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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
I quite liked this!
PROS:
-gods meddling with humans -- love that trope. It's such fun to me!
-the world-building in general was interesting to me.
-Aaslo : I love his sense of integrity and hope and his philosophy of continuing to "tend the trees" despite End of Days prophecies. I really admire characters like that and relate to that kind of mentality.
-this cast of characters is a lot of fun! Teza and Myropa in particular. But I also really liked the marquess and Peck and Mory.
CONS:
-Aaslo constantly talking to the head OUT LOUD and never once stopping himself, despite clearly not being actually insane. Like, you make that mistake once or twice and I would think you'd learn to filter it. I didn't necessarily totally "buy it" -- that he would KEEP slipping up like that.
-while I mostly liked the world-building, there were certain things that were also kind of confusing/vague. Probably intentionally, since it's going to be a series, but it still confounded me a couple of times.
-I really liked all of the characters, but they weren't all fleshed out as much as I would have hoped.
It's one of those times when I really wish Goodreads carried the half stars because I just don't want to give this 3 stars, I did enjoy it more than that... But I don't want to give this 4 stars because it has a lot of problems and it doesn't deserve 4 stars...
I'm giving it 3 stars but DO KNOW that it's a 3.5 or maybe 3.75 or something...
What did not work :
The pacing was off, the first 50 pages have SO MANY STUFF happen all at once (because of the premise of the story I guess, you have to know about the chosen one and then... you know what has to happen to him). It goes way too fast and then there's other parts that were * so slow* and for no good reason.
Every single women seemed to be in love (or in lust) with our protagonist and that was just a bit tiring. This is a trope we usually see with male writers but Kel Kade is a woman and I wasn't expecting that. It's not that the women in the story have no agenda but being into the MC, they have real personalities and strengths and all that (except for the queen, she just wants to sleep with him and we know nothing else lol) but why are they all into him, I don't get it.
There's also a few comments about what it's like being a woman (sensitivities and softness ) and a man (virility and strength) which wasn't... the best.
And also we have one woman with a "tanned olive skin" who is described as "exotic" and the only black character (as far as we know) is the god of death who wants to kill all living souls on the planet and I'm not sure what to think about that tbh.
The side characters kept coming and going hich was a bit weird, I wish once they met the MC they were there beside him all along but I think book 2 might be better for that.
What I liked :
When the pacing worked, it really worked for me and I was having a lot of fun. I really like the concept of the story and the plot and all the ideas are good, the execution is the only problem. I really liked our MC and most of the characters around him as well.
At the end of the day, I read this quickly and I had fun. There 's really a bunch of good ideas and that's why overall I do not think it deserves to have a low rating but wow does it has its problems.
TW/CW : beheading & dismemberment, carrying body parts around, loss of a friend, parent abandoning their child&spouse, death, problem of consent (power imbalance in a couple)
I'm giving it 3 stars but DO KNOW that it's a 3.5 or maybe 3.75 or something...
What did not work :
The pacing was off, the first 50 pages have SO MANY STUFF happen all at once (because of the premise of the story I guess, you have to know about the chosen one and then... you know what has to happen to him). It goes way too fast and then there's other parts that were * so slow* and for no good reason.
Every single women seemed to be in love (or in lust) with our protagonist and that was just a bit tiring. This is a trope we usually see with male writers but Kel Kade is a woman and I wasn't expecting that. It's not that the women in the story have no agenda but being into the MC, they have real personalities and strengths and all that (except for the queen, she just wants to sleep with him and we know nothing else lol) but why are they all into him, I don't get it.
There's also a few comments about what it's like being a woman (sensitivities and softness ) and a man (virility and strength) which wasn't... the best.
And also we have one woman with a "tanned olive skin" who is described as "exotic" and the only black character (as far as we know) is the god of death who wants to kill all living souls on the planet and I'm not sure what to think about that tbh.
The side characters kept coming and going hich was a bit weird, I wish once they met the MC they were there beside him all along but I think book 2 might be better for that.
What I liked :
When the pacing worked, it really worked for me and I was having a lot of fun. I really like the concept of the story and the plot and all the ideas are good, the execution is the only problem. I really liked our MC and most of the characters around him as well.
At the end of the day, I read this quickly and I had fun. There 's really a bunch of good ideas and that's why overall I do not think it deserves to have a low rating but wow does it has its problems.
TW/CW : beheading & dismemberment, carrying body parts around, loss of a friend, parent abandoning their child&spouse, death, problem of consent (power imbalance in a couple)
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: a small-town boy from a remote village learns that he is the Chosen One, destined to fulfill The Prophecy and save the world from encroaching evil. Sound familiar? Fans of classic epic fantasy from authors Robert Jordan, David Eddings, Anne McCaffrey, and even J.K. Rowling have spun their own versions of this time-honored formula. But what happens if the prophecy fails? How would the world react when it is inevitable that the forces of evil will win? Kel Kade explores this theme in the trope-subverting, wildly entertaining Fate of the Fallen, book one of The Shroud of Prophecy series.
This is a book where the less you know about the plot, the better, so I’ll dance around the details and discuss the larger themes of the story. Kade is skilled at capturing the essence of classic fantasy, focusing on strong character work and building outwards to reveal a world full of magic, monsters, multiple spiritual planes of existence, and the whimsical nature of gods. It walks a fine line between conveying a familiar sense of comfort juxtaposed with some fresh and interesting takes that help to elevate it from other classic fantasy sagas of its kind. The nature of prophecies is called into question: can the future be changed if you know how it plays out in advance? Why bother fighting if the foretold result is inevitable?
Kade writes with a descriptive, flowing prose that breathes life into the many environments we visit. One of the most welcome aspects to the story is how often I was truly surprised by some of its choices. There were at least three separate occasions where I had to re-read the passage, asking “did that really just happen?” It’s almost as if Kade purposely lulls the reader into a false sense of ease before yanking the rug out from under us and beating us to the ground with it.
There are many more aspects to the story I’d like to discuss, but I’ll refrain so as not to spoil any of the fun. And above all, that’s just what this book is: FUN. Lots of it. I wasn’t familiar with Kade’s work before picking up this story, but she has earned herself a new fan. Fate of the Fallen is a welcome addition to the classic fantasy genre, paying homage to what has come before it while adding many new twists to subvert your expectations. It’s going to be a long wait for book two, but I’ll be along for the ride.
ARC provided by Edelweiss. Publication date is November 5th, 2019 by Tor Books.
This is a book where the less you know about the plot, the better, so I’ll dance around the details and discuss the larger themes of the story. Kade is skilled at capturing the essence of classic fantasy, focusing on strong character work and building outwards to reveal a world full of magic, monsters, multiple spiritual planes of existence, and the whimsical nature of gods. It walks a fine line between conveying a familiar sense of comfort juxtaposed with some fresh and interesting takes that help to elevate it from other classic fantasy sagas of its kind. The nature of prophecies is called into question: can the future be changed if you know how it plays out in advance? Why bother fighting if the foretold result is inevitable?
Kade writes with a descriptive, flowing prose that breathes life into the many environments we visit. One of the most welcome aspects to the story is how often I was truly surprised by some of its choices. There were at least three separate occasions where I had to re-read the passage, asking “did that really just happen?” It’s almost as if Kade purposely lulls the reader into a false sense of ease before yanking the rug out from under us and beating us to the ground with it.
There are many more aspects to the story I’d like to discuss, but I’ll refrain so as not to spoil any of the fun. And above all, that’s just what this book is: FUN. Lots of it. I wasn’t familiar with Kade’s work before picking up this story, but she has earned herself a new fan. Fate of the Fallen is a welcome addition to the classic fantasy genre, paying homage to what has come before it while adding many new twists to subvert your expectations. It’s going to be a long wait for book two, but I’ll be along for the ride.
ARC provided by Edelweiss. Publication date is November 5th, 2019 by Tor Books.
As many other reviews have said this does have a flavour of the wheel of time series but in the best way.
It's in no way trying to be some sort of copy, rather it's an exceptionally well written book which oozes potential to be just as epic and brilliant.
The characters are engaging as is the story and after the first book I'm already invested and looking forward to the next installment.
It's in no way trying to be some sort of copy, rather it's an exceptionally well written book which oozes potential to be just as epic and brilliant.
The characters are engaging as is the story and after the first book I'm already invested and looking forward to the next installment.
Man, the cover really hits different after you get past chapter 5
https://dragonsandpages.blogspot.com/2019/11/fate-of-fallen-by-kel-kade-review_19.html
I would like to start out this review by thanking my buddy @travelingcloak on Instagram for sending his extra ARC copy my way. This was a highly anticipated release of mine and I feel so blessed to have had the chance to read it early.
This was a solid 4 star read for me. It is a really fun and fast-paced fantasy adventure story. One of the strongest parts of this story you will notice within the first few pages of the novel is the portrayal of friendship. As a reader we are immediately introduced to this brotherhood between our main characters Aaslo and Mathias and the strong bond between them. It is a great look at what found family truly is. At its core, relationships are truly what moves this book along. Whether they be pre-existing relationships, or relationships that are built as we go along in the plot they are used as a driving force through the story and make the character's actions believable and understandable. We see what choices these characters are making for the ones that they love.
Another huge strong point for this story is the refreshing take on the "chosen one" trope that fantasy lovers have developed a love-hate relationship with. Kel Kade does not shy away from the fact that at its core this is a "chosen one" story, but what she does is takes the trope as we know it and flips it upside down into something I personally had never seen before.
Overall this was a very strong entry into the fantasy genre and I cannot wait to continue this series when the second installment is released.
I would like to start out this review by thanking my buddy @travelingcloak on Instagram for sending his extra ARC copy my way. This was a highly anticipated release of mine and I feel so blessed to have had the chance to read it early.
This was a solid 4 star read for me. It is a really fun and fast-paced fantasy adventure story. One of the strongest parts of this story you will notice within the first few pages of the novel is the portrayal of friendship. As a reader we are immediately introduced to this brotherhood between our main characters Aaslo and Mathias and the strong bond between them. It is a great look at what found family truly is. At its core, relationships are truly what moves this book along. Whether they be pre-existing relationships, or relationships that are built as we go along in the plot they are used as a driving force through the story and make the character's actions believable and understandable. We see what choices these characters are making for the ones that they love.
Another huge strong point for this story is the refreshing take on the "chosen one" trope that fantasy lovers have developed a love-hate relationship with. Kel Kade does not shy away from the fact that at its core this is a "chosen one" story, but what she does is takes the trope as we know it and flips it upside down into something I personally had never seen before.
Overall this was a very strong entry into the fantasy genre and I cannot wait to continue this series when the second installment is released.
This book was so fun in such an unexpected way. I can’t wait for the next part!