A slow, engaging, and violent fantasy series opener.
A mercenary strives to learn his true identity in a war-torn world in this fantasy.
The world of Tiamhaal is ravaged by warfare. Numerous tribes fight for deities like Zmaj, the All God. Gen. Dumar guides a small force outside Satrone, an arid territory ruled by the Kulshedrans. Zoltek, the head of these warriors from Usaj, has allowed a mysterious mercenary named Scar to lead the charge. Scar is pale, hairless, and heals quickly from any injury. When Zoltek’s son, Urdu, insists on dueling the mercenary for the right to lead, Scar beheads the arrogant whelp. Dumar, Scar, and the rest form a plan to secretly capture several towers in an effort to unseat King Gilgamesh of Satrone. If Scar can help accomplish this, Zoltek has promised to ask Zmaj about the mercenary’s true origin. But when the siege of one tower goes wrong, Dumar decides to betray Scar. The mercenary escapes, with vengeful feelings against Zoltek filling his heart. He then meets a Kulshedran named Labolas Sulas, who claims to be on a mission from Gilgamesh to retrieve Scar—whom he calls Brandt. Further, Labolas reveals that Scar is the lost ruler of an ancient nation called Alduheim. Gilgamesh needs Scar to unite all the lands under Kulshedra, God of Truth. Dennis begins his fantasy series with an intriguing mystery to spur his protagonist through a violent world. Conan the Barbarian fans will enjoy the narrative’s dour tone, punctuated by moments of intense brutality, as when Scar “bashed the paladin’s head in with three quick strikes. The helmet made an awful, wet, smacking sound upon rupturing with brains.” Readers will need patience while Scar navigates a world crowded with gods, including Drac and Naga. Scar’s own religious beliefs are: “You should not be concerned with how” someone “feels, so long as he is not imposing on you.” Generally, events sweep Scar along from one location to the next, and the plot unfolds without any direction from the protagonist. In a dream, a being called Eternus renames the mercenary Sarkany, the slayer of dragons. In the following installments, Dennis’ hero will hopefully possess more agency.
A slow, engaging, and violent fantasy series opener.Pub Date: July 13, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-5150-6345-2
Page Count: 393
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Feb. 25, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.
A young Navarrian woman faces even greater challenges in her second year at dragon-riding school.
Violet Sorrengail did all the normal things one would do as a first-year student at Basgiath War College: made new friends, fell in love, and survived multiple assassination attempts. She was also the first rider to ever bond with two dragons: Tairn, a powerful black dragon with a distinguished battle history, and Andarna, a baby dragon too young to carry a rider. At the end of Fourth Wing (2023), Violet and her lover, Xaden Riorson, discovered that Navarre is under attack from wyvern, evil two-legged dragons, and venin, soulless monsters that harvest energy from the ground. Navarrians had always been told that these were monsters of legend and myth, not real creatures dangerously close to breaking through Navarre’s wards and attacking civilian populations. In this overly long sequel, Violet, Xaden, and their dragons are determined to find a way to protect Navarre, despite the fact that the army and government hid the truth about these creatures. Due to the machinations of several traitorous instructors at Basgiath, Xaden and Violet are separated for most of the book—he’s stationed at a distant outpost, leaving her to handle the treacherous, cutthroat world of the war college on her own. Violet is repeatedly threatened by her new vice commandant, a brutal man who wants to silence her. Although Violet and her dragons continue to model extreme bravery, the novel feels repetitive and more than a little sloppy, leaving obvious questions about the world unanswered. The book is full of action and just as full of plot holes, including scenes that are illogical or disconnected from the main narrative. Secondary characters are ignored until a scene requires them to assist Violet or to be killed in the endless violence that plagues their school.
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374172
Page Count: 640
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 20, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.
On the orders of her mother, a woman goes to dragon-riding school.
Even though her mother is a general in Navarre’s army, 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail was raised by her father to follow his path as a scribe. After his death, though, Violet's mother shocks her by forcing her to enter the elite and deadly dragon rider academy at Basgiath War College. Most students die at the War College: during training sessions, at the hands of their classmates, or by the very dragons they hope to one day be paired with. From Day One, Violet is targeted by her classmates, some because they hate her mother, others because they think she’s too physically frail to succeed. She must survive a daily gauntlet of physical challenges and the deadly attacks of classmates, which she does with the help of secret knowledge handed down by her two older siblings, who'd been students there before her. Violet is at the mercy of the plot rather than being in charge of it, hurtling through one obstacle after another. As a result, the story is action-packed and fast-paced, but Violet is a strange mix of pure competence and total passivity, always managing to come out on the winning side. The book is categorized as romantasy, with Violet pulled between the comforting love she feels from her childhood best friend, Dain Aetos, and the incendiary attraction she feels for family enemy Xaden Riorson. However, the way Dain constantly undermines Violet's abilities and his lack of character development make this an unconvincing storyline. The plots and subplots aren’t well-integrated, with the first half purely focused on Violet’s training, followed by a brief detour for romance, and then a final focus on outside threats.
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374042
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
