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mellhay's review against another edition
4.0
This was a story I really enjoyed. The world is dangerous and each character is doing their best under the terrible circumstances to survive and take care of things on their list. Blood, gods, magic, and turmoil. The writing style is easy to follow and know who is who and where they are. You got me! I look forward to continuing this series!
****FULL REVIEW****
*This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com, at my request.
The kingdom is on the brink of war with the Arranese, affecting the plans of everyone, even hired swords. The Lector of the order that protects the High King has been murdered. Everyone scurries to find what happened to his last confession. The confession that passes on the powers of Lector and more. The High King's line is at danger of ending with him, which will leave the Gods Well unprotected. The evils that have lurked in the shadows fighting small battles are now ready to come to the surface and free the power of their god. There are many lives that could stop them. But they have to get through their obstacles in life and the war marching their way before they can accomplish the deeds of saving all.
This is my second book with Andrew as the narrator and he has done an amazing job with this book. I'm impressed! He starts this story with a strong feel, like the world is strong and harsh and we need to feel that along with the words. Instantly we get different voice tones and personalities as the story opens in a tavern, and troubles brew. Andrew even *spits* as he acts out the action of a character. I really enjoyed Andrew's acting and voice variation to each character.
We get a view of different sides of life that are affected by the death of the Lector. The hired assassins that did the job, and now the one who slit his throat is living with the power of what the Lector held. The Sanctum is in a rush to find what happened to their Lector and who heard his confession. The High King is in danger of not producing an heir, and the Sanctum, who is to protect him, can't get to see him now. It's all connected and I got that feel early on but was thrilled to see all the pieces floating around and coming so close together. There is an evil that's waited through the ages and now sees their chance to come for what they want. They have contacts in the right places with want of power that will drive them to do as they want for the power.
We have many great things found in fantasy in one place. Assassins, successful assassins. A journey adventure with dangers in the path. Gods of powers. Greedy men who think nothing other than having power and control. A bloodline in danger of becoming extinct, and the dangers that come from that. All are weaved together in events happening. All are surfacing and influenced to do as the evil long hidden in shadows wants done.
There are many characters here and I felt I got a lot of feel and story for each one. Lannick has me curious early on. It seems he's someone, or was someone, special for things in the past. But there is also great sorrow there too. General Fane reminds me a touch of Glokta from The First Law series. He's one we love to hate. Acolyte Bale is a member of the Sanctum and gives us a view with more descriptions regarding the magic of things and the history of the Sentinels and the High Kings. Karnag gives us the assassin view and something new as well. Fencress is also an assassin, but a true friend willing to help another. These views are all different sides and gives us the full view of the troubles and evils of the world as it starts to crumble around them.
This was a story I really enjoyed. The world is dangerous and each character is doing their best under the terrible circumstances to survive and take care of things on their list. Blood, gods, magic, and turmoil. The writing style is easy to follow and know who is who and where they are. You got me! I look forward to continuing this series!
****FULL REVIEW****
*This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com, at my request.
The kingdom is on the brink of war with the Arranese, affecting the plans of everyone, even hired swords. The Lector of the order that protects the High King has been murdered. Everyone scurries to find what happened to his last confession. The confession that passes on the powers of Lector and more. The High King's line is at danger of ending with him, which will leave the Gods Well unprotected. The evils that have lurked in the shadows fighting small battles are now ready to come to the surface and free the power of their god. There are many lives that could stop them. But they have to get through their obstacles in life and the war marching their way before they can accomplish the deeds of saving all.
This is my second book with Andrew as the narrator and he has done an amazing job with this book. I'm impressed! He starts this story with a strong feel, like the world is strong and harsh and we need to feel that along with the words. Instantly we get different voice tones and personalities as the story opens in a tavern, and troubles brew. Andrew even *spits* as he acts out the action of a character. I really enjoyed Andrew's acting and voice variation to each character.
We get a view of different sides of life that are affected by the death of the Lector. The hired assassins that did the job, and now the one who slit his throat is living with the power of what the Lector held. The Sanctum is in a rush to find what happened to their Lector and who heard his confession. The High King is in danger of not producing an heir, and the Sanctum, who is to protect him, can't get to see him now. It's all connected and I got that feel early on but was thrilled to see all the pieces floating around and coming so close together. There is an evil that's waited through the ages and now sees their chance to come for what they want. They have contacts in the right places with want of power that will drive them to do as they want for the power.
We have many great things found in fantasy in one place. Assassins, successful assassins. A journey adventure with dangers in the path. Gods of powers. Greedy men who think nothing other than having power and control. A bloodline in danger of becoming extinct, and the dangers that come from that. All are weaved together in events happening. All are surfacing and influenced to do as the evil long hidden in shadows wants done.
There are many characters here and I felt I got a lot of feel and story for each one. Lannick has me curious early on. It seems he's someone, or was someone, special for things in the past. But there is also great sorrow there too. General Fane reminds me a touch of Glokta from The First Law series. He's one we love to hate. Acolyte Bale is a member of the Sanctum and gives us a view with more descriptions regarding the magic of things and the history of the Sentinels and the High Kings. Karnag gives us the assassin view and something new as well. Fencress is also an assassin, but a true friend willing to help another. These views are all different sides and gives us the full view of the troubles and evils of the world as it starts to crumble around them.
This was a story I really enjoyed. The world is dangerous and each character is doing their best under the terrible circumstances to survive and take care of things on their list. Blood, gods, magic, and turmoil. The writing style is easy to follow and know who is who and where they are. You got me! I look forward to continuing this series!
lanko's review against another edition
4.0
What Remains of Heroes actually surprised me after a really bad start.
First, one of the worst first chapters I remember having read. It's also incredibly long.
The girls really take him to their manse. The friend says the girl is ready. She spreads her legs and he has sex with the young girl, who is also a virgin. Best moment of his life, just like that.
Her dad walks in. It just happens to be the archenemy of the MC. He runs away through the window.
The MC returns to the bar. He drinks a bit more, I think. Of course, Archenemy gets the location from his daughter. MC hides. There's a way to escape, but he can't remember.
Archenemy yells to the barkeeper: "Tell me or I will drown you in your cellar!" MC remembers the cellar and escapes the bar.
He somehow returns home, get his sword and armor. He is located, of course. He kills 3 or 4 guys, despite being drunk as hell. He then receives a blow in the head and fall.
Archenemy yells to him (and everyone around) something like: "You fool! I would sacrifice my daughter to gain more power and advantage, because I'm really evil! In fact, I was just going to offer her to the evil necromancers!"
Archenemy apparently remembers who MC is and plans to send him to someplace instead of killing him.
Worse, the girl is never seen again the story, and actually would give a massive choice for Lannick, to kill her to avenge his own family (even knowing Fane wouldn't care) or somehow finding new love. Although that probably is planned for the sequel, and the love interest probably as Alisa.
Second, the next one is a massive info dump of deities, places and names. Third, the evil chamberlain is not allowing anyone near the king, and everyone blindly and sheepishly obeys. And finally, all the while evil necromancers are trying to resurrect the evil dark god that will destroy the world.
Could the recipe get even more cliché?
I continued reading and while the Necrists could creepy (wearing the faces of the dead), they were way stereotyped.
But the other characters surprised me. Lannick continues broken. Maybe he recovers in later books, but it was actually nice to see someone who actually was shown suffering for his heavy losses. Too often this is shrugged off in a few chapters and the character moves on with life. That's not the case with Lannick.
Initially, it may even seem annoying, but you do start to feel for him.
Bale was refreshing as well. He is an old, isolated man, frail and without any ability to fight. An scholar in the middle of a massive war.
If the two previous guys meant little action, Karnag is the total opposite. A barbarian assassin with a claymore and his band.
However, due to certain circumstances, and maybe reflecting that, he is slowly pushed away as a POV, even if he reappears now and then.
Fencress assumes the role of leading the group and becomes a major POV, and is an amazing character. Not because of any shallow label as "strong female", but simply because she had the best character voice in the book while also giving us a good deal of action and humor, which Lannick and Bale aren't able to provide.
These four are the major players, but now and then we get glimpses of some other characters to see the bigger picture of things.
I also really liked the deities. They are actually very active. There are two major gods and seven lesser ones, the Sentinels. One of them actively acts in the world. We meet another and then a character receives a task to go to a third (although this one doesn't appear in this book).
Also, while the characters (like Fane and the chamberlain) are a bit stereotyped in black/white, it's not so with the deities.
There are two (or more) stories about the deities and when we meet them, they are not the good, noble and kind-hearted beings you were expecting them to be.
And even the dark lord apparently had some reasons to act like he did. We don't get to know much about the main "good" deity, however.
The scale of the events are pretty good too. The worldbuilding takes a while to get to you, but it became satisfying, although very few places had something unique to make us really remember them.
The main problem with the book is actually the narrative/prose.
Except for Fencress and maybe one chapter from Lannick, the internal thoughts of the characters are handled as info dumps or the readers being spoon-fed on how they should feel about another character or a situation.
We are also told a lot of things that could've easily been shown and would allow the readers their own conclusions. Even obvious things anyone could see/feel are told, as if the author was afraid the reader wouldn't get it.
Even some dialogue is badly disguised, when characters babble for pages long about certain events. It felt unrealistic and unnecessary, something that could've been handled a lot better.
There are no wrong sentences, long winded descriptions or typos, but the narrative, while not rough, could have used a much better polish.
It's a debut novel, and the author will surely notice these things and improve. The story and the scale of events are solid (although you could say the main threat seem pretty cliché) and the characters felt different.
First, one of the worst first chapters I remember having read. It's also incredibly long.
Spoiler
The MC is an old man, drinking over and over in the bar. A gorgeous young noble girl enters with her friend. The friend invites the drunk old man to talk with the girl. He can't believe his luck.The girls really take him to their manse. The friend says the girl is ready. She spreads her legs and he has sex with the young girl, who is also a virgin. Best moment of his life, just like that.
Her dad walks in. It just happens to be the archenemy of the MC. He runs away through the window.
The MC returns to the bar. He drinks a bit more, I think. Of course, Archenemy gets the location from his daughter. MC hides. There's a way to escape, but he can't remember.
Archenemy yells to the barkeeper: "Tell me or I will drown you in your cellar!" MC remembers the cellar and escapes the bar.
He somehow returns home, get his sword and armor. He is located, of course. He kills 3 or 4 guys, despite being drunk as hell. He then receives a blow in the head and fall.
Archenemy yells to him (and everyone around) something like: "You fool! I would sacrifice my daughter to gain more power and advantage, because I'm really evil! In fact, I was just going to offer her to the evil necromancers!"
Archenemy apparently remembers who MC is and plans to send him to someplace instead of killing him.
Worse, the girl is never seen again the story, and actually would give a massive choice for Lannick, to kill her to avenge his own family (even knowing Fane wouldn't care) or somehow finding new love. Although that probably is planned for the sequel, and the love interest probably as Alisa.
Second, the next one is a massive info dump of deities, places and names. Third, the evil chamberlain is not allowing anyone near the king, and everyone blindly and sheepishly obeys. And finally, all the while evil necromancers are trying to resurrect the evil dark god that will destroy the world.
Could the recipe get even more cliché?
I continued reading and while the Necrists could creepy (wearing the faces of the dead), they were way stereotyped.
But the other characters surprised me. Lannick continues broken. Maybe he recovers in later books, but it was actually nice to see someone who actually was shown suffering for his heavy losses. Too often this is shrugged off in a few chapters and the character moves on with life. That's not the case with Lannick.
Initially, it may even seem annoying, but you do start to feel for him.
Bale was refreshing as well. He is an old, isolated man, frail and without any ability to fight. An scholar in the middle of a massive war.
If the two previous guys meant little action, Karnag is the total opposite. A barbarian assassin with a claymore and his band.
However, due to certain circumstances, and maybe reflecting that, he is slowly pushed away as a POV, even if he reappears now and then.
Fencress assumes the role of leading the group and becomes a major POV, and is an amazing character. Not because of any shallow label as "strong female", but simply because she had the best character voice in the book while also giving us a good deal of action and humor, which Lannick and Bale aren't able to provide.
These four are the major players, but now and then we get glimpses of some other characters to see the bigger picture of things.
I also really liked the deities. They are actually very active. There are two major gods and seven lesser ones, the Sentinels. One of them actively acts in the world. We meet another and then a character receives a task to go to a third (although this one doesn't appear in this book).
Also, while the characters (like Fane and the chamberlain) are a bit stereotyped in black/white, it's not so with the deities.
There are two (or more) stories about the deities and when we meet them, they are not the good, noble and kind-hearted beings you were expecting them to be.
And even the dark lord apparently had some reasons to act like he did. We don't get to know much about the main "good" deity, however.
The scale of the events are pretty good too. The worldbuilding takes a while to get to you, but it became satisfying, although very few places had something unique to make us really remember them.
The main problem with the book is actually the narrative/prose.
Except for Fencress and maybe one chapter from Lannick, the internal thoughts of the characters are handled as info dumps or the readers being spoon-fed on how they should feel about another character or a situation.
We are also told a lot of things that could've easily been shown and would allow the readers their own conclusions. Even obvious things anyone could see/feel are told, as if the author was afraid the reader wouldn't get it.
Even some dialogue is badly disguised, when characters babble for pages long about certain events. It felt unrealistic and unnecessary, something that could've been handled a lot better.
There are no wrong sentences, long winded descriptions or typos, but the narrative, while not rough, could have used a much better polish.
It's a debut novel, and the author will surely notice these things and improve. The story and the scale of events are solid (although you could say the main threat seem pretty cliché) and the characters felt different.
hostral's review against another edition
4.0
One of the great pleasures of reviewing self-published fantasy is that every so often, a book comes from absolutely nowhere and surpasses your expectations.
I had never heard of David Benem before, and as of writing this review there are only two things I can tell you about him: he entered Mark Lawrence's self-published fantasy blog-off and he sure can write.
What Remains of Heroes treads what is beginning to become familiar ground, dark fantasy with morally conflicted or ambiguous characters that defy the standard trappings of their genre.
It immediately caught my eye with its fetching cover and (for the most part) both well edited and well formatted text. You can tell that the author went to some lengths to provide a professional-looking product and the result is appreciated.
Lannick is the former hero who has fallen on hard times. His family murdered, his liver also being murdered by whiskey and inhabiting the shell of a broken man. He plays the part well, with a mixture of piteous and heart-wrenching behaviour as his background is slowly pieced together through the opening chapters of the book.
Then we have Karnag, who is essentially the typical barbarian mercenary. What's intriguing about this character is that while he plays a brutal counterpoint to the other main characters, his is slowly dropped in favour of his friend and fellow mercenary. A woman who is a much more intriguing choice of focus.
Lastly we have the coward with the heart of gold, one Bale. A musty library-bound sorcerer of sorts who couldn't fight his way out of a wet paper bag. Unfortunately for him, he's thrust into the spotlight of one of our antagonists, and forcibly placed in grave danger.
This cast would have usually been enough to form a solid dark fantasy around. Four viewpoints from four very different individuals works well with a book of this size. Instead of settling for that, Benem turns up the heat on the reader by slowly building a reputable cast of ancillary characters before giving them their own individual chapters.
What could have been a straightforward work is now imbued with political discourse and an increasing amount of world-building as a backdrop for the multitudinous characters inhabiting it. It makes for a much deeper read, and the author is to be applauded for attempting this.
Plot-wise the work is solid. There's plain old vengeance to be had, god-like beings involved in swaying the course of the world and the aforementioned political subplot involving royalty. Thanks to careful pacing, each of the items are given a sensible amount of fleshing out.
While What Remains of Heroes threatens several times to ignite into something truly special, I can only say that it was very enjoyable rather than being exceptional. It's a well crafted piece of dark fantasy that would sit happily alongside almost everything released from traditional publishers in the genre lately, but it's nothing world-altering. That this is one of the only criticisms I can level at the work shows just how impressed I am with it.
The second critique of the work would be that it suffers from first book syndrome. It doesn't grind to an immediate halt, but you could tell in the final third that things were going to have to be rushed in order to craft the perfect standalone resolution. The result is exactly what the author intended, and I will be picking up the next in the series.
David Benem is a strong new voice in the world of dark fantasy, and I sincerely hope that he improves with each work. Based on the quality of this début, he's in the enviable position where it wouldn't matter if he stayed the course. More of the same, please!
I had never heard of David Benem before, and as of writing this review there are only two things I can tell you about him: he entered Mark Lawrence's self-published fantasy blog-off and he sure can write.
What Remains of Heroes treads what is beginning to become familiar ground, dark fantasy with morally conflicted or ambiguous characters that defy the standard trappings of their genre.
It immediately caught my eye with its fetching cover and (for the most part) both well edited and well formatted text. You can tell that the author went to some lengths to provide a professional-looking product and the result is appreciated.
Lannick is the former hero who has fallen on hard times. His family murdered, his liver also being murdered by whiskey and inhabiting the shell of a broken man. He plays the part well, with a mixture of piteous and heart-wrenching behaviour as his background is slowly pieced together through the opening chapters of the book.
Then we have Karnag, who is essentially the typical barbarian mercenary. What's intriguing about this character is that while he plays a brutal counterpoint to the other main characters, his is slowly dropped in favour of his friend and fellow mercenary. A woman who is a much more intriguing choice of focus.
Lastly we have the coward with the heart of gold, one Bale. A musty library-bound sorcerer of sorts who couldn't fight his way out of a wet paper bag. Unfortunately for him, he's thrust into the spotlight of one of our antagonists, and forcibly placed in grave danger.
This cast would have usually been enough to form a solid dark fantasy around. Four viewpoints from four very different individuals works well with a book of this size. Instead of settling for that, Benem turns up the heat on the reader by slowly building a reputable cast of ancillary characters before giving them their own individual chapters.
What could have been a straightforward work is now imbued with political discourse and an increasing amount of world-building as a backdrop for the multitudinous characters inhabiting it. It makes for a much deeper read, and the author is to be applauded for attempting this.
Plot-wise the work is solid. There's plain old vengeance to be had, god-like beings involved in swaying the course of the world and the aforementioned political subplot involving royalty. Thanks to careful pacing, each of the items are given a sensible amount of fleshing out.
While What Remains of Heroes threatens several times to ignite into something truly special, I can only say that it was very enjoyable rather than being exceptional. It's a well crafted piece of dark fantasy that would sit happily alongside almost everything released from traditional publishers in the genre lately, but it's nothing world-altering. That this is one of the only criticisms I can level at the work shows just how impressed I am with it.
The second critique of the work would be that it suffers from first book syndrome. It doesn't grind to an immediate halt, but you could tell in the final third that things were going to have to be rushed in order to craft the perfect standalone resolution. The result is exactly what the author intended, and I will be picking up the next in the series.
David Benem is a strong new voice in the world of dark fantasy, and I sincerely hope that he improves with each work. Based on the quality of this début, he's in the enviable position where it wouldn't matter if he stayed the course. More of the same, please!
cpark2005's review against another edition
4.0
One of the things I truly love about epic fantasy is the worldbuilding, and particularly the depth of world history we often get in this subgenre. David Benem’s What Remains of Heroes gives us that sort of deep worldbuilding seen through the eyes of a cast of characters who find themselves on all sides of what is sure to be a vast and immense conflict.
In What Remains of Heroes we’re treated to a very deeply imagined history. There is not only recent history which touches on the lives of various characters, but there is older history that explains and informs the conflicts between nations, and history still more ancient—the conflicts between the gods and demigods that will no doubt come to play a part in the story as this series develops. I love this sort of worldbuilding, where part of the fun of reading is discovering the truth behind the legends. This won’t appeal to all readers, but for those who love this aspect of epic fantasy, What Remains of Heroes will definitely scratch an itch. Another high point for me was that we have viewpoints from people on a variety of sides in the conflict. While the characters may at times fall a little too neatly into archetypes (dark, brooding former hero, priest lacking confidence, roguish…rogue), I enjoyed that we got viewpoints that made each side of the conflict understandable.
While seeing the conflict from various sides was nicely done here, I found that I didn’t particularly relate to any characters. Some of this may be because they truly did follow some very well-established tropes, but I often enjoy those tropes, so I’m not sure that’s the whole of it. This is so difficult because relating to characters is so much preference. Nevertheless, as a result I didn’t find myself particularly rooting for any of the sides. The magic is also a little too mysterious—or perhaps generic—for my liking. It tends to follow the “speak a few words in a weird/unknown/ancient language” trope. I prefer a bit more explanation to my magic systems. Once again, this is a huge issue of preference. Benem also uses some odd turns of phrase that show up with a great deal of consistency. For instance, characters often think or say, “I know not” or variations on that. It felt a little bit like false archaizing of the language. There were also a couple times when a character would shed a single tear which was caught by the wind and blown away, or that sort of thing.
What Remains of Heroes is a fun, deep epic fantasy. It’s not perfect, and while it didn’t fully hit for me, there is enough potential here that it deserves attention. I believe it was a SPFBO finalist a couple years back, and I can see why that was the case. 3.7/5 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
In What Remains of Heroes we’re treated to a very deeply imagined history. There is not only recent history which touches on the lives of various characters, but there is older history that explains and informs the conflicts between nations, and history still more ancient—the conflicts between the gods and demigods that will no doubt come to play a part in the story as this series develops. I love this sort of worldbuilding, where part of the fun of reading is discovering the truth behind the legends. This won’t appeal to all readers, but for those who love this aspect of epic fantasy, What Remains of Heroes will definitely scratch an itch. Another high point for me was that we have viewpoints from people on a variety of sides in the conflict. While the characters may at times fall a little too neatly into archetypes (dark, brooding former hero, priest lacking confidence, roguish…rogue), I enjoyed that we got viewpoints that made each side of the conflict understandable.
While seeing the conflict from various sides was nicely done here, I found that I didn’t particularly relate to any characters. Some of this may be because they truly did follow some very well-established tropes, but I often enjoy those tropes, so I’m not sure that’s the whole of it. This is so difficult because relating to characters is so much preference. Nevertheless, as a result I didn’t find myself particularly rooting for any of the sides. The magic is also a little too mysterious—or perhaps generic—for my liking. It tends to follow the “speak a few words in a weird/unknown/ancient language” trope. I prefer a bit more explanation to my magic systems. Once again, this is a huge issue of preference. Benem also uses some odd turns of phrase that show up with a great deal of consistency. For instance, characters often think or say, “I know not” or variations on that. It felt a little bit like false archaizing of the language. There were also a couple times when a character would shed a single tear which was caught by the wind and blown away, or that sort of thing.
What Remains of Heroes is a fun, deep epic fantasy. It’s not perfect, and while it didn’t fully hit for me, there is enough potential here that it deserves attention. I believe it was a SPFBO finalist a couple years back, and I can see why that was the case. 3.7/5 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
kartiknarayanan's review
4.0
A Requiem for Heroes is one of the best takes on "heroic" fantasy I have read and I think it will upend this genre.
Why do I think so? - It is a combination of a good storyline with excellent characters and riveting action in a world which is deceptively simple.
Now, since I read What Remains of Heroes & The Wrath of Heroes back to back, I will be combining the reviews for both these books.
The main characters are comprised of people who are 'broken' in one way or another and yet, strive to be better. These characters range from the wicked to the virtuous (but mostly some kind of realistic moral compass - what we like to call 'shades of gray' ) and their betterment is not simply fighting against all odds and winning by the strength of their hand. Rather, each of them has a different set of weaknesses - moral, spiritual, physical. They find a point in their lives where they are forced to introspect and start their difficult journey for redemption of some sorts - be it the nominal hero or the villain. And this is why I think this series is such a unique take on what heroic fantasy.
David Benem's construction of these characters is so good that I actually started feeling antipathy towards the main character Lannick in the beginning. Later on, it changed a bit since we understand where Lannick is coming from. Other characters who stand out are Bale & Fenchress. But, do not take this to mean that the side characters are any less fleshed out. Even they have their own battles to fight. This is the clear USP of this series as far as I am concerned.
The world building seemed okay when I read the first book but by I time I finished the second one, I realised that what I had initially assumed 'to be' was not so. It was deceptively simple in the first and the complexity behind it comes out as you get further into the series.
The storyline is the same. When I started the first book, I thought it would be a run of the mill fantasy setting with some religion thrown in ala The Wheel of Time. But by the time I finished the second one, I was blown away by how things had changed. I do not want to bring in spoilers but let me just say that you will be rewarded if you have the patience to read the second book too.
As far as pacing is concerned, I found The Wrath of Heroes to be much better than What Remains of Heroes. WROH lost me in between, and it was touch and go whether I would continue. But the good thing is that somewhere towards the middle I started getting interested. I suppose I put down WROH maybe 3-4 times in between because it could not hold my attention during this time. But I did not put down TWOH even once due to boredom.
I am eagerly awaiting the third book in the series, whenever it may be.
Why do I think so? - It is a combination of a good storyline with excellent characters and riveting action in a world which is deceptively simple.
Now, since I read What Remains of Heroes & The Wrath of Heroes back to back, I will be combining the reviews for both these books.
The main characters are comprised of people who are 'broken' in one way or another and yet, strive to be better. These characters range from the wicked to the virtuous (but mostly some kind of realistic moral compass - what we like to call 'shades of gray' ) and their betterment is not simply fighting against all odds and winning by the strength of their hand. Rather, each of them has a different set of weaknesses - moral, spiritual, physical. They find a point in their lives where they are forced to introspect and start their difficult journey for redemption of some sorts - be it the nominal hero or the villain. And this is why I think this series is such a unique take on what heroic fantasy.
David Benem's construction of these characters is so good that I actually started feeling antipathy towards the main character Lannick in the beginning. Later on, it changed a bit since we understand where Lannick is coming from. Other characters who stand out are Bale & Fenchress. But, do not take this to mean that the side characters are any less fleshed out. Even they have their own battles to fight. This is the clear USP of this series as far as I am concerned.
The world building seemed okay when I read the first book but by I time I finished the second one, I realised that what I had initially assumed 'to be' was not so. It was deceptively simple in the first and the complexity behind it comes out as you get further into the series.
The storyline is the same. When I started the first book, I thought it would be a run of the mill fantasy setting with some religion thrown in ala The Wheel of Time. But by the time I finished the second one, I was blown away by how things had changed. I do not want to bring in spoilers but let me just say that you will be rewarded if you have the patience to read the second book too.
As far as pacing is concerned, I found The Wrath of Heroes to be much better than What Remains of Heroes. WROH lost me in between, and it was touch and go whether I would continue. But the good thing is that somewhere towards the middle I started getting interested. I suppose I put down WROH maybe 3-4 times in between because it could not hold my attention during this time. But I did not put down TWOH even once due to boredom.
I am eagerly awaiting the third book in the series, whenever it may be.
eyed's review
4.0
I knew nothing about this book going in. All I knew was that I really enjoyed Mr. Benem's story in the Lost Lore anthology. It turned out to be a very good read for quite a few reasons.
The characters were very much to my liking.
We had Lannick a down on his luck war hero who has spent quite some time trying to drink away the pain of his life. While well written Lannick is probably my least favorite of the POVs.
Karnag and Fencress as both assassins/for hire criminals but mostly murder it seems. These were my two favorite characters throughout the entire book.
Next up we have Bale who is an acolyte that has his understanding of his own beliefs flipped upside down before being sent on quite an adventure. I really enjoyed his chapters.
Gamghast is also a priest but he is older and higher ranking than Bale. We see how he interacts with other characters but we don't get to hear as much about him as the others. His chapters also give us an introduction to the queen who I am expecting to play a bigger role in the next book.
The world was pretty standard as far as fantasy goes. It has the usual components that you expect to see. The sentinels seemed pretty standard as far as the immortal guardians they are but what was really cool about them was how their immortality works. Their enemies the necrists were very interesting. The way they can travel undetected through the shadow world and how they can smell peoples shadows makes them seem like a pain in the ass if they are hunting you.
The story itself was really good, it was well paced and the multi POV always helps speed things along because I want to read more and get back to my favorite character. There is a lot going on in the world and a lot of events in motion making it likely that the following entries in the series will be even more enjoyable.
I would recommend this to pretty much any fan of fantasy.
The characters were very much to my liking.
We had Lannick a down on his luck war hero who has spent quite some time trying to drink away the pain of his life. While well written Lannick is probably my least favorite of the POVs.
Karnag and Fencress as both assassins/for hire criminals but mostly murder it seems. These were my two favorite characters throughout the entire book.
Next up we have Bale who is an acolyte that has his understanding of his own beliefs flipped upside down before being sent on quite an adventure. I really enjoyed his chapters.
Gamghast is also a priest but he is older and higher ranking than Bale. We see how he interacts with other characters but we don't get to hear as much about him as the others. His chapters also give us an introduction to the queen who I am expecting to play a bigger role in the next book.
The world was pretty standard as far as fantasy goes. It has the usual components that you expect to see. The sentinels seemed pretty standard as far as the immortal guardians they are but what was really cool about them was how their immortality works. Their enemies the necrists were very interesting. The way they can travel undetected through the shadow world and how they can smell peoples shadows makes them seem like a pain in the ass if they are hunting you.
The story itself was really good, it was well paced and the multi POV always helps speed things along because I want to read more and get back to my favorite character. There is a lot going on in the world and a lot of events in motion making it likely that the following entries in the series will be even more enjoyable.
I would recommend this to pretty much any fan of fantasy.
bibliotropic's review
4.0
Every so often, when reading self-published novels, you run across one that makes you wonder why the author chose to buck tradition and go with self-publishing as their main option. Was it because self-publishing was quicker than sending manuscripts to agents and/or publishers and hoping for the best? Was it because they saw an opportunity to make a greater financial return on their efforts? Was it because they did apply with agents and publishers and their novel was turned down?
I sincerely hope it wasn’t the last one. David Benem’s What Remains of Heroes is exactly the kind of novel that breaks down the stereotypes about the quality and content of self-publishing, and makes me think that if a traditional publisher did pass on this one, it was to their detriment.
Lannick is a man who used to be someone. Loving family, prestige, captain of an army. Until he made a mistake and paid the price, and now spends his days drunk and in debt. Until he makes another, more costly mistake, and finds himself thrust into a plot of old gods and new heroes. Bale is a priest, channeling magic in the name of the goddess of light, studying forbidden histories and legends that turn out to have more than a grain of truth to them. Through good luck or ill, he is sent to investigate the murder of the head of his religion, to uncover the truth about strange dealings and religious secrecy. Karnag is a mercenary, the man who killed the head of Bale’s order, whose companions now watch in confusion and fear as he turns aside from his old life and heads toward a new frontier of blood and carnage as war approaches, following the new voices and urges in his head that tell him his hands will never be stained with enough blood.
Within the space of half a chapter, I found myself wanting to keep reading with no interruptions. What Remains of Heroes dips into the darker side of fantasy without being overly depressing or brutal. There’s plenty of violence, don’t get me wrong, but it’s in appropriate levels for the various situations, and none of it feels like the author was trying to be dark and edgy for the sake of being dark and edgy. Each of the primary characters feels, to a degree, out of place in the world at large, even if they have their place within their particular microcosm, and especially with Lannick and Bale there seems almost a desperate attempt to make sense of where they fit in, what their role in. Karnag’s struggle is of a similar but different sort, trying to adjust to how he has changed and why, and Fencress’s challenge is, in part, figuring out what happened to Karnag.
It’s worth taking a moment to express here that while there’s a serious minority of female characters in this book, and Fencress’s story is very much entwined with Karnag’s, Fencress herself is not some cardboard cutout character, intended only to show what’s happening with Karnag. Her role starts small and grows much larger as the story continues, and she is very much a solid well-defined character in her own right. I loved reading her chapters, because she’s a great character, and also the type of female character that doesn’t get showcased very often in male-dominated fantasy. Most female characters in such books are either prizes or backdrops for the hero, or else they’re good fighters or mages and can hold their own in a fight, absolutely, but are also held up as an ideal, a paragon of light and good. Fencress is a mercenary, at home with intimidating and putting knives in people if they stand between her and her goal, and she knows it. She’s nobody’s ideal and she has no interest in pretending to be so, and for that, I love her.
There’s some good worldbuilding in here, too. It, like many other books I’ve encountered in this challenge, is built on a foundation of medieval European fantasy, but that’s no a bad thing, and there’s still plenty of scope for originality within those bounds. And Benem works to create a dark fantasy world that’s manages to be familiar without feeling overly stereotyped, complex without being bogged down in complications from attempts to add too many never-before-seen things. It may not be the most original setting, but it is well crafted, and it feels as complete as any other good fantasy world I have encountered. It doesn’t break any boundaries, but it’s very good at being what it is.
Benem’s writing shines amid a sea of lackluster novels, and it’s no surprise to see that What Remains of Heroes passed to the second round of the SPFBO challenge. It’s a strong first novel, impressive and well done, and it’s got wonderful appeal to fans of dark traditional fantasy who are looking for some new voices. This was a fantastic find, and I’m already looking forward to the second book in the series! I expect that What Remains of Heroes will be a strong contender for the crown in the SPFBO, when the final scores are tallied.
(Received for review as part of the SPFBO.)
I sincerely hope it wasn’t the last one. David Benem’s What Remains of Heroes is exactly the kind of novel that breaks down the stereotypes about the quality and content of self-publishing, and makes me think that if a traditional publisher did pass on this one, it was to their detriment.
Lannick is a man who used to be someone. Loving family, prestige, captain of an army. Until he made a mistake and paid the price, and now spends his days drunk and in debt. Until he makes another, more costly mistake, and finds himself thrust into a plot of old gods and new heroes. Bale is a priest, channeling magic in the name of the goddess of light, studying forbidden histories and legends that turn out to have more than a grain of truth to them. Through good luck or ill, he is sent to investigate the murder of the head of his religion, to uncover the truth about strange dealings and religious secrecy. Karnag is a mercenary, the man who killed the head of Bale’s order, whose companions now watch in confusion and fear as he turns aside from his old life and heads toward a new frontier of blood and carnage as war approaches, following the new voices and urges in his head that tell him his hands will never be stained with enough blood.
Within the space of half a chapter, I found myself wanting to keep reading with no interruptions. What Remains of Heroes dips into the darker side of fantasy without being overly depressing or brutal. There’s plenty of violence, don’t get me wrong, but it’s in appropriate levels for the various situations, and none of it feels like the author was trying to be dark and edgy for the sake of being dark and edgy. Each of the primary characters feels, to a degree, out of place in the world at large, even if they have their place within their particular microcosm, and especially with Lannick and Bale there seems almost a desperate attempt to make sense of where they fit in, what their role in. Karnag’s struggle is of a similar but different sort, trying to adjust to how he has changed and why, and Fencress’s challenge is, in part, figuring out what happened to Karnag.
It’s worth taking a moment to express here that while there’s a serious minority of female characters in this book, and Fencress’s story is very much entwined with Karnag’s, Fencress herself is not some cardboard cutout character, intended only to show what’s happening with Karnag. Her role starts small and grows much larger as the story continues, and she is very much a solid well-defined character in her own right. I loved reading her chapters, because she’s a great character, and also the type of female character that doesn’t get showcased very often in male-dominated fantasy. Most female characters in such books are either prizes or backdrops for the hero, or else they’re good fighters or mages and can hold their own in a fight, absolutely, but are also held up as an ideal, a paragon of light and good. Fencress is a mercenary, at home with intimidating and putting knives in people if they stand between her and her goal, and she knows it. She’s nobody’s ideal and she has no interest in pretending to be so, and for that, I love her.
There’s some good worldbuilding in here, too. It, like many other books I’ve encountered in this challenge, is built on a foundation of medieval European fantasy, but that’s no a bad thing, and there’s still plenty of scope for originality within those bounds. And Benem works to create a dark fantasy world that’s manages to be familiar without feeling overly stereotyped, complex without being bogged down in complications from attempts to add too many never-before-seen things. It may not be the most original setting, but it is well crafted, and it feels as complete as any other good fantasy world I have encountered. It doesn’t break any boundaries, but it’s very good at being what it is.
Benem’s writing shines amid a sea of lackluster novels, and it’s no surprise to see that What Remains of Heroes passed to the second round of the SPFBO challenge. It’s a strong first novel, impressive and well done, and it’s got wonderful appeal to fans of dark traditional fantasy who are looking for some new voices. This was a fantastic find, and I’m already looking forward to the second book in the series! I expect that What Remains of Heroes will be a strong contender for the crown in the SPFBO, when the final scores are tallied.
(Received for review as part of the SPFBO.)
stevethomas's review
I bought this as part of the SPFBO bundle, but did not finish. I lost interest about halfway through. Mostly, it just wasn't the style of story that gels with me.
One more focused complaint is that something odd happens with the chapters from the mercenary squad's point of view. The writing style, which is normally pretty fluid, seems to take on this really stilted bent. I'm not sure if this was a stylist choice, but it seems like these chapters were written first, before the author really found his writing style, or maybe the editing was less thorough for this storyline for some reason. Whatever the reason, the chapter-to-chapter changes in writing style was unsettling to me.
One more focused complaint is that something odd happens with the chapters from the mercenary squad's point of view. The writing style, which is normally pretty fluid, seems to take on this really stilted bent. I'm not sure if this was a stylist choice, but it seems like these chapters were written first, before the author really found his writing style, or maybe the editing was less thorough for this storyline for some reason. Whatever the reason, the chapter-to-chapter changes in writing style was unsettling to me.
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