading Hollow Empire and it ended up being one of my favourite books of 2020. A highly recommended read, I cannot wait to see how the series continues in the future.

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Lady Smoke by Laura Sebastian

On February 4, 2019August 22, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn Fantasy, LGBT+, Young Adult3 Comments

Lady Smoke Cover

Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia (Trade Paperback Edition – 12 February 2019)

Series: Ash Princess Trilogy

Length: 496 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

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Bestselling young adult fantasy author Laura Sebastian presents an outstanding follow-up to her 2018 debut with this superb novel which builds on the author’s original book and uses it to create a fantastic story.

For many years, Theodosia was a prisoner in her own palace. The brutal warrior race, the Kalovaxians conquered Theo’s country of Astrea, enslaving her people and killing her mother, the Fire Queen. Forced to live as a trophy prisoner and ridiculed as the Ash Princess, Theo eventually rebelled, escaping from the Kalovaxian ruler, the Kaiser. However, her escape had complications, as she was forced to kidnap the Kaiser’s son, Prinz Soren, and poison her only Kalovaxian friend, Crescentia.

Now freed and claiming her birthright as Queen of Astrea, Theodosia is determined to take her country back. With no troops of her own and only a handful of followers, Theo is forced to rely on her aunt, the pirate known as Dragonsbane, for support. However, her aunt believes that the only way to liberate Astrea is for Theo to marry a foreign ruler and use their army to fight the Kalovaxians. No Astrean Queen has ever married before, but with the desperate situation that Theo finds herself in, she has no choice but to allow Dragonsbane to organise a meeting with a number of potential suitors from the lands not controlled by the Kalovaxian armies.

Descending on the wealthy nation of Sta’Crivero, Theo is thrust into a dangerous hive of foreign royals and nobles, all of whom seek to use the newly released Astrean Queen to their own advantage. Forced to decide between her heart and the needs of her people, Theo has to play along in order to find a way to defeat the Kalovaxians. But sinister forces are at work within the Sta’Crivero palace: politicians are playing with her people’s lives, a sinister poisoner is targeting those closest to Theo, and the Kaiser has placed a price on her head. Theo must rely on those closest to her, but even those she cares about the most could bring her down.

Lady Smoke is Laura Sebastian’s second novel, which follows on from her debut book, Ash Princess. Ash Princess was a fantastic fantasy debut which I enjoyed thanks to its interesting blend of political intrigue and clever fantasy elements. However, I felt that Lady Smoke was an even better book, as Sebastian creates a much more compelling story while also expanding her fantasy universe and looking at the relationships between her characters.

Sebastian continues to focus on the growth of her protagonist and point-of-view character, Theo, as she rises to become the queen her people need. In this book, Theo is recovering, both physically and emotionally from her years of captivity in the Kalovaxian court. She is haunted by her decisions, including her ruthless manipulation and poisoning of Cress, one of the few people who considered Theo to be a friend. In order to obtain the power she needs to free her kingdom, she must try use a strategic marriage to arrange an alliance with one of the countries outside of Kalovaxian’s influence. The storyline focusing on her adventures within Sta’Crivero takes up a large portion of the book, and is an interesting piece of political intrigue. Theo and her companions must attempt to find a political suitable match while also avoiding being manipulated by the rich and powerful rulers who all want to control or exploit her or her country. There are a variety of layers to this story, as many of the rulers she encounters have their own agendas, and she must try and unravel them while also bringing some other nations to her cause. Add to that, a mysterious poisoner is at large within the palace, attempting to kill Theo’s favoured suitors and allies while also framing one of her advisers. Each of these parts of the story is deeply compelling, and I was very curious to see how this part of the story turned out. These sequences also had some great emotional depth, as Theo is forced to balance her personal desires and opinions about arranged marriages, with the requirements of an army to free her enslaved people.

I thought that the main political intrigue and arranged marriage storyline of Lady Smoke was done amazingly and was one of the most enjoyable parts of the book. The eventual conclusion of this storyline was handled pretty well, and readers will love the solution that the protagonist came up with. I really liked the reveal about who the poisoner was, although I kind of saw the twist coming far in advance. Even though I knew it was coming, I felt that the reveal was done extremely well, and the sinister motivations behind them made for some extremely compelling reading. The final twists of the book were also very shocking, and I definitely did not see one particular event coming. Overall, I had an absolute blast with this story, and thought it was substantially better than the awesome first book in the series.

Aside from the great story, one of the things I really enjoyed about Lady Smoke was the author’s superb universe expansion. While a number of other nations that make up Sebastian’s fantasy world were mentioned within Ash Princess, the entirety of the plot took place within the conquered country of Astrea. The plot for Lady Smoke, however, takes place in an entirely new setting, the kingdom of Sta’Crivero, which is an extremely wealthy and elitist realm. While the people of Sta’Crivero initially appear supportive of Theo and the Astreans, it is revealed that they look down on the refugees and treat them as slave labour. Sebastian does an amazing job of making the Sta’Crivero nobles sound exceedingly arrogant, and her descriptions of the rich and elaborate palace are stunningly decadent. Once Sta’Crivero has been introduced as an excellent new setting for the story, the author brings in the rulers from all the nations that have not been conquered by the Kalovaxians. Each of these new rulers is given an introduction, and their countries’ strengths and weaknesses are explored in various degrees of detail. As Theo interacts with each of these rulers, the reader gets a better idea of the world outside of Astra and Sta’Crivero, resulting in a richer world tapestry for the audience to enjoy. By the end of the book, Theo has made a number of allies and enemies from amongst these various nations, and it will be extremely fascinating to see how this comes into play within any future books in the series.

I quite enjoyed the unique and somewhat subtle magical elements that were shown throughout Ash Princess. In this second book, the author continues to expand on her interesting magical inclusions by showing her magical characters utilising their powers to a greater and more obvious degree and using their powers in different situations. I rather liked the exploration of ‘mine madness’, the process by which some Astrean magic users become overloaded with magic, especially those who have spent significant time in their magical mines as slave labour under the Kalovaxians. Alternate explanations for this condition are given throughout Lady Smoke, and the author also examines the destructive nature of the condition, through several impressive scenes. Other magical maladies are also featured within this book, and I liked how several unexpected characters were affected by these changes.

Sebastian does an amazing job of exploring the main character’s relationship with her friends and companions, and this forms an intriguing part of the plot. There is a bit of a focus on her friendships with her companions, Artemisia and Heron. Due to story reasons (Theo spent most of the first book on the other side of a wall), Theo was unable to build much of a relationship with either of these characters, so I liked how she started to bond with both of them. This deepening relationship results in some character development of these two interesting side characters, and some interesting explorations of their life are explored, such as Artemisia’s relationship with her mother, the Dragonsbane, and Heron’s homosexuality.

The most compelling character interactions occur between Theo and her two love interests, Blaise and Soren. Blaise is her oldest friend, her most loyal companion and the man who broke her out of the Astrean palace. Soren, on the other hand, is the son of the Kaiser, her most hated enemy, and the man who Theo spent the majority of Ash Princess seducing and manipulating for her own ends. Throughout the course of Lady Smoke, Theo finds herself attracted to both of these men, and must find a way to balance her feelings for them while also having to reconcile the possibility of choosing neither of them in order to secure her country’s freedom. Adding to this drama, both Blaise and Soren have their own storylines and character development that they must undergo. Blaise is suffering from mine madness, which has amplified his earth-based magic to a dangerous degree. As a result, Theo has to spend a significant part of the book as his emotional tether, trying to rein in his temper and creating chaos. Soren, on the other hand, must reconcile the evils that his countrymen and himself have undertaken while also trying to escape his father’s cruel legacy. In order to make amends and to get revenge on his father, he finds himself on Theo’s side, but his relationship proves to be more of a liability to Astrea in a number of ways. All of these issues make for an utterly captivating love triangle that really adds some interesting elements to the story.

In the follow-up to her debut novel, Ash Princess, Laura Sebastian continues her incredible fantasy series. Lady Smoke is an amazing sequel that really highlights Sebastian’s growth as an author. Not only does Sebastian successfully expand her fantasy universe, but she further develops her characters and provides the reader with an outstanding story. I am very much looking forward to the sequel to this book, Ember Queen, which is coming out in 2020, and I am extremely curious to see how several story developments at the end of Lady Smoke take form. Exceptional fantasy fiction from a creative and talented new author, Lady Smoke comes highly recommended.

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City of Lies by Sam Hawke

On August 16, 2018August 19, 2022 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Thriller15 Comments

Publisher: Bantam Press

Publication Date – 3 July 2018

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Poison, murder, conspiracy, and war are all on the way for readers of City of Lies, one of the best fantasy reads of the year from Canberra author Sam Hawke.

In the country of Sjona, the capital city of Silasta is a glittering beacon of culture and art. Young nobleman Jovan and his family serve a special role, subtly protecting Sjona’s ruler, the Chancellor, and his heirs from being poisoned. As a result of his training, Jovan is now capable of detecting and identifying poisons that could be slipped to his charges. While his uncle and mentor directly protects the Chancellor, Jovan serves the Chancellor’s carefree young heir, Tain.

When Jovan and Tain return to the city following a diplomatic journey, they are soon placed in a terrible situation. The impossible has happened: an unidentified poison has been slipped to the Chancellor, killing him and Jovan’s uncle. Without their respective mentors’ guidance both young men are thrust into new roles: Tain as an untested Chancellor, and Jovan now responsible for the safety of his nation’s ruler.

However, things can always get worse. A mysterious army has arrived undetected at the gates of Silasta, and the city, which has never known anything but peace, is soon besieged. The army appears to be made up of Sjona’s peasants and contains powerful individuals in control of spirits. With the majority of the military far away fighting in another conflict, few professional soldiers are left to defend Silasta, and Tain must lead a desperate defence against a superior force.

As the siege continues, it soon becomes apparent that not everything is as it seems. Why is the city being attacked, and how did no one see this coming? A deep conspiracy lies across the capital and no one can be trusted, not even Silasta’s ruling council. It also appears that the person who killed the Chancellor is still at large within the city and is aiming to poison Tain as well. As Jovan utilises all his skill to protect his friend, his sister Kalina searches for the traitors hiding inside their walls.

City of Lies is Australian author Sam Hawke’s debut novel and represents an outstanding first outing from a remarkable new talent. This ambitious book contains a fantastic plot, with some unique story elements and an elaborate thriller narrative that combines perfectly with the book’s overarching fantasy narrative. This is the first book in Hawke’s planned Poison War series, and is focused on two separate point-of-view characters, Jovan and Kalina, who each narrate around half the book.

This book contains an amazing and extremely compelling overarching thriller narrative that sees the protagonist attempt to unravel the conspiracies surrounding their city. Hawke has put a lot of work into creating an elaborate and multilayered plot that draws the reader in with its significant intrigue. The is so much for the reader to discover as the protagonists try to work out who the army attacking them is, what their motives are, and how the siege relates to the secrets of the ruling class. This intrigue-driven storyline is amped up even more once it is revealed that the person who poisoned the chancellor might not be a member of the army camped outside the city. Hawke presents the reader with a number of likely suspects, most of whom are on the city’s ruling council, as well as a range of interesting and plausible motives for the betrayal. The full extent of the interwoven conspiracies is quite impressive, and Hawke presents an extremely captivating storyline of the protagonists unravelling the plot that is guaranteed to pull in the reader’s full attention. This is definitely a high point of this fantastic book.

One of City of Lies’ standout features is Hawke’s substantial focus on poisons and role the main character plays in protecting the city’s ruler from harmful substances. At the start of the story, the Chancellor and the protagonists’ uncle are both poisoned and killed by an unknown toxin. Jovan, who already served Tain as his ‘proofer’, a combination food taster, poison master, and trusted personal chef, spends the rest of the book trying to defend Tain from a poisoner he knows is out there, who apparently has access to a poison he has no idea how to detect or cure. The battle of wits between Jovan and the poisoner is an intense part of the book’s narrative, and the reader can feel the desperation that Jovan feels trying to keep his friend and, by extension, his city alive. There are some great scenes throughout this book as Jovan attempts to work out how poison could be administered to Tain, as well as trying to work out potential cures and solutions to the poison’s victims.

In addition to examining the tension that the book’s poison elements elicit, Hawke also spends a significant amount of time exploring the various toxins of her universe and the techniques of the book’s poison ‘proofers’. The descriptions of these skills in training is utterly fascinating, and the author has come up with some amazing ideas that prove to be enthralling for the reader. In addition, Hawke has chosen to deepen the audience’s interest and knowledge of her universe’s poisons by including a page of the protagonist’s ‘proofer tome’ before each chapter in the book. These pages contain a description of the poison, what effects it has when administrated and what clues the proofer can use to identify the poison in food, such as taste or texture. This is a fun addition that also contains some information relevant to the book’s plot, and the readers will find themselves deeply exploring the lore being presented to them. Another cool feature was the way in which Jovan uses his knowledge and cache of poisons in an offensive manner against his opponents to compensate for his lack of martial skill. There are some fantastic scenes where Jovan uses a range of different substances in the middle of battles, as well as some excellent sequences where he doses potential opponents in advance of a confrontation.

Special mention should also be given to the wonderful fantasy setting that Hawke has created for City of Lies. The vast majority of the plot is set within the capital of Silasta, a large city that has a reputation and preference for culture and the arts, whilst viewing violence and warfare as a distasteful profession. The author does an amazing job describing this city’s many wonders, whilst at the same time creating a unique societal setup that plays brilliantly into the story’s intriguing elements. While the focus of this book is solely within the nation of Sjona, expect the sequels to follow adventures in other countries mentioned.

The siege elements of this book are also very enjoyable and offer another interesting point to this fantastic book. I’m always a fan of a good siege storyline, especially when it’s told from the point of view of the defenders. The parts of the book that focus on the siege are extremely well written and provide the book with some substantial action sequences. It is also fun to see how a city mostly made up of peace-loving artists and performers can defend itself without an army to help. Hawke produces some great ideas for her defenders, which also ties into the fantastic poison elements above, when the protagonists use their knowledge to create some defences for their city.

Overall, City of Lies is an intrigue-studded masterpiece of a fantasy novel that combines together a range or magnificent story elements with an excellent setting and an addictive overarching thriller narrative. Hawke’s use of poisons as a key plot point is just incredible and represents one of the most interesting parts of this book, and I am intrigued to see how she will continue to use poisons in future entries in this series. This is a five-star debut from Hawke, and I would wholeheartedly recommend City of Lies to any fans of the fantasy genre.

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Destroying Angel by S. G. MacLean

On August 2, 2018April 11, 2023 By The Unseen LibraryIn Five-Star Books, Historical Fiction, Murder Mystery9 Comments

Publisher: Quercus

Publication date – 12 July 2018

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Prepare to experience an excellent multi-mystery story set deep in the heart of Cromwell’s Puritan England in Destroying Angel, the new book from historical thriller sensation S. G. MacLean.

It is 1655, a time of great change for England. Oliver Crowell’s forces have cleared the Royalist armies from England, and exiled the King and his court to the continent. The country is now in the grip of Puritan morals and the rule of Cromwell’s major-generals.

In York, Captain Damian Seeker of Cromwell’s army is responsible for hunting down Royalist elements hiding within the country and quelling dissent against the new regime. His latest mission requires him to journey to the small village of Faithly on the Yorkshire moors to deliver the government’s new laws and ordinances and inspect the area for traitors. In addition, a fugitive member of the King’s exiled court may have returned to his family estates near Faithly, and Seeker is charged with searching the village and the surrounding countryside.

But upon arriving in Faithly, Seeker bears witness to the tragic death of the young ward of the town’s commissioner. Her death appears to be the result of poisoned mushrooms, slipped to her at a formal dinner attended by Seeker and several of the village’s notable citizens. Was she the intended target or just a causality of a far larger game? As Seeker begins to investigate, he soon finds that Faithly is a seething hotbed of resentment and fear. Plots, secrets, lies and petty jealousies lie just beneath the surface, and many of the village’s inhabitants seek to use the dramatic changes in England’s rule for their own gain. As Seeker attempts to navigate the chaos he finds in Faithly, a chance encounter from his past will change everything for the captain.

MacLean has once again delivered a fantastic and intensely thrilling piece of historical fiction. Destroying Angel is the third book in the Captain Seeker series, and the seventh overall book from MacLean, who has also published four historical thrillers in his Alexander Seaton series. In his latest book, Maclean has created several compelling mysteries that are expertly combined with the book’s fascinating historical background.

The main storyline of Destroying Angel is a fantastic investigation into the secrets and mysteries surrounding a small village. When the book’s protagonist arrives at Faithly, the central location of the plot, he encounters a village that is brimming with hidden secrets and lies. While the core mysteries revolve around the poisoned girl and the location of the fugitive Royalist lord, the protagonist is forced to uncover all of the village’s many secrets in order to find the solutions to the murder and treachery that he encounters. The reader is presented with a massive stream of information about many of the characters in the book, all of which is cleverly woven into a series of intriguing solutions. For example, the eventual motives for the poisoning of the commissioner’s ward are particularly captivating, and fairly tragic. MacLean ensures that every single secret and hidden past is tied into the overall story and has created an outstanding narrative that highlights his substantial skill at historical mysteries.

In addition to the huge range of mysteries that MacLean has inserted into his book, there is also a significant storyline that will prove to be extremely interesting to fans of the previous books in the Captain Seeker series. While performing his other investigations, the protagonist is thrust into an emotive storyline when he suddenly encounters ghosts from his past. This new storyline is particularly intriguing as it goes deep into the protagonist’s past, uncovering old wounds and substantially increasing his emotional stake in the story. Previous readers of this series will find it intriguing to see the usually implacable character of Seeker so rattled and unbalanced in this story. The sudden and violent introduction into this storyline is particularly memorable and represents a noticeable change in the book’s tone, and is an excellent inclusion in an already fantastic read.

One of the most impressive and enjoyable elements of this book is the author’s spectacular use of an absorbing historical setting. During this period, England is experiencing significant change, as the King and his followers have all been expelled from the country and a new group of people have risen in power. Despite it being a significant part of England’s history, not too many historical fiction authors have chosen to set their books during this period. MacLean does an amazing job of exploring the various aspects of this new regime and tying them into the overall plot of Destroying Angel. This includes the new laws that have been put in place, the changes to local governance and the effect of military rule on the people. However, one of the most fascinating aspects of the entire plot is MacLean’s examination of the Puritan moralities that were imposed on the people of England. Destroying Angel focuses on how this affected day to day life, what role the new church had in England and how they treated priests who didn’t meet Puritan expectations. One of the best parts of the book is the blatantly biased trial of the priest of Faithly village, as members of the populace and a special state examiner, known as ‘the Trier’, attempt to remove him from his parish. The author has chosen a great location to showcase these examples of life under Cromwell, as the small village setting allows the reader to see how it affected normal, everyday people. It also allows the reader to get an idea about some of the discontent and petty power plays that could have possibly resulted from the changes to the system. Overall, MacLean has set his series with a deeply interesting time period that serves as the perfect background for a murder and conflict ridden story.

Destroying Angel is a fantastic and incredibly enjoyable novel that serves as an outstanding and powerful new addition to MacLean’s Captain Seeker series, combining several captivating mysteries with an outstanding and rarely utilised historical setting. Readers will find so much to love about this book, which is historical murder mystery at its very best.

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