Why Read Malazan Book of the Fallen - Youtube

Because I haven't milked this topic enough either here or elsewhere, here's a video version of my attempts at conversion ... I mean suggestion.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSLAQoYMo0w&t=16s

Please like and subscribe to the channel. I'm telling ya, it's way too positive, I need some snark. Do people still say snark these days?

Review - The Forever Knight (A Novel of the Bronze Knight) by John Marco

The Forever Knight [US] [UK] is John Marco's return to fantasy writing after a number of years break. A couple of those years were not self-imposed, which makes the release of this book that much more rewarding.

This book is a follow-up novel to the epic trilogy of The Bronze Knight or The Inhumans or Lukien Trilogy.** The Forever Knight continues the journey of our hero, Lukien, but in first person this time as opposed to third person used in the trilogy.

**I have to mention that I love that the trilogy goes by so many different names. I think The Inhumans is the intended one, but it's such a cool mystic about the series that it can go by any of them.

It's interesting that the author chose to use first person in this new series and I think overall it was a good decision. First person is much more intimate and lets you get to know the character that much better. In this one, Lukien is a bit more crude and hard-headed and we didn't get this part of him in the main trilogy because we weren't in his head. Now that's not to say that this is a different Lukien, one not true to form in the trilogy, it's a very realistic portrayal of a character we knew, but didn't know this well.

While I don't think there was a point of view in the trilogy that I didn't enjoy, I even commented that in the second book, The Devil's Armor, I didn't even miss Lukien's limited page count point of view all that much because I was so fascinated by the other characters. Having said that, it was really a pleasure to read one pov that is the main character. You know the plot will move along and there will be plenty of action, which you won't be disappointed with. 

I struggled for a rating with this book because while I highly enjoyed it, it's just about impossible to overcome how much I enjoyed the Lukien trilogy. And that makes sense because we're talking 300 pages versus about 2400. However, I am looking forward to where Marco will take Lukien next in Walker Between Worlds and may have to reassess my rating once this new series of books is through.

John Marco is back to form, writing intelligent and thought-provoking fantasy that I can't get enough of. Also, note that The Forever Knight can be read without reading the trilogy as it's a self-contained story, but I highly recommend the Lukien/Bronze Knight/Inhumans trilogy because it's full of awesome.

4 out of 5 Stars (highly recommended)

Lukien Trilogy (read in red)
1) The Eyes of God (review)
2) The Devil's Armor (review)
3) The Sword of Angels (review)

Stand-alone:
- The Forever Knight
- Walker Between Worlds (Forthcoming)

Review - Warhost of Vastmark (Wars of Light and Shadow #3) by Janny Wurts

Warhost of Vastmark [US] [UK] is the third book in the Wars of Light and Shadow series, but it was originally intended as the second half of book two. Either way, with all of the set up that happened in The Ships of Merior (review), book two, Warhost was a blast to read from page one.

There will be spoilers from this point in the review on, but I'll try to keep them to the first two books.

Warhost starts right of the bat with one of the biggest mysteries from the last books. What happened to Kharadmon, one of the disembodied sorcerers of the Fellowship? His was the task to find out more about the mistwraith and bring back more information from the universe. 

In each book, I keep thinking that the world and the story is already complicated and intricate and beautiful and unending, and yet each book expands the world and story in unimaginable ways. This book was filled with tiny bits of information that I had to reread a couple times just to stop my head from spinning. This world is so well though-out, so amazingly intricate, and yet I'm still missing so many things and learning plenty more. I just have to stand back in awe at what an amazing talent Wurts is.

Warhost also continues the story of Arithon, the fugitive prince of Rathain, and Dakar, the Mad Prophet. Dakar is attached to Arithon whether he likes it or not, and he definitely does not. Their relationship continues to grow in new and profound ways and I'll stop there because it's such a subtle relationship that I don't want to spoil.

Arithon is still running away from his half-brother, Lysaer, who insists on tracking him throughout the continent. Lysayer continues to convince everyone around him that it's necessary to expend so many troops and moneys on hunting Arithon because ... because he has to! 

Lysaer's a brilliant character in both his motivations and how he is drawn. You want to root against him, but he's so compelling and you know it's not his fault. He will stop at nothing to see his half-brother stopped and you will see what that phrase actually means in this book. The body count is probably the most I've ever read in any fantasy book.

And yet that's not at all the intent of Arithon. Arithon is the scapegoat for every catastrophe, but he is the most compassionate character you will ever read. I've spoken of this before, but it is demonstrated even moreso in Warhost how Arithon will do anything he can to prevent war. I have never seen a character do this much to stop it in all my years reading fantasy. Usually, characters drag their feet going to war or fight knowing it is wrong, but Arithon goes out of his way to stop it and it is the most captivating reading experience I have had.

The characters that Wurts writes are second to none. They will have you crying one moment and cheering the next. They're so powerful and set in the backdrop that is the world of Athera (and all the other worlds), this is a series not to be missed. It only gets better and that really doesn't compute because how do you get better from absolutely stunning?

5 out of 5 Stars (epic emotion-filled fantasy)

The Wars of Light and Shadow by Janny Wurts (read in red)
Arc I 
1) The Curse of the Mistwraith (review)
Arc II: The Ships of Merior 
2) The Ships of Merior (review)
3) The Warhost of Vastmark 
Arc III: Alliance of Light 
4) Fugitive Prince 
5) Grand Conspiracy 
6) Peril's Gate 
7) Traitor's Knot 
8) Stormed Fortress 
Arc IV: Sword of the Canon 
9) Initiate's Trial 
10) Destiny's Conflict (forthcoming) 
Arc V 
11) Song of the Mysteries (forthcoming)

Note: Janny Wurts is running a giveaway at the moment through reddit.com/r/fantasy if you want a chance (out of 5) to win the first book in the series, The Curse of the Mistwraith. She will also be doing an AMA (Ask Me Anything) on r/fantasy on October 15, so get your questions ready.

Review - The Sword of Angels (Bronze Knight #3) by John Marco

It's pretty safe to say that epic fantasy is my favorite genre reading preference and the more epic the better. I like to change it up, but I always come back to it. I love series that push the boundaries of what is epic, take The Malazan Book of the Fallen, but I will always love the traditional epics.

The Bronze Knight or Lukien trilogy is just that kind of fantasy. Traditional fantasy done right. And even while it is great traditional fantasy, the Lukien trilogy plays with plenty of tropes of the genre. 

In this series, we have the typical warring kingdoms vying for power when a peace-loving king, Akeela, decides peace is more valuable than rights to a disputed river. The only problem is that his best friend and highest-ranking officer, Lukien, betrays him by falling in love with the king's wife. 

This is the last straw in Akeela's increasingly stressful and frustrating world and he snaps. He goes mad and even though this is high treason, Lukien isn't beheaded, but banished. 

I love how Marco plays with madness in his works. Usually in traditional fantasy, it's the big bad guy has his bad reasons for being so bad and it's not so in this trilogy. Marco makes you second-guess your gut feelings because these are still good people who may not be responsible for their actions. Akeela is still someone who Lukien considers his friend even through all the terrible events. 

These events all occurred in the first book, The Eyes of God, and Marco goes even further with this idea of madness in this final book of the trilogy, The Sword of Angels [US] [UK]. Here, another of Lukien's (and Gilwyn's and many others') best friends makes a decision that leads him on the path of madness. They've all been warned of the dangers of the Devil's Armor, but Baron Glass ignored the warnings, thinking he could overcome any problem. However, the Devil's Armor begins to change him nonetheless.

In this final volume, the Devil's Armor, and really the Akari inside the armor, has really had an effect on Glass. It makes him kill when he never would and even though everyone else sees the signs of his growing madness, he remains willfully blind. 

Lukien learned at the end of the prior book that he was no match for the Devil's Armor even with his Eye of God which makes him immortal. In The Sword of Angels, Lukien must go on a quest to find this elusive sword, which is the only way to defeat the Devil's Armor.

It all seems so straight-forward, but you'll never guess how this ends. It was both a comfortable read with a great quest story, but also surprising in ways I never imagined to be lead. The Lukien trilogy is at the height of the game, it's traditional fantasy with just enough to challenge you while excelling in all the ways that make this genre great. I'm looking forward to reading the stand-alone book, The Forever Knight, that just came out earlier this year.

4.5 out of 5 Stars (very highly recommended)

The Bronze Knight/Lukien/Inhuman trilogy [Read in red]:1) The Eyes of God (review)
2) The Devil's Armor (review)
3) The Sword of Angels

Stand-alone:
The Forever Knight (up next)

Review - The Ships of Merior (The Wars of Light and Shadow #2) by Janny Wurts

There are a number of rather large fantasy series' which started in the 90's and continued through the last few years. They all started slowly, but have gone on to great popularity. They each defy the logic of the trilogy by doubling and tripling (and almost quintupling in one case) that tried and true number. 

The Wheel of Time, A Song of Ice and Fire, The Malazan Book of the Fallen. These are some of the biggest names of the fantasy genre. These are commonly grouped together as favorites, especially in my book. Mention one and the others are not too far behind. Each layered in complexity and characters, epic in world-building, and all are included in NPR's top 100 science fiction and fantasy books.

The more I read this series, the more I can't understand why The Wars of Light and Shadow series is not a name synonymous with those others I've mentioned. How can it be that a series this rich in characters and complex in plot is passed over by so many people that obviously have shown to love a challenging series?

With only two books left of a planned 11 books (really 10 as I'll explain below), I certainly hope this picks up and more people are exposed to such a wonderful series.

And while I ponder such things, I do realize how different this series is. While the current trend seems to be that it's not fantasy if women aren't getting raped, this series does lack men having their way with the fairer sex. While new fantasy is cynical and hopeless, The Wars of Light and Shadow is a hopeful series that displays the good in humanity as well as many of the gray areas which inherently follow a complex fantasy series.

But it's not all serious. Just like the aforementioned series, tWoLaS has plenty of humor mixed in:

"The Mad Prophet informed the man sent down to fetch him that he had never stayed sober for more than a fortnight, even as a babe at his mother's knee. Three months was a lifetime record, Dakar insisted, as if astounded to still be alive.

And another situation, also involving The Mad Prophet, Dakar, who's a terrible person, but also one of my favorites in the series:

"The carter purpled and swung. The suet-round face of his target vanished as Dakar ducked and fled beneath the saddle girth. Bunched knuckles smacked against he barrel-sprung ribs of the horse, who responded from both ends with a grunt and a fart like an explosion.

'Oh my,' cried Dakar, stifling a chortle. 'Your wife's nose must look like a pudding if that's your reaction to her kisses.'"

Arithon s'Ffalenn, one of the main characters of the series and one of two brothers whose in whose hands hold the fate of the world of Athera, is a tragic character filled with subtelty and emotion. Arithon s'Ffalenn is a character not unlike Batman at the end of The Dark Knight. We all know the iconic line:

He has done some terrible things, which I'll discuss after the spoiler warning, and yet must continue to go forward with plans set in motion. Here follow some spoilers, unless you want me to keep writing in vague references that are oh so informative, so I'll give proper warning...

Spoilers ahead for book 1:

Arithon s'Ffalenn is a ruling prince who came to Athera from a splinter world and who with his brother's help defeated the Mistwraith that blinded the continent of Athera from the sun. In doing so, both were afflicted with the Mistwraith's final retribution - a geas set upon both which would cause them each to seek out the other's downfall.

Due to this geas, both have committed terrible things. But, blind to this geas, though not unaffected, Lysaer (Arithon's brother) convinces almost the entire continent to rise up against Arithon. This is part of the genius of this, because you still root for Lysaer even though you don't root for what he is doing.

Arithon, on the other hand, has a mission to undertake despite the fact that he not only feels the complete blame for the atrocities committed in the first book (which were terrible, but provoked by the Mistwraith's geas). His compassion is second to none and even though he is reviled throughout the continent, he is the hero they need to defeat those forces who wish to destroy.

End Spoilers

I could keep going on and on, but I will stop for now. I could keep talking about the characters, ones you're rooting against, who broke your heart when they were killed. I could keep going about the subtlety of character, especially of the two brothers but including all of them, and emotions displayed through their interactions that are at times tragic and others light-hearted. 

I could keep going about how this series was robbed of NPR's list of the top 100 Science Fiction and Fantasy books, The Wars of Light and Shadow continue to get robbed of its rightful place at the top of the fantasy genre. Evoking emotions you may have never felt before and filled with the perfect combination of humor and despair, this series is not to be missed.

The Ships of Merior [US - $1.99 Kindle] [UK], while initially planned to be one book was split into two books by the publishers comprising this book and Warhost of Vastmark. Even though it is only essentially half a book, the quality is top notch and the ending is one heck of a ride. 

5 out of 5 Stars (brilliant, complex fantasy)

The Wars of Light and Shadow by Janny Wurts (read in red)
Arc I 
1) The Curse of the Mistwraith (review)
Arc II: The Ships of Merior 
2) The Ships of Merior 
3) The Warhost of Vastmark 
Arc III: Alliance of Light 
4) Fugitive Prince 
5) Grand Conspiracy 
6) Peril's Gate 
7) Traitor's Knot 
8) Stormed Fortress 
Arc IV: Sword of the Canon 
9) Initiate's Trial 
10) Destiny's Conflict (forthcoming) 
Arc V 
11) Song of the Mysteries (forthcoming)

Link: Guest Post by Janny Wurts on The Wars of Light and Shadow

Review - Promise of Blood (Powder Mage #1) by Brian McClellan

Guns, Germs, and Steel... well, minus germs...and probably not so much economics... oh and plus magic. 

Okay that was not even remotely applicable. Why would anyone think that even made any sense? That doesn't make sense, they're not really even close, what is wrong with me?

Pretty early in my reading of Promise of Blood [US] [UK], I said, "An investigator looking into a mystery, an assassin-type chasing a mage, and then Tamas, just Tamas. I look forward to every POV, how is that even possible?"

I can't say this really changed throughout the entire book. There's one small POV that's in addition to the above that adds a little bit of suspense, but mostly seems like a set up for the next installments in the series, but it doesn't deviate from the above sentiment.

The cover of the book says, "The age of Kings is dead ... and I have killed it." Promise of Blood begins when the coup has already occurred. Field Marshall Tamas has displaced the king just in time to save the country from a ruinous contract with a neighboring state. The next step is the hard part, gathering up the nobles and establishing the new government. The cover quote comes quickly and doesn't even sound lame, which I was very impressed with. That was a very cool introduction to Tamas.

So already, we know there's political intrigue, but you can't get too far without noticing the magic systems involved in this series. There's a magic centered around gun powder, which is definitely one of the unique draws, but there are also other types of magics that are more traditional and I liked that it's not all explained right away. It's all very natural as it fits into the world.

There's an interesting relationship between the different magical cabals involved and of course they don't all get along very well. The powder mages really take center stage as they are some of the main point of views and they're just really cool. They can not only manipulate bullets so they can round corners (Wanted), but the powder itself has a magical effect on the user that is also much like a drug, enhancing senses and increasing abilities.

The magic fits seamlessly in a napoleonic fantasy world with the same types of technologies of the time such as the printing press and well...guns. In addition, through the limited point of view characters, we begin to see that there's much more than a coup and it's inherent difficulties (riots, hangings, etc.), the king's cabal of mages has hinted at a much greater problem and hence the investigator mentioned above.

McClellan can't seem to be mentioned without his former teacher, Brandon Sanderson, but it's hard not to. Brian McClellan is like a grittier Brandon Sanderson, great story with interesting characters and a unique magic system. It's not nearly to the level of Joe Abercrombie, but on its way there, hence why I think it's closer to Sanderson on the spectrum.

The writing is also on par with his mentor, it's perfect for the story told. I think there's something to be said about writing that's not flashy, almost as if it emphasizes the story much like why you should only use "said" for dialogue. (This gets my meaning too.)

It's amazing that Promise of Blood is a debut because McClellan already seems like a seasoned author. There's no doubt in my mind he has a long career ahead of him with or without mention of his writing teacher.

4 out of 5 Stars (highly recommended)

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher.

Review - The Devil's Armor (Bronze Knight #2) by John Marco

A number of trilogies will tend to have the following loose format: the first delves into the world of new and exciting things, the finale gives you that wonderful climax and denouement for these characters you've grown to love, but the second novel just kind of gets you there. It bridges a gap and makes the third book a little better, but in it's own right it's just there doing exactly what a bridge does. It looks cool from a distance, but when you're on it, it's just another road.

This is my oh-so-clever way to tell you The Devil's Armor [US] [UK] does not suffer from the sequel slump. You didn't see that coming at all did you?

In Marco's Tyrants and Kings trilogy, it was actually the second book, The Grand Design, that was my favorite of the entire trilogy. While I can't say so at this point as I've yet to even start the final book, but the same thing is looking to be a possibility in this trilogy as well. The Devil's Armor is an excellent sequel and while it serves as a great bridge to the third novel, it's a deep and compelling book all on its own.

It's no secret that epic fantasy is my main concentration. It just gets me. Not that I want to be alive through all that famine and disease and blood. I mean I really really like medical advancements. But I love reading about battles and history in the making. The problems epic fantasy addresses isn't constrained by history or the laws of physics, it can be anything even if many times it's the same boy-who-defeats-evil-lord plot. 

And that's another reason Marco pushes all the right buttons for me. He writes epic fantasy, but he turns a lot of the fantasy tropes on their heads. What happens if that evil dark lord is actually your best friend? What if all you have is an army of people with disabilities (you tear them a new one is what you do!)? What if your hero doesn't make the right decisions, what if he makes terrible decisions sometimes? What if the guy called "King Lorn the Wicked" isn't really a bad guy after all?

The Devil's Armor takes up a year after The Eyes of God, book one of the Bronze Knight trilogy, and starts with the civil war going on in Norvor. The Diamond Queen, Jazana Carr, has paid her way to an almost complete conquest of Norvor and King Lorn (the Wicked) realizes he's been betrayed by almost everyone around him. What a great opening this is, what a satisfying story in and of itself where King Lorn essentially betrays his betrayers.

We also go back to Lukien, who's busy defending Grimhold as is his calling now with the Eye of God keeping him alive. It's actually quite interesting that Lukien really doesn't make a huge appearance in this novel and yet I still consider this one of my favorites. I remember reading The Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan and it drove me nuts that Rand was quite possibly in all of 3 pages in the whole book. Here, I hardly noticed until the very end, there were too many things I was interested in to even care.

Gilwyn has been put in charge of Jador as regent for the true ruler, White-Eye, who cannot even visit the place because her eyes prevent her from going anywhere that is too bright. The one-armed Baron Glass is also still in Grimhold and finding himself less and less useful as war has passed (for now) and everyone, including his friends, have gone to their old and new duties. 

Marco does an excellent job of seamlessly filling the reader in with details from the previous book, which is very unlike how I have done. Sometimes I like to struggle to find something out, but sometimes it's nice not to have to go look something up, to be told what happened and why this person or event is important. To be done succinctly without interrupting the flow of the novel is hard work, but it's pitch perfect here.

I think the thing I was most impressed with was how much I liked the character of King Lorn the Wicked. Marco writes some of my favorite characters and somehow my favorites are the ones that are supposed to be the bad guys.

Battles are fought, evil manifested, and betrayals are numerous. Marco knows how to plot a book (and series for that matter) and I'm amazed at where things end up from where they began. I thoroughly enjoyed this second installment in the Bronze Knight trilogy, an improvement on the first even and can't wait for more.

4.5 out of 5 Stars (Very Highly Recommended!)

The Bronze Knight/Lukien/Inhuman Trilogy [Read in red]:
1) The Eyes of God (review)
2) The Devil's Armor
3) The Sword of Angels

Stand-alone in same universe:
- The Forever Knight (Released just last week)