The Ember Blade - Book Review

The Ember Blade - book review 

Oh gosh, why did I take so long to pick this up. 
It was wonderful! The adventure the characters find themselves on is so vivid and perilous. At times it reminded me of Lord of the rings. Unlikely strangers brought together by a common goal and a mission to complete. 
It wasn’t taking a magic ring to Mordor but it was truly epic and I think I’ve just rediscovered my love of high fantasy. 

It’s been a long while since I’ve picked up and enjoyed a high fantasy as I tend to read Romantasy these days but it was so nice to be on a full fetched adventure where they don’t skate past the “boring” elements but rather embrace it and add depth to characters, the world and tragedy. 

It did take me a while to fully get into, but that is standard with a high fantasy book (or at-least in my experience) and you’re learning a vast new world but I think the author really got this across over time without rushing it. 

I adored the magic system in this, completely unique to anything I have read, but I won’t mention what it is as I really think you should experience it blindly like I had. It’s not fire balls or lightning wielders but something darker, more primal and I just ATE THAT UP! 

I definitely grew to love each character throughout the book but I have to say Vika, Aren & Grub made it for me but all of them deserve a mention if I’m honest. 

I’ve rated this a 4.25 / 5 - there’s something (I’m not sure what) that’s preventing me rating it a solid 5/5. Maybe this will come in time to me. But for now I must go buy book two and continue this epic quest. 

Click here to view the book on Amazon

The Ember Blade Blurb:

Empires rise, civilisations fall and one culture comes to subsume another. It's the way of the world . . . sometimes ways of life are improved, sometimes they are not. But the progression of change is huge and - usually - unstoppable.

In this story, the Ossian way of life is fading and the Dachen way is taking its place and Aren is comfortable with that. Even when his parents are accused of treason he supports the establishment and maintains there's been some mistake . . . which is all it takes to get himself and his best friend arrested . . .

Thrown into a prison mine they plan their escape - only to be overtaken by events when they're rescued, and promptly find themselves in the middle of an ambush. By the time they've escaped, they're unavoidably linked to Garric - their unwelcome saviour - and his quest to overturn to Dachen way of life.

If they leave Garric now, they'll be arrested or killed by their pursuers. If they turn him in, Garric will kill them. If they stay with him, they'll be abetting a murderous quest they don't believe in. There are no good options - but Aren will still have to choose a path . . .

Designed to return to classic fantasy adventures and values, from a modern perspective, this is a fast-moving coming-of-age trilogy featuring a strong cast of diverse characters, brilliant set-pieces and a strong character and plot driven story.

❓ have you read this yet ? Let me know if you’re planning on picking it up