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spellboundbybooks's review against another edition
5.0
Yet again Aryan has upped his game. If I could give this six stars I would! This final book in the trilogy is more raw and gritty with a darker tone than the previous installments and I loved it! It takes place in Voehenka, a city where the dead are returning to life and are taking or killing the few survivors remaining since the Battlemage war and its aftermath.
As always the action is top notch and the pacing is well done. In terms of world building, we get to know more about the Morrin people and their place in this world.
I loved seeing Balfruss again and learning what he has been up to and Aryan yet again wrote other compelling and diverse characters that I came to like and cheer for.
I can honestly say I have really enjoyed this trilogy and it will be going on my re-read shelf. Also Stephen Aryan has now become another auto-buy for me!
As always the action is top notch and the pacing is well done. In terms of world building, we get to know more about the Morrin people and their place in this world.
I loved seeing Balfruss again and learning what he has been up to and Aryan yet again wrote other compelling and diverse characters that I came to like and cheer for.
I can honestly say I have really enjoyed this trilogy and it will be going on my re-read shelf. Also Stephen Aryan has now become another auto-buy for me!
clendorie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
etienne02's review against another edition
5.0
Probablement le meilleur de la trilogie. Rempli d'actions et de personnages légendaires (surtout Balfruss et Vargus) le tout dans une histoire épique. Les combats magiques sont excellents et très bien décrits. J'ai adoré, dans ce tome comme dans le reste de la trilogie, l'univers créé et aussi le mélange des genres, dans le deuxième tome, un flirtait, dans la premièr emoitié surtout, avec le roman policier et dans celui-ci l'intégration des «zombies» est bien fait et assez originale pour un roman de fantastique/fantasy. Bref un très bon roman qui conclu une excellente trilogie. Une recommandation aux fans du genre!!
carol26388's review
4.0
Wow, what a stroke of luck! The rather crabby clerk at Half-Price Books wanted me to know it'd be half an hour before they'd make me an offer on my books. No worries--I can think of about a hundred things more difficult than spending thirty minutes in a bookstore. So instead of my usual quick scan, I actually looked quite thoroughly at all the books on the trade and hardcover sci-fi shelves. And wow, would you believe how many of my mediocre reads were there? (Apparently, I wasn't the only one unimpressed). I was shocked to see Chasing Embers, and almost bought it just so I could howl with laughter all over again (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1734345114 ). But I digress.
I found this and tempted by 'chaos' to read a few pages. Two women were standing guard on a wall, defending their motley group against the Forsaken, hollowed-out former friends who had been carried away in the fighting. A few more pages and there was a Guardian woman given an assignment to escort a battlemage to the beleaguered city. Excellent: mages,zombies evangelicals creepy, personality-less shells of people, and women as many of the main characters. I thought I'd spend my ill-gained proceeds from Altered Carbon, American Gods, Charmed by Shadow, and Joy School on this baby, and I have to say, what a prize.
It's kind of old school epic fantasy, writ modern, reminding me of Witch World. Andre Norton had some kind of hollowed, uniform grey men, and I suddenly realized a number of classic authors had flirted with zombie mythology in fantasy land. Although I didn't know it at the time, it's the conclusion of a trilogy, but from what I can tell, it doesn't matter too much in terms of a single overarching story. On my re-read, my sense is that the war has been over for two years, and this is more a 'what are they up to now' for a couple of the characters. It takes place in a distant, isolated city of artisans, Voechenka. It is under siege from the possessed, under threat from mercenaries, and reports are finally starting to reach those who have enough power to act.
The two women standing guard are Zannah, a non-human and member of the prior conquering race, and her friend, Alyssa. They've been rallying survivors to defend their safehouse, a winery (isn't everyone's safehouse full of wine?), from the Forsaken and the mercenaries. Farther away, Tammy the Guardian (easily the worst thing about this book was her incongruous name) is escorting Balfruss the Battlemage to the city of Voechenka. Her superior wants her to investigate the city and discover what is going on, and the mage has been asked to deal with the magical threat.
Once all the characters got into place, action was non-stop. There were a number of issues to sort out, so every one has a part to play. While I expected certain things to play out certain ways, I really enjoyed the ride getting there.
Characters are well done. I think most are newer to the trilogy arc, so we get more information about Zannah, a member of a race of non-humans, and Alyssa, her friend. The battlemage and the warrior also get some development. And you know what else? There's a lot of women in this story. Amazing fighters. Leaders. Spiritual guides. Antagonists. Magic wielders. You know--they're just people, playing a role that isn't just virgin or whore. Give this a try if you like the blood and guts of Mark Lawrence or Brent Weeks but would like less sexism. Or if you sort of liked The Black Company by Glen Cooks, but wanted more detail and characterization.
Although I didn't get too much sense of the larger world, I enjoyed the sense of the city, past and present, and felt like there was a good sense of danger. I recommend this to fans of epic fantasy. I suppose I'll have to search out the first two books, but I'm a little afraid they won't live up to this one.
Four and a half stars, rounding up because it's been quite a while since I've enjoyed an epic fantasy this much. And I'll be keeping the book.
I found this and tempted by 'chaos' to read a few pages. Two women were standing guard on a wall, defending their motley group against the Forsaken, hollowed-out former friends who had been carried away in the fighting. A few more pages and there was a Guardian woman given an assignment to escort a battlemage to the beleaguered city. Excellent: mages,
It's kind of old school epic fantasy, writ modern, reminding me of Witch World. Andre Norton had some kind of hollowed, uniform grey men, and I suddenly realized a number of classic authors had flirted with zombie mythology in fantasy land. Although I didn't know it at the time, it's the conclusion of a trilogy, but from what I can tell, it doesn't matter too much in terms of a single overarching story. On my re-read, my sense is that the war has been over for two years, and this is more a 'what are they up to now' for a couple of the characters. It takes place in a distant, isolated city of artisans, Voechenka. It is under siege from the possessed, under threat from mercenaries, and reports are finally starting to reach those who have enough power to act.
The two women standing guard are Zannah, a non-human and member of the prior conquering race, and her friend, Alyssa. They've been rallying survivors to defend their safehouse, a winery (isn't everyone's safehouse full of wine?), from the Forsaken and the mercenaries. Farther away, Tammy the Guardian (easily the worst thing about this book was her incongruous name) is escorting Balfruss the Battlemage to the city of Voechenka. Her superior wants her to investigate the city and discover what is going on, and the mage has been asked to deal with the magical threat.
Once all the characters got into place, action was non-stop. There were a number of issues to sort out, so every one has a part to play. While I expected certain things to play out certain ways, I really enjoyed the ride getting there.
Characters are well done. I think most are newer to the trilogy arc, so we get more information about Zannah, a member of a race of non-humans, and Alyssa, her friend. The battlemage and the warrior also get some development. And you know what else? There's a lot of women in this story. Amazing fighters. Leaders. Spiritual guides. Antagonists. Magic wielders. You know--they're just people, playing a role that isn't just virgin or whore. Give this a try if you like the blood and guts of Mark Lawrence or Brent Weeks but would like less sexism. Or if you sort of liked The Black Company by Glen Cooks, but wanted more detail and characterization.
Although I didn't get too much sense of the larger world, I enjoyed the sense of the city, past and present, and felt like there was a good sense of danger. I recommend this to fans of epic fantasy. I suppose I'll have to search out the first two books, but I'm a little afraid they won't live up to this one.
Four and a half stars, rounding up because it's been quite a while since I've enjoyed an epic fantasy this much. And I'll be keeping the book.
scottish_kat's review
3.0
Yay! Balfruss is back!
I spent a lot of time hovering between 3 and 4 stars for this. The story is good and the characters are excellent.
but...
There are a ton of unanswered questions, mainly around Balfruss and that bugs my happiness but the main reason I went for 3 was that the whole Vargus / Brotherhood thing seemed utterly pointless. I was expecting far more from that than what we got.
Overall it rounded off the trilogy nicely.
I spent a lot of time hovering between 3 and 4 stars for this. The story is good and the characters are excellent.
but...
There are a ton of unanswered questions, mainly around Balfruss and that bugs my happiness but the main reason I went for 3 was that the whole Vargus / Brotherhood thing seemed utterly pointless. I was expecting far more from that than what we got.
Overall it rounded off the trilogy nicely.
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