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Majat Code #1
Blades of the Old Empire
Kara is a mercenary – a Diamond warrior, the best of the best, and a member of the notorious Majat Guild. When her tenure as protector to Prince Kythar comes to an end, custom dictates he accompany her back to her Guild to negotiate her continued protection.
But when they arrive they discover that the Prince’s sworn enemy, the Kaddim, have already paid the Guild to engage her services – to capture and hand over Kythar, himself.
A warrior brought up to respect both duty and honour, what happens when her sworn duty proves dishonourable?
But when they arrive they discover that the Prince’s sworn enemy, the Kaddim, have already paid the Guild to engage her services – to capture and hand over Kythar, himself.
A warrior brought up to respect both duty and honour, what happens when her sworn duty proves dishonourable?
476 pages, Paperback
First published February 26, 2014
80 people are currently reading
2429 people want to read
About the author
Anna Kashina
24 books158 followersAnna Kashina is a critically acclaimed award-winning author of “The Majat Code” series, featuring adventure, swordplay, intrigue, and romance in a historical fantasy setting. She is the author of the official novelization of Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana, a bestselling video game by Nihon Falcom Co.
Awards: 2015 Prism Award (Fantasy, and "Best of the Best" grand prize), Locus Award Nominee, 2013 ForeWord Book of the Year (IndieFab) Award, 2014 Independent Publishers Book Award (IPPY).
Awards: 2015 Prism Award (Fantasy, and "Best of the Best" grand prize), Locus Award Nominee, 2013 ForeWord Book of the Year (IndieFab) Award, 2014 Independent Publishers Book Award (IPPY).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 112 reviews
August 6, 2016
2.5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum http://bibliosanctum.blogspot.com/201...
When I look back at Blades of the Old Empire all I can think of is, here is an example of a novel which would've been better served with some major polishing. And did you know this isn't even technically the first book? I didn't. I only found out after I did some digging around, because I couldn't help getting this feeling I was missing something...
Turns out, my instincts were correct. Most of the main characters in here were first introduced in one of Kashina's earlier novels, The First Sword. Information like that should have been made clearer, if only because I may have been more lenient when I was reading this book. This isn't the first time I've jumped in into the middle of a series, or even a spin-off or later novel set in an existing universe without reading the previous books first. The only difference is, all those times I was prepared. Quite honestly, I don't even know how well this book works as the beginning of a new series. Sure, you can read it and still understand the story, but I spent most of the time feeling like I've only scratched the surface, and wondered if so much feels lacking because the author expects you to know these things already.
Hence, polish. I'm afraid the character development needs quite a bit of work, especially if you're going to have multiple romantic subplots. If I can't connect to the characters, I'm not going to feel any chemistry, and then it's not going to matter one whit to me who's crushing on whom. It helps also, if I can get a good bead on your main protagonists' approximate ages right away. Not exactly sure why, but the way this was written, I spent the whole intro of the book thinking Prince Kyth was a young child. Even after I realized my mistake, it was difficult to view Kara as his romantic interest, and not a nanny-type figure.
Needless to say, that was a mood-killer.
For a fantasy novel of this type, there was also nowhere near enough context. By all rights, the story itself should have been quite epic, encompassing a long history and involving several kingdoms hanging in the balance, with conspiracy and corruption threatening to rot the system from the inside out. I knew this, but only because the book told me. I didn't actually feel it. An overall sense of vastness and importance seems to be missing. Despite the characters traveling for days to get from one place to another, the scope of their journey feels small, possibly stemming from a lack of world building.
My opinions notwithstanding, the reason why I'm not giving this a lower rating is because I feel this book has plenty of potential. I enjoyed the premise and it had a lot of good ideas, especially when it comes to the magic. If only it had been explained a little better. Rigorous editing and several more drafts could have perhaps improved things, knocking out some of the redundant phrases (there seems to be an inordinate amount of blood streaking out of the corner of people's mouths, for instance -- the author likes to use this description everywhere, and even three times in one short scene), or toning down some of the more absurd battle sequences.
Being over-the-top can sometimes work in your favor, but this is not that kind of novel. At best, this crazy, overly bombastic martial arts stuff comes off as comical. The Diamonds are too powerful, one fighter taking on dozens of enemies at once, and also somehow surviving the most grievous of wounds. I draw the line when a character can miraculously come back from the dead, and the way it happens makes very little sense. There is no perception of danger or tension, not if every close call can be fixed with a quaff from a magical potion or a touch from a healer.
Giving a middling rating for this, because I neither liked it nor particularly disliked it. To summarize, the book has a raw and unfinished feel, and based on that I can't really recommend it. A shame too, because with some fleshing out and more honing-plus-fine-tuning, this book could have been so much more.
When I look back at Blades of the Old Empire all I can think of is, here is an example of a novel which would've been better served with some major polishing. And did you know this isn't even technically the first book? I didn't. I only found out after I did some digging around, because I couldn't help getting this feeling I was missing something...
Turns out, my instincts were correct. Most of the main characters in here were first introduced in one of Kashina's earlier novels, The First Sword. Information like that should have been made clearer, if only because I may have been more lenient when I was reading this book. This isn't the first time I've jumped in into the middle of a series, or even a spin-off or later novel set in an existing universe without reading the previous books first. The only difference is, all those times I was prepared. Quite honestly, I don't even know how well this book works as the beginning of a new series. Sure, you can read it and still understand the story, but I spent most of the time feeling like I've only scratched the surface, and wondered if so much feels lacking because the author expects you to know these things already.
Hence, polish. I'm afraid the character development needs quite a bit of work, especially if you're going to have multiple romantic subplots. If I can't connect to the characters, I'm not going to feel any chemistry, and then it's not going to matter one whit to me who's crushing on whom. It helps also, if I can get a good bead on your main protagonists' approximate ages right away. Not exactly sure why, but the way this was written, I spent the whole intro of the book thinking Prince Kyth was a young child. Even after I realized my mistake, it was difficult to view Kara as his romantic interest, and not a nanny-type figure.
Needless to say, that was a mood-killer.
For a fantasy novel of this type, there was also nowhere near enough context. By all rights, the story itself should have been quite epic, encompassing a long history and involving several kingdoms hanging in the balance, with conspiracy and corruption threatening to rot the system from the inside out. I knew this, but only because the book told me. I didn't actually feel it. An overall sense of vastness and importance seems to be missing. Despite the characters traveling for days to get from one place to another, the scope of their journey feels small, possibly stemming from a lack of world building.
My opinions notwithstanding, the reason why I'm not giving this a lower rating is because I feel this book has plenty of potential. I enjoyed the premise and it had a lot of good ideas, especially when it comes to the magic. If only it had been explained a little better. Rigorous editing and several more drafts could have perhaps improved things, knocking out some of the redundant phrases (there seems to be an inordinate amount of blood streaking out of the corner of people's mouths, for instance -- the author likes to use this description everywhere, and even three times in one short scene), or toning down some of the more absurd battle sequences.
Being over-the-top can sometimes work in your favor, but this is not that kind of novel. At best, this crazy, overly bombastic martial arts stuff comes off as comical. The Diamonds are too powerful, one fighter taking on dozens of enemies at once, and also somehow surviving the most grievous of wounds. I draw the line when a character can miraculously come back from the dead, and the way it happens makes very little sense. There is no perception of danger or tension, not if every close call can be fixed with a quaff from a magical potion or a touch from a healer.
Giving a middling rating for this, because I neither liked it nor particularly disliked it. To summarize, the book has a raw and unfinished feel, and based on that I can't really recommend it. A shame too, because with some fleshing out and more honing-plus-fine-tuning, this book could have been so much more.
February 10, 2014
Fantasy Review Barn
Kyth recognized their weapons, spiked balls hanging on long thin chains. Orbens – powerful but extremely hard to master, banned for centuries…
Flails have been banned for centuries here in the land of ‘Blades of the Old Empire.’ Why? Because that way when people show up with them we will recognize that they are bad guys with little care for law. And show up they will, for despite being banned and rare there are a whole lot of people who are suddenly experts in these completely impractical weapons that win exactly ZERO fights throughout the book; their best showing was thwarted by someone’s hair blocking the worst of the blow.
‘That blow to the back of your head’s healing well. Your hair must’ve cushioned it when the orben hit.’
There are books that can be enjoyed with enough suspension of belief. I am the last person in the world to judge a book purely on its prose. And I have certainly enjoyed rough outings when the best parts of them rise above the rest of the text. But it would take a whole lot of forgiveness of a whole lot of issues for me to enjoy this one. I am slightly ashamed I had much more fun highlighting ridiculous passages than I did reading this book.
Nimos waved a hand, a gesture answered by a rustle from across the glade as his men retreated back into the shadows. With a last glance at Kara he darted toward the bushes.
His men get to retreat into shadows, but he darts into the nearest shrubbery? This is too much fun.
So what do we get? Ancient order shows up and tries to take over the land. This cult will shadow the protagonists, showing up randomly and saying cartoon villain things like ‘We will meet again.’ Royal boy of destiny will be needed to stop it. Don’t be fooled by the blurb, this book is about a prince full of destiny, not his female body guard. Her role is to be lusted after, do the badass ninja thing, and move the young prince Kyth from spot to spot. I don’t know if the blurb was designed to be misleading or just shoddily done, but as that isn’t on the author I will move on.
Characters? We don’t need not stinking characters. People in this book are either the luster or the lustie, and it all comes written with a heavy male gaze. Kyth lusts for Kara, whose order just forbids love and feelings and stuff but guess who breaks through and gets his girl? Oh lets be fair, Kyth’s friend Ellah lusts for a male body guard just as much, but he plays here like a violin throughout the story; she is never in control of that relationship like Kyth gets to be at times. Finish it off with some minor character whose name I forgot to highlight and whose role in the story is so unmemorable I kept forgetting him completely. He really does nothing important but sleep with the ancient forest goddess who wears nothing but spiders; sexy and dangerous. How does he woo her? By having a pure heart or something.
Do you like your conversations wooden and full of info deliberately designed to remind the reader of details? How about this little bit from a child talking to Mai, the male super ninja.
“They say things about your body. They like you, I think. They call you… dashing and dangerous, I believe.’
Maybe you would prefer a self-righteous monologue?
‘I felt that if I let them do this to you, I’d be no better than them. Not if I just stood by and watched, when there was something I could do about it. So, in a way, I did it for myself.’
How about magic? One can’t help but fear magical powers called ‘power to control’ or ‘power to kill.’ Were these just placeholder names that someone forgot to change? Or do people really need explanations of what these powers do? And while the evil cult of doom is stuck with only a few kinds of magic our group of protagonist take the x-men approach; everyone gets a separate magical ability! That way everyone stays equally important and gets a role to play I would assume.
This was one of the silliest books I have ever read. I made thirty six separate highlights while reading this one of passages that cracked me up in the wrong way. From horrible dialog, repetitive info dumps, and constant random attacks of orbens and some major leaps of logic I almost never stopped chuckling.
2 Stars. Recommended only for someone looking to do a humorous .gif filled review.
Review copy received free of chrange through NetGalley.
Kyth recognized their weapons, spiked balls hanging on long thin chains. Orbens – powerful but extremely hard to master, banned for centuries…
Flails have been banned for centuries here in the land of ‘Blades of the Old Empire.’ Why? Because that way when people show up with them we will recognize that they are bad guys with little care for law. And show up they will, for despite being banned and rare there are a whole lot of people who are suddenly experts in these completely impractical weapons that win exactly ZERO fights throughout the book; their best showing was thwarted by someone’s hair blocking the worst of the blow.
‘That blow to the back of your head’s healing well. Your hair must’ve cushioned it when the orben hit.’
There are books that can be enjoyed with enough suspension of belief. I am the last person in the world to judge a book purely on its prose. And I have certainly enjoyed rough outings when the best parts of them rise above the rest of the text. But it would take a whole lot of forgiveness of a whole lot of issues for me to enjoy this one. I am slightly ashamed I had much more fun highlighting ridiculous passages than I did reading this book.
Nimos waved a hand, a gesture answered by a rustle from across the glade as his men retreated back into the shadows. With a last glance at Kara he darted toward the bushes.
His men get to retreat into shadows, but he darts into the nearest shrubbery? This is too much fun.
So what do we get? Ancient order shows up and tries to take over the land. This cult will shadow the protagonists, showing up randomly and saying cartoon villain things like ‘We will meet again.’ Royal boy of destiny will be needed to stop it. Don’t be fooled by the blurb, this book is about a prince full of destiny, not his female body guard. Her role is to be lusted after, do the badass ninja thing, and move the young prince Kyth from spot to spot. I don’t know if the blurb was designed to be misleading or just shoddily done, but as that isn’t on the author I will move on.
Characters? We don’t need not stinking characters. People in this book are either the luster or the lustie, and it all comes written with a heavy male gaze. Kyth lusts for Kara, whose order just forbids love and feelings and stuff but guess who breaks through and gets his girl? Oh lets be fair, Kyth’s friend Ellah lusts for a male body guard just as much, but he plays here like a violin throughout the story; she is never in control of that relationship like Kyth gets to be at times. Finish it off with some minor character whose name I forgot to highlight and whose role in the story is so unmemorable I kept forgetting him completely. He really does nothing important but sleep with the ancient forest goddess who wears nothing but spiders; sexy and dangerous. How does he woo her? By having a pure heart or something.
Do you like your conversations wooden and full of info deliberately designed to remind the reader of details? How about this little bit from a child talking to Mai, the male super ninja.
“They say things about your body. They like you, I think. They call you… dashing and dangerous, I believe.’
Maybe you would prefer a self-righteous monologue?
‘I felt that if I let them do this to you, I’d be no better than them. Not if I just stood by and watched, when there was something I could do about it. So, in a way, I did it for myself.’
How about magic? One can’t help but fear magical powers called ‘power to control’ or ‘power to kill.’ Were these just placeholder names that someone forgot to change? Or do people really need explanations of what these powers do? And while the evil cult of doom is stuck with only a few kinds of magic our group of protagonist take the x-men approach; everyone gets a separate magical ability! That way everyone stays equally important and gets a role to play I would assume.
This was one of the silliest books I have ever read. I made thirty six separate highlights while reading this one of passages that cracked me up in the wrong way. From horrible dialog, repetitive info dumps, and constant random attacks of orbens and some major leaps of logic I almost never stopped chuckling.
2 Stars. Recommended only for someone looking to do a humorous .gif filled review.
Review copy received free of chrange through NetGalley.
September 18, 2017
Very cool sword & sorcery book from my favorite publisher, Angry Robot, featuring deep but simple near-eastern flavored world building with a dash of the inquisition and long lost magic. The slick and skilled Majat will satisfy those who like their mercenaries/assassins with a creed (if you know what I mean) and Anna Kashnia paints her characters and her world with great depth yet great ease, which makes Blades of the Old Empire a pleasure to read for fast-paced fantasy-adventure nuts who like serious combat, fractured kingdoms and their politics, and a tasteful splash of romance.
April 18, 2014
Blades of the Old Empire is the first book I've read by Anna Kashina. I decided to read it on a whim, and I'm glad I did. I must say, I'm not overly fond of the blurb — it's a bit melodramatic and slightly spoilery for an event admittedly close to the start.
There was a lot to like about Blades of the Old Empire. For me, the real strength of the book was the way everything came together into a smooth package. It opens with Prince Kyth being attacked by some mysteriously powerful bad guys (the Kaddim) and some troubles with the priesthood regarding Kyth's ability to succeed his father. The main characters set off in a couple of groups to deal with the religious issue and the story mostly follows them on their journeys (even if the "journey" doesn't necessarily consist of much travel thanks to complications).
You know how in some books, poor timing and coincidence is used to send characters off on misinformed missions of revenge and so forth and you're left shouting at the page in frustration? Well, Kashina doesn't take it quite that far, which was a nice change. I mean, I like books which toy with my emotions and make me yell at them (well, not if I'm yelling because they're crap, but that's not what I'm talking about here). But it was nice to have some of the suspense of that but not necessarily played out to the worst possible conclusion. I didn't realise how much less stressful that would be! ;-)
I should probably admit that I have a soft spot for assassins guilds. It certainly wasn't the only think I liked about Blades of the Old Empire, but it helped. So did the implausibly awesome warriors (one of whom, Kara, adorns the front cover). The Majat Guild has a ranking system based on gem stones; Diamond rank is the best, Jade rank indicates particular proficiency with ranged weapons, a group of Rubies plus one Diamond form the king's guard, that sort of thing. There are three Diamonds in the group of main and secondary characters, so we have ample opportunity to read about their implausibly good fighting abilities. The only think I would have liked is a glossary or appendix listing the ranks in order since that didn't come up in the book in very much detail (beyond what we needed to know about the characters). Actually, a list of characters — especially the rulers of the other kingdoms, which I briefly lost track of — would also have been good. And of the roles of Keepers, another powerful sect in the world. I do feel like some of this stuff will slot into place better upon reading the next book, however.
All the main characters were enjoyable to follow. The two main(-est) assassins have very few point of view sections (I think only when no one else is around for a plot-relevant scene) which serves to make them even more mysterious since we only have the other character's observations and thoughts to go on. The prince and friends were also very likeable characters. I particularly liked Ellah, who probably has the most complete emotional journey throughout the book. And, needless to say, I liked that there were several female characters (really, most of them) who actually got to control their own destinies, despite living in a fantasy world. Always good to see.
I enjoyed Blades of the Old Empire a lot and I highly recommend it to all fantasy fans, especially fans of BFF (big fat fantasy) books. Once I got a few chapters in, I found it very difficult to put down (you would think that having relatively short chapters would make this easier, but it was not the case). I will definitely be picking up the sequel which, apparently, is due out in (Northern) "summer". Looking forward to it.
4.5 / 5 stars
You can read more of my reviews on my blog.
There was a lot to like about Blades of the Old Empire. For me, the real strength of the book was the way everything came together into a smooth package. It opens with Prince Kyth being attacked by some mysteriously powerful bad guys (the Kaddim) and some troubles with the priesthood regarding Kyth's ability to succeed his father. The main characters set off in a couple of groups to deal with the religious issue and the story mostly follows them on their journeys (even if the "journey" doesn't necessarily consist of much travel thanks to complications).
You know how in some books, poor timing and coincidence is used to send characters off on misinformed missions of revenge and so forth and you're left shouting at the page in frustration? Well, Kashina doesn't take it quite that far, which was a nice change. I mean, I like books which toy with my emotions and make me yell at them (well, not if I'm yelling because they're crap, but that's not what I'm talking about here). But it was nice to have some of the suspense of that but not necessarily played out to the worst possible conclusion. I didn't realise how much less stressful that would be! ;-)
I should probably admit that I have a soft spot for assassins guilds. It certainly wasn't the only think I liked about Blades of the Old Empire, but it helped. So did the implausibly awesome warriors (one of whom, Kara, adorns the front cover). The Majat Guild has a ranking system based on gem stones; Diamond rank is the best, Jade rank indicates particular proficiency with ranged weapons, a group of Rubies plus one Diamond form the king's guard, that sort of thing. There are three Diamonds in the group of main and secondary characters, so we have ample opportunity to read about their implausibly good fighting abilities. The only think I would have liked is a glossary or appendix listing the ranks in order since that didn't come up in the book in very much detail (beyond what we needed to know about the characters). Actually, a list of characters — especially the rulers of the other kingdoms, which I briefly lost track of — would also have been good. And of the roles of Keepers, another powerful sect in the world. I do feel like some of this stuff will slot into place better upon reading the next book, however.
All the main characters were enjoyable to follow. The two main(-est) assassins have very few point of view sections (I think only when no one else is around for a plot-relevant scene) which serves to make them even more mysterious since we only have the other character's observations and thoughts to go on. The prince and friends were also very likeable characters. I particularly liked Ellah, who probably has the most complete emotional journey throughout the book. And, needless to say, I liked that there were several female characters (really, most of them) who actually got to control their own destinies, despite living in a fantasy world. Always good to see.
I enjoyed Blades of the Old Empire a lot and I highly recommend it to all fantasy fans, especially fans of BFF (big fat fantasy) books. Once I got a few chapters in, I found it very difficult to put down (you would think that having relatively short chapters would make this easier, but it was not the case). I will definitely be picking up the sequel which, apparently, is due out in (Northern) "summer". Looking forward to it.
4.5 / 5 stars
You can read more of my reviews on my blog.
January 15, 2015
If mercenary Ninja Assassins are your thing, then this is a book not to miss.
The ‘Majat’ warriors are the ninjas. Sworn to the strict code of their order, they have a thousand-year reputation for being strictly neutral in every political struggle – until now, I guess, when emotional and ethical considerations get them breaking their vows left and right.
King Evan is on a mission to nullify the law that says that anyone born with magical power should be put to death. (He’s particularly motivated to do this because his son and heir, Kyth, has recently been revealed to have such power.) He is opposed by the traditional priests of the realm – who have recently been revealed to be harboring – perhaps even led by – a cabal of dark demon-worshippers with sorcerous powers themselves.
Both sides want to hire top Majat wariors to help them in their struggle. But, as I mentioned, love gets in the way – the plot prominently features two romances – one between prince Kyth and the young-but-unbelievably-talented warrior Kara, and one involving the young truthseer Ellah’s infatuation with the warrior Mai.
There’s also some nature/forest magic going on, and quite a few other things.
Overall, the story is a quick read, fun and entertaining, in the classic fantasy vein. It doesn’t really add anything remarkably new to the genre, or transcend any preconceptions, but not every work has to break new ground. I was reminded more than once of sword-and-sorcery movies from the 80’s. I like those, so I don’t mind. It’s not realistic: if you demand a believable description of martial arts (or of medical procedures after people are wounded by those martial arts), you’ll find things to nit-pick. Nope, the ninja stuff here is over-the-top fantasy fare. The writing style is unremarkable, sometimes a bit too overly-colloquial or awkward, but it gets the job done. The romance aspects got to be a bit much, though. There were some eye rolls as kisses ‘drown people, then bring them back to life and drown them again,’ &c, &c.
I’ve seen some other complaints about this book that say that some aspects are confusing, or that the character development is insufficient. After wondering about a few things, I looked at the author’s bibliography. This is actually the second book in the series, although it’s not being marketed as such. These characters were introduced in Kashina’s 2012 release, ‘The First Sword.’ I have a feeling that if I’d read that first, I would’ve felt like I already knew the characters a lot better, and some references to prior adventures would’ve made more sense.
I received a copy of this book for review from NetGalley. Thanks to Netgalley and Angry Robot!
The ‘Majat’ warriors are the ninjas. Sworn to the strict code of their order, they have a thousand-year reputation for being strictly neutral in every political struggle – until now, I guess, when emotional and ethical considerations get them breaking their vows left and right.
King Evan is on a mission to nullify the law that says that anyone born with magical power should be put to death. (He’s particularly motivated to do this because his son and heir, Kyth, has recently been revealed to have such power.) He is opposed by the traditional priests of the realm – who have recently been revealed to be harboring – perhaps even led by – a cabal of dark demon-worshippers with sorcerous powers themselves.
Both sides want to hire top Majat wariors to help them in their struggle. But, as I mentioned, love gets in the way – the plot prominently features two romances – one between prince Kyth and the young-but-unbelievably-talented warrior Kara, and one involving the young truthseer Ellah’s infatuation with the warrior Mai.
There’s also some nature/forest magic going on, and quite a few other things.
Overall, the story is a quick read, fun and entertaining, in the classic fantasy vein. It doesn’t really add anything remarkably new to the genre, or transcend any preconceptions, but not every work has to break new ground. I was reminded more than once of sword-and-sorcery movies from the 80’s. I like those, so I don’t mind. It’s not realistic: if you demand a believable description of martial arts (or of medical procedures after people are wounded by those martial arts), you’ll find things to nit-pick. Nope, the ninja stuff here is over-the-top fantasy fare. The writing style is unremarkable, sometimes a bit too overly-colloquial or awkward, but it gets the job done. The romance aspects got to be a bit much, though. There were some eye rolls as kisses ‘drown people, then bring them back to life and drown them again,’ &c, &c.
I’ve seen some other complaints about this book that say that some aspects are confusing, or that the character development is insufficient. After wondering about a few things, I looked at the author’s bibliography. This is actually the second book in the series, although it’s not being marketed as such. These characters were introduced in Kashina’s 2012 release, ‘The First Sword.’ I have a feeling that if I’d read that first, I would’ve felt like I already knew the characters a lot better, and some references to prior adventures would’ve made more sense.
I received a copy of this book for review from NetGalley. Thanks to Netgalley and Angry Robot!
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August 25, 2016Full Review: http://tenaciousreader.wordpress.com/...
*** UPDATE – I just found out my review copy was missing an entire chapter. I hope to get a chance to look at the complete book and evaluate if that could have impacted my opinion/review. Many of my comments and observations will stand, but even if the book has faults, I feel bad that the author’s work, particularly in regard to its resolutions, since I understand this chapter is towards the end, is being judged on an incomplete version. ***
I enjoyed this one, but had a hard time reviewing it without sounding negative. I saw things that often bother me and felt I had to include them in my review. It took me a 1000 words to get done, and I'm having a hard time finding a short version to place here. Pretty much - It was a fun familiar fantasy but had a number of things you have to be willing to just accept (like convenient magical solutions).
*** UPDATE – I just found out my review copy was missing an entire chapter. I hope to get a chance to look at the complete book and evaluate if that could have impacted my opinion/review. Many of my comments and observations will stand, but even if the book has faults, I feel bad that the author’s work, particularly in regard to its resolutions, since I understand this chapter is towards the end, is being judged on an incomplete version. ***
I enjoyed this one, but had a hard time reviewing it without sounding negative. I saw things that often bother me and felt I had to include them in my review. It took me a 1000 words to get done, and I'm having a hard time finding a short version to place here. Pretty much - It was a fun familiar fantasy but had a number of things you have to be willing to just accept (like convenient magical solutions).
June 24, 2022
3,5 stars
April 28, 2014
In Blades of the Old Empire by Anna Kashina a fantasy world is on the cusp of great change. For centuries the official religion has restricted magic by testing children and killing those with magic powers.
But now the Kaddim Brotherhood has unleashed an ancient evil that will give them the power to dominate all peoples and only Prince Kythar, whose magic was hidden during childhood, can stop them.
Many relationships in this sprawling epic produce a book with interesting contrasts. Kythar or Kyth for short and his friend Ellah are in love and falling in love respectively with diamond warriors of the Majat guild. This guild sells security services to powerful people and diamond Majats are the most lethal.
Kyth is in love with a Kara, a prodigy even among diamond Majats. As a young man, his love toward her is simple, unquestioning, and intense, but these are age appropriate characteristics for his emotions. Kara, although young, almost seems too mature and worldly for Kyth, but she returns his affection.
Through the course of the story the young woman Ellah also falls for a diamond Majat named Mai. He is an enigma, acting both aloof yet charming. He is also a consummate warrior whose masculinity entices Ellah. She represents the plain girl who wants a man seemingly out of her league.
I really enjoyed Ellah's story line because she did not have fantastic fighting skills. She was just a girl off the farm who was now acting on the stage of world events. She offered a pleasing foil to Kara, who is fast, graceful, beautiful, respected, and brilliant.
Beyond the carefully woven tapestry of characters, Kashina presents a fantasy world of rich detail. It possesses a reverence for Nature illustrated in Ayalla, a supernatural female like a forest or Earth goddess. Trees follow her and form her shelter wherever she stops, and a garment of living spiders hangs upon her body.
Blades of the Old Empire is written at a good pace. Shocking action and turbulent emotions abound. I recommend the book to people who like Medieval style fantasy with quests and lots of characters.
But now the Kaddim Brotherhood has unleashed an ancient evil that will give them the power to dominate all peoples and only Prince Kythar, whose magic was hidden during childhood, can stop them.
Many relationships in this sprawling epic produce a book with interesting contrasts. Kythar or Kyth for short and his friend Ellah are in love and falling in love respectively with diamond warriors of the Majat guild. This guild sells security services to powerful people and diamond Majats are the most lethal.
Kyth is in love with a Kara, a prodigy even among diamond Majats. As a young man, his love toward her is simple, unquestioning, and intense, but these are age appropriate characteristics for his emotions. Kara, although young, almost seems too mature and worldly for Kyth, but she returns his affection.
Through the course of the story the young woman Ellah also falls for a diamond Majat named Mai. He is an enigma, acting both aloof yet charming. He is also a consummate warrior whose masculinity entices Ellah. She represents the plain girl who wants a man seemingly out of her league.
I really enjoyed Ellah's story line because she did not have fantastic fighting skills. She was just a girl off the farm who was now acting on the stage of world events. She offered a pleasing foil to Kara, who is fast, graceful, beautiful, respected, and brilliant.
Beyond the carefully woven tapestry of characters, Kashina presents a fantasy world of rich detail. It possesses a reverence for Nature illustrated in Ayalla, a supernatural female like a forest or Earth goddess. Trees follow her and form her shelter wherever she stops, and a garment of living spiders hangs upon her body.
Blades of the Old Empire is written at a good pace. Shocking action and turbulent emotions abound. I recommend the book to people who like Medieval style fantasy with quests and lots of characters.
February 14, 2014
I received this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.
This books was a mix of good and bad for me. I liked the complex world building. The mercenary guild that sells their services being a good example of the depth. There were plenty of small details, such as the diamond stud badges carried by some of the members, which made it very real and convincing. The different cultures involved in the world were well done.
But then there were other things that took away some enjoyment. Although titled book 1, it felt like these were established characters that I as a reader should already know all about. There was no introduction period to accustom the reader to the world or the people. It felt like this was a sequel and I'd missed the first installment.
Also though I admired that characters were often taken close to death--which is a great way to make the urgency feel real--there was always a miraculous healing procedure to fix things.
Some of the character drew me right away, others did not. Perhaps because there were just so many characters. But on the plus side, I never had trouble remembering who was who. They all had very unique voices.
I would recommend this book, but can see it wouldn't be for everyone.
This books was a mix of good and bad for me. I liked the complex world building. The mercenary guild that sells their services being a good example of the depth. There were plenty of small details, such as the diamond stud badges carried by some of the members, which made it very real and convincing. The different cultures involved in the world were well done.
But then there were other things that took away some enjoyment. Although titled book 1, it felt like these were established characters that I as a reader should already know all about. There was no introduction period to accustom the reader to the world or the people. It felt like this was a sequel and I'd missed the first installment.
Also though I admired that characters were often taken close to death--which is a great way to make the urgency feel real--there was always a miraculous healing procedure to fix things.
Some of the character drew me right away, others did not. Perhaps because there were just so many characters. But on the plus side, I never had trouble remembering who was who. They all had very unique voices.
I would recommend this book, but can see it wouldn't be for everyone.
January 31, 2014
Since I realized it’s unlikely I’d ever pick up the second book in The Majat Code series, I decided to cut my losses with Blades of the Old Empire at the 50% mark. It’s not BAD per se— just really not good enough to keep me interested. Then again, if you’re in the mood for a light action adventure fantasy with romance elements and don’t mind writing quality that’s comparable to a decent media tie-in novel, Blades of the Old Empire by Anna Kashina might be worth checking out.
Read the entire review on my site Far Beyond Reality!
Read the entire review on my site Far Beyond Reality!
April 7, 2019
Originally published at Reading Reality
Blades of the Old Empire is the start of a damn fine epic fantasy series. It reminds me a bit of what has come before (more on that later) but it certainly hits the ground running.
Seeing a title like “Blades of the Old Empire” makes the reader think that old heroes, or possibly heroes of old or heroes like in the old tales, are going to come and rescue the empire. Or maybe the emperor. Throw that set of assumptions out the window.
In this case, those blades from that old empire are evil reincarnated warriors and their old empire was a horrifying tyranny. Everyone thinks that the remnants of those sorcerers are long dead, but as the good guys discover in this first book in the series, they are wrong. Dead wrong.
The Kaddim Brotherhood is back, and they are more evil than ever. Also much better at infiltrating the good guys’ strongholds and institutions.
The action splits between two centers in this story, Good King Evan and his heir, Kyth. (One of the great things about this series so far is that the king doesn’t have to die for his heir to come into his powers.)
King Evan is off to gain followers for his movement to strike down the laws against magic that would keep Kyth from inheriting the throne. Kyth goes on his own separate quest to gain followers among the Forest Dwellers, including their powerful foreseer and the powerful and ancient Lady of the Forest.
Evan gets captured, and Kyth spends most of the book on the run. But they both find themselves head to head with the evil Kaddim, as the forces of darkness begin to expose their long campaign to re-take the empire that once was theirs.
In the middle of all the plots and counterplots are the Majat, the assassins’ guild for which the series is named.
The Majat as a group are expensively mercenary, fearsomely well-trained, and supposed to be completely uninvolved with politics. The guild accepts any contract that pays. The Kaddim exploit that famous neutrality to grievous results.
They turn the only force capable of stopping them in upon itself, as the best assassins are forced into contracts against each other, supposedly in order to protect the reputation of the guild.
Instead, they begin to rebel, which only feeds into the plans of evil. Even as they figure out why they are sent, the manipulation of events continues at higher and higher levels.
Only Kyth is capable of resisting the evil magic. So the sorcerers use the Majat to compromise his heart instead.
Escape Rating A-: True confession, I was supposed to read
Blades of the Old Empire
in time to do a joint review with E over at The Book Pushers, and couldn’t quite squeeze it in. Today, we’re reviewing the second book in
The Majat Code
,
The
Guild of Assassins
, so I had to finish the first book first. And it was pretty damn awesome.
The story has a sense that readers have been dropped into the middle; some events are possible only because of things that have happened to the characters in a time before the story begins. It gave me the feeling that there must be another book before this one, but if there is, I can’t find it.
Still the story of Kyth’s first meeting with the Forest People would make an interesting story, based on the hints we get.
While this isn’t a quest story, it is definitely the tale of a young man and his friends coming into their powers and their adulthood. Kyth’s companions, Alder and Ellah, clearly have important parts to play in putting things right.
Something about Kyth and the way that his story is set up reminded me of Jim Butcher’s Codex Alera . Kyth made me think of Tavi, in the way that his magic is unknown and suppressed and coming out to save the situation.
That the church has suppressed magic and now has to reap the consequences had many echoes for me. In Katherine Kurtz’ Deryni series, and in Jean Johnson’s recent The Guild (reviewed at The Book Pushers). Attempting to remove all the magic users from the population as a means for the church keeping control was bound to have nasty results in the end. I think that point is going to get made over and over. (Insert your own possibly modern-day political parables here)
The manipulation of the assassins' guild and simply the use of assassins as main characters also struck me as reminiscent of Amy Raby’s Assassin’s Gambit (reviewed here) and Lindsay Buroker’s Emperor’s Edge (first book reviewed here) series. Since these are all stories that I loved, from my perspective they are all excellent antecedents.
As Blades of the Old Empire concludes, the kingdom is still very much in crisis. There are both political and magical ramifications to every act. It also sets the stage for the main focus to switch from the royal party to the assassins Kara and Mai and their defiance of the corruption in the guild.
Blades of the Old Empire is the start of a damn fine epic fantasy series. It reminds me a bit of what has come before (more on that later) but it certainly hits the ground running.
Seeing a title like “Blades of the Old Empire” makes the reader think that old heroes, or possibly heroes of old or heroes like in the old tales, are going to come and rescue the empire. Or maybe the emperor. Throw that set of assumptions out the window.
In this case, those blades from that old empire are evil reincarnated warriors and their old empire was a horrifying tyranny. Everyone thinks that the remnants of those sorcerers are long dead, but as the good guys discover in this first book in the series, they are wrong. Dead wrong.
The Kaddim Brotherhood is back, and they are more evil than ever. Also much better at infiltrating the good guys’ strongholds and institutions.
The action splits between two centers in this story, Good King Evan and his heir, Kyth. (One of the great things about this series so far is that the king doesn’t have to die for his heir to come into his powers.)
King Evan is off to gain followers for his movement to strike down the laws against magic that would keep Kyth from inheriting the throne. Kyth goes on his own separate quest to gain followers among the Forest Dwellers, including their powerful foreseer and the powerful and ancient Lady of the Forest.
Evan gets captured, and Kyth spends most of the book on the run. But they both find themselves head to head with the evil Kaddim, as the forces of darkness begin to expose their long campaign to re-take the empire that once was theirs.
In the middle of all the plots and counterplots are the Majat, the assassins’ guild for which the series is named.
The Majat as a group are expensively mercenary, fearsomely well-trained, and supposed to be completely uninvolved with politics. The guild accepts any contract that pays. The Kaddim exploit that famous neutrality to grievous results.
They turn the only force capable of stopping them in upon itself, as the best assassins are forced into contracts against each other, supposedly in order to protect the reputation of the guild.
Instead, they begin to rebel, which only feeds into the plans of evil. Even as they figure out why they are sent, the manipulation of events continues at higher and higher levels.
Only Kyth is capable of resisting the evil magic. So the sorcerers use the Majat to compromise his heart instead.
Escape Rating A-: True confession, I was supposed to read
Blades of the Old Empire
in time to do a joint review with E over at The Book Pushers, and couldn’t quite squeeze it in. Today, we’re reviewing the second book in
The Majat Code
,
The
Guild of Assassins
, so I had to finish the first book first. And it was pretty damn awesome.The story has a sense that readers have been dropped into the middle; some events are possible only because of things that have happened to the characters in a time before the story begins. It gave me the feeling that there must be another book before this one, but if there is, I can’t find it.
Still the story of Kyth’s first meeting with the Forest People would make an interesting story, based on the hints we get.
While this isn’t a quest story, it is definitely the tale of a young man and his friends coming into their powers and their adulthood. Kyth’s companions, Alder and Ellah, clearly have important parts to play in putting things right.
Something about Kyth and the way that his story is set up reminded me of Jim Butcher’s Codex Alera . Kyth made me think of Tavi, in the way that his magic is unknown and suppressed and coming out to save the situation.
That the church has suppressed magic and now has to reap the consequences had many echoes for me. In Katherine Kurtz’ Deryni series, and in Jean Johnson’s recent The Guild (reviewed at The Book Pushers). Attempting to remove all the magic users from the population as a means for the church keeping control was bound to have nasty results in the end. I think that point is going to get made over and over. (Insert your own possibly modern-day political parables here)
The manipulation of the assassins' guild and simply the use of assassins as main characters also struck me as reminiscent of Amy Raby’s Assassin’s Gambit (reviewed here) and Lindsay Buroker’s Emperor’s Edge (first book reviewed here) series. Since these are all stories that I loved, from my perspective they are all excellent antecedents.
As Blades of the Old Empire concludes, the kingdom is still very much in crisis. There are both political and magical ramifications to every act. It also sets the stage for the main focus to switch from the royal party to the assassins Kara and Mai and their defiance of the corruption in the guild.
January 23, 2014
http://koeur.wordpress.com/2014/01/23...
Publisher: Angry Robot
Publishing Date: February 2014
ISBN: 9780857665041
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 1.5/5.0
Publisher Description: Kara is a mercenary – a Diamond warrior, the best of the best, and a member of the notorious Majat Guild. When her tenure as protector to Prince Kythar comes to an end, custom dictates he accompany her back to her Guild to negotiate her continued protection.
Review: The cover-art looks like a lady boy elf. It also has this unfinished look to it. Kind of “cartoony”.
This novel follows the lives of Prince d-bag and his body guard/love interest Kara. Kara works for the Majat guild whom are essentially mercenaries for hire. Within the guild are different levels of accomplished assassins’ guards. The highest rank and most expensive to hire is the Diamond. Kara is the best of the diamonds (of course) and must relinquish her guild status in order to protect Prince Dumbass. There is this mounting insurrection against King Evan by a host of factions, both known and unknown. Prince Kyth, has a friend since childhood named Ellah. Ellah is chosen by Mother Keeper to accompany her as part of the King’s traveling retinue to learn more about her “gift” and provide truth divinations for the King.
This novel kind of fell flat for me. It had scant character development in that you didn’t really come to care about any of the characters. The story-line falters around the lack of movement. As you move along with the characters through the story-line, it comes to a screeching halt while either Ellah or Prince Buttercup get goo-goo eyes over their respective Majat guards, Mai and Kara. Ellah’s got the hots for a dude named Mai that “Always has mischief in his eyes…” The author subscribes to the NRSOW (Nora Roberts School of Writing) where every romantic interlude is fraught with a combination of lust/shyness or aggressive/tender interactions. When Ellah is fearing for her life she has time to notice that “their bodies felt like one..” and “his sense of balance had become a part of her…” and “his voice engulfs her in the incredible feeling of warmth……and nothing could possibly happen to her…” or “his skin had the faint smell of spring water and pine……” Prince Dunce is the same with Kara, and stumbles around infatuated with her. Ellah is the worst. She is constantly blushing or noticing his rippling muscles and mischievous eyes. I really don’t know why a fairly good author thinks it is necessary to develop a character focused solely on their innate insecurity and myopic self-centeredness. This is neither character development nor does it generate any sense of comradery or sympathy from the reader. I was really hoping that Mai would let Ellah drop into the chasm, then we would be done with her annoying, cloying and plaintive character.
The fight scenes are just plain absurd. Yeah we all get that a Majat Diamond is bad ass, and can run through 12 trained warriors in less time than it takes to squeeze a reluctant fart out. They move faster than the eye can see and perform all sorts of badass things with their weapons. For instance Kara is sitting at a table and some buffoon in a bar (of course) starts hassling her, and she throws 12 knives at once that embed themselves in a chair equidistantly apart and at the same depth. Really. At least make some of the actions that the guards perform somewhat believable. Sharim, a Majat of Jade rank fires arrows from his bow at a hurled stick and hits it so many times that it looks like a bush when it lands. Mai takes on about 15 warriors that have the dreaded morning star/Orben as a weapon (why this is a big deal I have no idea) and chooses to not kill them as he has this code of bs that guides him. Um, yeah. So…..15 dudes are trying to kill you but……….hmmm. They are constantly harassed on their road to nowhere in particular, yet never remove the threat much to their detriment at a later time. Absurdity reaches new heights when Kara takes on 50 armed men in order to pass through their city. But of course she doesn’t kill any of them, as they just needed some bruises to show the guild that they put up some resistance. .
All of this absurdity, from the Majat Guards to King Evan’s trip to freakin’ nowhere, center around Prince Dumbass and his “gift”. See, anyone that might have a gift is tested by the priests of whatever. Finding any freakish gifts, the priests summarily murder the child/baby/dog. Yet at the same time Mother Keeper is running around with her convent of gifted weirdo’s saving every baby/dog/child that expresses a gift and places them in a school of training so that they can eventually save the world. So in this dichotomous world of make believe, how is it that Mother Superior exists outside of the law, while working blatantly out in the open? Got me. Well anyway, the priests demand that the abomination (Prince Dumbo) necessitates the King abdicating his throne as there is no real successor. The King is given a choice to marry a damn fine young princess to join both houses and create a new heir. King Evan turns them down as she is a better fit for his son. Whaaaaah?? Wow. A perfect solution and King Fucknut places his age before the goodness of the Kingdom. Yeah, screw marrying a hot princess, lets go to war!!!! Meanwhile every situation that involves even a hint of Ellah, she is somewhere in the scene casting glances at Mai and blushing. Fug me.
There are a lot of scene failures. At one point, Mai has fought a dozen or so crazy zealots and is riding his horse away from the melee. Prince Dummy sees a streak of blood appearing in the corner of his mouth on three separate occasions within the scene. Yet while still mortally wounded “his eyes gleamed with mischief”. I personally guarantee that you will be happier having finished than ever starting.
Publisher: Angry Robot
Publishing Date: February 2014
ISBN: 9780857665041
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 1.5/5.0
Publisher Description: Kara is a mercenary – a Diamond warrior, the best of the best, and a member of the notorious Majat Guild. When her tenure as protector to Prince Kythar comes to an end, custom dictates he accompany her back to her Guild to negotiate her continued protection.
Review: The cover-art looks like a lady boy elf. It also has this unfinished look to it. Kind of “cartoony”.
This novel follows the lives of Prince d-bag and his body guard/love interest Kara. Kara works for the Majat guild whom are essentially mercenaries for hire. Within the guild are different levels of accomplished assassins’ guards. The highest rank and most expensive to hire is the Diamond. Kara is the best of the diamonds (of course) and must relinquish her guild status in order to protect Prince Dumbass. There is this mounting insurrection against King Evan by a host of factions, both known and unknown. Prince Kyth, has a friend since childhood named Ellah. Ellah is chosen by Mother Keeper to accompany her as part of the King’s traveling retinue to learn more about her “gift” and provide truth divinations for the King.
This novel kind of fell flat for me. It had scant character development in that you didn’t really come to care about any of the characters. The story-line falters around the lack of movement. As you move along with the characters through the story-line, it comes to a screeching halt while either Ellah or Prince Buttercup get goo-goo eyes over their respective Majat guards, Mai and Kara. Ellah’s got the hots for a dude named Mai that “Always has mischief in his eyes…” The author subscribes to the NRSOW (Nora Roberts School of Writing) where every romantic interlude is fraught with a combination of lust/shyness or aggressive/tender interactions. When Ellah is fearing for her life she has time to notice that “their bodies felt like one..” and “his sense of balance had become a part of her…” and “his voice engulfs her in the incredible feeling of warmth……and nothing could possibly happen to her…” or “his skin had the faint smell of spring water and pine……” Prince Dunce is the same with Kara, and stumbles around infatuated with her. Ellah is the worst. She is constantly blushing or noticing his rippling muscles and mischievous eyes. I really don’t know why a fairly good author thinks it is necessary to develop a character focused solely on their innate insecurity and myopic self-centeredness. This is neither character development nor does it generate any sense of comradery or sympathy from the reader. I was really hoping that Mai would let Ellah drop into the chasm, then we would be done with her annoying, cloying and plaintive character.
The fight scenes are just plain absurd. Yeah we all get that a Majat Diamond is bad ass, and can run through 12 trained warriors in less time than it takes to squeeze a reluctant fart out. They move faster than the eye can see and perform all sorts of badass things with their weapons. For instance Kara is sitting at a table and some buffoon in a bar (of course) starts hassling her, and she throws 12 knives at once that embed themselves in a chair equidistantly apart and at the same depth. Really. At least make some of the actions that the guards perform somewhat believable. Sharim, a Majat of Jade rank fires arrows from his bow at a hurled stick and hits it so many times that it looks like a bush when it lands. Mai takes on about 15 warriors that have the dreaded morning star/Orben as a weapon (why this is a big deal I have no idea) and chooses to not kill them as he has this code of bs that guides him. Um, yeah. So…..15 dudes are trying to kill you but……….hmmm. They are constantly harassed on their road to nowhere in particular, yet never remove the threat much to their detriment at a later time. Absurdity reaches new heights when Kara takes on 50 armed men in order to pass through their city. But of course she doesn’t kill any of them, as they just needed some bruises to show the guild that they put up some resistance. .
All of this absurdity, from the Majat Guards to King Evan’s trip to freakin’ nowhere, center around Prince Dumbass and his “gift”. See, anyone that might have a gift is tested by the priests of whatever. Finding any freakish gifts, the priests summarily murder the child/baby/dog. Yet at the same time Mother Keeper is running around with her convent of gifted weirdo’s saving every baby/dog/child that expresses a gift and places them in a school of training so that they can eventually save the world. So in this dichotomous world of make believe, how is it that Mother Superior exists outside of the law, while working blatantly out in the open? Got me. Well anyway, the priests demand that the abomination (Prince Dumbo) necessitates the King abdicating his throne as there is no real successor. The King is given a choice to marry a damn fine young princess to join both houses and create a new heir. King Evan turns them down as she is a better fit for his son. Whaaaaah?? Wow. A perfect solution and King Fucknut places his age before the goodness of the Kingdom. Yeah, screw marrying a hot princess, lets go to war!!!! Meanwhile every situation that involves even a hint of Ellah, she is somewhere in the scene casting glances at Mai and blushing. Fug me.
There are a lot of scene failures. At one point, Mai has fought a dozen or so crazy zealots and is riding his horse away from the melee. Prince Dummy sees a streak of blood appearing in the corner of his mouth on three separate occasions within the scene. Yet while still mortally wounded “his eyes gleamed with mischief”. I personally guarantee that you will be happier having finished than ever starting.
March 19, 2014
Blades of the Old Empire by Anna Kashina is the first book of The Majat Code, and likely to be the last book I read in this series. Urgh.... what a frustrating book. The overall plot had some pretty interesting things going on with a couple of conspiracies and guild politics, a couple of the action scenes were quite good, and the writing was pretty simple and fluent. And that about covers all the positive things I want to say about this book.
The story follows a bunch of people who are either travelling on the road to somewhere important, or fighting against one of the most stereotypical moustache-twirling villains I've seen in recent memory and his troupe of magic wielding warriors. Our pack of heroes include a prince who is the chosen one, a king who is betrayed, a young girl who has just discovered a secret magic inside her, and handful of the deadliest mercenaries to have ever lived in this world. Sounds familiar, right?
Plot holes and inconsistent plot devices / contrivances are found all over this book. The inconsistent plot device that got to me most was that apparently Kara is not just the best of the best diamond ranked Majat warriors, but she is also one of the super special super secret anonymous Majat warriors who all must shroud their face at all times so other Majat warriors don't know their identity... for some dumb reason. I say its dumb because they only ever wear the shrouds in the castle, but outside of the castle they are open faced working with other Majat warriors who are clearly able to identify her. There was only one reason for the shroud, a single scene where our heroes escape from the Majat castle using the super special super secret shrouds to hide their identities. Frustrating stuff, and only a small example of the stuff you have to put up with in this book.
Next is the characterization, of which we get hardly any. With the exception of Mai, all these characters are pretty much interchangeable. Their personalities are exactly the same, their wants and hopes and dreams are exactly the same. There is just nothing to distinguish these people except for their names, the clothes they wear, and the weapons they carry. I read an interview with the author that says she builds her characters through the budding romances which, whether you agree with it or not, is immaterial when the romance is so poorly executed.
The romance. It consisted entirely of viewpoint characters leering creepily at the object of their affection, hoping that they will eventually get noticed so they can go bone in the woods. These characters don't ever get to know one another, they barely talk to each other, they couldn't tell you anything about the objects of their affection except that they look pretty. The "romances" in this book are painfully shallow, never exploring anything beyond physical attraction. Maybe I'm being unfair given that I just read The Fault In Our Stars which presents such an amazing romance between two cancer ridden teenagers, but I dont think I'm being unfair. If you are using romance to build your characters, then you have to actually make me believe that these people want to be around each other because they enjoy each others company, not because the only connection they might have is sexual attraction.
The sexual stuff is not just limited to the romances, it seems like every single male character cannot see a female character as anything but a sexual object. I like a good book that explores the power, pleasure, and nuances of sex, just like in No Return by Zachary Jernigan, but there is no exploration here beyond superficial stereotypes. Perhaps the author is making a point here, but when you paint every single male character with the same brush, it's hard to take that point seriously. Every man wants to be with Kara, from the chosen-one prince to the moustache-twirling supervillain to even the old old guildmaster who raised Kara since she was a child and knew that his love for her was not of the father / daughter kind even when she was 10 years old. Sex is on the brain of every character, but it only has one speed, and there is no variation.
The last thing I want to talk about is the marketing, which I think misrepresents this book. The cover shows a badass female assassin who is armed to the teeth and looks angry. The blurb lets us know that this is Kara's story. It has cover quotes like this - "Kashina's Arabesque novel ... will have readers dream of summoning their own djinn." This package is awesome and had me champing at the bit to get a hold of this book, but it presents a far different story that what you end up getting. The story is in no way Arabesque (the quote is from a review of a previous series she wrote), this is a very anglo-medieval story with some hints of Asian influences, and Kara is far from being the protagonist in this story. She gets plenty of screen time, but this is the story about a young prince, the chosen-one, who holds the fate of the world in his hands, if only he could learn how to use his powers. I expect the marketing of books to say a bunch of things we want to hear in order to get us excited, but I dont expect the actual product to be so distant from what was advertised.
As I said at the start, this was a frustrating book to read. I genuinely enjoyed a handful of the action scenes, and I had no problem breezing through this book at a very fast pace. But I spent more than three quarters of this book cringing and making weird faces, reading out silly passages to my wife, and posting stupid pages to my friends on Facebook. I should have stopped reading this book at the 20% mark, but c'mon, you know how hard it is to look away from a train wreck.
The story follows a bunch of people who are either travelling on the road to somewhere important, or fighting against one of the most stereotypical moustache-twirling villains I've seen in recent memory and his troupe of magic wielding warriors. Our pack of heroes include a prince who is the chosen one, a king who is betrayed, a young girl who has just discovered a secret magic inside her, and handful of the deadliest mercenaries to have ever lived in this world. Sounds familiar, right?
Plot holes and inconsistent plot devices / contrivances are found all over this book. The inconsistent plot device that got to me most was that apparently Kara is not just the best of the best diamond ranked Majat warriors, but she is also one of the super special super secret anonymous Majat warriors who all must shroud their face at all times so other Majat warriors don't know their identity... for some dumb reason. I say its dumb because they only ever wear the shrouds in the castle, but outside of the castle they are open faced working with other Majat warriors who are clearly able to identify her. There was only one reason for the shroud, a single scene where our heroes escape from the Majat castle using the super special super secret shrouds to hide their identities. Frustrating stuff, and only a small example of the stuff you have to put up with in this book.
Next is the characterization, of which we get hardly any. With the exception of Mai, all these characters are pretty much interchangeable. Their personalities are exactly the same, their wants and hopes and dreams are exactly the same. There is just nothing to distinguish these people except for their names, the clothes they wear, and the weapons they carry. I read an interview with the author that says she builds her characters through the budding romances which, whether you agree with it or not, is immaterial when the romance is so poorly executed.
The romance. It consisted entirely of viewpoint characters leering creepily at the object of their affection, hoping that they will eventually get noticed so they can go bone in the woods. These characters don't ever get to know one another, they barely talk to each other, they couldn't tell you anything about the objects of their affection except that they look pretty. The "romances" in this book are painfully shallow, never exploring anything beyond physical attraction. Maybe I'm being unfair given that I just read The Fault In Our Stars which presents such an amazing romance between two cancer ridden teenagers, but I dont think I'm being unfair. If you are using romance to build your characters, then you have to actually make me believe that these people want to be around each other because they enjoy each others company, not because the only connection they might have is sexual attraction.
The sexual stuff is not just limited to the romances, it seems like every single male character cannot see a female character as anything but a sexual object. I like a good book that explores the power, pleasure, and nuances of sex, just like in No Return by Zachary Jernigan, but there is no exploration here beyond superficial stereotypes. Perhaps the author is making a point here, but when you paint every single male character with the same brush, it's hard to take that point seriously. Every man wants to be with Kara, from the chosen-one prince to the moustache-twirling supervillain to even the old old guildmaster who raised Kara since she was a child and knew that his love for her was not of the father / daughter kind even when she was 10 years old. Sex is on the brain of every character, but it only has one speed, and there is no variation.
The last thing I want to talk about is the marketing, which I think misrepresents this book. The cover shows a badass female assassin who is armed to the teeth and looks angry. The blurb lets us know that this is Kara's story. It has cover quotes like this - "Kashina's Arabesque novel ... will have readers dream of summoning their own djinn." This package is awesome and had me champing at the bit to get a hold of this book, but it presents a far different story that what you end up getting. The story is in no way Arabesque (the quote is from a review of a previous series she wrote), this is a very anglo-medieval story with some hints of Asian influences, and Kara is far from being the protagonist in this story. She gets plenty of screen time, but this is the story about a young prince, the chosen-one, who holds the fate of the world in his hands, if only he could learn how to use his powers. I expect the marketing of books to say a bunch of things we want to hear in order to get us excited, but I dont expect the actual product to be so distant from what was advertised.
As I said at the start, this was a frustrating book to read. I genuinely enjoyed a handful of the action scenes, and I had no problem breezing through this book at a very fast pace. But I spent more than three quarters of this book cringing and making weird faces, reading out silly passages to my wife, and posting stupid pages to my friends on Facebook. I should have stopped reading this book at the 20% mark, but c'mon, you know how hard it is to look away from a train wreck.
July 8, 2014
Kara is a mercenary – a Diamond warrior, the best of the best, and a member of the notorious Majat Guild. When her tenure as protector to Prince Kythar comes to an end, custom dictates he accompany her back to her Guild to negotiate her continued protection.
But when they arrive they discover that the Prince’s sworn enemy, the Kaddim, have already paid the Guild to engage her services – to capture and hand over Kythar, himself.
A warrior brought up to respect both duty and honour, what happens when her sworn duty proves dishonourable?
Certainly the beginning of an excellent fantasy series, if not an epic fantasy series, Blades of the Old Empire is a well thought out and delivered first book in a series. It sets the scene and tone for the ongoing story, while ensuring the reader is engaged in the story from the very beginning. In some ways this story reminded me of Kristin Cashore's Graceling series. Most specifically of the first book, Graceling, where the focus is on Katsa and Prince Po. Between discovering the full extent of their fighting Graces, as well as other situations, the similarities between the two stories are difficult to miss...
Between the lovely word building and exquisite characters I thoroughly enjoyed this book. With much of the focus being on Kara, often thought to be the most lethal warrior of the Majat Guild. No wilting flower, Kara is much closer to a finely crafted blade that bends rather than breaks. However she has an imperfection, as she discovers she is unable to adhere to the mandates of her guild. The Majats are mercenaries, selling their skills to the highest bidder. Their only concern is their guild, remaining emotionally detached from events in the outside world. It is this attitude that makes them such an effective force. With no emotional attachments aside from their guild they are better equipped to face prior clients on the field of battle should they ever be hired by the enemy. Yet knowing all this, having been raised and indoctrinated into this set of beliefs, Kara is unwilling, or unable, to ignore her emotions. And a fearful enemy exploits this 'flaw,'setting into motion a lethal chain of events.
Kyth is the heir to the Dorn King, and a talented young man in his own right. However he has developed a problem that impacts the kingdom. One their enemies are quick to take advantage of, some using it at face value, while others just use it as an excuse to make trouble. Alden and Ellah are his boon companions, and each have important roles of their own, which they discover as this story unfolds. And of course there is Mai, the only Majat warrior that is considered to be possibly as good as Kara - though of course all Diamond-level Majat warriors are supposed to be interchangeable regarding their skills and training. Yet for some reason both Kara and Mai seem to have an unknown quality that sets them apart, and above, their peers.
With many more important characters, this book is well-rounded on that front. They are well developed, showing depth and dimension that is rather surprising for such a large cast. At least this is true of the protagonists. The antagonists are certainly scary, cruel, imperious, and evil. What they aren't is well developed. So far they appear to be simply bad guys, available to stir up trouble, but lacking a hard explanation for their motives. Their reason is given, yet it is never explained in any depth, and only briefly referenced when necessary. I am hoping that in the sequel they will become more than the one dimensional characters they currently represent, particularly now that the scene has been set.
As for the arc of the plot, it is engaging and unfolds quite smoothly throughout the book, picking up speed as the story progresses. It provides us with many of the reasons for the conflicts within the book, but certainly not all of them, ensuring we still have questions throughout the story. Many of which remain unanswered by the end of the book. Thankfully there is a sequel, one we can hope will shed some light onto the remaining mysteries, as well as the new ones that are bound to crop up in the next installation in the series.
February 24, 2014
This is a magnificent work of literature. You get fast paced travel with political intrigue and danger, amazing martial arts fights of extreme skill, cultural immersion from around the world, and a little hint of romance without ruining the tough fighter feel. Oh, and don't forget the magic. This book seriously had everything. The only con: lack of sleep. I read through the entire 496 pages in two days. I easily found myself losing track of the clock and was happy that it was just the weekend. Otherwise I would have been very tired at work.
The characters were amazingly real. They were incredibly flawed and struggling with the fight between need versus want. Five stars for the realism. Even the way people fell in love, or not, was incredibly realistic. Not everyone came out of the end of the story with a happily ever after (which I am always excited to see an author willing to abuse their characters since we don't always get a fairy tale ending or exactly what we wish for in life). We get to see the characters building the best from their lives with what they have. This is fits perfectly with the tough warrior mentality being developed in this story. Though, I did appreciate a few moments of getting what I wanted from the characters instead of an entirely fatalistic ending. I felt like a stronger person in myself by the ending.
Speaking of characters, you get a vast array from around the world represented in Blades of the Old Empire. You have some Eastern and Western cultures with a touch of the Old World mythological types and even some native peoples. Fascinating blend! Ayalla was my favorite character -- what an outfit! The political intrigue of bringing all these different peoples together is only going to get better in the coming books. We had the great taste of action with this introduction, but I feel more coming with resurrecting this old alliance.
The magic system was underplayed yet very important to the development of both the story and the characters. You have the obvious good versus evil, religion versus faith debate going on along with the magic, but I don't really find it tiresome or irksome. (I am realistic that there are only a few types of story you can tell.) I appreciated that the story stuck more to the adventure than the heavy build up of magics and fantasy. There was a sense of grit and kick butt attitude with the Majat Guild that really separated this story from epic fantasy. I really cannot express enough times how highly I recommend this story to everyone.
The characters were amazingly real. They were incredibly flawed and struggling with the fight between need versus want. Five stars for the realism. Even the way people fell in love, or not, was incredibly realistic. Not everyone came out of the end of the story with a happily ever after (which I am always excited to see an author willing to abuse their characters since we don't always get a fairy tale ending or exactly what we wish for in life). We get to see the characters building the best from their lives with what they have. This is fits perfectly with the tough warrior mentality being developed in this story. Though, I did appreciate a few moments of getting what I wanted from the characters instead of an entirely fatalistic ending. I felt like a stronger person in myself by the ending.
Speaking of characters, you get a vast array from around the world represented in Blades of the Old Empire. You have some Eastern and Western cultures with a touch of the Old World mythological types and even some native peoples. Fascinating blend! Ayalla was my favorite character -- what an outfit! The political intrigue of bringing all these different peoples together is only going to get better in the coming books. We had the great taste of action with this introduction, but I feel more coming with resurrecting this old alliance.
The magic system was underplayed yet very important to the development of both the story and the characters. You have the obvious good versus evil, religion versus faith debate going on along with the magic, but I don't really find it tiresome or irksome. (I am realistic that there are only a few types of story you can tell.) I appreciated that the story stuck more to the adventure than the heavy build up of magics and fantasy. There was a sense of grit and kick butt attitude with the Majat Guild that really separated this story from epic fantasy. I really cannot express enough times how highly I recommend this story to everyone.
March 22, 2014
3.5 stars
A somewhat familiar fantasy plot: with a crown at stake the political arena has become murky; only the steadfastness of the bought mercenaries can protect the king and his heir, but someone is working against them...
While some plot elements and the overall characterizations were verging on predictable, most of that may be ascribed to the occasional lack of subtlety in both plot and dialogue. Nonetheless, it drew me into the conspiracy and kept me reading .
The rankings of the mercenaries, the powers involved, the Mirewalkers and the Forest Mother, all served to add a unique touch to the traditional story (though there were times when I could almost hear maniacal laughter from The Bad Guy). An enjoyable story, and a series I wouldn't mind continuing.
Disclaimer: I received a free ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Note: The author has let me know that many print and electronic copies are missing Chapter 49, a key chapter. My ARC did contain this chapter, but you may wish to check your own copy before reading - go to http://angryrobotbooks.com/blades if yours is affected.
A somewhat familiar fantasy plot: with a crown at stake the political arena has become murky; only the steadfastness of the bought mercenaries can protect the king and his heir, but someone is working against them...
While some plot elements and the overall characterizations were verging on predictable, most of that may be ascribed to the occasional lack of subtlety in both plot and dialogue. Nonetheless, it drew me into the conspiracy and kept me reading .
The rankings of the mercenaries, the powers involved, the Mirewalkers and the Forest Mother, all served to add a unique touch to the traditional story (though there were times when I could almost hear maniacal laughter from The Bad Guy). An enjoyable story, and a series I wouldn't mind continuing.
Disclaimer: I received a free ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Note: The author has let me know that many print and electronic copies are missing Chapter 49, a key chapter. My ARC did contain this chapter, but you may wish to check your own copy before reading - go to http://angryrobotbooks.com/blades if yours is affected.
March 5, 2014
In another great book from Angry Robot, Blades of the Old Empire follows Prince Kythar and Kara, a member of a secretive society of assassins through the tumultuous return of an old enemy. The attack by the Kaddim comes just as King Evan is planning to change the law forbidding Kythar from taking the throne because of the magic he has. A simple quest to renew Kara’s contract becomes a convoluted political nightmare
This novel is the first in a series so great care is taken in introducing characters, even minor players in this book that will become more important in later books. I found the quick switches of POV a little distracting at first, but then the story and the compelling characters pulled me into the story and I stopped noticing them.
One of the things that I like in particular about the book is the work done to make Kara and her society human. They struggle with weakness and doubt and feel the same emotions as others in the story. That means that their characters develop and grow over the course of the story so they don’t hold other characters back.
I enjoyed this book and would recommend it for anyone who likes a good swashbuckling storyline.
This novel is the first in a series so great care is taken in introducing characters, even minor players in this book that will become more important in later books. I found the quick switches of POV a little distracting at first, but then the story and the compelling characters pulled me into the story and I stopped noticing them.
One of the things that I like in particular about the book is the work done to make Kara and her society human. They struggle with weakness and doubt and feel the same emotions as others in the story. That means that their characters develop and grow over the course of the story so they don’t hold other characters back.
I enjoyed this book and would recommend it for anyone who likes a good swashbuckling storyline.
August 6, 2016
Anna Kashina’s Blades of the Old Empire narrates the story of a series of characters including Kara, one of the best mercenaries in the world. The book is a traditional fantasy novel, with swords, villains, good guys (who are somewhat naïve at times), and touches of magic.
Blades of the Old Empire had original themes and a promising storyline. I would have liked to get a glimpse of the entire world from the start, and not learn later on that this book is a sequel to the author’s previous work. Some of the book could have been edited to reduce expression repetitions and the cartoon nature of some of the fights. This is a pity, because the book had some epic elements that could have been combined to create an astounding atmosphere. The next book in the series will have the chance to correct these flaws and make use of the imaginative millieu that Kashina has created.
Read the full review (Jetpack Dragons): http://www.jetpackdragons.com/2014/03...
Blades of the Old Empire had original themes and a promising storyline. I would have liked to get a glimpse of the entire world from the start, and not learn later on that this book is a sequel to the author’s previous work. Some of the book could have been edited to reduce expression repetitions and the cartoon nature of some of the fights. This is a pity, because the book had some epic elements that could have been combined to create an astounding atmosphere. The next book in the series will have the chance to correct these flaws and make use of the imaginative millieu that Kashina has created.
Read the full review (Jetpack Dragons): http://www.jetpackdragons.com/2014/03...
February 7, 2014
Although this was by no means a bad book, I had higher expectations and was disappointed half way through.
The focus was too much on the romance part for me to enjoy the dragged out, flimsy fantasy adventure. The author didn’t achieve to get me interested in the love story or connect to the characters. Prince Kythar and Kara, the Majat Diamond mercenary, did not appeal to me one bit. On top of this the fight scenes were just absurdly exaggerated, for example when Kara takes on 50 armed men in order to pass through their city, of course without killing anyone.
This book fails on so many levels; it is inconsistent with an unrealistic plot, stupid decisions by the main characters and too much focus on the romance.
Thanks to Angry Robot for the ARC.
The focus was too much on the romance part for me to enjoy the dragged out, flimsy fantasy adventure. The author didn’t achieve to get me interested in the love story or connect to the characters. Prince Kythar and Kara, the Majat Diamond mercenary, did not appeal to me one bit. On top of this the fight scenes were just absurdly exaggerated, for example when Kara takes on 50 armed men in order to pass through their city, of course without killing anyone.
This book fails on so many levels; it is inconsistent with an unrealistic plot, stupid decisions by the main characters and too much focus on the romance.
Thanks to Angry Robot for the ARC.
October 10, 2014
Excellent book!!!! Dynamic plot, beautiful descriptions of the different scenes, interesting story. My book was missing chapter 49, but that's a printing error and doesn't affect the quantity of the story. I took the book to the chain store where I had purchased it and they exchanged it for a corrected book without a problem. I usually follow the reviews when I choose the books I'll read, however, this time I'm glad I followed my gut instinct. The reviews are really short with this book. This is not a romance, it has bit of that too, but the story line doesn't revolve around a romance, this is a fantasy book. I wonder if one of the reasons why the rating does not reflect how good this book is has to do with people thinking is was a romance when they purchased the book?
August 8, 2018
I really enjoyed the majat order and most of the characters. The only thing that really bugged me was editing throughout the book. Thats more on the publisher then the writer.
February 15, 2014
I’m going to start off by saying that this is one of the most frustrating books I’ve read in a while. That publisher blurb? Tear it up and throw it away. Kara, while kick-ass, is neither the protagonist nor even a point-of-view character in the book. Moreover, the conflict between Kara, Kythar, and the Kaddim is literally only half the story. The actual book is so different from what’s in the publisher blurb that I actually went back and double checked to make sure this was in fact the book I had on my Kindle.
Before I go further, I should give you a brief summary of the plots, so you get a better idea of the book. King Evan has recently come to the throne of Tandar after the previous royal house died out. His only son and heir, Prince Kythar, has a magical gift that not only bars him from the throne, but should have sentenced him to death as an infant. In order for Kythar to take the throne, the laws must change under a full vote of the council over the objections of the Church. One problem: there are those on the council who would like the throne for themselves, and others who haven’t shown up to their seat in centuries. Evan and Kythar decide to divide the task ahead. Evan travels to persuade one of his Dukes that Kythar should be king, while Kythar sets out to ask the Cha-ori to reclaim their council seat. Along the way Kythar plans to renegotiate Karra’s contract, the events of which are outlined in the publisher blurb. Both Kythar and Evan must overcome the Kaddim in order to not only maintain the throne but to survive.
As you can see, there’s a lot going on here. We have a complex, multi-part plot. We have a world with centuries of history built into it. These are all wonderful things. My real issues with this book lie in execution. This book reads like the middle book in a series, not the first. While I don’t mind being dropped into a world with characters who very clearly have history between them, and while I like worlds to be well developed and thought out, I don’t like constantly asking the author what they’re talking about with a one sentence reference to something that has never been mentioned before. The Cha-ori? Obviously important, right? Need them to claim their seat on the council, all that jazz? But why have they been absent from the rest of the kingdom for so long? Who are they as a people? After reading the book, I really can’t tell you more than a few basics. So much information was lost in the game of “the character knows all this, they met with these people a year ago,” that I wanted to tear my hair out. While on one hand it’s nice not to have a butler-to-the-maid conversation to get information, and the Hermione-style characters who are around because they are know-it-alls has been perhaps a bit overdone lately, that doesn’t mean that I as a reader am not entitled to enough information to understand the complexity of the story I’m reading!!
With all this missing information, you can imagine that it was hard to get as deep a grasp on the characters in the story as I would like. King Evan is a point-of-view character, and yet he’s little more than a talking silhouette at the end of the book. What drives him? Why did he choose to flout the Church and keep his son? How long has he been king? I can’t tell you the answers to any of these questions. On the other hand, other characters are fascinating even if they are deliberately keeping secrets. Which brings me to another point: the dialogue needs some polishing.
A common misconception about dialogue is that dialogue is the written form of verbal communication. It’s not. It’s two or more characters interacting with each other. While on one hand dialogue doesn’t have to follow formal grammar, on the other it shouldn’t have standard spoken phrases like, “Hi, how are you? Long time no see!” It also shouldn’t stall the plot, and that happened a lot in this book. There are several passages that can be paraphrased by the following:
“You! Get up and follow me! Time is of the essence!”
“But why? What’s going on?”
“No time for questions! Just do what I say so we can all live!”
“But why? I don’t understand!”
At which point, if I was the character trying to get moving, I’d answer something like “Move or die, and be thankful I’m willing to give you some warning.” This is frustrating for the reader, and it’s counterproductive to the story. One, you’ve established that the questioning character doesn’t trust the one who’s trying to save everyone. Except that Kashina has spent most of the book establishing the opposite, so this is destructive to that relationship. Two, you’ve delayed the progress of the plot by a good page, sometimes more. Never delay the progress of the plot. Always move forward, and everything you write must advance the plot. Clear? Good.
My final big issue with this book is that it falls a bit too heavily into the idea that if a woman is writing, romance needs to be a major feature. Because men don’t read what women write, and women want to read about people falling in love, right? Ugh. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a woman who enjoys romantic plot lines. I even enjoy a trashy romance or two every once in a while. I don’t appreciate Sword and Sorcery that’s trying to morph somehow into a Soap Opera, and that’s about what this devolved into by the end. By the end of the book we didn’t just have a love triangle, we had a love horseshoe. Seriously!? You can lay off the who-loves-who bits and still keep a female audience. I promise.
I’ve spent a lot of time telling you my issues with this book, but let me tell you something. I finished it, and even enjoyed most of it. And if I truly dislike a book, I don’t finish it. There are just too many other books in my to-read stack for me to spend quality time with to finish a book that I don’t like. Does Kashina overreach every once in a while? Yes. But I do firmly believe that underneath these missteps, there’s a talented author here who has an interesting tale to tell. I wouldn’t be nearly so frustrated with lack of information if I didn’t want to know those pieces of information. Overall, there is a very readable story here, and I am looking forward to seeing where this goes and how Kashina develops as an author over time.
The reviewer received a copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley.
Check out more reviews, articles, interviews, and more at The Speculative Post!
Before I go further, I should give you a brief summary of the plots, so you get a better idea of the book. King Evan has recently come to the throne of Tandar after the previous royal house died out. His only son and heir, Prince Kythar, has a magical gift that not only bars him from the throne, but should have sentenced him to death as an infant. In order for Kythar to take the throne, the laws must change under a full vote of the council over the objections of the Church. One problem: there are those on the council who would like the throne for themselves, and others who haven’t shown up to their seat in centuries. Evan and Kythar decide to divide the task ahead. Evan travels to persuade one of his Dukes that Kythar should be king, while Kythar sets out to ask the Cha-ori to reclaim their council seat. Along the way Kythar plans to renegotiate Karra’s contract, the events of which are outlined in the publisher blurb. Both Kythar and Evan must overcome the Kaddim in order to not only maintain the throne but to survive.
As you can see, there’s a lot going on here. We have a complex, multi-part plot. We have a world with centuries of history built into it. These are all wonderful things. My real issues with this book lie in execution. This book reads like the middle book in a series, not the first. While I don’t mind being dropped into a world with characters who very clearly have history between them, and while I like worlds to be well developed and thought out, I don’t like constantly asking the author what they’re talking about with a one sentence reference to something that has never been mentioned before. The Cha-ori? Obviously important, right? Need them to claim their seat on the council, all that jazz? But why have they been absent from the rest of the kingdom for so long? Who are they as a people? After reading the book, I really can’t tell you more than a few basics. So much information was lost in the game of “the character knows all this, they met with these people a year ago,” that I wanted to tear my hair out. While on one hand it’s nice not to have a butler-to-the-maid conversation to get information, and the Hermione-style characters who are around because they are know-it-alls has been perhaps a bit overdone lately, that doesn’t mean that I as a reader am not entitled to enough information to understand the complexity of the story I’m reading!!
With all this missing information, you can imagine that it was hard to get as deep a grasp on the characters in the story as I would like. King Evan is a point-of-view character, and yet he’s little more than a talking silhouette at the end of the book. What drives him? Why did he choose to flout the Church and keep his son? How long has he been king? I can’t tell you the answers to any of these questions. On the other hand, other characters are fascinating even if they are deliberately keeping secrets. Which brings me to another point: the dialogue needs some polishing.
A common misconception about dialogue is that dialogue is the written form of verbal communication. It’s not. It’s two or more characters interacting with each other. While on one hand dialogue doesn’t have to follow formal grammar, on the other it shouldn’t have standard spoken phrases like, “Hi, how are you? Long time no see!” It also shouldn’t stall the plot, and that happened a lot in this book. There are several passages that can be paraphrased by the following:
“You! Get up and follow me! Time is of the essence!”
“But why? What’s going on?”
“No time for questions! Just do what I say so we can all live!”
“But why? I don’t understand!”
At which point, if I was the character trying to get moving, I’d answer something like “Move or die, and be thankful I’m willing to give you some warning.” This is frustrating for the reader, and it’s counterproductive to the story. One, you’ve established that the questioning character doesn’t trust the one who’s trying to save everyone. Except that Kashina has spent most of the book establishing the opposite, so this is destructive to that relationship. Two, you’ve delayed the progress of the plot by a good page, sometimes more. Never delay the progress of the plot. Always move forward, and everything you write must advance the plot. Clear? Good.
My final big issue with this book is that it falls a bit too heavily into the idea that if a woman is writing, romance needs to be a major feature. Because men don’t read what women write, and women want to read about people falling in love, right? Ugh. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a woman who enjoys romantic plot lines. I even enjoy a trashy romance or two every once in a while. I don’t appreciate Sword and Sorcery that’s trying to morph somehow into a Soap Opera, and that’s about what this devolved into by the end. By the end of the book we didn’t just have a love triangle, we had a love horseshoe. Seriously!? You can lay off the who-loves-who bits and still keep a female audience. I promise.
I’ve spent a lot of time telling you my issues with this book, but let me tell you something. I finished it, and even enjoyed most of it. And if I truly dislike a book, I don’t finish it. There are just too many other books in my to-read stack for me to spend quality time with to finish a book that I don’t like. Does Kashina overreach every once in a while? Yes. But I do firmly believe that underneath these missteps, there’s a talented author here who has an interesting tale to tell. I wouldn’t be nearly so frustrated with lack of information if I didn’t want to know those pieces of information. Overall, there is a very readable story here, and I am looking forward to seeing where this goes and how Kashina develops as an author over time.
The reviewer received a copy of this title from the publisher via NetGalley.
Check out more reviews, articles, interviews, and more at The Speculative Post!
March 9, 2014
Blades of the Old Empire seems to be the first book in a new trilogy, but it is actually a continuation of a previous trilogy set in the same universe. Thus, the early action, where the background of major characters is missing, is well explained, but nonetheless hinders the new reader as fundamental facts about characters are not told. It is almost like not getting the punchline of a joke because you walked in mid telling.
Prince Kyth has the magical ability to focus energy against his enemies -- at first it's merely the wind through his sword, but soon he has learned to harness other forms of energy. But Kyth's abilities have attracted the attention of the Kaddim, an ancient cult of deathless sorcerers, who want to join his power to that of their leader. Kyth is able to withstand the initial attempted abduction with the help of Kara, a Diamond Majat warrior. Apparently the Majat take service with various leaders as bodyguards. Kyth has a growing romantic feeling for Kara, one that his father is not in favor.
Kyth's growing power is anathema to the Church, which has a policy of killing magic wielders and forbidding them from ascending to rule. Kyth's father wants to change the law so his son can rule, but that would require a full vote of a council.
Thus Kyth's father King Evan decides to take a small party to seek the vote of an ally, with a team of Majat warriors. Meanwhile, Kyth journeys with Kara back to the Majat home base to re-acquire her services as a bodyguard.
Each party runs into problems with the Kaddim and there is a lot of intrigue and fighting.
Kara also has problems with her guild, which, after Kara and Kyth and their party have thwarted numerous attacks by the Kaddim on the trail back to the Majat guild headquarters, seeks to buy Kara's services (under the rules of the guild) so that she can kidnap Kyth and his foster brother.
Will Kara abide by her guild's commands? If she does, she will betray the prince, is she does not, she will be cast out of the guild and hunted by the guild to be put to death.
While the substance of the story has plenty of potential, and there is plenty of action, Kasina frequently takes shortcuts with magic so that characters can escape their situations. The whole story arc of Kara's trip to the guild and eventual choice of betraying her guild or her lover is beyond belief.
It is an okay fantasy, but I had higher expectations.
Prince Kyth has the magical ability to focus energy against his enemies -- at first it's merely the wind through his sword, but soon he has learned to harness other forms of energy. But Kyth's abilities have attracted the attention of the Kaddim, an ancient cult of deathless sorcerers, who want to join his power to that of their leader. Kyth is able to withstand the initial attempted abduction with the help of Kara, a Diamond Majat warrior. Apparently the Majat take service with various leaders as bodyguards. Kyth has a growing romantic feeling for Kara, one that his father is not in favor.
Kyth's growing power is anathema to the Church, which has a policy of killing magic wielders and forbidding them from ascending to rule. Kyth's father wants to change the law so his son can rule, but that would require a full vote of a council.
Thus Kyth's father King Evan decides to take a small party to seek the vote of an ally, with a team of Majat warriors. Meanwhile, Kyth journeys with Kara back to the Majat home base to re-acquire her services as a bodyguard.
Each party runs into problems with the Kaddim and there is a lot of intrigue and fighting.
Kara also has problems with her guild, which, after Kara and Kyth and their party have thwarted numerous attacks by the Kaddim on the trail back to the Majat guild headquarters, seeks to buy Kara's services (under the rules of the guild) so that she can kidnap Kyth and his foster brother.
Will Kara abide by her guild's commands? If she does, she will betray the prince, is she does not, she will be cast out of the guild and hunted by the guild to be put to death.
While the substance of the story has plenty of potential, and there is plenty of action, Kasina frequently takes shortcuts with magic so that characters can escape their situations. The whole story arc of Kara's trip to the guild and eventual choice of betraying her guild or her lover is beyond belief.
It is an okay fantasy, but I had higher expectations.
February 13, 2014
I was fortunate to be one of the beta readers for this book. I have read it in one breath and enjoyed it a lot. The plot is catching and the characters are very much alive. I had some favorites among the secondary characters and felt amazed at how they all stood out, each a distinct person. I also loved the romance elements, especially the alternate story that does not involve the two main characters--great chemistry, and every turn of their interaction is just so unexpected. The writing is so vivid that I could actually see all the scenes when I read. I think this book would make a superb movie. If you are looking for a light, fast-paced read, don't miss this book.
February 27, 2014
A prince with magic powers discovers his troubles include religious doctrine that all people with "gifts" be killed, an ancient, evil cult reborn has put him in its sight and his super-warrior bodyguard has been recruited to work for the other side. I liked it.
March 1, 2016
Very much enjoyed this story! An interesting world and set of heroic characters who are just getting going. Romance readers should be warned that this won't scratch that itch - though the overall trajectory promises to do so. Going on to book 2!
January 24, 2014
Fast-paced and fun.
May 18, 2019
Someone told me to pick up a copy of Blades of the Old Empire by Anna Kashina, and for the life of me I can't remember who. So, thank you to that individual. Granted, this novel is published by one of my favourite publishers, Angry Robot, so I know almost without opening the to the first page that I'm going to get high-quality fantasy that will tick all the right boxes. And, as a measure of how well I connected with the characters and the setting, I immediately went out and purchased book two series once I was done with book 1.
This is adventure-filled, combat-orientated fantasy at its best, with just enough intrigue to keep me engaged. We follow the story mainly from the viewpoint of Prince Kythar, who is thrust into a situation where his magical power is the only thing that stands between his world and rise of an authoritarian dark empire. And by the time he and his companions figure out that there's something amiss, the enemy has already infiltrated one of their major religious organisations, and is moving quickly to cement its hold on major players.
Added to the mix are the Majat – an order of elite warriors for hire and Prince Kythar's only hope to get ahead of a well entrenched enemy playing a game they can only guess at. An enemy that is also adept at manipulating events to their own best interests.
I can't find much fault with this story other than the divisions between good/evil were a little too clear. I did at times feel that the world building could have a bit more depth in terms of immersing me in the setting, but the story itself swept me along so that this wasn't a deal breaker for me. I loved some of the support characters, such as the Lady of the Forest and her ghastly dress of venomous spiders. And I'm more than fond of characters such as the Majat warrior Kara, who is both strong but incredibly fragile.
Blades of the Old Empire is a coming-of-age story that should appeal to a broad range of fantasy readers, and delivers a memorable adventure that kept this GRRM fan happy.
This is adventure-filled, combat-orientated fantasy at its best, with just enough intrigue to keep me engaged. We follow the story mainly from the viewpoint of Prince Kythar, who is thrust into a situation where his magical power is the only thing that stands between his world and rise of an authoritarian dark empire. And by the time he and his companions figure out that there's something amiss, the enemy has already infiltrated one of their major religious organisations, and is moving quickly to cement its hold on major players.
Added to the mix are the Majat – an order of elite warriors for hire and Prince Kythar's only hope to get ahead of a well entrenched enemy playing a game they can only guess at. An enemy that is also adept at manipulating events to their own best interests.
I can't find much fault with this story other than the divisions between good/evil were a little too clear. I did at times feel that the world building could have a bit more depth in terms of immersing me in the setting, but the story itself swept me along so that this wasn't a deal breaker for me. I loved some of the support characters, such as the Lady of the Forest and her ghastly dress of venomous spiders. And I'm more than fond of characters such as the Majat warrior Kara, who is both strong but incredibly fragile.
Blades of the Old Empire is a coming-of-age story that should appeal to a broad range of fantasy readers, and delivers a memorable adventure that kept this GRRM fan happy.
February 2, 2014
This Review was originally posted on Avid Reviews: http://avidfantasyreviews.wordpress.c...
The Blades of the Old Empire is the first book in the new Majat Code Series. It is an epic fantasy that follows Kythan Dorn, a young prince with rare elemental magic, and his companions. Kyth’s life changes forever when mysterious men from a cult was outlawed centuries ago attack him and his friends, and it turns out these men have strange powers of their own. When the Kaddim cult realizes that their power works neither on Kyth or his Majat Warrior bodyguard Kara, Kyth and Kara end up at the top of the Kaddim’s hit list. Kyth, his stepbrother Alder, and Kara go on a mission to find support from the grasslands, trying to avoid the schemes of the Kaddim along the way. At the same time Kyth’s friend Ellah goes with his father and the Keepers, hoping to learn some of the Keeper healing secrets, and how to enhance her own ability to tell whether or not someone speaks the truth. Unless Kyth and his father can get support from other leaders in the land, the church, which has been infiltrated by the Kaddim cult, will execute Kyth because of his powers and depose his father from the throne.
I realize that this description of the plot sounds a bit convoluted, but the author plops the reader right down in the middle of the story, and it takes a while to discern what exactly is happening in the story. This makes it hard to do a short description because I had very little backstory to explain before having to relate the setup of the plot. This is not necessarily a bad thing. There are many amazing books like The Black Company or the Malazan books that put reader down in the middle of the action with little to no explaination. Blades of the Empire is an enjoyable book, and once you get familiar with the characters and the setting, it is easy to route for the protagonists and against the antagonists. The book is also a fast paced read, and it contains plenty of action. The Majat Warriors in particular are very fascinating characters, and I would love to learn more about them in further books. There are also many hints of an older, not quite extinct society, which could be expanded upon a lot more as the series goes on. There is also an element of romance to this book, and I liked that it was tasteful and did not completely overwhelm the story line. This book is action packed from the very first page, and is a good start to a series that I will look forward to reading more of.
I would have enjoyed this book a bit more if there had been more world building. The story went so fast that I did not feel immersed in the world, and I would have liked to be a little more familiar with each character. The plotline was explained sufficiently, and after a while the plot was easy to follow, but it was not explained with the level of detail that I am partial to, or that I think most readers require to bring them into the story.
Overall, this was an entertaining, but not completely engaging story. The series does have a lot of potential, and I plan on reading the next book in the Majat Code series to see if there is more world building. I would rate this book a 7/10.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in return for an honest review.
The Blades of the Old Empire is the first book in the new Majat Code Series. It is an epic fantasy that follows Kythan Dorn, a young prince with rare elemental magic, and his companions. Kyth’s life changes forever when mysterious men from a cult was outlawed centuries ago attack him and his friends, and it turns out these men have strange powers of their own. When the Kaddim cult realizes that their power works neither on Kyth or his Majat Warrior bodyguard Kara, Kyth and Kara end up at the top of the Kaddim’s hit list. Kyth, his stepbrother Alder, and Kara go on a mission to find support from the grasslands, trying to avoid the schemes of the Kaddim along the way. At the same time Kyth’s friend Ellah goes with his father and the Keepers, hoping to learn some of the Keeper healing secrets, and how to enhance her own ability to tell whether or not someone speaks the truth. Unless Kyth and his father can get support from other leaders in the land, the church, which has been infiltrated by the Kaddim cult, will execute Kyth because of his powers and depose his father from the throne.
I realize that this description of the plot sounds a bit convoluted, but the author plops the reader right down in the middle of the story, and it takes a while to discern what exactly is happening in the story. This makes it hard to do a short description because I had very little backstory to explain before having to relate the setup of the plot. This is not necessarily a bad thing. There are many amazing books like The Black Company or the Malazan books that put reader down in the middle of the action with little to no explaination. Blades of the Empire is an enjoyable book, and once you get familiar with the characters and the setting, it is easy to route for the protagonists and against the antagonists. The book is also a fast paced read, and it contains plenty of action. The Majat Warriors in particular are very fascinating characters, and I would love to learn more about them in further books. There are also many hints of an older, not quite extinct society, which could be expanded upon a lot more as the series goes on. There is also an element of romance to this book, and I liked that it was tasteful and did not completely overwhelm the story line. This book is action packed from the very first page, and is a good start to a series that I will look forward to reading more of.
I would have enjoyed this book a bit more if there had been more world building. The story went so fast that I did not feel immersed in the world, and I would have liked to be a little more familiar with each character. The plotline was explained sufficiently, and after a while the plot was easy to follow, but it was not explained with the level of detail that I am partial to, or that I think most readers require to bring them into the story.
Overall, this was an entertaining, but not completely engaging story. The series does have a lot of potential, and I plan on reading the next book in the Majat Code series to see if there is more world building. I would rate this book a 7/10.
I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in return for an honest review.
February 24, 2014
Arc provided by Netgalley.
This book is the first in this series; however, the author wrote a previous series set in the set universe with the same characters. As I didn't know this when I started reading, I was very confused about the relationship between the characters, as they were only explained superficially and several chapters in the novel. It's also the same with their age.
The guild and its members are interesting, but, just as with the characters, I felt that they are not introduced with enough details to well understand what and who they are. The author really tried to avoid info dumps and summary of the previous books and to introduce information along the way, but unfortunately I don't feel that it was balance well enough. It's also the same for the plot; however, if you just read through the first few chapters (they are rather short), it gets better.
The story is written from the POV of Kyth and Ellah. However, I felt that the POV changes far too often: each time I was started to get use to a POV and to get into what was happening to the character, it changed. It was very annoying and frustrating; I would have preferred the author to write longer chapter in the same POV and to only change it when it felt natural in the narration.
This novel is heavy on the romance side: Kyth and Ellah are adolescents and are apparently in love for the first time, so there is a lot of admiring and sighing over their love interests and being confused because of a smile etc. You have to know what you are getting into or it may soon become exasperating. Even knowing it, I felt it was just too much as it contributed with the too frequent change of POV to slow the story.
Another point that should be mentioned is that the guild members have some kind of superpower for fighting in the same spirit as manga characters. They are inhumanly fast and strong, can just survive any kind of injuries and can single-handedly defeat a dozen of opponents.
The plot was interesting if a little predictable, but I didn't really managed to get into the story because of the elements I mentioned and I just lost interest midway.
This book is the first in this series; however, the author wrote a previous series set in the set universe with the same characters. As I didn't know this when I started reading, I was very confused about the relationship between the characters, as they were only explained superficially and several chapters in the novel. It's also the same with their age.
The guild and its members are interesting, but, just as with the characters, I felt that they are not introduced with enough details to well understand what and who they are. The author really tried to avoid info dumps and summary of the previous books and to introduce information along the way, but unfortunately I don't feel that it was balance well enough. It's also the same for the plot; however, if you just read through the first few chapters (they are rather short), it gets better.
The story is written from the POV of Kyth and Ellah. However, I felt that the POV changes far too often: each time I was started to get use to a POV and to get into what was happening to the character, it changed. It was very annoying and frustrating; I would have preferred the author to write longer chapter in the same POV and to only change it when it felt natural in the narration.
This novel is heavy on the romance side: Kyth and Ellah are adolescents and are apparently in love for the first time, so there is a lot of admiring and sighing over their love interests and being confused because of a smile etc. You have to know what you are getting into or it may soon become exasperating. Even knowing it, I felt it was just too much as it contributed with the too frequent change of POV to slow the story.
Another point that should be mentioned is that the guild members have some kind of superpower for fighting in the same spirit as manga characters. They are inhumanly fast and strong, can just survive any kind of injuries and can single-handedly defeat a dozen of opponents.
The plot was interesting if a little predictable, but I didn't really managed to get into the story because of the elements I mentioned and I just lost interest midway.
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