Short Book Reviews // A Time of Dread by John Gwynne

The older I get, the more selective a reader I become. As a teenager, I read almost everything I could get my hands on, waded through every shelf in the local library, except the horror and mystery sections. I also had a principle to finish every book I've started. I forbade myself from picking up a new read before I'd finished the previous one. Although even that rule had an exception: I am yet to finish The Brothers Karamazov by Fjodor Dostojevski, which my friends gave me for my eighteenth birthday. Nowadays, I don't think twice about giving up on a book partway through if it doesn't seem right up my alley, though I try to read more than one or two chapters before doing so. 

I started A Time of Dread (Of Blood and Bone #1) by John Gwynne (for background information, check the author's website, as I still don't write summaries or copy+paste information that anyone can google themselves in three seconds) in the late summer and was about to give up on it before I finished the first chapter. Because I had done that to several books during the summer, I forced myself to keep reading, thinking that at this rate, I'll never finish another book in my life. The first ten or so chapters felt like trying to consume a cooled-down cup of coffee, merely because throwing it away is against my principles. I felt utterly detached from the world and characters, even though Gwynne puts up just the kind of fantasy setting I like best, and there is more than one main character to find your favourite among. 

At the beginning of September, I actually put A Time of Dread aside to read The Alchemist. Then my dog died, and reading anything at all was the last thing on my mind for a while. I returned to books about two weeks ago, finished The Alchemist and decided to give A Time of Dread another go. I gobbled down the remaining forty-plus chapters in three days and can't even begin to comprehend anymore what felt so off-putting about the book when I started it.

Quite a long way to say you shouldn't give up on a book only a few pages in, not even only a few chapters in, but read at least twenty percent of it before you do. It's not always worth the time, but sometimes patience is rewarded.

A Time of Dread certainly turned out worth the second chance I gave it. Though the level of gore is a tad too high for my liking in general, I enjoyed the story immensely. Gwynne's writing style is something that I needed some time to get used to, but it works very well for this type of fantasy that's heavy in action and battle scenes. The characters that I couldn't relate to at all on my first attempt to read this book became so dear to me that towards the end, I struggled to continue reading because I didn't want to see them get hurt. That's something that hasn't happened to me in a long time, not after I listened to The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller, which I very nearly didn't finish simply because I felt I couldn't bear the inevitable unhappy ending. 

To keep this short as the title promises, I am captivated by Gwynne's world and will definitely read the whole series, Of Blood and Bone, and probably give The Faithful and the Fallen a go as well. I am a person who picks up books at random, without doing much research beforehand, and it occurred to me only after I'd finished A Time of Dread that I might've been wise to start from The Faithful and the Fallen, as Of Blood and Bone is technically a sequel to it, although designed so that it can be read as a standalone series. 

If you enjoy multi-POV epic fantasy jampacked with suspense and bloodshed, A Time of Dread is for you. The pool of blood is deep, the island of mauled bodies in the middle is high, so if you're sensitive to gore (as I was back in the day before watching The Game of Thrones, after which any amount of violence in fiction hasn't affected me), you might want to keep a bucket within arm's reach while reading it. Sounds like I'm joking, but I'm actually (all but) serious, because the scenes that include violence are so well written that I could smell the stench of death and fouler things. It's not all blood and spilt guts, though. There are quiet moments, too, and deep bonds between the characters, interesting and adorable creatures (I love the talking crows of Dun Seren, though usually I find talking animals in what I deem as adult fantasy off-putting), and a world that unfurls as the story progresses. Also, even as it's an epic fantasy, A Time of Dread isn't overly political, nor does it contain info dumps. Definitely a book worth adding to your to-be-read list.

What is it with these middle-aged, bearded men that they're so damn good at writing fantasy? And why, oh, why can't I be a middle-aged, bearded man, because if I were, perhaps my book would have a few readers, too. 

Short Book Reviews // The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

The Alchemist isn't a fantasy book, but it's the latest book I've read. I picked it up as a quick in-between read because I've always thought I should read something from Paulo Coelho, and Google recommended it when I asked for "the best self-help book when you feel like nothing's working out for you" (or something like that; I don't remember the exact wording of my search anymore).

I set a goal to read this book during September, but I didn't quite achieve that. I finished it yesterday and have somewhat mixed feelings about it. 

If I reviewed The Alchemist purely as a fiction book, I'd say it's a nice little story, easy to read, and as easy to forget. It's a story about the boy who chases his Personal Legend, following omens through the desert. He meets many people and learns a lot along the way. All in all, a cute story that would serve well someone who's only at the beginning of their reading journey, as it is short-ish and doesn't require much of the reader. It also served me well in the situation I am in, struggling with grief and guilt and the overall feeling of being an utter failure. If there's any book I could finish at the moment, it's The Alchemist.

However, I chose to read The Alchemist as a self-help book in a situation that feels hopeless. It turned out that I'm much like the Boy; I, too, chase my Personal Legend. Only, the Universe definitely doesn't conspire in my favour. (If nothing else, at least now I know where all that talk comes from...) Oftentimes, it feels that the Universe does the exact opposite, trying its hardest to prevent me from achieving my dream. 

That, of course, isn't true. I know, and The Alchemist confirms, that all the Universe does is exist. The only one who can help a person achieve their Personal Legend is the person themselves, and they are also their biggest obstacle on their way to their treasure. 

"There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure."

That's very true, and I wouldn't have needed to read a book to figure it out. The Alchemist is full of the same kind of wisdom, stuff that is self-evident but often difficult to admit to oneself. It's easy to blame outside factors (one's parents, the society, the Universe...) when things don't go as intended. The harsh truth is, however, that in the end, the only one responsible for a person's success or failure is the person themselves. I knew that before I read The Alchemist, just as I knew that to achieve my dream, I must shake the thought that it's impossible to begin with and that I'll fail anyway, no matter what I do. Unfortunately, that's much easier said than done. 

So, in a nutshell, The Alchemist is a sweet little book that offers a lot of wisdom or lots of platitudes, depending on the reader. Unlike Google, I wouldn't recommend that you read it as a self-help book, but simply as a work of fiction. 

Why So Silent?

The blog's been quiet for a while. I haven't given up on it, but because I don't know when I'm returning to posting, I thought maybe I should drop a few lines to explain why I haven't been active here.

The main reason is that I lost my dog a couple of weeks ago. She was ten years old and my first very own dog. Her passing was quite sudden, and reading and reviewing books has been the last thing on my mind since then.

The other reason is that I've been working on the second book of Braenduir Chronicles. I'm still determined to publish Rues of the Heroes by the end of this year. 

That's it in a nutshell. I don't have anything more to say today except that spend as much time as you can with your loved ones, because you never know when the day comes that they're no longer here. 

Author's Review // The Heirs of Duty by Julia P. Aspenn

General Rambling

The first book in my swords and sorcery/adventure fantasy series, Braenduir Chronicles, The Heirs of Duty (originally published under the title Runecursed) has been out for a few years. Fake it till you make it, they say these days... I've never been one to pretend, however, so I'll be honest with you; the audience has not found the book. It's my fault, largely, as I am an extreme introvert, fed up with social media (especially anything owned by Meta, and nowadays everything seems to be owned by Meta), and I have no money whatsoever to spend on marketing. Perhaps a part of the blame must be pointed at the book itself. It's not been written to please the masses. Comparing it to any of the more popular works within the genre is difficult. Reaching the targeted audience has proven impossible, at least by the means available to me.

When I started to write The Heirs of Duty six years ago, I didn't write it for others. I wrote a story I had always wanted to read but had never happened upon, though I have read quite a lot of books. Fantasy was always my go-to genre as a writer. I have tried my hand at general fiction and even poetry, but writing fantasy is what I am truly passionate about. That's why I keep working on the series even though I am my biggest and, almost, only fan. I enjoy writing the story too much to stop and focus my resources on something profitable.

One reason why The Heirs of Duty hasn't reached readers is my utter incompetence in describing my work. I can write over ten thousand words in a good day, but when I should compose a blurb of one hundred and fifty words, I suddenly become incapable of typing even the first line. It's a skill of its own to be able to capture the essence of a 150,000+ word book into a few lines in a way that makes the reader want to pick up that particular work from the unfathomable ocean of stories. 

The Review

Have I rambled enough? I dare say, I have, so let's cut to the point, finally. How could I describe The Heirs of Duty? I already mentioned that comparing it to any book most fantasy readers know is challenging. When I started writing Braenduir Chronicles, I wanted to create something like A Song of Ice and Fire, but lighter and more easily approachable, less political, less complex, and faster-paced. I ended up with a multi-point-of-view story that has little likeness to ASoIaF. 

When I was young, The Lord of the Rings trilogy was my favourite series. I've wanted to publish a book of my own ever since I learned how to read and write, and thanks to Tolkien, the traditional fantasy setup has always been the only choice for me. So, when it comes to world-building, Braenduir Chronicles doesn't offer anything out of the ordinary. However, I've never been a fan of the black-and-white Good versus Evil opposition that leaves no room for the shades of grey. In that sense, THoD is very different from LotR, brushing elbows with ASoIaF and other books/series like that.

I am a huge admirer of the Witcher series as well. I enjoy Geralt debating ethics with several minor characters, as well as the banter between him and Jaskier. The philosophical side is the thing for me in the series. I would love it even if Geralt didn't kill a single monster. He could sit on a rock in the middle of the forest throughout the series, brooding and discussing the large questions of life and the universe with anyone who happens to pass by, and I would still love the books, probably even more than I do now. When writing Braenduir, I constantly struggle to curb my desire to make half of my characters Geralts of their own lives -not monster hunters but great thinkers and friends of humanity, devoted to compassion. 

I also enjoy a sprinkle of romance in almost any book. I read mostly fantasy nowadays, but my favourite romantic stories aren't of the genre -except for The Song of Achilles; my heart still aches when I think about it. However, romantic fantasy in general isn't my thing. That being said, I enjoy writing romance, so I have tossed it in the confusing and overpouring pot that is the essence of Braenduir Chronicles. 

What I don't enjoy, however, is ranting about politics. The Heirs of Duty mostly takes place in courts and castles, but the points of view aren't of those holding the power, nor are the political relations of the realms the point of the story, even though there is a war going on. Another thing I find off-putting as a reader is a church as one of the major agents. Gods play a part, in fact, a rather significant part, in my series, but religions and practicing them have only a minuscule role.

What is it about, then, you may ask. The Heirs of Duty, as well as the whole series, is about choices and how they affect a person's destiny. It's about an individual's right to be who they are and live in the world as themselves, without needing to hide their true selves in fear of persecution or being shunned by society, and even their family and friends. The rulers of Braenduir might be warring over land and wealth and power itself, but the main characters of the story fight against prejudice, intolerance, and oppression -things that millions of people also in our world, still, in the year 2025, face in their everyday lives. Yet, it is not a political manifesto. The Heirs of Duty is chiefly a work of fantasy, an adventure that is written to entertain. If it causes the reader to contemplate the deep questions, that's a plus, but my primary goal as a writer is to offer people a getaway from the mundane.

Who is it for, you might also wonder. First of all, the series is written for adult readers. When I was around 14 years old, I read every work of Henry Miller I could find in the local library, as well as a pile of other books written by old men who write about things by their true names. However, I feel that as an author, I have the responsibility to tell the younger people (and those adults who prefer their books without sex and/or gore) that Braenduir Chronicles isn't necessarily the series you want to pick up as your next read. It's not smut, but The Heirs of Duty contains erotic scenes that leave little to the imagination. It also contains sexual violence and scenes of death. 

So much for the warnings. If you're mature enough to handle the stuff mentioned above, feel free to give The Heirs of Duty a go. As said, I read Henry Miller's The Rosy Crucifixion Trilogy when I was in secondary school, and I grew up more or less sane -apart from becoming a writer, that is. 

The series has multiple MCs, some male, others female, some younger, others more mature, which should make it a suitable read for most fantasy enthusiasts, regardless of their gender and age. However, to enjoy The Heirs of Duty, and the upcoming sequel, Rues of the Heroes, you need to be open-minded. Braenduir Chronicles displays a diverse cast of characters, which is something I refrain from touting as far as I can, because I believe diversity in all its forms should be a natural part of every society, something that is taken for granted and needs not to be emphasized or apologised. 

If you're a fan of swords and sorcery and/or adventure fantasy, and are looking for a new series to engage yourself in reading, do consider giving Braenduir Chronicles a chance. The threshold to try it shouldn't be too high, as the electric version of The Heirs of Duty is available for free on Smashwords, Rakuten kobo, Barnes&Noble and many other platforms, including the author's Payhip store. 

To encourage you to download the first book, here are some reviews The Heirs of Duty/Runecursed has received. The reviews are written by LibraryThing users who acquired the book via the site's Early Reviewers Program. Nothing was given to them in return for their time and effort except a free eBook, and none of the reviewers are friends or family members of the author. I have but one person in my social circle who knows English well enough to have read my book, so what little attention The Heirs of Duty has received is authentic. 

If you read this far without dozing off, thank you. I appreciate your effort and humbly request that you invest a small chunk of your precious spare time in wading through The Heirs of Duty. You might even enjoy it, but that's something you'll never find out unless you set aside your prejudices towards a self-published work of an unknown aspiring author. 

Short Book Reviews // Heir of Novron by Michael J. Sullivan

If you want to familiarise yourself with the series before reading the review, visit this page, because my Short Book Reviews don't include summaries of the books.

Heir of Novron includes books five and six of Riyria Revelations, an epic fantasy book series by Michael J. Sullivan -although Book Five, Wintertide, appears to be rather a long prologue to the last book in the series, Percepliquis, than a story of its own. I'll review the two as one, as I read them as a unit. 

I wish I could say I loved Heir of Novron. While reading Theft of Swords and Rise of Empire, I was intrigued by the multifaceted plot, which delivered a surprise after another, and I expected the story to grow even more complex, giving me a proper pause at the end. I'm saddened to say that the last two books in the series don't meet my expectations. 

The plot of Heir of Novron chugs on like a train on a plumb rail, bringing the reader safely to the expected destination. It's good, solid fantasy, but it's also lazy writing. Even though it became clear at the early stages of Wintertide that Heir of Novron isn't holding the rattling twist I expected, I clung to the hope it would yet come until the last few chapters. Unfortunately, the ending was just as I supposed it would be, and that's almost always a bummer. If the journey to the inevitable end included unexpected turns, I might be satisfied. It doesn't, and though Riyria Revelations had all the makings of a remarkable work of epic fantasy, the last two books ensure the series drowns in the vast ocean of average stories. Heir of Novron is entertaining and easy to read, but it left me cold. I gave Theft of Swords and Rise of Empire four stars each, but I can't grant more than three to Heir of Novron. 

However, as always, I recommend that you read the books and make up your own mind. A book review is always a personal opinion, and though I was disappointed with the ending of this series, you may well have an entirely different view. 

Short Book Reviews // Rise of Empire by Michael J. Sullivan (Part Two)

If you want to familiarise yourself with the series before reading the review, visit this page, because my Short Book Reviews don't include information about what happens in the books.

Book Four of Riyria Revelations, Emerald Storm, by Michael J. Sullivan, is the best in the series so far. It kept me engaged till the end and managed even to move me to some measure, which is quite a remarkable achievement for any work of fiction nowadays. 

There's more action in Emerald Storm than in the first three books, making it a gripping read. Some of the plot twists made me almost hate the author and wonder whether he hates his characters, especially the female ones. Is there truly no limit to the suffering of those poor women? Not that the male characters aren't getting their share of difficulties and pain, but not one of the female characters seems to be struggling towards a happily-ever-after.

Regardless, I would've given Emerald Storm five stars if not for the tediously detailed descriptions of managing a sailing vessel. I know, as a fiction writer, that fiction writers sprinkle their stories with hard facts to make them more plausible, but (here it comes again, the infamous and ominous but) there's a difference between sprinkling and loading. Sprinkling is fine. I don't mind learning a few facts and a handful of new words about a specific subject, even from a fantasy book. However, when I read fiction, I want it to remain fiction from beginning to end, instead of occasionally turning into an instruction manual on anything. I know many epic fantasy readers, perhaps even the majority, like a book the better, the more generous in factual details it is. Yet to me, lessons on fencing, sailing, playing chess, and whatnot are nothing if not distracting at their best and totally off-putting at their worst. The sailing blaah-blaah-blaah in Emerald Storm verges on being off-putting. If the book weren't so damn good aside from the aforementioned bits, I would drop it into my three-star pile.

All in all, I enjoyed Emerald Storm and could scarcely wait to move on to the next book in the series. I'm currently reading Heir of Novron and regret to say that, at least for now, book five, Wintertide, hasn't managed to impress me. Let's not write a review on an unfinished read, however. Who knows what surprises lurk on the pages I am yet to turn, so it would be most unfair to judge the whole book by the first fifteen chapters. 

Short Book Reviews // The Broken Tower by Kelly Braffet

It's been a week (? Or more-time runs so fast, I seem unable to keep up with it.) since I finished reading The Broken Tower (The Barrier Lands 2) by Kelly Braffet. I read it as an eBook and was annoyed many times because I had to put the tablet down and do something else. If it were possible, I'd have devoured the book in one go as I did with books I loved when I was a kid/teenager. But I'm an adult (What does that even mean?) and have responsibilities that I must prioritise over pleasures.  

The Broken Tower continues the story started in The Unwilling (the first book of The Barrier Lands) of three young people, Judah the Foundling, Lord Gavin of Highfall, and Lady Eleanor, who is Gavin's betrothed, bound to each other by the ties of love, friendship, and magic. I'm under the impression that The Broken Tower is supposed to be young adult fantasy, but I wouldn't recommend it for readers under 18. The book contains scenes that are brutally violent and, to be honest, quite disturbing. No sex, though, so if you're okay with gore but not with erotic scenes, go for it. 

You'll find a short description of the book here. I googled for the author's website or something else a tad more extensive, but this Risingshadow page was the only non-commercial site I could find. (The reason why I try to avoid sharing commercial links is that I don't want to direct you to purchase the books on a specific platform. Most books are available on various platforms in multiple formats, and I believe in giving people the full freedom of choice instead of nudging them in one direction or another.)

But to the review now. It's no surprise to anyone at this point that I loved the book at least as much as the first book in the series. If things went bad for the characters in The Unwilling, in The Broken Tower, they go even worse. That's not why I enjoyed The Broken Tower so much -I'm not a sadist, after all- but there is a beauty to a story that keeps taking a turn after another towards more misery. We are used to stories developing towards the better, aren't we? Most books have a happy ending, or at least things don't go to the dogs for all the main characters. So far, The Barrier Lands seems to be an exception on that account. There are moments that cheat the reader into imagining, the sun is finally starting to shine upon the MCs, yet, in the next chapter, they find themselves even more screwed than they were before. 

I've been complaining that I can no longer relate to the book characters. However, I can still emphatise with Judah's defiance and dedication to her loved ones. She ends up doing some pretty gruesome things to protect her friends and dodge the fate that other people are trying to force upon her. Some might think she's going too far, even mark her as one of the least likable characters in the story, but I understand her choices because I'd act the same if I were in her place. Afterwards, I'd be horrified for what I've done, just like Judah is, but the outcome would be the same.

I don't want to spoil it for you by revealing too much of the plot, so let's stick to more general notions. The story is written in the third person from the points of view of various characters, some of whom had only a minor role in The Unwilling. I like this type of structure a lot (and use it in my own books, as well). I think it gives the story more depth and keeps it more interesting. 

When it comes to language, The Broken Tower isn't the easiest book to read. In many places, the phrase structure is confusing and complicated. I had to read several sentences twice or thrice to figure out their meaning, but largely, the language is eloquent without getting overly embellished. 

To wrap it up, The Broken Tower isn't a light read, but it's definitely worth the time and concentration it requires. The plot is rather straightforward, save for a couple of twists, but because of the number of characters and events, the reader needs to focus fully on the story to keep up with it.