Review: Never Die by Rob J. Hayes

*Never Die is now available!*

Never Die by Rob J. Hayes

Self-Published, 2019

Ebook. 274 pages.

About Never Die:

"Ein is on a mission from God. A God of Death. 

Time is up for the Emperor of Ten Kings and it falls to a murdered eight year old boy to render the judgement of a God. Ein knows he can't do it alone, but the empire is rife with heroes. The only problem; in order to serve, they must first die. 

Ein has four legendary heroes in mind, names from story books read to him by his father. Now he must find them and kill them, so he can bring them back to fight the Reaper's war."

Never Die is a story with a premise quite unlike anything else I've read. It starts out with a young boy named Ein who basically picks out four of the best warrior heroes to bring back from death to help him with a much larger overarching goal. That's not something you read everyday, but I almost wish I could because it was highly entertaining and inventive.

This is a shorter book, coming in at a little under 300 pages--definitely the shorter side for fantasy--but it didn't lack in content, world-building, or interesting characters in the slightest. I've only read one other book by Hayes so far (something that I hope to rectify this year!), but I felt that this was even better than the other that I've read and will have a much broader appeal to more people. The East Asian setting in particular was something that I really enjoyed, as it was one that felt vivid and fresh and I'm always looking for more non-Western fantasy.

As much as I enjoyed the setting, it's really the characters that make this book shine as much as it does. These are warriors who prove their power and might regularly through dueling, a concept that really sets the tone for much of the rest of the plot. I usually comment on a few particular characters in my reviews, but I couldn't decide on just a few to remark upon and I also think part of my enjoyment with this book was learning about each character as I went, so I've decided to not individually mention any. As far as personalities go, Hayes did a great job of developing a wide variety of character types, some of which get along and some that absolutely do not. Each character also tended to have a particular fighting skill that they excelled in, which was usually what they, as warriors, were most known for and that I loved seeing in action. That felt like a very classic element to add to the story and I  learning about that with each character.

One of the things I'd most like to praise about Never Die is the pacing. It's not as though there's constant action in this story, but there's always something interesting going on. There is still plenty of action, but it's balanced really well with other events that make this a truly satisfying read that I had no problems getting through. There is also plenty of humor peppered throughout the story, though it's balanced well with more serious discussion and events as well, which again helped the book to feel balanced in all areas.

The only potential issue I had was simply that I would have liked to see the world developed a bit more. It was developed well enough that I could understand and become somewhat immersed in the world, but it just didn't feel quite as detailed or expansive as it could have been. There were a few times when it felt as though it were on a larger scale without as much detail. That's a minor quibble, though, so it didn't impact my overall enjoyment much. 

Overall, I've given Never Die four stars! If you've not read anything by Rob J. Hayes before, I really think you can't go wrong with this great fantasy. 

*I received a copy of Never Die courtesy of the author in exchange for an honest review. This has no effect on my rating of the book.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Book Depository

You might also like:
City of Kings by Rob J. Hayes
A Time of Dread by John Gwynne 

Can't-Wait Wednesday: Gates of Stone by Angus Macallan & The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders

Can't-Wait is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights exciting upcoming releases that we can't wait to be released! This meme is based off of Jill @ Breaking the Spine's Waiting on Wednesday meme.

This week's upcoming book spotlight is:

Gates of Stone by Angus Macallan
 Publication Date: February 19th, 2019

Ace Books
544 pages

Pre-order: Amazon | Book Depository 

From Goodreads: 

"In a world of blood and magic, a powerful epic fantasy begins... 

AN EMPEROR'S DAUGHTER WHO WILL NOT BE DENIED 
Just before her sixteenth birthday, Princess Katerina is refused her rightful place as heir to the Empire of the Ice-Bear--solely because of her sex. Determined to regain her inheritance, she murders the foreign lord she's been ordered to marry and embarks on a perilous voyage to the lush, tropical islands of the Laut Besar in search of the vast wealth and power she needs to claim the Empire for herself. 

A PRINCE FORCED TO TAKE A STAND 
On a small island kingdom, Prince Arjun's idyllic life is shattered when a malignant sorcerer invades, slaughters his people and steals the sacred sword of Jun's ancestors. With his royal father dead and his palace in ruins, Jun reluctantly tracks the sorcerer and the magical blade far across the pirate-infested waters of the Laut Besar. 

A SORCERER SEEKING TO DESTROY THE WORLD
 Long ago the powerful relics known as the Seven Keys were used to safely lock away the terrifying evils of the Seven Hells. With Jun's ancient sword in his grasp, the sorcerer Mangku has claimed the first Key, and begun his mission to unleash catastrophe upon the land. 

As the destinies of these three entwine in the lawless islands of the Laut Besar, the fate of humanity hangs in the balance. For if the sorcerer cannot be stopped, the world itself will be unmade..."

Princess Katerina sounds pretty fierce, Jun's reluctance sounds relatable, and the Seven Hells sounds rightly terrifying. I think this sounds awesome and I love the sound of the setting and islands--especially the Empire of the Ice-Bear!

             and...

The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders
Publication Date: February 12th, 2019
Tor Books
368 pages

Pre-order: Amazon | Book Depository 

From Goodreads: 

"If you control our sleep, then you can own our dreams... And from there, it's easy to control our entire lives." 

Set on a planet that has fully definitive, never-changing zones of day and night, with ensuing extreme climates of endless, frigid darkness and blinding, relentless light, humankind has somehow continued apace -- though the perils outside the built cities are rife with danger as much as the streets below. 

But in a world where time means only what the ruling government proclaims, and the levels of light available are artificially imposed to great consequence, lost souls and disappeared bodies are shadow-bound and savage, and as common as grains of sand. And one such pariah, sacrificed to the night, but borne up by time and a mysterious bond with an enigmatic beast, will rise to take on the entire planet--before it can crumble beneath the weight of human existence."

This sounds like a really neat concept and I want to see where Anders takes the story. This synopsis has just enough to hook me, but still leaves me having no idea what to expect from this book, so I'm ready to check it out!

What do you think about these upcoming releases? What are your anticipated upcoming releases?

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Review: The Gutter Prayer by Gareth Hanrahan

The Gutter Prayer by Gareth Hanrahan 
Orbit, 2019

Paperback. 560 pages.

About The Gutter Prayer:

"A group of three young thieves are pulled into a centuries old magical war between ancient beings, mages, and humanity in this wildly original debut epic fantasy. 

Enter a city of saints and thieves . . . 

The city of Guerdon stands eternal. A refuge from the war that rages beyond its borders. But in the ancient tunnels deep beneath its streets, a malevolent power has begun to stir. The fate of the city rests in the hands of three thieves. They alone stand against the coming darkness. As conspiracies unfold and secrets are revealed, their friendship will be tested to the limit. If they fail, all will be lost, and the streets of Guerdon will run with blood. 

The Gutter Prayer is an epic tale of sorcerers and thieves, treachery and revenge, from a remarkable new voice in fantasy'"

The Gutter Prayer is a remarkably inventive, unpredictable book that was as incredible as I anticipated. This is a book that has such depth and intricacies to its world-building that you truly never know just what to expect from it. On a basic level, there are familiar elements int his book that can be found in many fantasy books, such as a gritty city, intrigue everywhere, nonhuman characters, etc., but that's where the similarities seem to stop. There is so much more than I ever expected in regards to the types of nonhuman characters, the gods and magic systems, and the underground politics of this world. Despite these many positive elements, there were still a few things that bothered me and prevented me from giving it a full five stars and which I will mention later in the review.

Guerdon, the main city setting, is a very grimdark-inspired city that I can easily say I do not want to find myself lost in, ever. It's dark, dirty, and full of random, horrifying dangers and I was so impressed by Hanrahan's ability to create such a unique and wholly unparalleled world in a genre that already has so many different worlds out there. The Tallowmen in particular were fascinating and I would love to see some sort of illustration of what they would actually look like. There is also something called the Stone Plague that is rampant within the city that was such a unique sort of disease that I really enjoyed learning about. It's hard to talk about the magic system for me because there didn't really seem to be an overly defined one, but the magical components were extremely interesting and I loved learning about the types of gods in the book, although I would have enjoyed learning even more about them.

The main band of thieves in The Gutter Prayer consist of a young woman named Cari, a ghoul named Rat, and a Stone Man known as Spar. I loved how different each character was from one another and that they all had very different backgrounds and outlooks on life. It keeps the story interesting when the three main characters--and POVs in this case--have enough things that are different about their story to keep my attention. There are quite a few supporting characters as well to explore and I think Hanrahan did a good job of building up characters to make this world feel full of life.

The Gutter Prayer is a busy book. There is a lot going on all the time and a lot of different history, magical components, characters, plots, and other events going on simultaneously, which does make it a little difficult to keep up with things. I felt a little overwhelmed at times, and I found that the ending was a bit overstuffed with content. That being said and despite the abundance of constant information, Hanrahan did manage to rather eloquently and tightly bring together all of the different threads occurring in the story into a final conclusion that seemed to wrap everything up in a satisfying way.

The few other areas that I had issues were mainly with the characters and a some of the plot. The characters themselves seemed like interesting people and for the most part I enjoyed following them, however, there was something off about all of them. I felt like I was being held at a distance from all three of the main protagonists, and although we get a bit more in depth into the nature of those such as Spar and Cari, there was always some sort of wall between myself and the characters. Rat in particular was a character that had so many interesting elements (you know, being a ghoul and all) and I was enamored with, and yet we didn't gt to spend nearly as much in-depth time with him as I expected. Additionally, the book is pitched as being about a crew of three young thieves and yet we rarely ever saw them all in one place working together. In fact, Rat seemed rather emotionless and uncaring towards a lot, so if the group's bond hadn't been emphasized so much in the beginning I'm not sure how much I would believe it was there.

And lastly, in regards to plot, I thought it seemed slightly meandering in some places and that the ending, although I enjoyed it, was a bit confusing. I kept forgetting what the main plot goal was supposed to be while reading a lot of this book, which isn't necessarily something that should happen. As mentioned, this is a busy book with a lot going on and sometimes I felt that there was just a bit too much going on.

Overall, I've still (as of now) given The Gutter Prayer 4.25 stars! The imaginative elements and entertaining aspects kept me fully engaged and I look forward to see what Hanrahan does next.

*I received a copy of The Gutter Prayer courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This has no effect on my rating of the book.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Book Depository

You might also like:

Foundtyside by Robert Jackson Bennett

The Grey Bastards by Jonathan French

Anticipated February 2019 Releases!

If you were thinking that maybe all the incredible new releases would be slowing down after January, well, then I'm here to tell you were mistaken because wow there are so many books! I knew there were a lot coming out next month, but I didn't realize quite how many until I compiled some in this post and was immediately overwhelmed. Are you looking forward to any of these? Have you already read any of these? Looking forward to any that I didn't get to add to this? Let me know!

Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James || February 5th -- Amazon | Book Depository

Gates of Stone by Angus Macallan || February 19th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Psychology of Time Travel  by Kate Mascarenhas || February 12th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie || February 26th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Antidote by Shelley Sackier || February 5th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The City in the Middle of the Night by Charlie Jane Anders || February 12th -- Amazon | Book Depository

No Way by S.J. Morden || February 19th -- Amazon | Book Depository

Crown of Feathers by Nicki Pau Preto || February 12th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley || February 12th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon || February 26th -- Amazon | Book Depository

Four Dead Queens by Astrid Scholte || February 26th -- Amazon | Book Depository

We Set the Dark on Fire by Tehlor Kay Mejia || February 26th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons || February 5th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Beast's Heart by Leife Shallcross || February 12th -- Amazon | Book Depository

Dark of the West by Joanna Hathaway || February 5th -- Amazon | Book Depository

Courting Darkness by Robin LaFevers || February 5th -- Amazon | Book Depository

Stolen Time by Danielle Rollins || February 5th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Stranger Inside by Laura Benedict || February 5th -- Amazon | Book Depository

A Danger to Herself and Others by Alyssa B. Sheinmel || February 5th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo || February 12th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Chef's Secret by Crystal King || February 12th -- Amazon | Book Depository

The Huntress by Kate Quinn || February 26th -- Amazon | Book Depository

Enchantee by Gita Trelease || February 5th -- Amazon | Book Depository

What are your anticipated February releases?

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Review: The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden

The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden
(Winternight Trilogy #2)
Del Rey, 2017

Hardcover. 363 pages.

About The Girl in the Tower: 

"The magical adventure begun in The Bear and the Nightingale continues as brave Vasya, now a young woman, is forced to choose between marriage or life in a convent and instead flees her home—but soon finds herself called upon to help defend the city of Moscow when it comes under siege. 

Orphaned and cast out as a witch by her village, Vasya’s options are few: resign herself to life in a convent, or allow her older sister to make her a match with a Moscovite prince. Both doom her to life in a tower, cut off from the vast world she longs to explore. So instead she chooses adventure, disguising herself as a boy and riding her horse into the woods. When a battle with some bandits who have been terrorizing the countryside earns her the admiration of the Grand Prince of Moscow, she must carefully guard the secret of her gender to remain in his good graces—even as she realizes his kingdom is under threat from mysterious forces only she will be able to stop."

The Winternight Trilogy has so far been captivating in a way that I find hard to explain. I wasn't planning to pick up The Girl in the Tower just yet, but it was an incredibly rainy day (a rare occasion where I live) and it just called to me and left me with this mad desire to start reading it because it's perfect for cold, dark days. Before I knew it, I was fully enraptured in Arden's storytelling and never wanted to leave it.

The fairy tale atmosphere is just as strong in The Girl in the Tower as it was when Arden first created in the first book, and the Russian setting and influence is simply gorgeous. I was really impressed by how much Arden was able to fit into this book without it ever feeling slightly overwhelming. I also love how Arden sort of mixes in folktales and fairy tales elements with some more realistic historical elements, which in turns makes the world feel fully fleshed out and full of intrigue. There's always something going on somewhere. 

Vasya grew a lot as a character in the first book, but it's this book where Vasya truly discovers more about who she is and who she wants to be. She still struggles immensely--if not more--with not knowing where she belongs or what she should be doing. She was born a girl and therefore in line to follow the traditional female roles in life, but she refuses to be forced into a woman's role and would much rather live the life that men are allowed to live. I think Arden conveyed this struggle so well and really allows the reader to understand Vasya and her motivations for her actions. She's one of those characters that I genuinely love and care about. She's strong and powerful, but she's still discovering those things about herself and what to do with them. She has a lot of determination, but she's also a bit reckless and it definitely gets her into trouble sometimes; a lot of times her recklessness has a purpose, but sometimes she just can't seem to say no to a challenge and I felt that was a very realistic portrayal of someone who is constantly trying to prove herself.

There are many other characters in this book that bring the sequel to life, some old and some new. Morozko, the Frost Demon, plays a prominent role in this book as well and I find him to be such a fascinating character and one of my favorites. He has so many internal struggles that tend to make him hard to deal with for Vasya and especially closed off to others--which makes sense, given what he is. I really hope that we get to explore more about him in the next book. Vasya's brother Aleksander wasn't quite as endearing as I'd remembered from the first book, but at the same time I can understand why he acted the way he did in certain instances. I also enjoyed seeing Olga again and I loved her daughter, Mara. It was nice to return to some of Vasya's family members and have a bit of a reunion, even if it didn't go quite as well as we might all have hoped. 

As much as I love Vasya, I have to say that I might love her horse Solovey just a little bit more. I love horses and think they are some of the most beautiful creatures, so I pretty much lived for every scene with Solovey, as he is truly a remarkable animal with a fantastic personality. He is just as much a developed character as the others and I love his and Vasya's connection. I also really like Morozko's horse, but we don't get to see her quite as much. I don't know if Arden has been around horses much or just does good research, but her depictions of the horses, how they act, how they move, how they trust--all of it was wonderful. 

There is so much to take away from The Girl in the Tower, from trying to figure your place in the world when you don't quite any molds to showcasing the differences in how male and female roles are put into place to simply learning how to survive. This is a beautiful, wintry book that is endlessly enchanting and will keep you on the edge of your seat the entire way through.

Overall, I've given The Girl in the Tower a well-deserved five stars! I cannot wait to jump into The Winter of the Witch next. 

Buy the book: Amazon | Book Depository

You might also like:
The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
The Toymakers by Robert Dinsdale 
Circe by Madeline Miller

Can't-Wait Wednesday: The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie

Can't-Wait is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights exciting upcoming releases that we can't wait to be released! This meme is based off of Jill @ Breaking the Spine's Waiting on Wednesday meme.

This week's upcoming book spotlight is:

The Raven Tower by Ann Leckie
 Publication Date: February 26th, 2019

Orbit
432 pages

Pre-order: Amazon | Book Depository 

From Goodreads: 

"Gods meddle in the fates of men, men play with the fates of gods, and a pretender must be cast down from the throne in this breathtaking first fantasy novel from Ann Leckie, New York Times bestselling author and winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and Arthur C. Clarke Awards. 

For centuries, the kingdom of Iraden has been protected by the god known as the Raven. He watches over his territory from atop a tower in the powerful port of Vastai. His will is enacted through the Raven's Lease, a human ruler chosen by the god himself. His magic is sustained via the blood sacrifice that every Lease must offer. And under the Raven's watch, the city flourishes. 

But the power of the Raven is weakening. A usurper has claimed the throne. The kingdom borders are tested by invaders who long for the prosperity that Vastai boasts. And they have made their own alliances with other gods. 

It is into this unrest that the warrior Eolo--aide to Mawat, the true Lease--arrives. And in seeking to help Mawat reclaim his city, Eolo discovers that the Raven's Tower holds a secret. Its foundations conceal a dark history that has been waiting to reveal itself...and to set in motion a chain of events that could destroy Iraden forever."

Gods meddling with fates and humans meddling with fates? Sounds like my type of story. I think this one sounds particularly interesting and I'd very much like to know what the secret is in the Raven Tower...can't wait to read it!

What do you think about this upcoming release? What are your anticipated upcoming releases?

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