A Time of Dread: 1 (Of Blood & Bone)

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There are some great reminders of the first series found in the descendants of those we knew so long ago, including Storm’s, but this is a whole new story. As many a fantasy lover will know, world-building is the lifeblood of fantasy’s storytelling and in this case it is a resounding success, largely thanks to the groundwork the author has laid in tFatF and subsequently built on in AToD. The nock of arrows, the clashing of steel, the explosion of blood, the formation of shield walls; his action scenes have always been very cinematic, intricate, immersive and dynamic, and this book is no exception. I haven’t read the Faithful and the Fallen series, but after reading this book I’m very much a fan of John Gwynne’s writing and I’ll have to go back and read the original series set in this world 120 years before the events in this book.

I'll be honest I quite enjoyed reading them all which is a great thing and there is usually one POV that I dislike or am not as interested in.

When John Gwynne announced this new series, I was both overjoyed at getting to visit this world and it’s characters again, but at the same time very worried. I liked how his arc showed what everyday life was like in Dressel and how the new threat on the horizon was affecting the Ben-Elim, it showed their long-term goals also in terms of the human tribes and how they are trying to control all of them. I highly suggest everyone reads this book, but you really do have to read the four Faithful and the Fallen books before diving into these. I loved all the POVs and though I preferred one POV at first (Drem) I ended up loving all POVs almist equally later in the book! A Time of Dread is part creature feature, and part investigative fantasy thriller as each of the leading characters are made witness to the terrible events brought to bear around them.

The tone of A time of Dread was definitely much darker than the The Faithful and the Fallen in my opinion and I wondered if some events and creatures wouldn’t qualify as Grimdark elements. There are so many small details and mentions that just give everything occurring that extra little bit of magic, making it so much more fun. This was darker, easier to follow with fewer places and characters but it has the same great writing and pacing!One thing I particularly enjoyed this time out was the lack of ‘bloodline of destiny’, ‘foretold one’ or any prophecy that could have been invented or changed, etc. In the Lord of the Rings Tolkien had a huge edifice of history/world-building worked out, and the story on the page was the tip of the metaphorical iceberg. It is, on some level, a book that treats the reader gently, even as it carries them through scenes both tragic and triumphant. Comparisons are inevitable and having the task of writing characters that can hold up to the love you have for those who came before is not one I envy any author.