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willrefuge's review against another edition
4.0
Battlemage by Stephen Aryan
The Age of Darkness Book 1
3.5 / 5.0 stars.
I’ve read Battlemage twice, and here are my best impressions of it: 1) It’s pretty easy to read, but 2) pretty hard to get really into. Lemme explain that.
The characters and world-building are what make Battlemage good. But even as they build it up, they also let it down. Let’s start with the good. Early on, a cast of interesting and relatable characters are introduced. The first chapter is a gem—and the world is vibrant and colorful, filled with very human characters, very real situations, and a lovely, if simple, magic system. But further on the overarching plot slows, as do the individual storylines. I found them somewhat repetitive too, if I’m honest. And while the world appeared deep and vibrant from without, it turns out to be only skin-deep. It’s not terrible, so long as you know what’s coming. It’s like a painting of a beautiful woman (or man)—they’re beautiful on the surface, just don’t expect any depth of character.
Actually… yeah. Battlemage is quite like a beautiful painting.
Where it suffers most from a lack of character development, something that the remaining two entries in tAoD work hard to correct (and do, to be fair). It’s typically difficult in a debut novel, set in a new world, to get and keep readers interested. The complaint a lot of my friends have with fantasy books is that they don’t move fast enough. Such is the norm nowadays to lead with a hook then introduce the cast of characters (in brief), moving the story along to keep the reader’s interest. Then, slow the pace in the middle a bit, enough to sprinkle in the history of the world and its’ characters (usually via flashbacks).
Battlemage does this, at least in part.
It starts with a hook: an impending war, led by a dark and powerful mage and a mad and vicious king. Then a cast of characters: Balfruss—a battlemage, sworn to use his magic to stand against the coming darkness; Vargus—a common soldier with a not-so-common secret, fights the war in the trenches, on the front line; Talandra—princess and spymaster, reluctant leader; Gunder—a spy posing as a spice merchant in an already occupied nation. Then, as the plot slows in the heart of the book, the past—really never emerges. Okay, okay, there are a few brief glimpses, but mostly just Balfruss and never anything important.
Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s a good read. But it suffers in the middle, once you realize the person that is Battlemage is only 2D. It’s something that the following two entries correct quite nicely. It is a decent start to a rather good trilogy, one that improves with each subsequent sequel.
The Age of Darkness Book 1
3.5 / 5.0 stars.
I’ve read Battlemage twice, and here are my best impressions of it: 1) It’s pretty easy to read, but 2) pretty hard to get really into. Lemme explain that.
The characters and world-building are what make Battlemage good. But even as they build it up, they also let it down. Let’s start with the good. Early on, a cast of interesting and relatable characters are introduced. The first chapter is a gem—and the world is vibrant and colorful, filled with very human characters, very real situations, and a lovely, if simple, magic system. But further on the overarching plot slows, as do the individual storylines. I found them somewhat repetitive too, if I’m honest. And while the world appeared deep and vibrant from without, it turns out to be only skin-deep. It’s not terrible, so long as you know what’s coming. It’s like a painting of a beautiful woman (or man)—they’re beautiful on the surface, just don’t expect any depth of character.
Actually… yeah. Battlemage is quite like a beautiful painting.
Where it suffers most from a lack of character development, something that the remaining two entries in tAoD work hard to correct (and do, to be fair). It’s typically difficult in a debut novel, set in a new world, to get and keep readers interested. The complaint a lot of my friends have with fantasy books is that they don’t move fast enough. Such is the norm nowadays to lead with a hook then introduce the cast of characters (in brief), moving the story along to keep the reader’s interest. Then, slow the pace in the middle a bit, enough to sprinkle in the history of the world and its’ characters (usually via flashbacks).
Battlemage does this, at least in part.
It starts with a hook: an impending war, led by a dark and powerful mage and a mad and vicious king. Then a cast of characters: Balfruss—a battlemage, sworn to use his magic to stand against the coming darkness; Vargus—a common soldier with a not-so-common secret, fights the war in the trenches, on the front line; Talandra—princess and spymaster, reluctant leader; Gunder—a spy posing as a spice merchant in an already occupied nation. Then, as the plot slows in the heart of the book, the past—really never emerges. Okay, okay, there are a few brief glimpses, but mostly just Balfruss and never anything important.
Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s a good read. But it suffers in the middle, once you realize the person that is Battlemage is only 2D. It’s something that the following two entries correct quite nicely. It is a decent start to a rather good trilogy, one that improves with each subsequent sequel.
readtheblurb's review against another edition
4.0
Brilliant start to a trilogy! Loved the visceral action and gore in this book along with the strong cast of characters. Again one of the rare times I liked all the characters, especially Balfruss the Battlemage, who struggles with his powers and others perception of his kind. Aryan put a huge focus on comradely in this book and it paid of as I was really invested in all the characters. I think this is definitely worth a read of you’re like me and into dark, gritty, gorey-war-themed medieval fantasy!
amybraunauthor's review against another edition
5.0
I hoped to enjoy this book, and was blown away by how much I loved it. Truly living up to the heart of epic fantasy, this was a book that I couldn't want to put down. I loved the world, the characters, the magic and monsters, and the nearly endless action.
I really did love all the characters. They all had distinct personalities, and I couldn't tell you whom I loved more. They are all easy to relate to and I was always rooting for them. The action was ferocious and constant thanks to the war setting. I absolutely loved the magic. It was intense, near cosmic. I also really loved the creatures and monsters and am hoping to learn more about them and the world.
The story was fairly loose, mainly focused on the war and battles, but there were some unexpected twists that had me re-reading pages, especially in regards to the gods. This was a fantastic, exciting book and I truly look forward to meeting new characters and seeing where the story goes from here. A must read if you love epic fantasy stories!
I really did love all the characters. They all had distinct personalities, and I couldn't tell you whom I loved more. They are all easy to relate to and I was always rooting for them. The action was ferocious and constant thanks to the war setting. I absolutely loved the magic. It was intense, near cosmic. I also really loved the creatures and monsters and am hoping to learn more about them and the world.
The story was fairly loose, mainly focused on the war and battles, but there were some unexpected twists that had me re-reading pages, especially in regards to the gods. This was a fantastic, exciting book and I truly look forward to meeting new characters and seeing where the story goes from here. A must read if you love epic fantasy stories!
oursinculte's review against another edition
5.0
La grande nouveauté fantasy Bragelonnienne de ce début d’année est Mage de guerre, premier roman de Stephen Aryan et début d’une nouvelle saga : L’âge des ténèbres. Le résumé présenté par l’éditeur est à première vue archi-classique : « une armée de méchants, des gentils désespérés, de la bagarre ! », mais comme j’ai un petit côté bourrin régressif, j’ai pas eu peur, j’y suis allé.
Ça part donc de manière très banale : à l’ouest, l’empereur fou Taïkon étend ses conquêtes dans toutes les directions et se rapproche de Seveldrom avec son immense armée. Le roi Matthias prépare sa défense et ça va chauffer. Nous suivrons principalement trois personnages dans ce conflit, tous du côté des défenseurs : Balfruss, un des derniers mages de guerre qui va défendre son pays, Vargus, un vétéran se retrouvant en première ligne avec ses potes bidasses, et enfin Talandra, princesse mais surtout espionne en chef qui nous fera voir l’aspect plus politique du conflit.
L’influence majeure de Stephen Aryan est clairement David Gemmell, pour une fois le parallèle n’est pas si capillotracté… C’est d’ailleurs assez marrant parce que j’ai lu Mage de Guerre en même temps que j’écoutais Légende en format audio (enfin, pas strictement en même temps, j’ai un seul cerveau, mais à la même période quoi). Le parallèle entre le début du récit et le premier roman de Gemmell est évident, surtout du point de vue de Vargus : une armée en sous-nombre qui défend une passe, un vétéran impressionnant qui va galvaniser les troupes de première ligne, un point de vue proche de la piétaille qui s’intéresse à leur moral et leurs peurs.
Côté Balfruss, ça fera sourire les fans de Dragon Age : Dans l’âge des ténèbres, certaines personnes se montrent sensibles à la magie. Pour les empêcher de se mettre en danger et de causer des catastrophes par accident, ils sont « recrutés » et envoyés à la Tour Rouge pour apprendre à maitriser leurs pouvoirs (tout comme la tour du cercle des mages de la saga de Bioware). Pourtant, cette pratique se perd et la tour est vide aujourd’hui, seulement six mages répondent à l’appel pour défendre Seveldrom face au Nécromancien et à ses acolytes. C’est Balfruss et ses camarades qui vont devoir encaisser toute la puissance magique de l’ennemi.
Le côté déjà-vu de la mise en place peut surprendre, voire carrément gonfler certains lecteurs qui recherchent l’originalité à tous prix, mais c’est assez bien mené pour captiver dès le début. D’autant plus que, au fur et à mesure, Aryan parvient à construire sous notre nez un univers bien plus riche que ne le laisse entrevoir la première impression. On se dit même que c’est un tour de prestidigitation bien élaboré, où l’auteur agite une fantasy militaire bourrine mais solide dans sa main gauche pour ne pas qu’on remarque qu’il développe à droite son univers et le vrai cœur de son histoire. Il va faire glisser le roman petit à petit vers autre chose, une espèce de contre-pied à tous ceux qui l’attendaient seulement sur le terrain guerrier. Le livre assume ses influences et en joue, promène le lecteur dans ses propres références avant de découvrir par petites couches le vrai Stephen Aryan.
En retrait dans la première moitié du roman, les mages gagnent en importance et seront évidemment la clé de cette guerre. Le groupe formé par Éloïse, Darius, Ecko, Thule, Finn et Balfruss arrive à installer sa dynamique avec ses propres problématiques. Chacun est bien défini, chaque personnalité arrive à vivre dans l’histoire et ils ont un énorme charisme. Les déchainements de pouvoir des mages sont très bien retranscrits, l’impression de puissance ressort parfaitement, et putain… Finn… la classe ! Le seul petit défaut est l’aspect un peu simple de certains duels qui tournent vite en Dragon Ball Z « ma boule de feu est plus grosse que la tienne », on aurait apprécié un peu plus de tactique et de profondeur au système de magie, qu’on aperçoit pourtant sur d’autres passages (le combat d’Ecko est excellent de ce point de vue là).
Le ton est globalement sombre, violent, parfois gore, mais avec une lueur d’espoir et de positif en fond. Les hommes se retrouvent face à des forces très au-dessus de leurs compétences mais se démènent quand même dans des combats très sanglants : les soldats se vautrent, trébuchent, glissent dans une grosse flaque de sang ou se vident de leurs entrailles en plein milieu du champ de bataille. L’action et les joutes magiques sont bien retranscrites et très immersives, on n’en attendait pas moins d’un livre portant ce titre-là. Les religions et la magie prennent une plus grande importance au fil des pages. Sans trop en révéler sur la trame (la découvrir fait partie du plaisir), on va s’éloigner du champ de bataille régulièrement pour comprendre que les vrais enjeux sont ailleurs, et que certains personnages cachent bien leur jeu.
Par l’intermédiaire de Talandra, on va aussi voir tout un aspect politique qui donne de l’épaisseur au fond de l’histoire. La princesse va œuvrer dans l’ombre pour tenter d’affaiblir l’empire de Taïkon de l’intérieur. En effet, toutes les nations qui composent l’armée de l’empereur fou ne le font pas de bon cœur, un petit peu de désinformation et de sabotage suffiraient peut-être à fragiliser l’édifice. La reine d’Yerskania, un pays voisin, essaye de résister à l’influence de Taïkon mais ce dernier abat une répression implacable sur son peuple, les manœuvres politiques désespérés de cette reine pourront servir Seveldrom ou anéantir le pays, il va donc falloir s’en mêler.
Les personnages arrivent à mener le lecteur sur les différents aspects du conflit grâce à leurs caractères et leurs parcours respectifs très bien construits. Chacun est assez bien développé pour nous entrainer avec lui avec ses doutes et ses forces. Le tout est rythmé au poil, avec assez de révélations et de surprises pour ne jamais s’ennuyer, on tourne les pages et on en redemande constamment. Après des séries décevantes (Havrefer ou Blood Song) et des énormes coups de cœur (Les manteaux de gloire), je ne sais jamais vraiment à quoi m’attendre quand Bragelonne nous sort l’attirail « Nouveauté fantasy qui va tout péter ». Mais pour le coup, c’est un pari réussi en ce qui me concerne. Et si Mage de Guerre est le premier tome d’une série, il faut souligner que le livre se suffit à lui-même et présente une histoire complète, pas de frustration en fin de lecture donc. D’ailleurs l’éditeur a décidé de ne pas trop nous faire attendre puisque le tome 2, Blood Mage, devrait sortir en fin d’année et le troisième dans la foulée en 2017, la machine est lancée alors autant y aller à fond.
Mage de Guerre est un excellent spécimen de fantasy guerrière efficace et rythmée, le juste équilibre entre action, intrigue et personnages captivants. Stephen Aryan parvient à digérer ses influences, à jouer avec et à nous les renvoyer à la figure tout en donnant une identité propre à son univers. Une excellente surprise pour tous les amateurs du genre.
http://ours-inculte.fr/mage-de-guerre/
blodeuedd's review against another edition
3.0
I really enjoyed this one. I did not know what to expect, but I decided to give it a go and I am glad I did.
It was all war. I like war ones!
There are 3 major POVs.
Balfruss is a battlemage who tries to keep his country safe. All around good powerful guy.
Tallandra is a princess, but no dainty miss. She is the country's spymaster and tries to sow discord in other countries to help their own cause.
And now my favorite. Vargus, a grizzled veteran who made me go all whaaat? I love going whaaat!
This idiot king is invading and has invaded lots more. All in the disguise of true religion. Grrr, kick their asses back to where they came!
SO like I said, it is all war. Spying and battles. It was easyread and enjoyable. I do want more. But dang, the next book is about 4 new people?! Nooo, what about Vargus!? Must read more!
It was all war. I like war ones!
There are 3 major POVs.
Balfruss is a battlemage who tries to keep his country safe. All around good powerful guy.
Tallandra is a princess, but no dainty miss. She is the country's spymaster and tries to sow discord in other countries to help their own cause.
And now my favorite. Vargus, a grizzled veteran who made me go all whaaat? I love going whaaat!
This idiot king is invading and has invaded lots more. All in the disguise of true religion. Grrr, kick their asses back to where they came!
SO like I said, it is all war. Spying and battles. It was easyread and enjoyable. I do want more. But dang, the next book is about 4 new people?! Nooo, what about Vargus!? Must read more!
samstrong's review against another edition
2.0
TL;DR: For a novel called Battlemage, there was a surprising lack of battlemaging going on.
There were a few enjoyable moments in this surprisingly short (for an epic fantasy) novel. Ultimately though, there were too many ideas and all of them were under-developed. We didn't spend long enough with any of the characters for me to really connect with them, or for them to distinguish themselves from their archetypes. Two entire perspectives (along with several sub-plots) could have been dropped and others strengthened without dropping the word count. Despite this, the action was well described and suitably visceral, and some interesting themes occasionally poked their heads over the battlements.
There were a few enjoyable moments in this surprisingly short (for an epic fantasy) novel. Ultimately though, there were too many ideas and all of them were under-developed. We didn't spend long enough with any of the characters for me to really connect with them, or for them to distinguish themselves from their archetypes. Two entire perspectives (along with several sub-plots) could have been dropped and others strengthened without dropping the word count. Despite this, the action was well described and suitably visceral, and some interesting themes occasionally poked their heads over the battlements.
ecooper99's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
hgranger's review against another edition
2.0
This book was supposed to be an epic fantasy but mostly I found it...boring. It's quite a feat to bite your reader to tears with a book full of gore, magic, Warriors, and mad kings,, but Battlemage succeeded in doing just that. I could not muster any enthusiasm for any of the many characters, none of which ever became in any way interesting to me.
bookish_satty's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
4.0
The most intriguing aspect of this story was the world that the author created here especially the battlemages and their power. I loved all the characters as all the three main characters were well fleshed out with unique personalities and different talents. I loved the chapters from Balfruss POV much more because of the awesome magical battle we got to see on page.
The prose was accessible but not juvenile which was a huge plus point for me. The action scenes were well written which helped me visualize the epic battle taking place in this world. I loved that the female characters were equally important to the plot as the male characters especially Talandra and her contribution to the overall battle strategy and it's outcome. The romance subplot is handled well and is quite realistic.
Though the story mainly focusses on the battle between nations I didn't feel bored at all which was quite a surprise for me. That ending was shocking for me but in a good way. Hoping to read Book 2 soon.
P.S. - Would definitely recommend the audiobook as the narration was done quite well.
The prose was accessible but not juvenile which was a huge plus point for me. The action scenes were well written which helped me visualize the epic battle taking place in this world. I loved that the female characters were equally important to the plot as the male characters especially Talandra and her contribution to the overall battle strategy and it's outcome. The romance subplot is handled well and is quite realistic.
Though the story mainly focusses on the battle between nations I didn't feel bored at all which was quite a surprise for me. That ending was shocking for me but in a good way. Hoping to read Book 2 soon.
P.S. - Would definitely recommend the audiobook as the narration was done quite well.
scrollsofdragons's review against another edition
2.0
Much prefer the Age of Dread, way more original and enjoyable then this one. That said I don't know about dnfing the series because book 2 follows different characters and a different plot that's better sounding so may continue but this one was just boring, following a typical war with meh characters with nothing new added to the high fantasy genre whatsoever.