thinde 's review for:

Blood Song by Anthony Ryan
5.0

I read this series when they were first published, so it's a few years ago now.

The impact that this novel had on me is still vivid. Blood Song is a power-house of story-telling, and I just wish it had managed to maintain the momentum to the series' end. Mind you, any book following this monster would have had a hard time.

From a writer's perspective, Ryan manages something that few authors have. His protagonist is over-powered from the start and yet the story is far from wish-fulfillment. The central character is richly drawn via flash-backs and many moral choices. In a sense, he is a hopeless figure, but despite this, he just won't give up.

The world is interesting and well built, with a magic system that only lightly brushes the canvas. There's even a grim-world Hogwarts, for those with that kink.

I doubt any fans of Fantasy would be wasting their time reading book one in this series, even if they stop there.