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2026 Reading Challenge

2026

READING

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Rob Hayes has read 7 of 36 books.

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Rob J. Hayes

Goodreads Author

Born

in The United Kingdom

Website

http://www.robjhayes.co.uk/default.htm

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RoboftheHayes

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Fantasy, Science Fiction

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January 2012

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Winner of Mark Lawrence's 3rd Self Published Fantasy Blog Off (SPFBO) with Where Loyalties Lie

Rob J. Hayes has been a student, a banker, a marine research assistant, a chef, and a keyboard monkey more times than he cares to count. But eventually his love of fantasy and reading drew him to the life of a writer. He’s the author of the Amazon Best Selling The Heresy Within, the SPFBO-winning piratical swashbuckler Where Loyalties Lie, and the critically acclaimed Never Die. ...more

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Rob J. Hayes’s books

Average rating: 4.06 · 30,810 ratings · 4,223 reviews · 43 distinct works • Similar authors

	Never Die by Rob J. Hayes (Goodreads Author), Felix Ortiz (Illustrator) 3.88 avg rating — 4,713 ratings — published 2019 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Along the Razor's Edge (The War Eternal, #1) 3.83 avg rating — 3,555 ratings — published 2020 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Heresy Within (The Ties that Bind, #1) 3.92 avg rating — 3,052 ratings — published 2014 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Colour of Vengeance (The Ties that Bind, #2) 4.09 avg rating — 1,740 ratings — published 2013 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Lessons Never Learned (The War Eternal, #2) 4.09 avg rating — 1,646 ratings — published 2020 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Price of Faith (The Ties that Bind, #3) 4.07 avg rating — 1,491 ratings — published 2013 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Pawn's Gambit 4.18 avg rating — 1,427 ratings — published 2021 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	From Cold Ashes Risen (The War Eternal, #3) 4.26 avg rating — 1,358 ratings — published 2020 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Titan Hoppers 4.10 avg rating — 1,315 ratings — published 2022	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Where Loyalties Lie (Best Laid Plans, #1) 3.98 avg rating — 1,076 ratings — published 2017 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Rob J. Hayes's Blog

Self Published Fantasy Releases – February 2026

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Published on February 02, 2026 06:27

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Series by Rob J. Hayes

The War Eternal (5 books)
by

Rob J. Hayes (Goodreads Author)

4.05 avg rating — 7,811 ratings

The Mortal Techniques (5 books)
by

Rob J. Hayes (Goodreads Author)

3.99 avg rating — 7,834 ratings

The Ties That Bind (3 books)
by

Rob J. Hayes (Goodreads Author)

4.01 avg rating — 6,520 ratings

Titan Hoppers (4 books)
by

Rob J. Hayes (Goodreads Author)

4.22 avg rating — 2,928 ratings

The God Eater Saga (3 books)
by

Rob J. Hayes (Goodreads Author)

4.32 avg rating — 2,327 ratings

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Rob is Currently Reading

Rob Hayes is currently reading

The Providence of Fire (Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne, #2)

by Brian Staveley (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

read in August 2016

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Rob Hayes said: " Been struggling with this review for a few reasons. Finally figured I'd just pull it together. Here goes.

I listened to the audio version and therefore may get a few names wrong as spelling is hard.

Providence of Fire(PoF) picks up directly where The E Been struggling with this review for a few reasons. Finally figured I'd just pull it together. Here goes.

I listened to the audio version and therefore may get a few names wrong as spelling is hard.

Providence of Fire(PoF) picks up directly where The Emperor's Blades(TEB) left off. There's pretty much no time lost and we see the characters in the same dire peril we left them in. Kaden and Valyn are united and determined to uncover the plot that tried to slay them both, avenge the death of their father, and plonk Kaden's arse down on the Unhewn Throne. Adare is doing Adare things; sleeping with the enemy, realising she's sleeping with the enemy, running away.

I'll start with Simon Vance's narration. This guy continues to impress. He has a good range of voices, none of which sound forced or unnatural and he does an excellent job of giving characters unique voices so you can tell who you're on board with even before the text specifically states it. One interesting thing I did notice was that a few of the voices and pronunciations have actually changed since TEB. This is probably just the author correcting inaccuracies. I'm pretty sure Simon Vance's voice was designed for reading epic fantasy and there's little higher praise I can give it than that.

So what did I love about this book? Well there was a lot to love. We get a much deeper look into some of the characters and I'm not just talking about the back stories that TEB layered upon us. PoF is very much a book living in the present whereas TEB felt like a book living in the past. If Staveley completes the trend with The Last Mortal Bond(TLMB) feeling like it lives in the future, I will be very impressed.

We get a much greater look at the world and the various factions inhabiting it. That being said, the world continues to feel very tightly packed with everything happening in just a small section (geographically speaking). I don't doubt the world is very large, but for that reason it feels very small. Everybody seems to be within a few days/weeks travel of each other and ALL the important events are happening around Anore (?) as if the rest of the world doesn't really matter.

Tristae (?) is awesome. Possibly my favourite character (after Valyn) because of the way she flits between helpless little girl to hand-crushing nutbar. She's definitely one of the most interesting and not just because of the secret she's hiding.

Gwenna is another highlight as the foul-mouthed demolitions expert. She's worth mentioning as well as we start getting PoV chapters from her perspective... which seems odd. Up until now all the PoVs have been the Emperor's Blades; his 3 children. Now that changes and suddenly we have Gwenna chapters. Don't get me wrong, they're interesting and fresh and probably some of the best chapters... it just seems odd, almost as though Staveley really wanted to tell more of the story and had to break his own formula to do it. I'm glad he did though as Gwenna's chapters are certainly some of the most rewarding.

Kaden is... Kaden. He still feels like a potato. He goes around, he does things (important things), and yet he's just so hard to connect with that I struggled to care about his plight.

Adare is still as useless as she was in TEB. I really wanted to like her and for her character to flourish, but she's too much like Dany-fucking-Targaryen for me. One mistake after another and doesn't give a damn what any of the people around her (advisers appointed by her) say. Maybe she gets more likeable in TLMB, I'm told she does... but then I was told she does in PoF... lies.

Valyn, despite making some face-palm choices, is the bright light. I think I would have preferred books written all from his perspective, but then telling the whole story would be pretty much impossible. He's a broken man who is a product of a very harsh past and continually tries to put himself back together even when he just wants it to stop. He's fascinating and compelling and drives the story forward and keeps me coming back to find out more. I can't wait to see how he progresses into TLMB because he's left on a fair cliffhanger and I can only imagine he's going to become even more of a badass.

OK, time for biggest gripe (and it's a biggie). There is SO MUCH FAFFING AROUND in this book. There was a bit in TEB, but that was to be expected as there was a lot of scene setting, world setting, character back story. In PoF there's just a lot of people wandering somewhere, wandering elsewhere, splitting up, getting back together, doing a thing, doing the opposite thing. The book waffles and it slows down the pace to a crawl at times. That's not to say that there are chapters where nothing important happens, just that often those important things are surrounded by the rest of the chapter where nothing happens. The book is slow, lethargic at times, and it's why I struggled through much of it... and why I'm struggling to get into TLMB at the moment.

So that's about it. I enjoyed Providence of Fire, but not as much as The Emperor's Blades. I give it 3 stars. ...more "

Aug 08, 2016 02:05AM · see review

Rob Hayes is currently reading

Idols Fall (Iconoclasts, #3)

by Mike Shel (Goodreads Author)

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Mar 13, 2026 01:50AM

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Rob Hayes and 102 other people liked Rebecca's review of The Will of the Many (Hierarchy, #1): "Every dude who wants to write an epic saga (about a lowly orphan with a secret past who goes on a quest to discover the truth, and then hijinks ensue) should be limited to a maximum of 400 pages. Any more than that is just gas-baggery Also: Beware of " Read more of this review »
Mar 23, 2026 01:25AM · see review
Rob Hayes is on page 50 of 686 of Idols Fall: Time to end this! Idols Fall (Iconoclasts, #3) by Mike Shel (Goodreads Author) progress:	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 13, 2026 01:51AM · 6 likes · like · see status · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Idols Fall by Mike Shel. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Idols Fall by Mike Shel <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rob Hayes started reading The Providence of Fire (Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne, #2) by Brian Staveley (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 13, 2026 01:50AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Providence of Fire by Brian Staveley. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Providence of Fire by Brian Staveley <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rob Hayes has read Sin Eater (Iconoclasts, #2) by Mike Shel (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Dark fantasy with smatterings of horror, a slow pace, and a deep look into how the horrors of a fantasy world could really affect someone's psyche. Not quite as good as book 1, but still excellent. On to book 3! ...more
Mar 13, 2026 01:50AM · 13 likes · like · see review
Rob Hayes is currently reading Idols Fall (Iconoclasts, #3) by Mike Shel (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 13, 2026 01:50AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Idols Fall by Mike Shel. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Idols Fall by Mike Shel <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rob Hayes finished reading Sin Eater (Iconoclasts, #2) by Mike Shel (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 13, 2026 01:49AM · 1 like · like
Rob Hayes has read Operation Bounce House: THE EPIC AND FAST-PACED NOVEL FROM THE MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SMASH-HIT DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL by Matt Dinniman (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Bit of a weird one. By the end of the book, it definitely stood on its own, but it still felt like a sanitised version of DCC. Giant corporation comes to planet, kills off most of the inhabitants, forces the rest to fight for entertainment. Yes, the ...more
Mar 13, 2026 01:48AM · 12 likes · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rob Hayes finished reading Operation Bounce House: THE EPIC AND FAST-PACED NOVEL FROM THE MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SMASH-HIT DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL by Matt Dinniman (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Mar 13, 2026 01:48AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Rob Hayes made a comment on his review of The Emperor's Blades (Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne, #1) " LambchoP wrote: "I need to finally dive into this series. I read the prequel novella Bloodsworn and it was one of my favorite novellas I've ever read! ...more "
Feb 23, 2026 12:23AM · see review
Rob Hayes is currently reading Operation Bounce House: THE EPIC AND FAST-PACED NOVEL FROM THE MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SMASH-HIT DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL by Matt Dinniman (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Feb 20, 2026 06:34AM · 2 likes · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Operation Bounce House by Matt Dinniman <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

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Quotes by Rob J. Hayes (?)

“Ever killed anyone with a spoon?" she asked him.
"Uhhh..."
"Me neither, but I'm thinking of trying.”
― Rob J. Hayes, The Heresy Within

10 likes

“It takes a lifetime of evil to be a villain, and only one moment of good to be a hero.”
― Rob J. Hayes, Never Die

7 likes

“Good orders should always be questioned,” Stillwater said. “Bad orders should always be ignored.”
― Rob J. Hayes, The Fifth Empire of Man

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Polls

Jan/Feb Group Read!

Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames

19 votes, 30.2%

The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie

12 votes, 19.0%

The Shadow of What Was Lost by James Islington

7 votes, 11.1%

The Path of Flames by Phil Tucker

5 votes, 7.9%

Gardens of the Moon by Steven Erikson

5 votes, 7.9%

The Vagrant by Peter Newman

5 votes, 7.9%

Ghosts of Tomorrow by Michael R. Fletcher

4 votes, 6.3%

The Heresy Within by Rob J. Hayes

4 votes, 6.3%

Seven Forges by James A. Moore

2 votes, 3.2%

63 total votes

2 comments

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Fantasy Book Club: What are you reading in August '13?	85	149	Sep 01, 2013 12:35AM
Fantasy Book Club: June 2014 nominations	77	225	Apr 17, 2014 06:25AM
The Not a Book Cl...: I'm in a funk..	82	106	Mar 19, 2015 05:34PM
The Sword and Laser: Looking for more firearms in "High" Fantasy	33	644	Jan 24, 2016 06:32PM
The Seasonal Read...: Summer Challenge 2016: Completed Tasks: PLEASE DO NOT DELETE ANY POSTS IN THIS THREAD	2596	494	Aug 31, 2016 09:00PM
Fantasy Buddy Reads: Bill Kicks Ass At Destroying Series so Suck It Everyone Neener Neener	511	167	Oct 05, 2017 03:30PM

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Rob’s Quotes

“You say glory, necessity, pride; I say barbarity, greed, arrogance. War is a search for glory, for that particular sense of joy and satisfaction that comes from staking one's life on the outcome of a gamble. The search for a cheap thrill, with a cost too dear for Midas, and on a pretext that, more or less, amounts to 'My neighbour has a thing. I want it.”
― Laura M. Hughes, Art of War

tags: war

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“Power ain’t what ya reckon it’ll be. Don’t mean ya get ta do what ya want all the time; means ya gotta do what every other fucker wants. Much better bein’ the knife in the darkness than waitin’ fer it ta come for you.”
― Rob J. Hayes, The Fifth Empire of Man

7 likes

“Jezzet there isn't a man in this room who hasn't spent at least some time staring at you and you're without doubt the most graceful person I've ever seen. I'm sure you can find some way to distract them. Failing that just start ... you know ... killing people."
"Killing people?" [...]
"Yes. with a spoon if you like.”
― Rob J. Hayes, The Heresy Within

5 likes

“We teach girls shame. “Close your legs. Cover yourself.” We make them feel as though being born female they’re already guilty of something. And so, girls grow up to be women who cannot say they have desire. They grow up to be women who silence themselves. They grow up to be women who cannot say what they truly think. And they grow up — and this is the worst thing we do to girls — they grow up to be women who have turned pretense into an art form.”
― Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, We Should All Be Feminists

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Rob’s Year In Books

Rob J. Hayes’s Followers (1,961)

Rob’s Bookshelves

Rob’s Friends (578)

2026 Reading Challenge

Rob J. Hayes

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246 posts
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Self Published Fantasy Releases – February 2026

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See a Problem?

Preview — Idols Fall by Mike Shel

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