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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
I love the concept behind this book, but the execution was more of a mixed bag. What if Frodo died before completing his quest and Samwise had to pick up the slack? This takes the concept of the fated hero dying and the reluctant sidekick having to take center stage and puts it into its own story and world. Aslo and Mathias have been best friends all their lives. Mathias is handsome and charming, someone everyone loves. Aslo is a Forester- respected but a quieter introvert with a more gruff personality. And as it turns out, Mathias is also the fated hero of the world with his death leading to the destruction of the world. So when he does in fact die, Aslo chooses to carry his burden.
This is a really great setup and I liked the way Aslo and Mathias contrast in terms of personality. There were also things I enjoyed about the progression of the book. It's a surprisingly lighthearted adventure and can be fun and entertaining. However, the world-building feels very lazy and there are bizarre elements sometimes thrown in without explanation.
The magic system is never adequately explained, nor are the enemies seeking to destroy everything, and we get perspectives from these meddling gods in another realm that seem to come out of nowhere. Wait, there are gods in this world? Oh, okay, I guess there are! And they are reminiscent of portrayals of Greek gods playing with humans. Other things like Aslo carrying Mathias' head around in a sack and then conversing with his dead friend are a little strange. At first I thought maybe this was a way of dealing with his grief, but it definitely goes beyond that and turns into something of a joke. Also, it's rarely clear where the plot is actually going and sometimes felt a little random in the way it was constructed.
If it sounds like I hated the book, I didn't. It was largely a fun book to read, but also a strange and sometimes frustrating experience. If you can just go along for the ride and aren't too bothered by the lack of structure and explanation, then this could be a fun one to read. If you need things to make sense and have well-structured worldbuilding, this probably is not the book for you.
This is a really great setup and I liked the way Aslo and Mathias contrast in terms of personality. There were also things I enjoyed about the progression of the book. It's a surprisingly lighthearted adventure and can be fun and entertaining. However, the world-building feels very lazy and there are bizarre elements sometimes thrown in without explanation.
The magic system is never adequately explained, nor are the enemies seeking to destroy everything, and we get perspectives from these meddling gods in another realm that seem to come out of nowhere. Wait, there are gods in this world? Oh, okay, I guess there are! And they are reminiscent of portrayals of Greek gods playing with humans. Other things like Aslo carrying Mathias' head around in a sack and then conversing with his dead friend are a little strange. At first I thought maybe this was a way of dealing with his grief, but it definitely goes beyond that and turns into something of a joke. Also, it's rarely clear where the plot is actually going and sometimes felt a little random in the way it was constructed.
If it sounds like I hated the book, I didn't. It was largely a fun book to read, but also a strange and sometimes frustrating experience. If you can just go along for the ride and aren't too bothered by the lack of structure and explanation, then this could be a fun one to read. If you need things to make sense and have well-structured worldbuilding, this probably is not the book for you.
4.25
First off, that cover! It is brilliantly done. Definitely a bonus.
I also really enjoyed the characters here. Aaslo is so gruff and lovable and just a joy to read. Mory and Peck are too much fun. Mathias is a riot. Teza, such a fun time. I love them all.
The overall execution of the story was done fairly well. The pacing was decent, characters and plot were good. Honestly, I think the biggest issue here was the end. It just kind of happened? There was a lot of traveling and build up and it just didn't really HIT you as I had expected. I feel like there could have been much more to it.
But I like the lore and the build-up and the world. And it's not a stand-alone so I can see why I don't feel complete about it. Because it's not complete. But it just wasn't . . . enough? Yeah, I'm going with that.
One quick note for those who have read it anyone else find it interesting that Magdelay tells Aaslo "Death. Your beach is death. So say ALL the prophets." and not only does he become able to control the dead, but also, he has a prophet that the others didn't know about. Interesting, no?
Cover 5; Characters 5; Pace 3; Plot 4; Writing 4; Enjoyment 4.
First off, that cover! It is brilliantly done. Definitely a bonus.
I also really enjoyed the characters here. Aaslo is so gruff and lovable and just a joy to read. Mory and Peck are too much fun. Mathias is a riot. Teza, such a fun time. I love them all.
The overall execution of the story was done fairly well. The pacing was decent, characters and plot were good. Honestly, I think the biggest issue here was the end. It just kind of happened? There was a lot of traveling and build up and it just didn't really HIT you as I had expected. I feel like there could have been much more to it.
But I like the lore and the build-up and the world. And it's not a stand-alone so I can see why I don't feel complete about it. Because it's not complete. But it just wasn't . . . enough? Yeah, I'm going with that.
One quick note for those who have read it
Cover 5; Characters 5; Pace 3; Plot 4; Writing 4; Enjoyment 4.
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Concept was great but the writing needed additional work. The writing style prevented me from enjoying the story as much as I should have.
Fate of the Fallen is a novel that thrives on turning tropes upside down. Kel Kade has given us a story that feels in many ways like classic fantasy. The normal tropes you’d expect exist, but they are turned almost exactly upside down. It definitely creates an interesting feel. In this regard, the book doesn’t pull any punches as it somehow manages to be bleak without feeling hopeless.
One of the most obvious things that stands out in this novel is the denial of tropes. This goes beyond questions of prophecy and heroes and the sort of things that the back cover gets you thinking about. There are moments in the story when you have to just take a moment and kind of force yourself to accept that, yes, Kade did go there, Kade did do that. While the book has many of the trappings of classic fantasy—plucky upstart hero from a small town with a prophecy behind him—the story is worked out in such fresh ways that the tropes are denied, sometimes in very in-your-face fashion. It definitely keeps things fresh and brings up a ton of questions that keep the pages turning. There is also some very cool world building in terms of the pantheon of gods we meet in this novel. I always love stories that construct unique pantheons, and Kade’s story certainly does so. In fact, I actually found the gods to be among the most interesting and engaging characters in the book. I want to know more about them and their plans and machinations. This in and of itself subverts expectations because in much classic fantasy the gods are more distant, and while they might play a role here or there in the plot, they are—generally speaking—not truly among the list of characters influencing the story directly. I loved how Kade used them in interesting ways that never felt like deus ex machina. Humor is also used to great effect throughout the novel. At times it lightens the tone, turning what could be hopelessly dire into a moment that feels real. Sometimes the humor is morbid, but I like my humor morbid, so I didn’t mind this at all.
There were a number of weaknesses to this one. Outside of the gods, the world building felt rather vanilla to me. There are nations and kings and castles and knights, but none of that is really defined very much. The world felt somewhat flat in that regard, rather than richly detailed. I tend to love world building in my fantasy, folks who care less about that would probably not notice this as it doesn’t jump off the page as a problem. It’s simply a lack of something I expect in epic fantasy. The plot also has a tendency to meander a bit in this novel. Which is too bad, because in so many other ways the book subverts classic fantasy expectations. In this sense it’s very much similar to other classic fantasy where it takes awhile for the goal to become evident and where, even after it has, it can feel like characters are meandering about—sometimes literally. Perhaps most frustrating for me was a tendency to tell rather than show, especially when it comes to character development. For instance, we might be told that someone felt a certain way about a situation, rather than being shown they felt that way through their actions or reactions.
Fate of the Fallen is a fun start to a series with a great deal of potential. It has its share of weaknesses, but I’ll be interested to see where the series goes from here. This first volume will have extra appeal to those who love seeing tropes viciously subverted.
7.0/10
3.5/5 stars.
5 – I loved this, couldn’t put it down, move it to the top of your TBR pile
4 – I really enjoyed this, add it to the TBR pile
3 – It was ok, depending on your preferences it may be worth your time
2 – I didn’t like this book, it has significant flaws and I can’t recommend it
1 – I loathe this book with a most loathsome loathing
One of the most obvious things that stands out in this novel is the denial of tropes. This goes beyond questions of prophecy and heroes and the sort of things that the back cover gets you thinking about. There are moments in the story when you have to just take a moment and kind of force yourself to accept that, yes, Kade did go there, Kade did do that. While the book has many of the trappings of classic fantasy—plucky upstart hero from a small town with a prophecy behind him—the story is worked out in such fresh ways that the tropes are denied, sometimes in very in-your-face fashion. It definitely keeps things fresh and brings up a ton of questions that keep the pages turning. There is also some very cool world building in terms of the pantheon of gods we meet in this novel. I always love stories that construct unique pantheons, and Kade’s story certainly does so. In fact, I actually found the gods to be among the most interesting and engaging characters in the book. I want to know more about them and their plans and machinations. This in and of itself subverts expectations because in much classic fantasy the gods are more distant, and while they might play a role here or there in the plot, they are—generally speaking—not truly among the list of characters influencing the story directly. I loved how Kade used them in interesting ways that never felt like deus ex machina. Humor is also used to great effect throughout the novel. At times it lightens the tone, turning what could be hopelessly dire into a moment that feels real. Sometimes the humor is morbid, but I like my humor morbid, so I didn’t mind this at all.
There were a number of weaknesses to this one. Outside of the gods, the world building felt rather vanilla to me. There are nations and kings and castles and knights, but none of that is really defined very much. The world felt somewhat flat in that regard, rather than richly detailed. I tend to love world building in my fantasy, folks who care less about that would probably not notice this as it doesn’t jump off the page as a problem. It’s simply a lack of something I expect in epic fantasy. The plot also has a tendency to meander a bit in this novel. Which is too bad, because in so many other ways the book subverts classic fantasy expectations. In this sense it’s very much similar to other classic fantasy where it takes awhile for the goal to become evident and where, even after it has, it can feel like characters are meandering about—sometimes literally. Perhaps most frustrating for me was a tendency to tell rather than show, especially when it comes to character development. For instance, we might be told that someone felt a certain way about a situation, rather than being shown they felt that way through their actions or reactions.
Fate of the Fallen is a fun start to a series with a great deal of potential. It has its share of weaknesses, but I’ll be interested to see where the series goes from here. This first volume will have extra appeal to those who love seeing tropes viciously subverted.
7.0/10
3.5/5 stars.
5 – I loved this, couldn’t put it down, move it to the top of your TBR pile
4 – I really enjoyed this, add it to the TBR pile
3 – It was ok, depending on your preferences it may be worth your time
2 – I didn’t like this book, it has significant flaws and I can’t recommend it
1 – I loathe this book with a most loathsome loathing
DNF at 65%. I just couldn’t get in to this one. The plot, while not overly complicated, has moved along much too slowly and some scenes could’ve been cut altogether without losing anything from the story. I really wanted to finish it, but it has become kind of a chore to listen to, and reading for pleasure shouldn’t be that way. I do wonder if I had read the book vs listened to the audiobook if I might feel differently. The narration at times sounded a bit too jokey. One element I did love was the horse, Dolt. That character reminded me of the goat from The Bone Houses, which I loved.
FATE OF THE FALLEN begins with a prophecy. A prophecy that states that a chosen one will come forth who will be the only person who can save the world from total destruction. There are thousands of threads to this prophecy, but only one particular thread leads to success and only by this particular chosen one's actions shall humanity be saved. Sounds pretty straightforward right? We've seen this all before, the chosen one usually overcomes all kinds of odds to fulfill his or her destiny and ultimately ends up saving the day right?
Well, not so fast. What happens if something goes horribly wrong and the chosen one (in this case a young villager from the town of Mierwyl named Mathias) is incapable of taking up the mantle? What if instead his best friend, the forester Aaslo has to take his place? All is lost right? I mean the prophecy says that only the designated savior can win, so why even try? Only that's exactly what Aaslo has in mind. But what chance does a timid caretaker of forests have against the evil sorcerers and undead corpses that are about to overrun his homeland? Especially when even the King himself has thrown in the towel and accepted their grim fate?
In FATE OF THE FALLEN we get to follow the journey of Aaslo as he attempts to fulfill the prophecy vacated by his best friend Mathias. A prophecy that says he is doomed to fail. That doesn't stop Aaslo from travelling across the continent looking to recruit anyone and everyone who can help him in this most impossible of endeavors. Along the way he meets a couple of wayward thieves who become indebted to him for saving their lives. He also encounters some other highly questionable individuals who may or may not be able to help him.
Aaslo never wanted to be a hero, but that's exactly the role he has been forced into it seems. Rather than accept that life as he knows it could be over very soon he chooses to try to fulfill the prophecy anyway, or to die trying. His only problem is that he wasn't trained for any of this the way Mathias was, nor is he even remotely prepared for what he will likely encounter. But giving up isn't really an option.
I so enjoyed FATE OF THE FALLEN by Kel Kade. I had never read anything by her before this and was pleasantly surprised by how much this book sucked me in right from the start. The story begins like a hundred books that I have read before but within the first few chapters gets turned on its head. We are all set up to prepare for the golden boy Mathias to begin his quest to save the world and then it all goes to hell in a hand basket pretty darn quickly.
This is not your run of the mill reluctant hero steps up and saves the world story. I really liked that Kel Kade attempted to do something very different with this standard trope. Yes we have a reluctant hero, but his reluctance isn't harped on for very long as he soon begins to understand the task at hand that was assigned to his best friend. A best friend who he has proclaimed to be his brother.
Sorcery plays a huge part in this book, which I always enjoy. We have good sorcerers and a lot of really bad ones with their own motivations with regard to the prophecy itself. What complicates Aaslo's job even further is the fact that he also has to contend with a bunch of arrogant gods who are trying to sabotage each other and in doing so are directly impacting what will eventually happen.
While Kel Kade does an excellent job of avoiding the aforementioned tropes, she definitely doesn't withhold any of what makes a classic epic fantasy story great in my opinion. This book has a wonderful element to it that I have described previously as a "comfort read". Much in the same way that I enjoy a Tad Williams or Janny Wurts book, I found some of the same qualities in Kade's writing as well.
This is a story that just compels you to keep reading, even when you may have other chores or commitments to fulfill. If you are looking for a non-standard fantasy book that surprises you at every turn, you should definitely give FATE OF THE FALLEN a try. I found it to be a very promising beginning to The Shroud of Prophecy series and after reading it, I can't wait for book two. All in all a solid fantasy read that will give you all of the feels reminiscent of your favorite authors in the genre.
Well, not so fast. What happens if something goes horribly wrong and the chosen one (in this case a young villager from the town of Mierwyl named Mathias) is incapable of taking up the mantle? What if instead his best friend, the forester Aaslo has to take his place? All is lost right? I mean the prophecy says that only the designated savior can win, so why even try? Only that's exactly what Aaslo has in mind. But what chance does a timid caretaker of forests have against the evil sorcerers and undead corpses that are about to overrun his homeland? Especially when even the King himself has thrown in the towel and accepted their grim fate?
In FATE OF THE FALLEN we get to follow the journey of Aaslo as he attempts to fulfill the prophecy vacated by his best friend Mathias. A prophecy that says he is doomed to fail. That doesn't stop Aaslo from travelling across the continent looking to recruit anyone and everyone who can help him in this most impossible of endeavors. Along the way he meets a couple of wayward thieves who become indebted to him for saving their lives. He also encounters some other highly questionable individuals who may or may not be able to help him.
Aaslo never wanted to be a hero, but that's exactly the role he has been forced into it seems. Rather than accept that life as he knows it could be over very soon he chooses to try to fulfill the prophecy anyway, or to die trying. His only problem is that he wasn't trained for any of this the way Mathias was, nor is he even remotely prepared for what he will likely encounter. But giving up isn't really an option.
I so enjoyed FATE OF THE FALLEN by Kel Kade. I had never read anything by her before this and was pleasantly surprised by how much this book sucked me in right from the start. The story begins like a hundred books that I have read before but within the first few chapters gets turned on its head. We are all set up to prepare for the golden boy Mathias to begin his quest to save the world and then it all goes to hell in a hand basket pretty darn quickly.
This is not your run of the mill reluctant hero steps up and saves the world story. I really liked that Kel Kade attempted to do something very different with this standard trope. Yes we have a reluctant hero, but his reluctance isn't harped on for very long as he soon begins to understand the task at hand that was assigned to his best friend. A best friend who he has proclaimed to be his brother.
Sorcery plays a huge part in this book, which I always enjoy. We have good sorcerers and a lot of really bad ones with their own motivations with regard to the prophecy itself. What complicates Aaslo's job even further is the fact that he also has to contend with a bunch of arrogant gods who are trying to sabotage each other and in doing so are directly impacting what will eventually happen.
While Kel Kade does an excellent job of avoiding the aforementioned tropes, she definitely doesn't withhold any of what makes a classic epic fantasy story great in my opinion. This book has a wonderful element to it that I have described previously as a "comfort read". Much in the same way that I enjoy a Tad Williams or Janny Wurts book, I found some of the same qualities in Kade's writing as well.
This is a story that just compels you to keep reading, even when you may have other chores or commitments to fulfill. If you are looking for a non-standard fantasy book that surprises you at every turn, you should definitely give FATE OF THE FALLEN a try. I found it to be a very promising beginning to The Shroud of Prophecy series and after reading it, I can't wait for book two. All in all a solid fantasy read that will give you all of the feels reminiscent of your favorite authors in the genre.
FIVE BLOODY BRILLIANT STARS!! In reality I would give this more stars if I bloody well could. Kel Kade was a brand new author to me this year. I read the four books in the King's Dark Tidings series just this year in the span of a week and a half because they were that good. Kel Kade is definitely an author to look out for. Kade's world building and stories are so intricately woven and crafted. They are not just your average stories either, they have so much depth and scope to them.
Fate of the Fallen takes a page from the chosen one trope and completely flips it upside down. Let me tell you, when I say this book blindsided me within the first 50 pages or so, I'm telling you I had to do a double check. We follow a plethora of characters in this book from the chosen one, to his best friends, to some petty thieves, to gods and reapers. It is an ornately built cast of characters and each one is very unique in their own retrospect.
Kel Kade also does a magnificent job blending action and comedy throughout the story. There were some times I was gripping the book so hard because I was worried what was going to happen to my babies and other times where I found myself laughing out loud at a specific scene or two.
Fate of the Fallen has definitely solidified Kel Kade as one of my new favorite authors of all time and I am eagerly looking forward to both book 5 in the King's Dark Tiding's and book 2 in the Shrouds of Prophecy!! I just want more from Kel Kade, MORE!!!!
Fate of the Fallen takes a page from the chosen one trope and completely flips it upside down. Let me tell you, when I say this book blindsided me within the first 50 pages or so, I'm telling you I had to do a double check. We follow a plethora of characters in this book from the chosen one, to his best friends, to some petty thieves, to gods and reapers. It is an ornately built cast of characters and each one is very unique in their own retrospect.
Kel Kade also does a magnificent job blending action and comedy throughout the story. There were some times I was gripping the book so hard because I was worried what was going to happen to my babies and other times where I found myself laughing out loud at a specific scene or two.
Fate of the Fallen has definitely solidified Kel Kade as one of my new favorite authors of all time and I am eagerly looking forward to both book 5 in the King's Dark Tiding's and book 2 in the Shrouds of Prophecy!! I just want more from Kel Kade, MORE!!!!
The Chosen is one of my favorite fantasy tropes and it's part of one my favorite fantasy series (The Wheel of Time).
This book contains an unusual twist to the trope and I loved it.
It's an excellent read, gripping and entertaining.
I loved the style of writing, the amazing world building, and the well thought cast of characters.
I can't wait to read the next instalment.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
This book contains an unusual twist to the trope and I loved it.
It's an excellent read, gripping and entertaining.
I loved the style of writing, the amazing world building, and the well thought cast of characters.
I can't wait to read the next instalment.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
It was starting to get good and then it end in what felt like the middle of the book?