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A review by hostral
The Way Into Chaos by Harry Connolly
4.0
Harry Connolly doesn't really need me to write a review about his work, given that The Way Into Chaos had a massive and successful Kickstarter campaign and Connolly himself had previously received acclaim for a traditionally published Urban fantasy series.
It's rare that I come across a book that is an absolute no-brainer in terms of whether it should be part of my site. The Way Into Chaos is such a book, and I'll explain why below.
While hardly the first to do it, it's always interesting to see how an author who specialised in one style of fantasy shifts to a completely different one. In the case of Mr. Connolly the answer is 'very well indeed'.
In addition to sporting a wonderful cover and solid editing with few typos, the pace of the work in question really sets it apart from many of the traditionally published contemporaries. Others have likened it to a merging of thriller and fantasy, driving the plot forward and not getting bogged down in descriptions of clothing or excessive world-building.
Lar is royalty, and this likeable rapscallion is the heir to the throne. He is accompanied most of the time by a number of young cohorts who helpfully bounce off his dialogue. The most important of these cohorts is young Cazia, a sorceress who is both headstrong and entertaining.
Speaking of entertaining, the most enjoyable character is the seasoned veteran Tyr Trejohn Treygar, a man sworn into the service of the royal family and by extension, the prince. A stern authority figure who seems to serve as an arms-master of sorts at the beginning of the tale.
To put things politely, things go to hell in a hand basket very quickly. After a great deal of death and destruction, the Tyr finds himself in charge of making sure that the prince survives their journey into discovering just how to get rid of the threat that threatens to destroy them all.
Meanwhile, amidst all the devastation, young Cazia finds herself on her own journey. A journey as much of self-discovery as anything else.
The reason for my being vague about much of the plot is that in order to talk about it in any detail I'd have to spoil it, and that's the sign of a work that twists and turns in a most enjoyable fashion. There's little bloat to be found in this work, and as always the downside to that is that certain themes and world-building lack the expansion they would have been treated to in larger equivalent tomes.
Explosive start aside, things don't really heat up until the first third of the groundwork is laid out in the book, at which point Connolly quite vividly defies my expectations in a most delightful fashion. This turning point sucked me into the novel and made the remaining two thirds fly in.
Despite the high fantasy trappings, Connolly revels in subverting the typical plot armour and moral certitude that is so prevalent in older works. While this is more common in modern fantasy, The Way Into Chaos clearly displays aspects of writing that would be more commonly found in the Urban fantasy/thriller genres.
What's also nice to see is that in spite of the lack of space for typical fleshing out of the world in question, there is a deep exploration into the magic system and certain other aspects of the land that are gradually phased in throughout the plot.
It's by no means perfect, but it's a lot better than most of the fantasy being published lately. That this had to be crowdfunded is an indictment of the modern publication industry.
While it's apparent that this is the first third of a trilogy, an irritation that I've lamented many times, such is the strength of Connolly's prose and pacing that I honestly don't mind. I've docked one star due to the abrupt halt, but I understand entirely why it came about.
I really enjoyed reading this and fully intend to pick up the next two volumes and support Mr. Connolly's future ventures. As far as I'm concerned this man should still be signed to a major deal and I hope that the immensely positive reception of his work will provide him with just that.
It's rare that I come across a book that is an absolute no-brainer in terms of whether it should be part of my site. The Way Into Chaos is such a book, and I'll explain why below.
While hardly the first to do it, it's always interesting to see how an author who specialised in one style of fantasy shifts to a completely different one. In the case of Mr. Connolly the answer is 'very well indeed'.
In addition to sporting a wonderful cover and solid editing with few typos, the pace of the work in question really sets it apart from many of the traditionally published contemporaries. Others have likened it to a merging of thriller and fantasy, driving the plot forward and not getting bogged down in descriptions of clothing or excessive world-building.
Lar is royalty, and this likeable rapscallion is the heir to the throne. He is accompanied most of the time by a number of young cohorts who helpfully bounce off his dialogue. The most important of these cohorts is young Cazia, a sorceress who is both headstrong and entertaining.
Speaking of entertaining, the most enjoyable character is the seasoned veteran Tyr Trejohn Treygar, a man sworn into the service of the royal family and by extension, the prince. A stern authority figure who seems to serve as an arms-master of sorts at the beginning of the tale.
To put things politely, things go to hell in a hand basket very quickly. After a great deal of death and destruction, the Tyr finds himself in charge of making sure that the prince survives their journey into discovering just how to get rid of the threat that threatens to destroy them all.
Meanwhile, amidst all the devastation, young Cazia finds herself on her own journey. A journey as much of self-discovery as anything else.
The reason for my being vague about much of the plot is that in order to talk about it in any detail I'd have to spoil it, and that's the sign of a work that twists and turns in a most enjoyable fashion. There's little bloat to be found in this work, and as always the downside to that is that certain themes and world-building lack the expansion they would have been treated to in larger equivalent tomes.
Explosive start aside, things don't really heat up until the first third of the groundwork is laid out in the book, at which point Connolly quite vividly defies my expectations in a most delightful fashion. This turning point sucked me into the novel and made the remaining two thirds fly in.
Despite the high fantasy trappings, Connolly revels in subverting the typical plot armour and moral certitude that is so prevalent in older works. While this is more common in modern fantasy, The Way Into Chaos clearly displays aspects of writing that would be more commonly found in the Urban fantasy/thriller genres.
What's also nice to see is that in spite of the lack of space for typical fleshing out of the world in question, there is a deep exploration into the magic system and certain other aspects of the land that are gradually phased in throughout the plot.
It's by no means perfect, but it's a lot better than most of the fantasy being published lately. That this had to be crowdfunded is an indictment of the modern publication industry.
While it's apparent that this is the first third of a trilogy, an irritation that I've lamented many times, such is the strength of Connolly's prose and pacing that I honestly don't mind. I've docked one star due to the abrupt halt, but I understand entirely why it came about.
I really enjoyed reading this and fully intend to pick up the next two volumes and support Mr. Connolly's future ventures. As far as I'm concerned this man should still be signed to a major deal and I hope that the immensely positive reception of his work will provide him with just that.