Reviews - A Song of Legends Lost

307 reviews for:

A Song of Legends Lost

M.H. Ayinde

4.06 AVERAGE

dandi's review against another edition

3.0

adventurous dark medium-paced

jessfrarec's review against another edition

3.75

Well damn, this was weird. But in a good way? Weird in the best “what even is this genre?” kind of way. At various points it felt like part tribal fantasy, part dusty sci-fi western, and a bit of a fever dream, all sort of stitched together into one sprawling, high-concept chaos beast. But what a world was born from its gaping maw.

While I’m no stranger to complex and epic fantasy and sci-if, was it a bit confusing at times? Yes. Did I fully track who to root for or who the villains were? Not always. Were there at least five central mysteries that got no real closure? Sadly, yes. And yet… I was surprised by eagerly I ate this up. There’s something magnetic about how untethered it all felt, even though sometimes it felt a bit like wet spaghetti flung at a wall. But just when I thought nothing stuck, the last 100 pages rolled in and said: “surprise, bitch!”

Those final chapters had me gasping gasps. Fists were clenched, pages were devoured. And while I’m still a little foggy on the full picture of what the Invocation powers actually are, who the Scathed and Greybloods really are, or why all these seemingly different ancestral realms even exist, I am desperate for answers.

Also, M.H. Ayinde gave a masterclass in character development and relationships. A shoutout to my sweet chaotic children: Jinao, Runt, Temi, Elani, and my murder-poet king, the Bairneater - I love them. No notes.

So yes, I’m confused. Yes, I loved it. And yes, I will absolutely be throwing myself into book two the moment it drops. Flabbergasted. Enchanted. Emotionally compromised. Let’s go.

reading_and_roaming20's review against another edition

2.0

mysterious slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

I really wanted this to come together in a way that would make the slog worth it. I was just more confused by the end. I will admit that the first epilogue had me intrigued but not nearly enough to want to read the second book. Such a bummer because I went in with extremely high hopes after the first few chapters.

stephquiem's review against another edition

2.75

slow-paced

ronitjauthor's review against another edition

3.75

This review was originally posted on SFF Insiders https://www.sffinsiders.com/blog/review-a-song-of-legends-lost-by-m-h-ayinde

I’ve been hearing a lot about this one on Booktube and Bookstagram. Plus, the pitch of a pre-colonial epic fantasy inspired by African cultures absolutely piqued my interest. And you know what? The prologue, with its science-fantasy elements and unique world, surprised me more than it should have.

So, did this much-anticipated epic fantasy debut live up to the hype?

Spoilers Ahead!

What I liked:
There is a lot to like in this book, especially if you love sprawling worlds, huge casts of characters, unique cultures, and fantastical magic systems.

Temi is the first POV you get, and hers was the most exciting, emotionally moving, and narratively satisfying of the lot. The blurb makes it feel like she is the primary protagonist, and I would vote for her if I could. Hers felt like the most personal story, given how she’s surrounded by her family. Plus, the personal touch makes the stakes feel highest for her, despite other plotlines literally dealing with continent-wide conflicts. In addition to all this, the reveal of the true nature of the spirit she’s entangled with made me want to keep reading more about Temi to see where her story is headed. My only issue with this arc was Temi’s absence in all of Part 2.

Father Boleo was another brilliant POV. I particularly liked this one because the ‘science’ elements of the science fantasy were more blatant here than in any of the other POVs. Plus. Boleo’s arc puts him on a sort of anti-establishment path, which is always fun and thrilling. I wasn’t a fan of how the ending of his arc was kinda sidelined by a different character. However, the journey to that ending was intriguing, and I really want to see more of him in the sequels.

Lastly, I would like to mention Runt. She’s introduced fairly late in the plot, but her story was almost like a mirror to Temi’s. Another deeply personal conflict, both Temi and Runt’s powerless place in society made them formidable and compelling characters. They’re practically nobodies who end up in the middle of a continent-wide conflict that dates back millennia. Plus, their characterization really makes you root for them at every juncture of the plot.

The world and magic system were quite imaginative. Ayinde’s writing did a fine job of immersing me into this strange science-fantasy world. Even when I could guess where the reveals were headed, I was amazed when they came to the forefront. The way these Ancestor spirits are summoned during battle, the slow and gradual reveals of what the techwork devices are, as well as learning more about the other Clans and greybloods… all of it really put into perspective the sprawling scope of this epic fantasy novel, whilst keeping me engaged with this vivid world.

Lastly, I want to mention the ending because it was just superb. Part 4 of the book basically has all our character arcs converging (except Elari, but her plot does contribute to the finale). Part 4 was a complete, fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat ride, compensating for the pacing issues of the earlier portions. The ending dumps world-changing reveals on you, which really put things into perspective. While most of the plot points here are wrapped up, there’s a whole storm brewing in the near future, and the rumbling of those conflicts can be felt within the last few pages of the book.

What I didn’t like:

Right off the bat, I did not like Jinao’s POV. By the third or fourth chapter of his storyline, I had begun to skim through parts because I just couldn’t bring myself to root for him. I don’t know if the character is uninteresting or if I had some kind of bias toward his personality, but nothing about him appealed to me. In addition to that, pretty much the first half of his storyline progresses passively. What I mean by this is that other people drive the story forward; Jinao is little more than a spectator. What made this story all the more uninteresting to me was how the other POV characters had much better emotional and eventful arcs that explored the world and its cultures in more interesting ways.

Another issue I faced was with some of the plot points. For example, in Elari’s arc, the foreigners in General Manax’s court are revealed to be secretly powerful invokers (Cloistered) who murder important folks in the court. While the concept was interesting, the way it was explored didn’t make sense to me. Why wouldn’t General Manax suspect the foreigners? If he isn’t batting an eye, wouldn’t Elari suspect his involvement and leave before things get worse? While the events are justified as we progress, I wasn’t able to wrap my head around it. Overall, I had mixed feelings about Elari as a character as well as her arc.

Also, and I have to admit this despite all my praises, I found it hard to keep up with all the names, hierarchies, and roles. The names are subjective, but the other two are not. Maybe my struggle with names made the other two more difficult than they actually were. But this was an issue for me, and it wouldn’t be fair to ignore it in my review.

Lastly, this book is mostly a setup. Half the book progresses without really giving you enough answers, which made me almost lose interest. Even when the payoffs came in the end, they didn’t satisfy me to the same extent as I expected from the build-up, leaving me with mixed feelings. The book is as epic as promised, but the pacing and some characters do bring down its overall brilliance.

In Conclusion:
A Song of Legends Lost is a pre-colonial African-inspired epic science fantasy debut. It features a unique world, clashing clans, ancestral spirits, politics, and so much more! Yet, I have to admit to having mixed feelings after finishing the book. The world and cultures are imaginative enough to make me revisit this world. But some of the characters and some parts of the plot definitely needed improvement.

My guess is that book 2 will be a significant upgrade to this debut, mostly because a lot of the setup has already been done in book 1. The pieces are in place, the conflicts are established, and now the world is about to witness widespread change.

TL;DR:
What I liked: The cultures, the science-fantasy elements, Temi, Runt and Boleo’s arcs.
What I didn’t like: Jinao, some plot points, mixed feelings regarding the overall plot

virdzsina's review against another edition

4.25

adventurous mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

mellamaron's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

It’s been such a long time since I have found an epic fantasy that has compelled me like this one! 🙌 I am floored that this is Ayinde’s debut. You can tell that she worked hard and developed a tale that rivals some of the most popular epic fantasies of the modern era.

What I loved in particular about this book is how I never felt overwhelmed. When I read some epic fantasy, I can get lost in the intricacies and abundance of minute details. This book, however, gave me a deep and detailed story with a care for the reader. It felt easy to comprehend. It was SO refreshing to be able to just relax and read an epic adventure without being bogged down by an over complicated magic system or world.

If I had to give a comp title? It’s like a modern Wheel of Time - but reimagined, twisted, and given a breath of new life. The magic system and tech work of Song is so unique and interesting. It’s not a textbook system either - it’s much more lore-based. We don’t have a set standard of rules here and things change and adapt. It was so fascinating and compelling. I really liked that every new twist was methodical and it made sense. None of them were there for shock value! I could tell this book was planned so well and all the small little plot points weaved into one another (as the wheel wills, lol)

The characters were FANTASTIC. They were all unique and intriguing. I loved that we saw Temi at the beginning and then she wasn’t in the parts again until the end. It made for some interesting middle plots. I ADORED Elari. Jinao was fascinating because he’s this kind of meek character who strengthens and grows in some ways but doesn’t in others. Boleo wasn’t my favorite but I found his sections to be more interesting than I would have thought and extremely necessary. And I highly enjoyed Runt and her plot as well!! We have so many povs but again, I was never overwhelmed!! I remembered each one and enjoyed them all.

And guys, Ayinde did all of this without a heavy romance subplot nor any smut. 🙌 This was an amazing story of magic, lore, character development, and world building.

It’s a book like this that makes you realize how inferior other books can be. 😂 I fear for all my books that follow this one. Top tier epic fantasy here, folks. I’m so excited for more people to find this book and read it!