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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Suicide, Violence, Classism
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail
I received a copy of this from Netgalley and the Publisher in exchange for my open and honest review.
If you would like to read more of my reviews or various other bookish things please come by my blog
at https://beforewegoblog.com/
Kel Kade's book, Fate of the Fallen, is a book of tropes turned on their head and flipped all around. For example, how many books have you read about a small-town farming boy and his trusty best friend that learns that he has a magical destiny and is fated to either destroy or save the world? How about that farming boy that was raised by a wise old man who happens to be a wizard. And that wizard has kept it a secret all these years. These tropes are here, sort of.
Here is where this story gets good...
Kade has taken these time old formulas and flipped them all around. Instead of the small-town boy fulfilling the prophecy, he dies in the second chapter. His best friend has to take his head and do all he can do to help save his friends and family. Imagine if Frodo died, and Samwise Gamgee had to take over his quest alone while carrying Frodo's magically bespelled. The old male father figure wizard trope is instead replaced by a female who is a witch. It entirely changes the tone of the story, for the better. And the prophecy is going to come true no matter what. No matter what.
I can't tell you much more about the plot because this is a story that even merely alluding to events in the story that will ruin it. Just know that hackneyed tropes are thrown out the window for fresh and bright storytelling that is enthralling and heartbreaking at the same time. There was more than one time during this story, where I had to put the book down and say out loud, "Damn."
The side characters are just as exciting as the main protagonist, and I enjoyed the interactions and reactions that Kade has written. The dialog and prose of the story flow from moment to moment but is not jam-packed with so much action and detail that the reader gets tired. It is just enough to keep you only slightly breathless, but always wanting more. Another thing is this story is funny as hell. It had me guffawing and howling a couple of times. Kade really taps into the snark on this one.
Fate of the Fallen is a story that I just loved. It is everything a reader wants out of a fantasy romp. It has great characters, exciting twists, funny dialog, and a protagonist that you want to know more about. Definitely one of the best books I have read this year and I can't wait to read more from Kade.
If you would like to read more of my reviews or various other bookish things please come by my blog
at https://beforewegoblog.com/
Kel Kade's book, Fate of the Fallen, is a book of tropes turned on their head and flipped all around. For example, how many books have you read about a small-town farming boy and his trusty best friend that learns that he has a magical destiny and is fated to either destroy or save the world? How about that farming boy that was raised by a wise old man who happens to be a wizard. And that wizard has kept it a secret all these years. These tropes are here, sort of.
Here is where this story gets good...
Kade has taken these time old formulas and flipped them all around. Instead of the small-town boy fulfilling the prophecy, he dies in the second chapter. His best friend has to take his head and do all he can do to help save his friends and family. Imagine if Frodo died, and Samwise Gamgee had to take over his quest alone while carrying Frodo's magically bespelled. The old male father figure wizard trope is instead replaced by a female who is a witch. It entirely changes the tone of the story, for the better. And the prophecy is going to come true no matter what. No matter what.
I can't tell you much more about the plot because this is a story that even merely alluding to events in the story that will ruin it. Just know that hackneyed tropes are thrown out the window for fresh and bright storytelling that is enthralling and heartbreaking at the same time. There was more than one time during this story, where I had to put the book down and say out loud, "Damn."
The side characters are just as exciting as the main protagonist, and I enjoyed the interactions and reactions that Kade has written. The dialog and prose of the story flow from moment to moment but is not jam-packed with so much action and detail that the reader gets tired. It is just enough to keep you only slightly breathless, but always wanting more. Another thing is this story is funny as hell. It had me guffawing and howling a couple of times. Kade really taps into the snark on this one.
Fate of the Fallen is a story that I just loved. It is everything a reader wants out of a fantasy romp. It has great characters, exciting twists, funny dialog, and a protagonist that you want to know more about. Definitely one of the best books I have read this year and I can't wait to read more from Kade.
I almost absolutely loved this book! For the first 30 pages I was thinking of lighting a fire with it, which would be bad because it is a kindle edition, due to the in your face tropes Kade jammed in. Pleasantly that was just a setting of the table so she could whip the table cloth off, along with all the dishes, silverware and have them fly towards your head.
This is a high fantasy novel where you really aren't sure what comes next which is very refreshing. It has banter, which I love, possible crazy people who talk to themselves...maybe, a horse named Dolt who may or may not be and layers of gods that are hard to comprehend.
My couple of quibbles were that the hand wavy stuff was a bit too wavy and Teza changed too much from when we met her to the end of the book. Otherwise, I can't wait for the next one.
This is a high fantasy novel where you really aren't sure what comes next which is very refreshing. It has banter, which I love, possible crazy people who talk to themselves...maybe, a horse named Dolt who may or may not be and layers of gods that are hard to comprehend.
My couple of quibbles were that the hand wavy stuff was a bit too wavy and Teza changed too much from when we met her to the end of the book. Otherwise, I can't wait for the next one.
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The book starts out typically for the fantasy genre but then becomes anything but. This first book in the series was fresh and inventive. The characters were fun and unique. The writing was great and the dialog witty. Lot's of action throughout but also good story development to go with it. Hurry up book 2.
Re-visited (audio version this time, performer great) with the 2nd book recently being released and was glad I did. Just as good the second time!
Re-visited (audio version this time, performer great) with the 2nd book recently being released and was glad I did. Just as good the second time!
A passable fantasy adventure. Kade tries to do some interesting things with subverting classic tropes, but I wasn't very invested in her characters and the world needed more fleshing out. There were some cool concepts, though, and it was entertaining enough.
I could not finish this book. There was not enough introduction into the world, just a bunch of characters dumped in.
adventurous
challenging
funny
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
The audiobook was quite entertaining with great voice work, however the story for me wasn't too strong, but I'm intrigued to see where the story goes in the rest of the series
"Doesn't matter your position. You're a man, and a man can choose to make things more difficult, or he can choose to help. In the choosing, he decides what kind of man he wants to be."
3.5 stars, rounded up. I found the first half of the book to be kind of slow for me, but the second half definitely got better. I may read the second book because I love the gods' story line and some of the characters, but I wasn't necessarily blown away from this. It is a decent high fantasy book if you want a new world to explore, though!
3.5 stars, rounded up. I found the first half of the book to be kind of slow for me, but the second half definitely got better. I may read the second book because I love the gods' story line and some of the characters, but I wasn't necessarily blown away from this. It is a decent high fantasy book if you want a new world to explore, though!