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ceruleanesk's review against another edition
5.0
It took some time for me to really get into this book and to start caring for the characters. I found the setting a little bland. However after sticking with it, the world is shown to be way more interesting than I first gave it credit for and the characters and especially the protagonist grew on me.
Apparently I'm a sucker for huge epic sprawling fantasy. I see people mentioning parallels with Rothfuss's King Killer trilogy and I can definitely see these as well.
So, another addiction for me; on the the next book!
Apparently I'm a sucker for huge epic sprawling fantasy. I see people mentioning parallels with Rothfuss's King Killer trilogy and I can definitely see these as well.
So, another addiction for me; on the the next book!
zkendall's review against another edition
3.0
Pretty simple medieval fantasy. Entertaining but took a while to be interesting.
Also apparently the rest of the series doesn’t follow through on what is setup here, so extra meh.
Terrible audiobook reader.
Also apparently the rest of the series doesn’t follow through on what is setup here, so extra meh.
Terrible audiobook reader.
arian_dragonelf's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing
Moderate: Violence, Child abuse, War, Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Gore, and Grief
Minor: Animal death
saraubs's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars.
I had high hopes for this one - with the coming of age/recounting your history/battle school combination I thought this would be an easy 5 stars. However, despite Vaelin being a compelling main character, we didn't get quite enough from the supporting cast for me to fall in love with this one. The impactful moments failed to land for me and I wasn't as emotionally invested as I wanted to be.
Still, a solid fantasy novel that combines a modern writing style with classic tropes and one that would serve as an effective escape when you're looking for something to remind you why you fell in love with the genre.
I had high hopes for this one - with the coming of age/recounting your history/battle school combination I thought this would be an easy 5 stars. However, despite Vaelin being a compelling main character, we didn't get quite enough from the supporting cast for me to fall in love with this one. The impactful moments failed to land for me and I wasn't as emotionally invested as I wanted to be.
Still, a solid fantasy novel that combines a modern writing style with classic tropes and one that would serve as an effective escape when you're looking for something to remind you why you fell in love with the genre.
hlarsen's review against another edition
3.0
Paint-by-numbers writing, but entertaining nonetheless.
janu0303's review against another edition
5.0
It's a like Name of the Wind, in how the story is narrated.
jelenar620's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
j_j_catcrazydragon's review against another edition
4.0
Brillant!!
Think R. E. Fiest, but grittier, David Gemmel, but more character involvement.
Strong diverse characters, both male and female. It's a book for all to read and enjoy.
Think R. E. Fiest, but grittier, David Gemmel, but more character involvement.
Strong diverse characters, both male and female. It's a book for all to read and enjoy.
justjoel's review against another edition
5.0
I am so glad I picked up this book when I did. I had started and DNFed three or four books in a row (unusual for me) and was getting more than a little irritated trying to find something that didn't make me want to pitch it across the room after 25 pages.
This book is familiar in a lot of ways. If you have read The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss or Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb, there will be some recognizable elements to the opening novel of this fantasy trilogy.
Vaelin al-Sorna is the young son of a realm's battle-lord who is entrusted to the "care" of, for lack of a better term, battle monks who train young boys in the Faith of the realm, and to become loyal soldiers.
There is a "school" element to the training and the brothers who teach the boys, so fans of fantasy school settings should be appeased. There are a lot of mysteries to be solved here. It begins simply enough: with Vaelin feeling abandoned and not understanding why his father left him. But as time wears on and Vaelin begins discovering truths about his family, other mysteries with far wider implications are revealed and begin to slowly unfurl.
I always enjoy when an author manages to surprise me, and that happened a couple of times in these pages. I was positive I had a major plot twist figured out, but was horribly wrong and was okay with that because the reveal made sense.
While it didn't bother me, people who have issues with UK spelling might be put off by this book.
All in all, it was a better-than-average fantasy coming-of-age tale with a fair amount of sword and sorcery, but heavier on the sword. I'll definitely be continuing this series at some point.
This book is familiar in a lot of ways. If you have read The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss or Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb, there will be some recognizable elements to the opening novel of this fantasy trilogy.
Vaelin al-Sorna is the young son of a realm's battle-lord who is entrusted to the "care" of, for lack of a better term, battle monks who train young boys in the Faith of the realm, and to become loyal soldiers.
There is a "school" element to the training and the brothers who teach the boys, so fans of fantasy school settings should be appeased. There are a lot of mysteries to be solved here. It begins simply enough: with Vaelin feeling abandoned and not understanding why his father left him. But as time wears on and Vaelin begins discovering truths about his family, other mysteries with far wider implications are revealed and begin to slowly unfurl.
I always enjoy when an author manages to surprise me, and that happened a couple of times in these pages. I was positive I had a major plot twist figured out, but was horribly wrong and was okay with that because the reveal made sense.
While it didn't bother me, people who have issues with UK spelling might be put off by this book.
All in all, it was a better-than-average fantasy coming-of-age tale with a fair amount of sword and sorcery, but heavier on the sword. I'll definitely be continuing this series at some point.
brontesaurus84's review against another edition
2.0
More of a 2.5. Well written fantasy but just didn't grab me. Different characters, even major ones, felt pretty imperceptible a lot of the time. A shame as I'd looked forward to it and maybe bit at some of the favourable reviews.