What if mercenaries in the fantasy
world are like rock stars in our world?
It is a rare idea, and it inspired
Nicholas Eames, a budding author, to write a fantasy novel called
Kings of the Wyld. It was a sword and sorcery adventure which rocked
and rolled in my reading world. Kings of the Wyld was my favorite
book of 2017, and for the past year I have been praying to Crom, day after day, for a sequel:
"Crom, I have never prayed to you
before. I have no tongue for it. No one, not even you, will remember
which book was good or bad. Why we read or why we dreamed. No, all
that matter is one story stood out from the many. That's what's
important. Glory pleases you, Crom, so grant me one request – grant
me Bloody Rose! And if you do not listen, then the hell with you!"
And
Crom answered my prayer!
Two weeks ago, Bloody Rose, the sequel
to Kings of the Wyld, finally arrived at my mailbox. I read it during
the weekend.
And?
Well this is it, boys and girls, I have found my favorite book of
2018!
Synopsis:
Fable is the biggest and the most
famous band this side of the Heart Wyld, and they just rolled into town.
Walking at Fable's front is the lead, Bloody Rose. Two swords rest on
Rose's armored back, and with their sharp edges she carved herself a
monster-slaying history as crimson as the color of her hair. On
Rose's side is a rabbit-eared warrior, the hilt of a giant sword is
protruding from his shoulder. His name is Freecloud, an immortal, and
he will fight monsters and gods, not for gold or for glory, but for
Rose's love.
Trailing at Fable's rear is a pair of unlikely friends;
a giant of a man and a tattooed woman. The big man's name is Brune,
and he is deadly, not because of the twin glaives swinging in his hands, but
for his shape-shifting ability that will make even Beorn envious.
Meanwhile, the tattooed woman, Cura, is armed with nothing but a pair
of daggers. Yet, one should know better than undermining Cura because it will be too late to regret when she summons nightmarish allies from the inks on her skin.
Yep, that is a screenshot for Fable,
the legendary band. But something is missing in the picture, don't
you think? I mean, legends must be told, so who in Fable is singing
and telling the world about their tales and exploits? Members of Fable must have thought so too, for upon their arrival in
town, Fable announced they were auditioning for a bard. That was when
Tam, a tavern girl from the sleepy town, seized the opportunity and
signed on as a bard, to become a part of a life-changing epic.
My thoughts on this book:
In Bloody Rose, Nicholas Eames made a
bold move, he featured a cast of new characters instead of continuing
with ones from Kings of the Wyld. A few characters, from
the previous installment, did appear in Bloody Rose, but their roles
are minor, because this book is predominantly about a different band.
This also means Bloody Rose is pretty much a stand alone story,
although you might appreciate it more if you already read Kings
of the Wyld.
This book has an interesting narrative
style. The story is about Rose, but it is was told from the
perspectives of Tam, who is Fable's bard. At the beginning of the
story Tam was thrilled to join Fable because she was under the charm of their legendary
reputation. Later on, however, Tam observed that behind their
heroic reputations these people are really just flawed people like
everyone else, and so in the process Tam began to bond with her band
members while at the same time learning about the world.
I like that
Nicholas Eames used Tam as the POV character, because from her eyes, we see these characters for who they really are; not just as heroes, but real people with struggles
and flaws. These blemishes made them feel more real. Every
character in Bloody Rose is just as likable and memorable as our
beloved heroes from Kings of the Wyld. I loved every character in
this book and I was sad to wave goodbye to them. Furthermore, the villains were
also well written, and their motives are sympathetic. In the fantasy
world of Bloody Rose, the humans who adventured into the Heart Wyld
and killed "monsters" were hailed as heroes, but to those
non-human creatures living in the Heart Wyld, the humans were the
monsters slaughtering them. This story raised a good point - one does
not become a hero in one story without being a villain in another.
The characters, however, are not the
only changes in Bloody Rose. The tone and the theme in this book
are also more serious than the previous installment. Kings of the Wyld was
a story about the parents' love for their children, and the bonds between
old friends. Kings of the Wyld was heartwarming story, but it was also light
hearted. Bloody Rose is also about family, but this time the
story is not just about the family you were born into, but it is also
about those who you have chosen to be family with. Bloody Rose is
more emotional than Kings of the Wyld, it is also heartwarming, but this time it is also heartbreaking.
Oh yes, by the way, have I mentioned
the action scenes in this book are phenomenal? Probably not, well
then, for the record, the battles in this book are climatic and they
will rattle the bones your ancestors! You ask, where will the thunder
rumble? The answer: pretty much the entire book. But without spoiling
the story let me just say two battles scenes in particular, one from
2/3 into the book, and the final battle, these two battles scenes are stuff of legend, it is something you have never imagined before.
Anyway, while the laugh-out-loud humors
from Kings of the Wyld are still present in Bloody Rose, but overall
this book feels darker than the previous one. Personally, I think
Bloody Rose has a slight edge over Kings of the Wyld because it
delivered a stronger emotional impact than the last (and I think the
battles scenes in Bloody Rose are better than their counterparts in
Kings of the Wyld too). Having said this, these novels are my favorite books in two consecutive years. I believe Nicholas Eames is planning to release the
third, and the final book in this trilogy in 2019, so take a guess
what will be my favorite book of 2019?
The most damnable thing is, I have to
wait a whole year to read the next one.
So I shall pray to Crom again....
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