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Age of Misrule #1-3
Age of Misrule
All over the country, the ancient gods of Celtic mythology are returning to the land from which they were banished millennia ago. Following in their footsteps are creatures of the Fabulous Beasts, shape-shifters and Night Walkers, and other, less wholesome beings. As they grow in power, so technology is swept away. It is myth and magic that now rule supreme in this new Dark The Age of Misrule. The Eternal Conflict between the Light and Dark once again blackens the skies and blights the land. On one side stand the Tuatha de Danann, golden-skinned and beautiful; on the other are the Fomorii, monstrous devils hell-bent on destroying all human existence. But in times of trouble, come heroes. Five flawed humans, Brothers and Sisters of Dragons, are drawn together to search for the magical talismans which which to fight the powers of old. But time draws short and humanity looks set to be swept away ...
1360 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2001
12 people are currently reading
303 people want to read
About the author
Mark Chadbourn
66 books220 followersA two-time winner of the prestigious British Fantasy Award, Mark has published his epic, imaginative novels in many countries around the world. He grew up in the mining community of the English Midlands, and was the first person in his family to go to university. After studying Economic History at Leeds, he became a successful journalist, writing for several of the UK's renowned national newspapers as well as contributing to magazines and TV.
When his first short story won Fear magazine's Best New Author award, he was snapped up by an agent and subsequently published his first novel, Underground, a supernatural thriller set in the coalfields of his youth. Quitting journalism to become a full-time author, he has written stories which have transcended genre boundaries, but is perhaps best known in the fantasy field.
Mark has also forged a parallel career as a screenwriter with many hours of produced work for British television. He is a writer for BBC Drama, and is also developing new shows for the UK and US.
An expert on British folklore and mythology, he has held several varied and colourful jobs, including independent record company boss, band manager, production line worker, engineer's 'mate', and media consultant.
Having travelled extensively around the world, he has now settled in a rambling house in the middle of a forest not far from where he was born.
When his first short story won Fear magazine's Best New Author award, he was snapped up by an agent and subsequently published his first novel, Underground, a supernatural thriller set in the coalfields of his youth. Quitting journalism to become a full-time author, he has written stories which have transcended genre boundaries, but is perhaps best known in the fantasy field.
Mark has also forged a parallel career as a screenwriter with many hours of produced work for British television. He is a writer for BBC Drama, and is also developing new shows for the UK and US.
An expert on British folklore and mythology, he has held several varied and colourful jobs, including independent record company boss, band manager, production line worker, engineer's 'mate', and media consultant.
Having travelled extensively around the world, he has now settled in a rambling house in the middle of a forest not far from where he was born.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
December 31, 2018
I first read The Age of Misrule trilogy decades ago and seem to remember thinking it was only OK, but since then I’ve found my mind often returning to some of its scenes and ideas and so decided it was high time for a re-read.
World's End, Book 1 - 4 stars
Based on the first book, so far my re-read has discovered that, while it has its flaws, my younger self was far too scathing in my initial assessment.
In World’s End, we meet five strangers drawn together to try and avert an apocalypse. The Age of Reason is over, and creatures from legend are starting to stalk the land once more. Stumbling upon a terrifying mugging that sets events in motion are Church and Ruth, and as technology starts to fail, they discover that they – and three others that are drawn into their flight from dragons, Black Shuck, the Wild Hunt and more – are the ‘Brothers and Sisters of Dragons’, mankind’s last hope against the forces that stand against them.
Aided by another mysterious figure and sent on a quest to retrieve four talismans, which together will help summon the Tuatha De Danann to oppose the Fomorii, the group take off on a breakneck run across Britain, the pace of which accounts for one of the book’s strengths. The writing style is very straightforward, lacking much of anything that doesn’t advance the plot, with the result that the story thunders along at a terrific pace. It also meant that I didn’t get into the characters as much as I normally like to, which probably accounted for some of my remembered apathy from my first read. I appreciated the British setting – most fantasy books that I’ve read, urban or otherwise, have been set across the pond and so it was a pleasant novelty to read about places I know in apocalyptic circumstances. The multitude of British legends drawn upon added more to my enjoyment.
It did turn out that the things I’d remembered most – the Wild Hunt trashing Taunton Dean services and Two Bridges on Dartmoor, and an encounter with Cernunnos – took place in this first book, so it’ll be interesting to rediscover everything that I’ve forgotten with the next two, and see if I continue to think better of them this time around.
**Also posted at Cannonball Read 10**
Darkest Hour, Book 2 - 2 stars
Having taken a couple of weeks to slog through Darkest Hour, I’m starting to see where my rating knocked off a couple of stars in my first read through, as the breakneck pace of World’s End came almost to a complete halt, and our ‘heroes’ screwed up yet more things in their fight to save humanity.
World’s End saw Church, Veitch, Shavi, Ruth and Laura summon the Tuatha De Danaan to help them to defeat the Fomorii, only to discover that once the Tuatha were here, they really didn’t want to leave again, and nor did they feel like adjusting any Fomorii attitudes. Instead it’s up to our own Brothers and Sisters of Dragons to grow into the roles laid out for them – Church is our king, Veitch the warrior, Shavi the Shaman, Ruth is a witch, and Laura is The Worst. Aided by Tom the Expositioner (sorry, Thomas the Rhymer), they need to figure out how to stop the Fomorii from accomplishing the next part of their plan – resurrecting Balor, God of Death – and so they’re off toiling the length and breadth of Britain once more, making incredibly poor choices and generally making things worse by freeing an insanely powerful and powerfully insane fae, breaking promises to other powerful beings and getting impregnated by the destruction of us all.
The breakneck pace of World’s End was one of its highlights, so it’s a shame that things slow down so much in Darkest Hour, giving us more time spent with our characters which in turn highlights some of the book’s flaws. The characterisation is rather two dimensional and the dialogue often clichéd – especially Laura’s, who sounds like an old person’s idea of a spunky young ‘un – and huge chunks of the book are spent listening to Tom explain to everyone just what the shit is going on. There are still some great ideas and some great set-pieces within, but they do tend to be a little overshadowed by all of the explaining going on.
The best part of this book is the fate of Laura – have I mentioned that I truly hate this character yet? – and, while I’m sure she’ll rear her deeply irritating head again at some point so that she can be a spiteful little brat whose pain is the only one that matters again, I’m hopeful that the only mention of her in the next book will be Tom explaining to everyone where her grave is.
**Also posted at Cannonball Read 10**
Always Forever, Book 3 - 2 stars
After slogging through its predecessor over a matter of weeks, I tore through Always Forever (the last in the Age of Misrule trilogy) in just two days, although this had more to do with wanting to read the tower of books I got for Crimbo than with how much I was enjoying it. To be fair, I did enjoy this one more than the Darkest Hour, but it never quite got back to the same level as the opener, World’s End.
We left Darkest Hour with everything having gone pretty wrong. With the deaths of two of its members, our five is no more – meaning they no longer have the power to defend humanity against Balor and his Fomorii forces. But it seems that for the Brothers and Sisters of Dragons, the normal rules don’t apply, and that being dead doesn’t mean that you won’t get better. So while Ruth and Church hitch a ride on a fairy ship to Tir n’a N’og to cleanse the taint of the Kiss of Frost from Church’s blood, Veitch and Tom get their own side missions as they try to get the gang back together.
The side missions are a good thing, as it meant that we get breaks from the seemingly neverending boat ride taken by Church and Ruth. While this was no doubt important to the final resolution of the story, even the amount of mythical beings thrown at us as other boat passengers didn’t do much to make me want to spend as much time there as we did. I’ve always hated the character of Laura, and her quick character change following her death didn’t really feel particularly earned, while the amount of anvilicious foreshadowing that had peppered the preceding books about betrayal from within the group meant that the final reveal of the traitor was a bit of a damp squib.
On the plus side, while it felt a little rushed, I did enjoy the final depiction of Balor and the fate of Church, and there were again some nice little moments every now and then. They just weren’t quite enough to make the books live up to their initial promise.
**Also posted at Cannonball Read 10**
World's End, Book 1 - 4 stars
Based on the first book, so far my re-read has discovered that, while it has its flaws, my younger self was far too scathing in my initial assessment.
In World’s End, we meet five strangers drawn together to try and avert an apocalypse. The Age of Reason is over, and creatures from legend are starting to stalk the land once more. Stumbling upon a terrifying mugging that sets events in motion are Church and Ruth, and as technology starts to fail, they discover that they – and three others that are drawn into their flight from dragons, Black Shuck, the Wild Hunt and more – are the ‘Brothers and Sisters of Dragons’, mankind’s last hope against the forces that stand against them.
Aided by another mysterious figure and sent on a quest to retrieve four talismans, which together will help summon the Tuatha De Danann to oppose the Fomorii, the group take off on a breakneck run across Britain, the pace of which accounts for one of the book’s strengths. The writing style is very straightforward, lacking much of anything that doesn’t advance the plot, with the result that the story thunders along at a terrific pace. It also meant that I didn’t get into the characters as much as I normally like to, which probably accounted for some of my remembered apathy from my first read. I appreciated the British setting – most fantasy books that I’ve read, urban or otherwise, have been set across the pond and so it was a pleasant novelty to read about places I know in apocalyptic circumstances. The multitude of British legends drawn upon added more to my enjoyment.
It did turn out that the things I’d remembered most – the Wild Hunt trashing Taunton Dean services and Two Bridges on Dartmoor, and an encounter with Cernunnos – took place in this first book, so it’ll be interesting to rediscover everything that I’ve forgotten with the next two, and see if I continue to think better of them this time around.
**Also posted at Cannonball Read 10**
Darkest Hour, Book 2 - 2 stars
Having taken a couple of weeks to slog through Darkest Hour, I’m starting to see where my rating knocked off a couple of stars in my first read through, as the breakneck pace of World’s End came almost to a complete halt, and our ‘heroes’ screwed up yet more things in their fight to save humanity.
World’s End saw Church, Veitch, Shavi, Ruth and Laura summon the Tuatha De Danaan to help them to defeat the Fomorii, only to discover that once the Tuatha were here, they really didn’t want to leave again, and nor did they feel like adjusting any Fomorii attitudes. Instead it’s up to our own Brothers and Sisters of Dragons to grow into the roles laid out for them – Church is our king, Veitch the warrior, Shavi the Shaman, Ruth is a witch, and Laura is The Worst. Aided by Tom the Expositioner (sorry, Thomas the Rhymer), they need to figure out how to stop the Fomorii from accomplishing the next part of their plan – resurrecting Balor, God of Death – and so they’re off toiling the length and breadth of Britain once more, making incredibly poor choices and generally making things worse by freeing an insanely powerful and powerfully insane fae, breaking promises to other powerful beings and getting impregnated by the destruction of us all.
The breakneck pace of World’s End was one of its highlights, so it’s a shame that things slow down so much in Darkest Hour, giving us more time spent with our characters which in turn highlights some of the book’s flaws. The characterisation is rather two dimensional and the dialogue often clichéd – especially Laura’s, who sounds like an old person’s idea of a spunky young ‘un – and huge chunks of the book are spent listening to Tom explain to everyone just what the shit is going on. There are still some great ideas and some great set-pieces within, but they do tend to be a little overshadowed by all of the explaining going on.
The best part of this book is the fate of Laura – have I mentioned that I truly hate this character yet? – and, while I’m sure she’ll rear her deeply irritating head again at some point so that she can be a spiteful little brat whose pain is the only one that matters again, I’m hopeful that the only mention of her in the next book will be Tom explaining to everyone where her grave is.
**Also posted at Cannonball Read 10**
Always Forever, Book 3 - 2 stars
After slogging through its predecessor over a matter of weeks, I tore through Always Forever (the last in the Age of Misrule trilogy) in just two days, although this had more to do with wanting to read the tower of books I got for Crimbo than with how much I was enjoying it. To be fair, I did enjoy this one more than the Darkest Hour, but it never quite got back to the same level as the opener, World’s End.
We left Darkest Hour with everything having gone pretty wrong. With the deaths of two of its members, our five is no more – meaning they no longer have the power to defend humanity against Balor and his Fomorii forces. But it seems that for the Brothers and Sisters of Dragons, the normal rules don’t apply, and that being dead doesn’t mean that you won’t get better. So while Ruth and Church hitch a ride on a fairy ship to Tir n’a N’og to cleanse the taint of the Kiss of Frost from Church’s blood, Veitch and Tom get their own side missions as they try to get the gang back together.
The side missions are a good thing, as it meant that we get breaks from the seemingly neverending boat ride taken by Church and Ruth. While this was no doubt important to the final resolution of the story, even the amount of mythical beings thrown at us as other boat passengers didn’t do much to make me want to spend as much time there as we did. I’ve always hated the character of Laura, and her quick character change following her death didn’t really feel particularly earned, while the amount of anvilicious foreshadowing that had peppered the preceding books about betrayal from within the group meant that the final reveal of the traitor was a bit of a damp squib.
On the plus side, while it felt a little rushed, I did enjoy the final depiction of Balor and the fate of Church, and there were again some nice little moments every now and then. They just weren’t quite enough to make the books live up to their initial promise.
**Also posted at Cannonball Read 10**
October 23, 2015
This is another fantasy/sci-fi masterpiece; three books that belong on any fantasy-lover's bookshelf.
Ancient Celtic and Irish mythology - that of the Tuatha de Danaan, the golden children of Daan, and the Fomorri, their demonic opposites - blends with adventure/thriller as the end of the world finally arrives, in a style no one saw coming. After mellenia of banishment, the treaty between Danaan and Fomorri has ben mande null and void, with both races returning to thir old haunts on Earth. Both are here to reclaim their old kingdoms and control of our world - with little to no concern for the humans already living there.
In come five perfectly normal human beings - that are all that stand between the immortal beings of magic and the surviving pockets of humanity. In a journey that takes them from the sacred talismans of the Danaan, granting rebirth, to the land of the dead and the depths of darkness, the Sons and Daughters of Dragons tear away the many masks and facades of humankind, revealing the golden beauty that lies at the heart of us all.
Ancient Celtic and Irish mythology - that of the Tuatha de Danaan, the golden children of Daan, and the Fomorri, their demonic opposites - blends with adventure/thriller as the end of the world finally arrives, in a style no one saw coming. After mellenia of banishment, the treaty between Danaan and Fomorri has ben mande null and void, with both races returning to thir old haunts on Earth. Both are here to reclaim their old kingdoms and control of our world - with little to no concern for the humans already living there.
In come five perfectly normal human beings - that are all that stand between the immortal beings of magic and the surviving pockets of humanity. In a journey that takes them from the sacred talismans of the Danaan, granting rebirth, to the land of the dead and the depths of darkness, the Sons and Daughters of Dragons tear away the many masks and facades of humankind, revealing the golden beauty that lies at the heart of us all.
January 30, 2015
I started off really enjoying this book and then the further I got the more I started to hate it until I was manufacturing ways to waste my free time so I wouldn't have to pick it up again. The whole science is a bad thing that has replaced the really important things in life and made everything pointless attitude really started to grate.
That said, I did enjoy that even though they were on a time pressure quest to prevent an ancient celtic darkness from destroying the world, the characters still found time to spend almost every night down the pub. That's the kind of world saving I can get behind.
That said, I did enjoy that even though they were on a time pressure quest to prevent an ancient celtic darkness from destroying the world, the characters still found time to spend almost every night down the pub. That's the kind of world saving I can get behind.
September 1, 2007
This is sort of unfortunate. The premise is one I rather like. The Faeries returning to England. But the execution is a VERY lengthy soap opera... You can only have people wandering around with no idea what is going on and all of the 'legions of hell' trying to kill them before you just start getting annoyed that they're still alive.
May 27, 2013
I started this book three times finally got into the flow and its an epic modern world fairy story.
Even has some of it set in Temby
Even has some of it set in Temby
June 5, 2013
Great end to the second in a nine book trilogy with some of the best fantasy writing since Tolkien.
January 12, 2017
I read this a good few years ago, couldn't say when. But it is one of three favourite books of all time. I absolutely love the plot and the flow of the story, the five man band, the sense of urban realism mixed with fantasy. Defiantly recommend a read of this.
August 19, 2018
One of the best books I read ever!
April 9, 2015
This anthology pulls together into one volume the books World's End, Darkest Hour and Always Forever.
A collection of seemingly disparate characters are drawn together by an increasingly bizarre series of events which presage the end of the world as we know it. The old gods are returning, and in doing so strip away all of the technology which we have come to rely so much on. Jack "Church" Churchill and his band of similarly damaged reluctant heroes find themselves in the centre of the battle to save the world...
I was drawn to the novel by the central premise of Celtic gods taking over from technology, and all of the chaos that such a storyline promises. In many ways, I was not disappointed: there are some fantastic set pieces and scenes which stick in the memory, particularly one on a train in which an abusive father finds his comeuppance on a train in a particularly hideous way at the hands of an old-world faery (I won't spoil it for those who haven't read it, but the mental image sticks with me to this day, which is a feat I love and appreciate!).
The story runs at a good pace, although is sometimes held up a bit by the shifting points of view. However there are plenty of perils, intrigue and betrayals to keep the reader hooked. It is a great endorsement of this anthology that I wanted to read all the way to the end in one go, in spite of it being 3 books in 1 - I usually get bored and ready for a fresh voice after book 2, but not with this one...
A collection of seemingly disparate characters are drawn together by an increasingly bizarre series of events which presage the end of the world as we know it. The old gods are returning, and in doing so strip away all of the technology which we have come to rely so much on. Jack "Church" Churchill and his band of similarly damaged reluctant heroes find themselves in the centre of the battle to save the world...
I was drawn to the novel by the central premise of Celtic gods taking over from technology, and all of the chaos that such a storyline promises. In many ways, I was not disappointed: there are some fantastic set pieces and scenes which stick in the memory, particularly one on a train in which an abusive father finds his comeuppance on a train in a particularly hideous way at the hands of an old-world faery (I won't spoil it for those who haven't read it, but the mental image sticks with me to this day, which is a feat I love and appreciate!).
The story runs at a good pace, although is sometimes held up a bit by the shifting points of view. However there are plenty of perils, intrigue and betrayals to keep the reader hooked. It is a great endorsement of this anthology that I wanted to read all the way to the end in one go, in spite of it being 3 books in 1 - I usually get bored and ready for a fresh voice after book 2, but not with this one...
May 8, 2010
I'm a big fan of 'fish out of water' stories - especially when modern day characters get access to fantasy elements. Having said that, I prefer the epic story/quest ( books like Thomas Covenant, Fionavar Tapestry and Hickory Staff ) over urban fantasy.
The first book in tha Age of Misrule is right up that alley. I had to force myself to put it down last night, and it's been a while since that happened with a book I was reading. I hope the goodness continues since the omnibus is over 1300 pages long.
If anyone else likes these type of books, here's a thread with other suggestions:
http://www.sffchronicles.co.uk/forum/...
Update: I finished the books last night and thoroughly enjoyed them. If you liked Fionavar Tapestry, give this book a go. One of my best reads so far this year. I hope the sequels are at least half as good.
The first book in tha Age of Misrule is right up that alley. I had to force myself to put it down last night, and it's been a while since that happened with a book I was reading. I hope the goodness continues since the omnibus is over 1300 pages long.
If anyone else likes these type of books, here's a thread with other suggestions:
http://www.sffchronicles.co.uk/forum/...
Update: I finished the books last night and thoroughly enjoyed them. If you liked Fionavar Tapestry, give this book a go. One of my best reads so far this year. I hope the sequels are at least half as good.
January 12, 2014
As ancient gods and monsters begin to make their comeback into the world, and the world as we know it slowly falls apart, five heroes emerge, chosen by the universe to guide the world back into the light. Five ordinary people from ordinary lives must discover the hidden strengths in their souls and overcome their own problems to fulfil their destiny.
These books challenge everything you ever thought about the world, how nothing is ever what it seems but layer upon layer of illusion must be peeled away to reach the truth. Full of myth, religion, philosophy, history, science, these books are some of the best I have ever read.
These books challenge everything you ever thought about the world, how nothing is ever what it seems but layer upon layer of illusion must be peeled away to reach the truth. Full of myth, religion, philosophy, history, science, these books are some of the best I have ever read.
July 31, 2016
Wow! What a fantastic book. I'm so glad my friend lent it to me (she's been very patient too! lol!)
How would I describe this story? An epic urban fantasy saga. ... yes I think that covers it! ;-)
The journey wasn't always an easy one both in how the story evolved & I found some of the more violent & dysopian scenes tough to read but I feel that it was all worth it.
I really enjoyed how accurately the author described real places and the fact that the tale takes place here, at this time, in Britain.
How would I describe this story? An epic urban fantasy saga. ... yes I think that covers it! ;-)
The journey wasn't always an easy one both in how the story evolved & I found some of the more violent & dysopian scenes tough to read but I feel that it was all worth it.
I really enjoyed how accurately the author described real places and the fact that the tale takes place here, at this time, in Britain.
May 15, 2008
I really enjoyed his fantasy writing.
Want to read
April 26, 2009The omnibus contains the whole Age of Misrule trilogy
So far I read the first book World's End and enjoyed it.
So far I read the first book World's End and enjoyed it.
June 10, 2009
The use of myths in a modern setting really worked for me although this is not great literature, it is an original and fun read.
Currently reading
February 21, 2010Tantelazing !
June 19, 2010
This is a brilliant blend of ancient British lore, legends, tales and modern landscape. Brilliant fantasy.
Read
July 27, 2012World's End
Really enjoyable escapist fantasy with well-rounded characters teaming up to save humanity.
Really enjoyable escapist fantasy with well-rounded characters teaming up to save humanity.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews