An inconsistent, blood-spattered fantasy that features several strong characters.
A pure-hearted soldier gets drawn into a violent battle between good and evil in this sword-and-sorcery epic.
The novel’s protagonist is Gideon Halcyon, an orphan adopted by a knight, who dreams of becoming a hero. In this tale set in the world of Sinai, where humans have been overrun by demonic races, Gideon’s opportunity comes too soon when his hometown is overrun by raiders. They enslave many of the residents, including Gideon’s pregnant foster mother, Talia. Gideon is rescued when the slavers get savaged by Ashkelon, a sorcerer of the Everlasting Dark and the only survivor of the ruined world of Avalon. The two reunite a few years later when Ashkelon again saves Gideon, now a soldier. Ashkelon proposes taking on the earnest but raw-skilled Gideon as his apprentice. Years of training follow. Then they cross paths with the Viking-like Wolves, one of the last protectors of humankind, including the chief’s daughter, Anya Helsdottyr. The town in which they meet is attacked by spiders and mutants. The sorcerer, Gideon, and the Wolves drive off the intruders, and the duo gets invited to the group’s fortified compound. Gideon and Ashkelon help the Wolves defend the compound against increasingly more dangerous threats, including a god’s consort, giants, and more spiders and mutants. But the biggest challenge seems to involve getting Gideon and Ashkelon to agree philosophically on anything. In this first installment of a fantasy series, Shuerger unveils a very complicated mythology. Over the course of 418 pages, characters introduced earlier in the book can be forgotten by the time they pop up again later. Maps and a character guide would be useful in future volumes. In addition, the graphic battle scenes go on and on, often grinding the intriguing narrative to a halt. One highlight is the waxing and waning relationship between Gideon and Ashkelon, both of whom are well-developed characters. The primary Wolves (Anya, Skald, and Haimdell) are also memorable. Still, there are too many players and species to keep track of, which will lead to some readers thinking, “Who was that again?” This results in an uneven introduction to a grim world.
An inconsistent, blood-spattered fantasy that features several strong characters.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: 978-1-7352824-1-1
Page Count: 428
Publisher: Creative Grumbles, LLC
Review Posted Online: Jan. 14, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Although the melodrama sometimes is a bit much, the superb worldbuilding and intricate plotline make this a must-read.
Using mystery and romance elements in a nonlinear narrative, SenLinYu’s debut is a doorstopper of a fantasy that follows a woman with missing memories as she navigates through a war-torn realm in search of herself.
Helena Marino is a talented young healer living in Paladia—the “Shining City”—who has been thrust into a brutal war against an all-powerful necromancer and his army of Undying, loyal henchmen with immortal bodies, and necrothralls, reanimated automatons. When Helena is awakened from stasis, a prisoner of the necromancer’s forces, she has no idea how long she has been incarcerated—or the status of the war. She soon finds herself a personal prisoner of Kaine Ferron, the High Necromancer’s “monster” psychopath who has sadistically killed hundreds for his master. Ordered to recover Helena’s buried memories by any means necessary, the two polar opposites—Helena and Kaine, healer and killer—end up discovering much more as they begin to understand each other through shared trauma. While necromancy is an oft-trod subject in fantasy novels, the author gives it a fresh feel—in large part because of their superb worldbuilding coupled with unforgettable imagery throughout: “[The necromancer] lay reclined upon a throne of bodies. Necrothralls, contorted and twisted together, their limbs transmuted and fused into a chair, moving in synchrony, rising and falling as they breathed in tandem, squeezing and releasing around him…[He] extended his decrepit right hand, overlarge with fingers jointed like spider legs.” Another noteworthy element is the complex dynamic between Helena and Kaine. To say that these two characters shared the gamut of intense emotions would be a vast understatement. Readers will come for the fantasy and stay for the romance.
Although the melodrama sometimes is a bit much, the superb worldbuilding and intricate plotline make this a must-read.Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2025
ISBN: 9780593972700
Page Count: 1040
Publisher: Del Rey
Review Posted Online: July 17, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2025
An engrossing, action-packed sequel with a compelling cast.
A woman must undergo fearsome trials to free the imprisoned Titans of Greek myth in Owen’s fantasy novel, the second in a series.
Advancing from minor office clerk in the Order of Thieves to Queen of the Underworld, Lyra Keres’ star should be rising. But thanks to Cronos, King of the Titans, she and her longtime friend and fellow thief Boone have been ensnared in a new challenge beneath the earth: Hot on the heels of winning the twisted Crucible Games, Lyra—who has recently been granted goddess powers—finds herself trapped in Tartarus. Separated from her beloved Hades, she must liberate the fearsome Titans from seven Locks to restore the cosmic balance. As Lyra progresses through the Locks engineered by the Gods—each as tricky and lethal as the last—the pressure mounts as the Titans repeatedly remind her, “You will be our savior.” Rhea, the wife of Cronos, reveals that Lyra began this quest “a hundred and fifty years ago,” adding further devastation to the task at hand; the knowledge is helpful, but also painful, as Lyra reflects, “Suddenly, I don’t want to know that it’s real. Because then I have to contemplate how many times I might have ended up in Tartarus already.” As she materializes in and out of time pockets, Lyra sees Hades’ troubled childhood unfold and struggles not to intervene to save the man she loves. In this second entry in the author’s Crucible series, following The Games Gods Play (2024), Lyra’s cynical quips continue to make her an engaging protagonist. Her inner monologues are balanced with hope, love, and longing for Hades as she meets various versions of him. While resilient, Owen’s heroine is also vulnerable (“Was I his pawn in more ways than I ever realized?”). Her introspection effectively contrasts with the simmering rage and restraint in Hades’ chapters. The supporting Titans are given more depth than the traditional myths allow, weaving a knotty family fabric for the reader to navigate alongside Lyra.
An engrossing, action-packed sequel with a compelling cast.Pub Date: Oct. 21, 2025
ISBN: 9781649378538
Page Count: 500
Publisher: Entangled: Red Tower Books
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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