Chanticleer Book Reviews

Tag: Sword & Sorcery

THE SCALES Of BALANCE: A Vengeful Realm Book 1 by Tim Facciola – Epic Fantasy, Sword & Sorcery, Political Intrigue

The Scales of Balance opens with an amnesiac gladiator, a queen certain her husband must die for the sake of the kingdom, and a prince who will do anything to save his father. Tim Facciola’s first novel in the high fantasy series A Vengeful Realm is threaded through with plots of assassination and political intrigue, all fueled by a divine struggle for dominance.

A Vengeful Realm is a study in richness. Its characters, setting, and world-building, the vital elements for a strong fantasy, pull the reader into the land of New Rheynia where the most valuable currencies are loyalty and power.

Facciola excels at characterization, beginning with an engaging tapestry of backgrounds.

The gladiator Zephyrus’ first memories are in a temple hearing the words of a prophecy that he can’t understand. Depending on the interpretation, he could bring peace or destruction. His only guide is his iron morality, which he hopes is enough to bring him back to who he once was.

Prince Laeden discovers a Revivalist plot to assassinate the king. This splinter group is displeased with his father’s handling of mages in New Rheynia, thinking exile and banishment to be too soft of a punishment for those who would blaspheme against the Six Gods of Valencia. But the last person Laeden would suspect is his stepmother, Queen Danella, who plots against King Varros from his marriage bed. And that’s just chapter one.

Facciola’s high-fantasy world feels like a finely tuned watch. As the characters come to life, they move inexorably toward the only choice they truly have.

A study in freedom and free will, the question of what rights and choices the enslaved gladiators who surround Zephyrus have features strongly in the book. With factions vying for control, the Uprising of enslaved who push back against their torment are a prominent force to be reckoned with, and an easy scapegoat for darker and more powerful groups to blame their own enterprises on.

The disgust Zephyrus feels with being a gladiator fighting for the entertainment of a gilded cast is not shared by all of his new brothers in arms. Some resent his prowess with a blade, others ridicule him for spitting on the honor of their house, and still more are drawn to him for what his prophecy might mean for all those forced into bondage.

As the first book in a series, The Scales of Balance lights dozens of fuses that begin to burn and cross over each other. Careful readers who adore titanic fantasy authors like Brandon Sanderson and Robert Jordan will be thrilled at the plots within plots and intrigue behind every move.

With the fate of a kingdom in the balance, tension is sky high from the very beginning. Multiple points of view allow the reader to see how Queen Danella stays one step ahead of her stepson, and the little ways in which Zephyrus and Prince Laeden are able to subvert and close in on her machinations. Death waits around every corner for those who misstep, and each character knows it, uncertain from where the next strike will come or where it will land.

All told, Tim Facciola’s A Vengeful Realm takes its place with the best caliber of high fantasy books.

The story of Zephyrus and the world of New Rheynia isn’t one of might makes right and violence putting evil in its place. It believes a different path is possible, that hope for the future is not just a dream, but a necessary reality to push back against cruelty in power.

The Scales of Balance: A Vengeful Realm Book 1 by Tim Facciola won Overall Grand Prize in the 2023 Chanticleer International Book Awards.

November 13, 2024
MANUFACTURED WITCHES by Michelle Rene – Teen & Y/A LGBT Fiction, Teen & Y/A Wizards & Witches Fantasy Fiction, Teen & Y/A Sword & Sorcery Fantasy Books

Sixteen-year-old Nat is a boxcar kid. It’s the Dust Bowl era, and Nat has lost everything: his grandmother, his family home, and a sense of belonging. He hops trains across Texas in search of a place for himself amid so much loss. Outside of Amarillo, Nat feels a peculiar sensation, a tug from destiny, that pulls him toward the small town of Tanglewood. However, instead of finding a job and some much-needed food, he discovers Polly Jones, a teenager like himself, chained to a post with a sign above her reading, “Thou shalt not suffer a witch.”

Nat can’t bring himself to abandon her to the small-minded, fearful townsfolk and immediately becomes her protector until the arrival of Camille Renoir Lavendou, a local woman who operates Miss Camille’s Home for Wayward Children. No one dares stop Camille from releasing Polly and taking both teens with her because Camille is reputed to be in the “witchin’ business” herself. Nat’s excitement at the prospect of food and a place to stay quickly turns to disbelief and wariness when he steps inside Camille’s sanctuary. What he thought was a ploy on Camille’s part to keep the nosey townsfolk at bay doesn’t seem to be a trick at all when he meets those who are under Camille’s care.

When Polly, too, begins to exhibit extraordinary abilities, Nat begins to feel like an outsider. Despite his limitations, Nat’s intense loyalty quickly leads him into a much more dangerous situation, where his very life may lay in the balance.

For lovers of the paranormal, this novel will be a special treat. Miss Camille’s Home for Wayward Children is a delight in every room. From books that magically fill with stories for a specific reader, to rooms with waterfalls and koi ponds, this realm of possibilities will leave the reader clambering for more and wanting to explore right along with Nat. Although the book would benefit from another round of editing, it is perhaps one of the most compelling novels we’ve read lately. The delight of discovery and fantastic description within the novel will inspire the many magical possibilities that await. While the surface of the plot is innocent, the theme beneath will undoubtedly satisfy.

Nat’s story is one of belonging. Throughout his journey, he has the innate, human need for acceptance and home, not just a physical place to lay his head, but the real need for family and kinship. The Dust Bowl setting plays such an intricate role in this theme because so many Americans searched for what nature and man took from them, their place in the universe. Nat’s story, though fictional, was played out in real-time for millions of people. He has lost everything, his family, his home, his identity. His search and subsequent finding of his place lead to a discovery of himself. Though he often feels he doesn’t belong anywhere ─ not the boxcar, nor the tramp world, nor Camille’s menagerie of unique people ─ Nat comes to see exactly who he is and of what he is capable. Although facing the potential of great danger, Camille, an African American, creates a home for all. She is warned multiple times that she cannot take in white children. Her love for all her “children” is colorblind. Her home is a haven and a place to discover their true identity. Acceptance takes center stage in this novel and leaves the reader wrapped in a cozy hug of belonging.

Manufactured Witches took home the Grand Prize in the 2019 CIBAs in the OZMA Awards for the Best Fantasy Fiction, and First in Category in the Dante Rossetti Awards the same year.

October 29, 2020
The QUEEN and KNIGHTS of NOR: Legends of Nor Book 1 by R.L. Stelzer – Children’s Fantasy, Sorcery/Magic, Epic Fantasy Series

Micha, Princess of Nor, can’t wait for her twenty-second birthday celebration. She wants to laugh with her sister, Olive, and their best friend and cousin, Dillip, and perhaps spend time with Percival, a prince from the nearby Mur. But her celebration is cut short when a messenger arrives at the manor with news that all of the inhabitants of the city of Valde, including her parents, have been enchanted by an evil witch Draka, who has escaped from her centuries-old mountain prison.

Though she has trained her entire life to pick up the mantel of a ruler, Micha isn’t ready to command armies and save her people; however, when Draka allies with the southern dragons and eastern goblins, she has no choice but to take up arms and defend her land. Micha soon enlists the help of Susa, a strange old woman of the forest who is more than she appears. With Susa’s wisdom and the bravery of their father’s captain, Demetrius, Micha and Olive pursue Draka’s horde.

There is one problem, they quickly learn that Draka can only be killed by a sword imbued with the blood of a great conqueror and wielded by his direct descendent. As the sacrifices pile up, Micha questions her ability to rule and wonders if anything will remain of the home she loves.

The world of Nor is an enchanted land where birds and bears offer much-needed help to the worthy, and giants roam the land. It is a place where goblins attack heroes, pirates plague coastal cities, and talking rats the size of horses walk upright. In all of this fantastical world-building, heroes still ride in on valiant steeds, and goodwill defeat evil no matter the cost.

Of these heroes, Micha is supreme. Her uncertainty in her abilities makes her a very human character. She doesn’t step into challenges knowing victory is certain. Micha questions her knowledge and sometimes feels the pull of Percival’s insistence that she shouldn’t have to shoulder all of the burdens that have been thrust upon her. She readily admits her fatigue and uncertainty but never shirks from her responsibilities.

Percival’s fun-loving ways are a direct foil to Micha’s dynamic character growth. With a father who ousted giants and a mother who quelled a pirate rebellion, Micha has big shoes to fill; yet, even in youth, her wisdom shines. She also has the good sense to know her limitations. Often, she turns to Demetrius for help, and in a sense, they become partners who find their strength in each other. Putting the kingdom above herself, Micha willingly sacrifices whatever is needed to defeat the greedy hubris of Draka.

Though Micha sacrifices much, many of the characters make similar sacrifices. Willing to die doing what’s right rather than live with the consequences of not fighting, these characters add to the righteousness of the novel’s message. Abbott, a half-breed giant, risks his life in warning Micha and then again by going to his giant family who ostracized him. Dillip suffers a significant loss when he fights the oldest dragon in Nor. Demetrius willingly faces off against Draka herself. All who see Micha’s bravery readily defend her and the kingdom, choosing action over complacency.

Middle-grade students and those who love fantasy will quickly fall in love with the land of Nor and its heroic queen.

The Queen and Knights of Nor won 1st Place in the CIBA 2017 Gertrude Warner Awards for Middle-Grade Fiction.

August 24, 2019
The 19th BLADESMAN, Book 1 of the Shadow Sword Series by S. J. Hartland – Epic Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Action/Adventure

A dark, medieval fantasy with a hopeful message from debut author, S. J. Hartland will draw attention for its atmospheric settings, evil twists, and righteous triumphs.

Lord Vraymorg is a seemingly ageless warrior whose duty is to train young bladesmen for their heavy task. These specially selected assassins, called bonded warriors, have the onerous responsibility of killing ghouls – and only ghouls – and always running the risk of being attacked. Being attacked by ghouls means certain death. And dying by ghoul is something everyone naturally wants to avoid. But something is different with Kaell, Vraymorg’s latest charge. In fact, the 19th bladesman carries a special destiny, one directed by the gods. Kaell is bright, defiant, and, though Vraymorg cannot bear to think of it, lovable, like a son. This fatherly love is the crux of the warrior lord’s struggle. How can he put this young man into harm’s way? For it is a death sentence to be trained as a warrior and pick up arms against the ghouls. Vraymorg doesn’t have it easy, and we get it.

Told from multiple points of view, Hartland’s story offers strong, masculine heroes like Kaell and Vraymorg, and intriguing feminine heroes like Rozenn, whose passion is matched by her infinite knowledge of Vraymorg’s past, and Azenor, a seer bound to Kaell in death. Even Archanin, the eerie, bloodthirsty leader of the ghouls, has his say, as he urges his band to spare Kaell’s life so that he can become one of them, a fate, perhaps, worse than death. When word comes that Kaell has died, leaving only his sword, Rozenn tells Vraymorg that the sword is a mysterious instrument with magical powers, powers that may save the lost boy, if wielded by someone who cares more for him than anyone else.

This is Hartland’s debut novel. It is a prodigious undertaking, notable for its length (more than 600 pages), and is worth the time spent, as it becomes an experience, a journey into an ancient, fabled world that beckons with echoes of Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. Journalist Hartland has fleshed out each of the many characters and given them their place in this complex saga – and, one imagines, in the broadening tale to come, since we are told she has a sequel in the works. She has a gift for prose, proven on nearly every page.

At its heart, The 19th Bladesman examines the love of a father for an adoptive student/son he refuses to allow himself to care about, suspecting that the young man’s fate will be tragic and that his demise will come at his teacher’s hand. The mystery of Vraymorg’s relationship with Kaell and of Kaell’s indomitable will to please his mentor are the twin forces that buoy Hartland’s grandly conceived work and keep the constantly burgeoning plot afloat.

January 28, 2019
HOW to SET the WORLD on FIRE by OZMA Award-Winning Author, T.K. Riggins – Sword & Sorcery, YA, Coming of Age, Dragons

Are you looking for a magical fix this summer? Pick up the award-winning Young Adult book, How to Set the World on Fire by 2017 Chanticleer Award-Winning author for the OZMA – Fantasy Awards, T.K.Riggins and sink into a worthy example of the “school of magic” sub-genre sparked by the Harry Potter series.

In this fast-paced, good-humored story, Kase Garrick, grandson of legendary warrior Roman Garrick, takes up residence in the Warriors castle at The Academy, reuniting with his older sister Cali, a member of the school’s Scholars branch. From his first day, Kase gains an enemy in Cali’s boyfriend Niveous. Sent to the Disciplinary Room thanks to Niveous’s trickery, Kase makes fast friends with the two girls also in detention: Talen, a sweet but awkward savant, and rebellious Lenia, whose control over fire tends dangerously toward pyromania.

Kase hones his skills in weaponry while he and Lenia flirt themselves into love, while everything is building in anticipation to the Quest Series, the annual Academy competition. The teams are usually made up of four students from a single school, but Cali, Kase, Lenia, and Talen bend the rules to form their own team. They find support from the Grand Master and Professor Bright, the elements instructor, both of whom see the unusual potential in these four students.

When the Quest Series begins, the plot coalesces into an exciting journey, not only into the four corners of the realm, but also into the students’ psyches. Each of the five Events poses mental, physical, and emotional challenges for Cali’s team, The Liberati. Each student’s mental aptitude and fortitude are tested, as well, but not only by their ordeals—some teams join with Niveous’s crew to hamstring the favored four. Their malice, however, turns to alarm when it becomes apparent that The Liberati–Kase, and Lenia in particular—have powers far beyond those developed by The Academy.

Being a school of magic sub-genre, of course, one would be right in expecting the same feel and some of the same elements setting the stage as one would find in Harry Potter. For example, in this book, you’ll find former students turned evil, a headmaster, various schools within the larger school, an exciting and dangerous competition, Kase’s singular magic, and spiders. Another similarity fans will rejoice in, like Harry Potter, the author has just disclosed that this is indeed Book One of a series!

More impressively, the story holds up very well on its own, and author Riggins manages to create a world that has one foot in fantasy and the other in up-to-the-minute reality. Sage mirrors, for instance, are only slightly more magical than smartphones and the kids take selfies to prove their accomplishments. Very smart.

What Riggins also gets very right is the way he integrates words of wisdom into the competition. In one instance, the Grand Master exhorts them to: “Know who you are, but don’t be discouraged by who you are not.” And in another: “Sometimes the hardest part about finding something beyond your reach, is finding yourself first.” But avid readers will find The Liberati’s call to arms the best advice of all: “To the library!”

T.K. Riggins won the 2017 OZMA (Fantasy) Grand Prize in the Chanticleer Int’l Book Awards for How to Set the World on Fire!

June 26, 2018
AMASKAN’S BLOOD, Book 1 of the Boahim Series by Raven Oak – Coming of Age, Sword & Sorcery, Epic Fantasy, YA
In Amaska, residents serve Anur, the God of Justice. Amaskans, men and women, train with a rigor akin to the Spartans to be in peak physical strength and to be ever alert for the presence of danger. Yes, the Amaskans kill, but only to right a wrong as directed by the “Order.” They take no delight in carnage, but they will not stand idly by when someone is suffering an injustice. Knives are their weapon of choice. When not in combat, they identify themselves proudly with tattoos of circles on their jaws.

The Tribor, on the other hand, are a people void of morals who worship Itova, the Death Goddess, and kill with abandon. Their triangular tattoos are covered by their clothing and there is nothing noble about their instinct to murder.

Then there are the previously warring kingdoms of Alexander and Shad, now existing in a tentative peace, one that rulers hope will be solidified through a royal marriage. A princess of Alexander is betrothed to a prince of Shad. If the union is successful, the two kingdoms hope the brutal conflict over the borderlands will cease once and for all. Unless, of course, the marriage a ruse on the part of one side, the first step in a strategy to conquer. There’s speculation and intrigue as readers speculate who are the allies and who is about to be betrayed.

Locales, readers soon learn, are of great importance in this book and provide insights into the characters. The author includes a map of “Boahim” and we learn much about its “Little Dozen” kingdoms.

As accomplished as the situations and settings are, the real feat of this novel is the depth of characterization. At the heart of this tale are twins, young women who were born five minutes apart. Princess Margaret of Alexander is delicate, genteel, silly, spoiled, and absurdly naïve about political matters. At least her sister, Adelei thinks so.

In contrast, Adelei, raised in Amaska since she was five years of age, moves with the strength and stealth of one who has killed many times for a cause, who puts duty above any earthly pleasure. She has the advantage and the burden of having two fathers, King Leon of Alexander, her biological father, and Master Bredych of Amaska, the man who adopted her when she was five. How she came to leave her kingdom of origin and return a decade later is a riveting, suspenseful tale, part of which is told in flashback. Of course, present events are tied to the past, and Adelei will have to reconcile what has happened to her when she was a child, known then as Iliana, if she is to perform the assigned task of protecting her twin sister.

Princess Margaret is preparing to marry Prince Gamun of Shad, a young man with the worst of reputations (think Joffrey in Game of Thrones), although the dreamy young woman hopes it is only petty gossip maligning her betrothed. In protecting her sister, Adelei is also protecting their shared father, the elderly and ailing king, and the entire Kingdom of Alexander.

As events unfold, can two such markedly different sisters learn from each other? And, if so, what will the consequences be? Just when you think you know where the novel is headed, the author will surprise you, frighten you, charm you, and, ultimately, move you profoundly.

Raven Oak’s fantasy novel, Amaskan’s Blood, pays such careful attention to detail that readers will likely feel as if they’re reading historical fiction. While it does take occasional detours from realism, this epic novel reads like an extraordinary and engrossing depiction of actual events. This is a credit to Oak’s very precise and inviting prose and her enormous talent for elaborate plot twists imbued with emotional drama. Will fans of fantasy still like this book? Absolutely! In fact, if you’re longing for the next season of Game of Thrones to begin, this is the novel to read while you’re waiting.
- Writing: Excellent
- Sex: Nothing graphic – advised for 13+
- Violence: Killings involving knives and blood
- Narration: 3^rd Person
- Tense: Past
- Mood: Adventurous/Suspenseful
February 27, 2018
DARKNESS FALLS, Book Two of WINDHOLLOWS by Trayner Bane – Children’s Books, Fantasy & Magic, Sword & Sorcery

What would life be like if the air we breathe was slowly, consciously, being robbed of oxygen itself?

What if the dark side in all of us could be manipulated by a soulless fiend, converting us into unwilling weapons against our own people?

While Air of Vengeance, the first book in the Windhollows series dealt more with issues of overcoming differences, friendships and family, Darkness Falls is more of an adventure/quest: characters from the first book bent on vanquishing evil and saving friends and family…

Windhollows is an idyllic land populated with fantastical creatures, where its peoples live symbiotically, producing complementary air-like Essenses necessary for life. Its way of life is threatened by a brilliant, twisted genius who vows revenge on the people who rejected him because he was different, whose arsenal of weapons both rob the air people breathe and turns others into creatures whose purpose in life is to destroy the ones they once loved.

As the second book opens, Doctor Molskin, father of Billy, the hero of Volume 1, discovers that the breathable air in parts of Windhollows, is being robbed of some of its essential chemical makeup called Essense. He understands almost immediately that the problem has been created by his former assistant who now calls himself Rip Stinker, a brilliant but twisted soul whose dismissal from the doctor’s Essense labs has caused him to seek revenge against the doctor, his children and all “normal” Windhollows denizens.

Stinker was born a “bare pants,” children lacking Essense and therefore societal outcasts. His revenge has been to rob a group of healthy children from birth of their Essense, including Billy, turning them “bare pants.” More menacing, he has now created another weapon that can transform these same children into misshapen monsters seeking their own revenge for their flawed destiny.

Two stories alternate throughout most of the book. First is the quest to find and destroy Rip Stinker and his evil technology undertaken initially by Dr. Molskin, and eventually by his son Billy along with two friends. The other story is built around Skylar, the sweet, innocent young barepants girl who was the object of Billy’s infatuation in the first book. She and other “bare pants” have been wooed by Rip Stinker’s seductive message of regaining their full Essense but she has her doubts about what this Faustian bargain will yield.

Along the way to Rip Stinker’s castle, Skylar discovers she has a mysterious ability to talk to the wild animals that no one else has. Just as she is reveling in her new powers, she runs afoul of Rip Stinker’s technology that turns her into a monster similar to Stinker himself who now is ruled by a darkness within her that she never knew existed, and she now finds her waging a war within, of light versus the darkness, even as she joins Stinker and his nefarious plans.

How these two quests intersect becomes the race-to-the-finish theme of this admirable middle-grade fantasy novel.

Follow the links to read the Axe Breaker and Air of Vengeance Chanticleer Reviews!

February 6, 2018
SONG MAGICK: A SONGMAKER NOVEL by Elisabeth Hamill – Science Fiction/Fantasy, Y/A, Sword & Sorcery

Exiled from her beloved home and her family, seventeen-year-old bard, Telyn Songmaker, starts a journey of mystical proportions that will test all that her spirit and strength can endure. Ultimately, she will become the only hope for the return of magick to the realm, if she can fulfill the hidden legend through her Song Magick–it’s a novel of adventure and love by Elisabeth Hamill.

The stakes are high; this is not rabbit-out-of-a-hat magic. Magick spells will harness energies that change people and their environment. Using her songs to spin magick, Telyn learns from experience the brutal consequences that accidental spells can bring.

When she meets up with a group of the King’s dedicated Tauron, guardians of the enchanted woods, they band together in a desperate quest to restore love and enchantment to the realm. The future depends on changes that only magick can deliver. But has Telyn honed her skills to achieve the required magick of the legendary seed-voice? Is this young bard really the legend that the realm has been waiting for?

When the mysterious Mithrais, Westwarden of the Tauron, is drawn to Telyn’s campsite by her beautiful harp playing, there are more sparks in the air than just from the campfire. When Mithrais takes his leave and returns to his vigilant guard watch within the woods, Telyn is attacked by three assassins. She fights valiantly, yet one of the swordsmen holds her down and another raises his weapon to slice off her hand.

Hamill weaves her lyrical language as a master musician, and the effect is magic, bringing her readers on a soulful quest, through a budding romance, and witness cherished friendships in the midst of impossible dangers. Suspense artfully builds along the journey, the fast-paced hand-to-hand combat scenes thrill, and the description of the final challenge is breathtaking.

Fans will be pleased to learn that Song Magick is the first book in the Songmaker two-book series. Truthsong is the second and well-worth the read. Hamill also writes adult science fiction and fantasy.

Heroic Science-Fiction/Fantasy at its lyrical best as the fate of the realm rests on one young bard’s ability to bring back the mystical, magical music of long ago. Even though Telyn Songmaker is young and powerful, can she muster the strength and courage to reclaim the Song Magick of Legend and vanquish evil from the realm?

December 18, 2017