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Annals of the Incidental Utopia #1
Cryosurge
In a world where indifferent Moon-Gods loom, nothing is coincidence...
Idd, a disgraced Frost-shaman, thought isolation would protect him. He was wrong. Blackmailed into hunting what shouldn't exist, he discovers the parasitic voice in his skull might be the only honest thing left in his life.
Korthe, a mercenary with too many quandaries, carves through the Nine Realms following a thread she doesn't yet comprehend. Every answer reveals three more lies. Every truth points toward something she's not ready to see.
They are broken instruments being played by unknown hands. Their collision is not destiny—it's design.
But whose?
An anti-epic debut for readers of Gene Wolfe and R. Scott Bakker. Intricate metaphysical worldbuilding meets visceral character work. Nothing is incidental. Everything connects—if you're paying attention.
Artwork by @zeinz_
Idd, a disgraced Frost-shaman, thought isolation would protect him. He was wrong. Blackmailed into hunting what shouldn't exist, he discovers the parasitic voice in his skull might be the only honest thing left in his life.
Korthe, a mercenary with too many quandaries, carves through the Nine Realms following a thread she doesn't yet comprehend. Every answer reveals three more lies. Every truth points toward something she's not ready to see.
They are broken instruments being played by unknown hands. Their collision is not destiny—it's design.
But whose?
An anti-epic debut for readers of Gene Wolfe and R. Scott Bakker. Intricate metaphysical worldbuilding meets visceral character work. Nothing is incidental. Everything connects—if you're paying attention.
Artwork by @zeinz_
- GenresDark FantasyFantasy
315 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 24, 2025
About the author
E. P. Soulless
4 books30 followersCzech Self-pub Author
Annals of the Incidental Utopia—where nothing is incidental and far from utopian. An anti-epic series that respects your intelligence, demands your attention, and actively pushes your hand away. Gnosticism in grimdark coating. If that sounds intriguing rather than pretentious, you've arrived at the right place.
Annals of the Incidental Utopia—where nothing is incidental and far from utopian. An anti-epic series that respects your intelligence, demands your attention, and actively pushes your hand away. Gnosticism in grimdark coating. If that sounds intriguing rather than pretentious, you've arrived at the right place.
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May 8, 2026Today at midnight marks the one-year-anniversary of Cryosurge's rebirth. Please do consider adding my debut to your 'Want to Read' shelf. Every nudge, every little click—no matter how insignificant it may feel in the moment—ripples outwards. Perhaps one of your friends may find their next indie read through their timeline thanks to you.
Every writer has to be their own first reader, critic, and confidant. Others might love your characters. But only you know the weight of every unsaid word, every choice you didn’t write... So yeah. Loved it. Obsessed about it. Was wary. Then wrote the next scene anyway.
Every writer has to be their own first reader, critic, and confidant. Others might love your characters. But only you know the weight of every unsaid word, every choice you didn’t write... So yeah. Loved it. Obsessed about it. Was wary. Then wrote the next scene anyway.
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May 16, 2026Not giving a rating on this one, for reasons I will drop at the end, but I want to begin by saying if you like a dark, gritty violent setting for your fantasy, and if you are somebody who does not need your main POV characters to be especially lovable, then this may well be one for you to pick up.
The setting for this one is violent and unforgiving, with clear political, social and religious undertones and tensions which we see from the start, which then feeds into our lead characters, both of which very much feel ground down in many ways due to the pressures and the unrelenting nature of this grim world, and their character arcs reflect that really well whilst at the same time not pulling any punches.
This is further driven home by the style of writing, which has an almost grainy unpolished quality (which I mean as a compliment) to telling the story which meshes well with what is happening on the page
The ending as well is a great example of enforcing consequence, as in an most books I have read it often feels like the author blinked and bailed in a stand-off with themselves, but that is not the case here, and brutal though it is, its something that fits the world and the characters, and I am pleased to see.
With all that being said, sometimes as a reader, you pick up a book, and even though all the things you are reading don't quite click together, often because its the right book at the wrong time, and I kind of feel like that with this one. If I read this 9 months ago I feel like I would have loved it, and I may well revisit it at some point, because I liked pretty much everything it was doing. But it does feel like I read this at the wrong time for me, which is why on this rare occasion I am reviewing but not rating.
So in conclusion, a very dark and gritty fantasy, with plenty going on under the hood, and certainly one that I would reccomend to those who are are fan of darker fantasy and grimdark in particular
The setting for this one is violent and unforgiving, with clear political, social and religious undertones and tensions which we see from the start, which then feeds into our lead characters, both of which very much feel ground down in many ways due to the pressures and the unrelenting nature of this grim world, and their character arcs reflect that really well whilst at the same time not pulling any punches.
This is further driven home by the style of writing, which has an almost grainy unpolished quality (which I mean as a compliment) to telling the story which meshes well with what is happening on the page
The ending as well is a great example of enforcing consequence, as in an most books I have read it often feels like the author blinked and bailed in a stand-off with themselves, but that is not the case here, and brutal though it is, its something that fits the world and the characters, and I am pleased to see.
With all that being said, sometimes as a reader, you pick up a book, and even though all the things you are reading don't quite click together, often because its the right book at the wrong time, and I kind of feel like that with this one. If I read this 9 months ago I feel like I would have loved it, and I may well revisit it at some point, because I liked pretty much everything it was doing. But it does feel like I read this at the wrong time for me, which is why on this rare occasion I am reviewing but not rating.
So in conclusion, a very dark and gritty fantasy, with plenty going on under the hood, and certainly one that I would reccomend to those who are are fan of darker fantasy and grimdark in particular
August 1, 2025
Read this review and more on my Medium page: Distorted Visions
Score: 2/5
Review copy provided by E. P. Soulless in exchange for an honest review.
Cryosurge is a chaotic and brutal tale of vengeance and manipulation, wrapped in the warm embrace of some good ol’ fashioned cold steel and frost magicks.
This is grimdark.
The debut novel of author E. P. Soulless, Cryosurge kicks off the Annals of the Incidental Utopia series. The short and violent tale is told through the eyes of the two main POV characters — the hermet frost-shaman Idd, and the assassin mercenary Korthe.
With Cryosurge, the author lays out chapters in an episodic form, each telling self-contained stories, while gently moving the general story along. While an interesting and ambitious approach, these spurts fall flat more often than they succeed. The plot itself, kept (intentionally?) vague, meanders and plods along, with no clear direction made evident to the reader. In the capable hands of a veteran writer, this approach may work well, but that requires that the moment-to-moment action and plot-at-hand is captivating to the audience, and the story slowly emerges from tight and concise subsections. Unfortunately, Cryosurge falls short in this regard as well.
The two major characters, Idd and Korthe felt uneven at best. The cryomancy magic system that Idd showcases feels fresh enough, but is anemic in its execution. It is made clear through various asides that there is something afoot with Idd’s character arc, alluding to darker forces controlling the narrative, yet this is again done without the mature hand of a seasoned writer. I found Idd’s portions to be tired, ham-fisted, and altogether boring — a case of telling us “see there is something deeper here”, yet not bringing that to the forefront. The optimist in me says that these darker machinations will be fleshed out in future offerings, but at what cost to reader retention?
In contrast, the mercenary Korthe follows a much more familiar tale of violent vengeance borne out of a begrudging heart. In this regard, Korthe feels more fleshed out, both in characterization and motivation. However, to those steeped in the grimdark space, she is a pale imitation of Ferro or Monza (from the First Law world), or any other badass-female-assassin/mercenary archetype that has become a mainstay in dark fantasy and grimdark spaces.
Cryosurge also veers off on tangents that feel more self-indulgent than necessary to the story. An overly familiar creation myth (for anyone interested in Norse and Celtic mythologies), a “why was this in here?” monster hunt, and an origin story here or there for side characters, these felt quite distracting in a story that already suffered from failing to hold the reader’s attention in a meaningful or rewarding way.
Certain aspects of the prose in Cryosurge also belie the newcomer nature of the author. Anachronistic modernisms worm their way into the narration, breaking reader immersion. There were also a few instances of jarring head-hopping within a chapter. While the author was clever not to limit himself by clearly stating in the chapter title whether it was an Idd or a Korthe episode, the context seemed clear. In one egregious case, there was a case of character narration between side characters when Idd had left the room. While not a problem for most, these errors take away from the story, something a deft editor would have spotted immediately.
Cryosurge is an ambitious start from an author with a unique voice. There is a story buried in the messy version that we receive, that has the potential to be enjoyable and fresh. Yet severe crafting will be required to put the pieces together to build something greater than the sum of disparate parts.
Score: 2/5
Review copy provided by E. P. Soulless in exchange for an honest review.
Cryosurge is a chaotic and brutal tale of vengeance and manipulation, wrapped in the warm embrace of some good ol’ fashioned cold steel and frost magicks.
This is grimdark.
The debut novel of author E. P. Soulless, Cryosurge kicks off the Annals of the Incidental Utopia series. The short and violent tale is told through the eyes of the two main POV characters — the hermet frost-shaman Idd, and the assassin mercenary Korthe.
With Cryosurge, the author lays out chapters in an episodic form, each telling self-contained stories, while gently moving the general story along. While an interesting and ambitious approach, these spurts fall flat more often than they succeed. The plot itself, kept (intentionally?) vague, meanders and plods along, with no clear direction made evident to the reader. In the capable hands of a veteran writer, this approach may work well, but that requires that the moment-to-moment action and plot-at-hand is captivating to the audience, and the story slowly emerges from tight and concise subsections. Unfortunately, Cryosurge falls short in this regard as well.
The two major characters, Idd and Korthe felt uneven at best. The cryomancy magic system that Idd showcases feels fresh enough, but is anemic in its execution. It is made clear through various asides that there is something afoot with Idd’s character arc, alluding to darker forces controlling the narrative, yet this is again done without the mature hand of a seasoned writer. I found Idd’s portions to be tired, ham-fisted, and altogether boring — a case of telling us “see there is something deeper here”, yet not bringing that to the forefront. The optimist in me says that these darker machinations will be fleshed out in future offerings, but at what cost to reader retention?
In contrast, the mercenary Korthe follows a much more familiar tale of violent vengeance borne out of a begrudging heart. In this regard, Korthe feels more fleshed out, both in characterization and motivation. However, to those steeped in the grimdark space, she is a pale imitation of Ferro or Monza (from the First Law world), or any other badass-female-assassin/mercenary archetype that has become a mainstay in dark fantasy and grimdark spaces.
Cryosurge also veers off on tangents that feel more self-indulgent than necessary to the story. An overly familiar creation myth (for anyone interested in Norse and Celtic mythologies), a “why was this in here?” monster hunt, and an origin story here or there for side characters, these felt quite distracting in a story that already suffered from failing to hold the reader’s attention in a meaningful or rewarding way.
Certain aspects of the prose in Cryosurge also belie the newcomer nature of the author. Anachronistic modernisms worm their way into the narration, breaking reader immersion. There were also a few instances of jarring head-hopping within a chapter. While the author was clever not to limit himself by clearly stating in the chapter title whether it was an Idd or a Korthe episode, the context seemed clear. In one egregious case, there was a case of character narration between side characters when Idd had left the room. While not a problem for most, these errors take away from the story, something a deft editor would have spotted immediately.
Cryosurge is an ambitious start from an author with a unique voice. There is a story buried in the messy version that we receive, that has the potential to be enjoyable and fresh. Yet severe crafting will be required to put the pieces together to build something greater than the sum of disparate parts.
August 24, 2025
A very interesting and unorthodox grimdark debut. This is a book that explores many different flaws in humanity and though the book is set in a fictional context, the underlying themes, ranging from merciless violence, to wanton cruelty, to stark indifference—both at individual or collective levels—are all very relatable. While this is perhaps not for the faint of heart, there is also not as much deliberate vividness when it comes to the gruesome parts that readers accustomed to mainstream dark fantasy themes might feel unsettled.
Full review on SFF Insiders.
Full review on SFF Insiders.
April 24, 2026
I have rarely found it as difficult to rate a book as I have with Cryosurge by E.P. Soulless, it is strange and occasionally frustrating but also one of the most unusual and memorable books I have ever read.
The book introduces us to Idd, a disgraced Frost Shaman who lives an almost hermit like life with only his beloved bird Hex for companionship , and Korthe a merciless and ruthless mercenary who will do whatever it takes to earn her keep and ensure she survives. Both characters are well crafted with distinctive voices and introduced with just enough information to immediately make me want to know more about their pasts but also excited for the moment when their paths inevitably cross. They are damaged and flawed but all the more real and interesting for that.
The book did take a little patience, especially in the beginning - the prologue worked well to immediately pique my interest but as more and more characters were introduced with no indication of how they were connected I started to lose faith a little, something that was not helped by the way that flashbacks were used without being clearly delineated, the random time jumps within chapters just adding to the confusion of it all, but I decided to persist and in the end that decision paid off as I learned to follow the flow a little more easily .
At a sentence level I really liked a lot of the writing and I enjoyed the way the author incorporated chapters from unusual and unexpected perspectives, like Hex the bird or even Korthe's dagger. The magic system is not really outlined clearly but from the details I pieced together over the course of the book I am curious to know more, particularly when it comes to Idd's powers and training, and I imagine as the series continues we will learn more about this aspect of the world the author has created.
As I mentions earlier I had a hard time rating this one because so much of the book reads like a series of random events and stories, it feels very disjointed and disorienting, and while I enjoyed many of these scenes and stories I couldn't help but wish there was a little more connective tissue to join them.
There is a darkness in tone and content that may not sit well with some readers but I thought it felt fitting in the bleak world that the author had envisioned and I never felt like it was being used for shock value but rather in service of the characters and the storytelling.
This is definitely an unusual and memorable book, and it is clear that the author has worked at creating a complex and ambitious overarching story but I fear that the disjointed storytelling technique limits the readers I would recommend it to. Personally I am invested and curious enough to want to read more and see if or how the author manages to bring it all together.
3.75 stars rounded up.
The book introduces us to Idd, a disgraced Frost Shaman who lives an almost hermit like life with only his beloved bird Hex for companionship , and Korthe a merciless and ruthless mercenary who will do whatever it takes to earn her keep and ensure she survives. Both characters are well crafted with distinctive voices and introduced with just enough information to immediately make me want to know more about their pasts but also excited for the moment when their paths inevitably cross. They are damaged and flawed but all the more real and interesting for that.
The book did take a little patience, especially in the beginning - the prologue worked well to immediately pique my interest but as more and more characters were introduced with no indication of how they were connected I started to lose faith a little, something that was not helped by the way that flashbacks were used without being clearly delineated, the random time jumps within chapters just adding to the confusion of it all, but I decided to persist and in the end that decision paid off as I learned to follow the flow a little more easily .
At a sentence level I really liked a lot of the writing and I enjoyed the way the author incorporated chapters from unusual and unexpected perspectives, like Hex the bird or even Korthe's dagger. The magic system is not really outlined clearly but from the details I pieced together over the course of the book I am curious to know more, particularly when it comes to Idd's powers and training, and I imagine as the series continues we will learn more about this aspect of the world the author has created.
As I mentions earlier I had a hard time rating this one because so much of the book reads like a series of random events and stories, it feels very disjointed and disorienting, and while I enjoyed many of these scenes and stories I couldn't help but wish there was a little more connective tissue to join them.
There is a darkness in tone and content that may not sit well with some readers but I thought it felt fitting in the bleak world that the author had envisioned and I never felt like it was being used for shock value but rather in service of the characters and the storytelling.
This is definitely an unusual and memorable book, and it is clear that the author has worked at creating a complex and ambitious overarching story but I fear that the disjointed storytelling technique limits the readers I would recommend it to. Personally I am invested and curious enough to want to read more and see if or how the author manages to bring it all together.
3.75 stars rounded up.
April 30, 2026
Honestly, this might be one of the hardest books I've ever had to review. It's just got so many different things and styles and genres and it is just goofy in it's execution. And I mean this sincerely, it is weird but totally interesting.
There is so much experimentation in this book, from the episodic almost nature of the scenes, to the POV structures, to the sentence structure, to the narration choices. It's all over the place and equally compelling.
The plot is there and it involves a Frost-shaman hermit who seeks/brews (basically) a 'medicine' for a local crime lord (generous term here). Then there is a second POV who is a murder harpy, she basically kills so many people protecting some Nomads the Frost-shaman has some dealings with. She ends up involved in crime lord's lap after reasons. Then, yeah, I don't know how else to describe without spoilers.
The prose is great, even with the non-traditional style of sentence structure. There are lots of single sentence paragraphs, single word sentences. It is all used technically and proficiently. Then there are the changes in narration, the murder harpy writes in her diary so there are random diary interludes completely within the normal scene flow. There are some random POVs from animals or even a Dagger. There's a random 1st Person POV toward the end. It's just soooo odd, but it all works so damn well.
This is just one of those books you have to try, it's just so experimental and I give the author so much credit for doing this!
There is so much experimentation in this book, from the episodic almost nature of the scenes, to the POV structures, to the sentence structure, to the narration choices. It's all over the place and equally compelling.
The plot is there and it involves a Frost-shaman hermit who seeks/brews (basically) a 'medicine' for a local crime lord (generous term here). Then there is a second POV who is a murder harpy, she basically kills so many people protecting some Nomads the Frost-shaman has some dealings with. She ends up involved in crime lord's lap after reasons. Then, yeah, I don't know how else to describe without spoilers.
The prose is great, even with the non-traditional style of sentence structure. There are lots of single sentence paragraphs, single word sentences. It is all used technically and proficiently. Then there are the changes in narration, the murder harpy writes in her diary so there are random diary interludes completely within the normal scene flow. There are some random POVs from animals or even a Dagger. There's a random 1st Person POV toward the end. It's just soooo odd, but it all works so damn well.
This is just one of those books you have to try, it's just so experimental and I give the author so much credit for doing this!
June 25, 2025
Disclaimer: I've recieved a free copy for an honest review.
Reading Cryosurge feels less like escaping into a fantasy and more like being pulled into something cold, strange, and uncomfortably real. It’s a grim, thoughtful debut that doesn’t offer easy answers or heroic victories. Instead, it asks hard questions: about power, suffering, and the thin line between who we are and what we become when the world stops caring. It’s the kind of book that stays with you, not because it comforts, but because it doesn’t.
The world is dense and unforgiving, filled with forgotten gods, buried truths, and people just trying to survive, often badly. There’s a kind of quiet brilliance in the way it unfolds, piece by piece, refusing to hold your hand. The characters don’t chase glory. They’re too damaged, too lost. And yet, there’s something painfully human in their struggles, something that makes their journey matter, even when everything else seems broken.
Cryosurge isn’t flashy. It’s heavy, sometimes bleak, but also deeply honest in a way that hits harder than you expect. It reminded me of why I love this genre. Not for the escapism, but for the way it can reflect our worst fears and still find meaning in the mess. It’s a hard book to love, but impossible to forget.
Reading Cryosurge feels less like escaping into a fantasy and more like being pulled into something cold, strange, and uncomfortably real. It’s a grim, thoughtful debut that doesn’t offer easy answers or heroic victories. Instead, it asks hard questions: about power, suffering, and the thin line between who we are and what we become when the world stops caring. It’s the kind of book that stays with you, not because it comforts, but because it doesn’t.
The world is dense and unforgiving, filled with forgotten gods, buried truths, and people just trying to survive, often badly. There’s a kind of quiet brilliance in the way it unfolds, piece by piece, refusing to hold your hand. The characters don’t chase glory. They’re too damaged, too lost. And yet, there’s something painfully human in their struggles, something that makes their journey matter, even when everything else seems broken.
Cryosurge isn’t flashy. It’s heavy, sometimes bleak, but also deeply honest in a way that hits harder than you expect. It reminded me of why I love this genre. Not for the escapism, but for the way it can reflect our worst fears and still find meaning in the mess. It’s a hard book to love, but impossible to forget.
September 29, 2025
Providing a star rating for this book is an interesting exercise because the author has clear love for grimdark fantasy, uses lean and, at times, powerful prose, but then twists the story in on itself in such a way he creates stark moments of unorthodoxy layered upon experimental chronology. It can leave the reader simulatenously intrigued, confused, yet caught in the moment. Each character has a distinct voice and yet their ideology can be hard to relate to as they veer from sheer indifference to the violence they wield, to enjoying the beauty of their forest home. I doubt you'll have read anything much like it, either in structure or form, but in the end I ask: why not?
February 23, 2026
I've never read anything like it. Adventurous in its writing, Cryosurge beaks the mold of what it means to tell a story. Full of easter eggs and lore, every read through, whether in its entirety or just a section, uncovers something new. A lot of care went into writing this and it shows, raw emotion plagues the protagonists, and a light is shining through Hex. Top tier and can't wait to sink into the sequel!
August 10, 2025
Cryosurge is a triumph of ambition and voice. It's not a "safe" debut. It takes risks, dares complexity, and assumes its readers are smart enough to keep up. And when those risks pay off as they often do. The reward is extraordinary. It’s the kind of book that lingers. That asks for re-reading. That doesn't just build a world, but infects your imagination like the parasite whispering inside Idd's skull. For fans of grimdark that crave philosophy with their carnage, Cryosurge is not just promising -- it’s a herald of something great to come. Highly recommended. Bring a torch and a spare soul. You’ll need both.
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