Devin Madson

Oh. My. God! This one is definitely getting on my top books for the '18 list! Even if it was published quite a long ago, it was read by yours truly recently and boy did I love it!

In the first book of what promises to be a spectacular trilogy, we see a story from three different perspectives. One from a young boy, one from an older girl, and one from an estimed noble with quite the dark secrets. All three of them are magnificent, full of suspense, political intrigue, and soooo much betrayal, show more it could put that HBO series we all know thanks to over-advertising (yes, you all know which one I'm talking about) to shame!

And Devin Madson did that without cheap tricks and way too much show of cleavage - and other naked parts - or gore. She presented her story in such an artistic way, one that old anime fans and rpg players can really appreciate. It was like an oriental DnD campaign, with all the plot twists and mishaps, coming to life on the pages, and I just couldn't get enough! I know it took me a while to review this, but trust me, if it wasn't for my OCD tendencies and the full review list, I would have done it aaaaages ago!

One can only wonder what's in store for our heroes and what kind of new alliances will be created and/or broken in the next book. I certainly can't wait to find out, and I recommend this to anyone seeking a story that combines western and eastern characteristics, and an action-suspense-packed plot that doesn't disappoint whatsoever!

***I was given an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinion stated in this review is solely mine, and no compensation was given or taken to alter it.*** show less

For this year’s Wyrd & Wonder I wanted to take the opportunity to read some of the fantasy books that have been languishing for a while on my TBR, and the first that came to my attention is this first volume in Devin Madson’s Reborn Empire series: with hindsight, I can’t believe I waited so long before losing myself in this magnificent saga that from the very start proved to be a compelling read peopled with amazing characters. The novel seems to throw the readers into the middle of show more things and it takes a while to get one’s bearings: a brief search taught me that there is a prequel trilogy to this series and that explains the sense of “missing information” one feels at the beginning, but don’t fear - the author has a way of conveying the necessary details through some well-placed dialogue that brings readers up to speed quickly and allows them to connect with the narrative with no problem at all.

The story is told through three different POVs which represent the three main cultures sharing this world - not only that, but each of them is narrated in the first person, gifting the characters with very distinctive personalities that in turn help depict the different milieus they come from, three civilizations that have been at odds with each other for a long time. Through the eyes of Princess Miko we experience the Kisian empire, a realm reminiscent of feudal Japan: Miko and her brother Tanaka are the children of the ruling Kisian emperor - or rather that’s the cover story, since they are in reality the offspring of the previous ruler, whose actions caused him to be branded a traitor and be killed. The two are waiting for Tanaka to be named heir and meanwhile have to navigate the dangerous waters of court intrigue; an impulsive act from Tanaka causes a political upheaval that rekindles the hostility with neighboring Chiltae, launching both countries on the path of war and forcing Miko to act against her cultural and social boundaries and take her destiny - and that of Kisia - into her own hands.

Chiltae offers the well-known medieval fantasy setting, complete with a powerful clergy and their dangerous Blessed Guards. Cassandra Marius is a Chiltaen citizen and a prostitute who also doubles as a hired assassin: there is something very mysterious, and also very wrong with her, since there is a constant, nagging voice in her head that seems to come from a very different personality, one capable at times to take control of her body. Add to that the fact that she can hear the “call” of the dead and you have a very fractured personality that, however, seems able to function well enough to ensure her survival. Hired by an enigmatic individual to assassinate two people in exchange for the promise of a cure for her “ailment”, Cassandra accepts only to discover that her target is a highly placed one, and that she is a quite expendable pawn in a convoluted political game.

Rah e’Torin is the captain of a band of Levanti, nomadic tribes of the plains living in virtual symbiosis with their horses. He and his people have been exiled like many others before them and in their search for a place to call their own they are captured by the Chiltaens who forcibly enroll them in their war against Kisia. Once reached the main camp, Rah discovers that his old friend and mentor Gideon is at the head of the Levanti conscripts, which forces the younger man to come to terms with the compromises their new condition imposes on the old way of life, and to choose between survival and the adherence to Levanti codes of conduct.

When novels are written with multiple POVs, it’s easy to find one or more who are the reader’s favorites at the expense of the others, but such was not the case with We Ride the Storm, because I enjoyed all three characters in equal measure, and the constantly raising stakes of their different destinies made me care for them in a way I seldom experience: as the buildup of events carried them forward, showing more and more nuances in their psychological makeup and turning their individual situation ever more difficult, I found myself unable to stop turning the pages to learn what would happen next.

Even though I enjoyed all three POVs, Miko is the character who shows a major evolution in the course of the book: her culture requires women to defer to men in all matters, and although she can envision a future as ruler of Kisia, she is ready to accept a secondary role to her brother Tanaka, and it’s only when disaster strikes that she finds the moral and physical strength necessary to lead her people in the struggle against the Chiltaen invasion.

[…] I had lived in a prison made of people with more power. I did not want to be afraid anymore. I wanted to sit on the throne of my ancestors and make them proud.

Cassandra is a complicated person in many ways and - sadly - her chapters don’t enjoy the same narrative space as the other two protagonists (although with three more books in the series my hope of learning more is still strong) but what little we see is quite intriguing and also offers one more mystery to be explored in the person of the weird Witchdoctor, who might be the one to solve the puzzle of the mysterious “She” who shares Cassandra consciousness.

Rah is the character for whom I felt a great deal of compassion: both as the leader of his band of outcasts, and then as a conscripted soldier for the supercilious Chiltaen, he desperately tries not to compromise his principles, finding it ever so difficult when even his hero Gideon seems to have bargained his honor in exchange for vague promises of freedom. Rah’s faithfulness to his moral compass is both admirable and sad, because it’s clear that he’s living through a time of change and one has to wonder if that change is going to trample him it its wake.

As a series opener, We Ride the Storm is an amazing story that wonderfully blends excellent characterization and masterful world-building, but it’s also a very emotional journey through the experiences of three very different people who in the course of the story become so alive and real that it’s almost impossible to forget they are fictional characters. At the end of this first volume, all three are left on the brink of… something - be it good or bad - that compels me not to wait too long before moving forward with their journey. I have rarely felt so impressed by a new discovery as I have been with Devin Madson’s writing, and I know I have just found a new favorite author for my reading “adventures”. show less

We Ride the Storm is the story of a princess, a warrior and an assassin, worlds apart yet caught on opposing sides of the same growing conflict. The book is light on magic, heavy on politics and pregnant with the threat of war. It contains brutal and gripping battle scenes with twists, turns, and rarely an easy way out.

This is a dense fantasy read with countless named characters and locations that had me regularly flipping back and forth or consulting the world map - more than enough to show more satisfy any epic fantasy fan. It has been compared to A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin, and while the writing is quite different, I would agree in that the story is focused on battles and insidious political schemes above other fantasy elements.

The story is written in first-person and alternates between the three protagonists, each drawn into their own struggle as the continent devolves into violence. I'm going to go ahead and assume that Madson's working title was We Ride the Sh*tstorm before she opted for more gravitas because that pretty much sums up this first instalment in The Reborn Empire quadrilogy.

"War built the Kisian Empire. And now war will tear it down."

This book is well-written and relentless, covering a lot of ground (as in, the equivalent of two to three ASoIaF books) to pave the way for the rest of the series, and I had a hard time putting it down. The worldbuilding is detailed and Madson has created distinct and fascinating cultures.

We Ride the Storm is a violent and bloody read. While I didn't mind the detailed descriptions of dismemberment and beheading which at times were written to be oddly spiritual, I struggled with some darker scenes that I personally think could have been omitted.

I otherwise really enjoyed reading this book and I'm looking forward to the sequel We Lie With Death which is due out in 2021. I would absolutely recommend this to any fan of military fantasy, or authors like George R. R. Martin and Mark Lawrence.

Trigger warning: Gang rape and murder of children show less

The Blood of Whisperers is Aussie author Devin Madson's début novel. I have to admit I was ever so slightly hesitant going into a book by a new author and a new publishing house, but I need not have been concerned. The Blood of Whisperers absolutely lives up to the quality I have come to appreciate from the Australian speculative fiction scene. (And I have since learnt that it's production was funded by a Pozible campaign, which is a risk for a début, but it has obviously paid off.)

They show more call him the Usurper.

A man of common blood sits on the throne. At his command the last emperor was executed, but now the empire is on the brink of war.
Vengeance is coming.

Endymion is an Empath. He was born with the ability to feel another’s emotions and reach inside their hearts for their deepest secrets. Often despised, he lives a nomadic existence, but when he finds himself imprisoned for sorcery and facing death, it is his past that will condemn him. Born Prince Takehiko Otako, the only surviving son of the True Emperor, Endymion is already caught in the brewing storm. Fast losing control of his Empathy, he seeks revenge against the man who betrayed him, but for Endymion the truth will come too late.

The fight for the Crimson Throne has begun.

In case you missed it from the blurb, this is a Japanese-flavoured/inspired fantasy world. (But not actually historical Japan.)

There are three point of view characters in The Blood of Whisperers and all three's perspectives are told in first person. It was only confusing for the first paragraph of chapter two, when the first perspective shift happened. Then I realised that the symbols at the start of each chapter indicated which character it was about. Mind you, I didn't memorise the symbols until well into the book; the voices were distinct enough to generally make it obvious who was telling the story.

Endymion is the first character we meet and possibly my least favourite of the three. I didn't actively dislike him, and he wasn't a bad character, but I did feel least invested in his plight. I suspect he will become more pivotal in later books, especially given the ending. Endymion has feared magic powers and was raised by a priest who never told him his true identity (which I now realise is revealed in the blurb). For the most part it is his magical ability that gets him into trouble and sets him on the paths he follows. Up until the ending, he didn't have an awful lot of control over his destiny, which I suspect is partly to blame for my lukewarm reaction to him.

The other two characters were much more interesting. Hana is the daughter of a previous Emperor and in many ways has the most legitimate claim to the throne. We first meet her masquerading as a male captain in the rebel army, fighting alongside her cousin, Monarch, who wants to take the throne for himself. One of Hana's defining characteristics is hating her femaleness, which quickly became understandable, given the way women were treated in the society. (That is, poorly. Shock, horror.) She was definitely my favourite character, although I did wish that there were more female characters around to offset her hate of femininity. The only other two named female characters are on the page briefly and I fear that one might not appear in the sequel (just guessing).

Finally there's Darius Laroth, the Emperor's right-hand man. Feared by most because of how well he's learnt to school his face, we quickly find out that Darius has many secrets, including from the Emperor. I think I enjoyed reading about Darius the most (although I was more invested in Hana). Some of his secrets take the longest to come to the forefront and for a lot the book he is balancing on a knife-edge. His close relationship with Emperor Kin is also the primary way we get to know the Emperor. He's also the only character that doesn't want to usurp Kin, which makes a nice change.

The Blood of Whisperers is primarily a story about vengeance. Almost everyone wants revenge, and will stop at nothing to get it. At the back of the book, Madson says that the inspiration for the book came from two sayings, one Confucian and one a Chinese proverb:

‘Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.’

‘When two tigers fight one walks away terribly wounded, the other is dead.’

And it's clear to me as a reader, that the way the story is going, vengeance isn't going to go particularly well for anyone. I'm looking forward to finding out just how everything falls apart in the subsequent books and whether anything can be salvaged.

The Blood of Whisperers was an enjoyable read. It took me a little while to become truly invested in the characters, but once I did it became difficult to put down. I would recommend it to fans of Japanese/Asian-flavoured fantasy or anyone who enjoys stories about rebels and political machinations (although I wouldn't say it's heavy on political intrigue per se). I am looking forward to reading the next book which is apparently due out in December, so not a long wait at all (yay).

4.5 / 5 stars

You can read more of my reviews on my blog. show less