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Whispers of Oblivion: A Grimdark Fantasy of Survival and Corruption
He woke with no name and a voice in the dark.
Riven should have died on an altar. Instead, the Council of Seven opened him to the Void. Now the Church of the Trinity wants him burned, the Resistance wants him turned into a weapon, and the whisper in his skull wants him remade.
Each time Riven reaches for that power, it answers with hunger. Bodies blacken. The world bends. If he cannot master it, the Void will use him to break the world. Elenya, a young apothecary, offers him a chance at control and a reason to hold on while the Council closes in to finish what it began.
Whispers of Oblivion launches Vengeance in the Void, a grimdark fantasy of survival, corruption, and a war for Abyrion’s soul.
Perfect for readers of Joe Abercrombie and Mark Lawrence.
You’ll get:
• A slow-burn descent with a truly gray lead
• Void-touched magic with visible, bloody cost
• An oppressive theocracy, resistance cells, and choices that cut deep
Content guidance: graphic violence and body horror; religious oppression; torture references; traumatic memory loss.
Riven should have died on an altar. Instead, the Council of Seven opened him to the Void. Now the Church of the Trinity wants him burned, the Resistance wants him turned into a weapon, and the whisper in his skull wants him remade.
Each time Riven reaches for that power, it answers with hunger. Bodies blacken. The world bends. If he cannot master it, the Void will use him to break the world. Elenya, a young apothecary, offers him a chance at control and a reason to hold on while the Council closes in to finish what it began.
Whispers of Oblivion launches Vengeance in the Void, a grimdark fantasy of survival, corruption, and a war for Abyrion’s soul.
Perfect for readers of Joe Abercrombie and Mark Lawrence.
You’ll get:
• A slow-burn descent with a truly gray lead
• Void-touched magic with visible, bloody cost
• An oppressive theocracy, resistance cells, and choices that cut deep
Content guidance: graphic violence and body horror; religious oppression; torture references; traumatic memory loss.
355 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 7, 2025
4 people are currently reading
21 people want to read
About the author
J.F. Allan
1 book2 followersI write grimdark fantasy about survival, power, and the cost of choice.
Whispers of Oblivion is my debut and the first book in Vengeance in the Void. It follows a man with no past, hunted by faith and haunted by something ancient inside him. I like slow-burn corruption arcs, a truly gray lead, and worlds where victories leave marks.
I publish under a pen name. Follow me here on Goodreads for release news. If you read the book, I’m grateful for an honest review.
Whispers of Oblivion is my debut and the first book in Vengeance in the Void. It follows a man with no past, hunted by faith and haunted by something ancient inside him. I like slow-burn corruption arcs, a truly gray lead, and worlds where victories leave marks.
I publish under a pen name. Follow me here on Goodreads for release news. If you read the book, I’m grateful for an honest review.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
September 5, 2025
This review was originally posted on r/GrimDarkEpicFantasy by u/SoullessEddie.
So, is it any good? Yes, it’s mostly good. While the story is not particularly deep and tends to meander in places, the core ideas are engaging enough to keep you intrigued, sucking you into flipping to the next page. I found myself sufficiently immersed and eager to learn what happens next. Should you enjoy a classic take on progression fantasy, such as sword and sorcery in grimdark coating, Mark Lawrence-style anti-heroes, and battles with the shattered self/free will, this book is for you.
Now, let Eddie tell you why this book is worth your time without spoiling anything major...
J.F. Allan is a new author trudging the grimdark waters, and Whispers of Oblivion is their debut in a series dubbed Vengeance in the Void. It is a work done by a fan of grimdark for other fans of grimdark. It encompasses motifs that us grimdark fanatics enjoy and expect from their gloom-flavored fiction.
0.85 | Themes — The atmosphere is undeniably grim, cloaked in shadows that reflect a world on the brink of despair. There is a quiet defiance—a refusal to give in despite overwhelming odds—yet it is tempered by a deep sense of fatalism, as if some outcomes are unavoidable no matter how hard one fights. Sacrifice weaves through this darkness, where individuals give up something precious for causes greater than themselves, driven by love, duty, or desperate hope. Remembrance lingers as a solemn tribute to what has been lost, anchoring them amid the creeping corruption and decay. Here, survival isn’t just about endurance but about holding on to a flicker of humanity in a world steadily trailing toward flickering out. And that’s just book one, awesome.
0.55 | Characterization — There are quite a few characters and shifting points of view featured in the book. Evil magic users, grounded supporting characters, a jaded main protagonist with a whispering entity nudging him forward, merciless inquisitors... In a solemn way, I’m sad to report that none of the characters truly stood out to me or were particularly memorable, besides the inquisitor leader whose faith was tested several times over. I could not get myself to like Riven or his arc despite trying, which sometimes works for this kind of narrative, but I don’t think it was intended here—the main character comes off as a bit too edgy to solicit my sympathy, though some great moments justify the author’s choices of protagonists. That said, I see the vision, and while the execution lags a little bit, the idea and general direction are the right ones for sequels to come.
0.55 | Plot — Reading Whispers of Oblivion reminded me of playing Fallout: New Vegas for the first time. It is quite the ride, from waking up from the dead, to leveling up, and finally confronting the big bad. Like I alluded to in the introduction, it is not too original, but the idea of journey before destination makes it a worthwhile endeavor. There were a few cases of plot convenience that I would have liked to have been obfuscated better. Overall, you can kind of grasp what is going on from the prologue and not get confused in a dense plot design and machinations for once. Conceivably, that can be a plus as well. For me, personally, though, I like complex and seeing how the cogs grind against one another, so I would have preferred more mystery, ingenuity, or randomness. Anything really, to keep my senses tingling.
0.60 | World-building — We don’t get to see all that much in the first book. The romantic inside me thinks that it was sufficient for the story, to hold it together with sticks and stones, and that there is a larger world out there to be explored in the planned sequel. There are, of course, readers who absolutely loathe lore dumps, expositions, and authors’ indulgences, preferring seamless action or immersive dialogue. While I would like to experience more of the former, the scenes that are constructed work fine, and for what it’s worth, give us enough ambiguous glimpses to let our minds fill the rest. Perchance, the highlight for me was the use of the Void abilities that put me in mind of D&D Warlock spells, such as the Hunger or Arms of Hadar, excellent imagery.
0.70 | Prose — I enjoy the idea of short, snappy sentences used throughout the novel. At first, to indicate the haze that clouds Riven’s mind after the rebirth, and then to sequence the action scenes. Where it does not work for me are the slower transitions and scenes that still sometimes utilize this structure. Some of the formatting felt a little off, and there were also a few cases of repetition. Nothing that would make you put the book down, but things that could definitely be smoothed out with one more round of edits. Despite my comments, once you get used to the style, the book becomes quite engaging and entertaining. I was immersed for the majority of the reading sessions, and that is what truly matters.
Sure, it’s not perfect. Nothing in life really is, but as a debut, this is a really good starting point for a new author. We get to read the training wheels. Do you know how rare that is? And they are presented boldly and unapologetically. It takes courage to let fly, get your work out there, instead of putting it in a drawer where it won’t ever see the light of day, and therefore, cannot undergo scrutiny. I applaud J.F. and would encourage any fan of grimdark to write, not only for their own benefit, but for the chance for other enjoyers to experience their story as well. On their own time, on its own merits and flaws. Well done, keep reading and writing, everyone! I’ll be here, rooting for you all.
Running Total: 3.25 / 5.00 — Solid progression grimdark with hints of the unknowable.
So, is it any good? Yes, it’s mostly good. While the story is not particularly deep and tends to meander in places, the core ideas are engaging enough to keep you intrigued, sucking you into flipping to the next page. I found myself sufficiently immersed and eager to learn what happens next. Should you enjoy a classic take on progression fantasy, such as sword and sorcery in grimdark coating, Mark Lawrence-style anti-heroes, and battles with the shattered self/free will, this book is for you.
Now, let Eddie tell you why this book is worth your time without spoiling anything major...
J.F. Allan is a new author trudging the grimdark waters, and Whispers of Oblivion is their debut in a series dubbed Vengeance in the Void. It is a work done by a fan of grimdark for other fans of grimdark. It encompasses motifs that us grimdark fanatics enjoy and expect from their gloom-flavored fiction.
0.85 | Themes — The atmosphere is undeniably grim, cloaked in shadows that reflect a world on the brink of despair. There is a quiet defiance—a refusal to give in despite overwhelming odds—yet it is tempered by a deep sense of fatalism, as if some outcomes are unavoidable no matter how hard one fights. Sacrifice weaves through this darkness, where individuals give up something precious for causes greater than themselves, driven by love, duty, or desperate hope. Remembrance lingers as a solemn tribute to what has been lost, anchoring them amid the creeping corruption and decay. Here, survival isn’t just about endurance but about holding on to a flicker of humanity in a world steadily trailing toward flickering out. And that’s just book one, awesome.
0.55 | Characterization — There are quite a few characters and shifting points of view featured in the book. Evil magic users, grounded supporting characters, a jaded main protagonist with a whispering entity nudging him forward, merciless inquisitors... In a solemn way, I’m sad to report that none of the characters truly stood out to me or were particularly memorable, besides the inquisitor leader whose faith was tested several times over. I could not get myself to like Riven or his arc despite trying, which sometimes works for this kind of narrative, but I don’t think it was intended here—the main character comes off as a bit too edgy to solicit my sympathy, though some great moments justify the author’s choices of protagonists. That said, I see the vision, and while the execution lags a little bit, the idea and general direction are the right ones for sequels to come.
0.55 | Plot — Reading Whispers of Oblivion reminded me of playing Fallout: New Vegas for the first time. It is quite the ride, from waking up from the dead, to leveling up, and finally confronting the big bad. Like I alluded to in the introduction, it is not too original, but the idea of journey before destination makes it a worthwhile endeavor. There were a few cases of plot convenience that I would have liked to have been obfuscated better. Overall, you can kind of grasp what is going on from the prologue and not get confused in a dense plot design and machinations for once. Conceivably, that can be a plus as well. For me, personally, though, I like complex and seeing how the cogs grind against one another, so I would have preferred more mystery, ingenuity, or randomness. Anything really, to keep my senses tingling.
0.60 | World-building — We don’t get to see all that much in the first book. The romantic inside me thinks that it was sufficient for the story, to hold it together with sticks and stones, and that there is a larger world out there to be explored in the planned sequel. There are, of course, readers who absolutely loathe lore dumps, expositions, and authors’ indulgences, preferring seamless action or immersive dialogue. While I would like to experience more of the former, the scenes that are constructed work fine, and for what it’s worth, give us enough ambiguous glimpses to let our minds fill the rest. Perchance, the highlight for me was the use of the Void abilities that put me in mind of D&D Warlock spells, such as the Hunger or Arms of Hadar, excellent imagery.
0.70 | Prose — I enjoy the idea of short, snappy sentences used throughout the novel. At first, to indicate the haze that clouds Riven’s mind after the rebirth, and then to sequence the action scenes. Where it does not work for me are the slower transitions and scenes that still sometimes utilize this structure. Some of the formatting felt a little off, and there were also a few cases of repetition. Nothing that would make you put the book down, but things that could definitely be smoothed out with one more round of edits. Despite my comments, once you get used to the style, the book becomes quite engaging and entertaining. I was immersed for the majority of the reading sessions, and that is what truly matters.
Sure, it’s not perfect. Nothing in life really is, but as a debut, this is a really good starting point for a new author. We get to read the training wheels. Do you know how rare that is? And they are presented boldly and unapologetically. It takes courage to let fly, get your work out there, instead of putting it in a drawer where it won’t ever see the light of day, and therefore, cannot undergo scrutiny. I applaud J.F. and would encourage any fan of grimdark to write, not only for their own benefit, but for the chance for other enjoyers to experience their story as well. On their own time, on its own merits and flaws. Well done, keep reading and writing, everyone! I’ll be here, rooting for you all.
Running Total: 3.25 / 5.00 — Solid progression grimdark with hints of the unknowable.
October 30, 2025
I liked it and would recommend for everyone who likes grimdark, fast pace and progression(or whatever it is called) since it really reads like some game put to paper. It sets the tone alright and as an immersive reader I like how you got suck in the world through different POVS(the main bad guy was my fave). And here comes why, and that why is one of the book's bumps I hit during reading.
Lack of breath. The prose is very clipped, especially at the start( the dream section is warranted) where it even bleeds into dialogue. It's present throughout the story and it's obviously the author's style. It's not bad, I got used to it since it slows down a bit later one, still having some breathing room would help ease the tension a little and let the images set before another one is presented.( the listening/waiting motif for tension would not stand out as much if the prose would be slowed down)
While speaking of characters. There's no one really in particular I became fond off, the closest I got to liking is Elenya, nonetheless I still have hard time understanding her motivations so that's probably the cause for "almost". All the rest are generally okay personality wise, but what's most important, I felt like they were the spinning wheel for the whole story, because the one who should be doing that is lacking in that department.
I didn't like Riven at all. As a protagonist he doesn't bring anything to the story besides his OP powers. Very bland and boring with no insight that wasn't already pointed out by those around him. And very predictable. It is most likely tough to write a guy like that to be interesting, I felt some shock value would serve him better to spice things up for the next installment. Like for example building his relationship with Elenya more( replacing the cleric since he has absolutely no impact on the story) and then have him focus on her in the end(not wanting to spoil) instead of someone else that was one of the most obvious choices. Seeing the powers he has and what Elenya does.
Right now we will be entering the next book with him as a main character basically in the same place as we left off. Luckily the other cast makes up for his flaws and it helped push the story forward despite having Riven in the lens a really tough time for me.
Lack of breath. The prose is very clipped, especially at the start( the dream section is warranted) where it even bleeds into dialogue. It's present throughout the story and it's obviously the author's style. It's not bad, I got used to it since it slows down a bit later one, still having some breathing room would help ease the tension a little and let the images set before another one is presented.( the listening/waiting motif for tension would not stand out as much if the prose would be slowed down)
While speaking of characters. There's no one really in particular I became fond off, the closest I got to liking is Elenya, nonetheless I still have hard time understanding her motivations so that's probably the cause for "almost". All the rest are generally okay personality wise, but what's most important, I felt like they were the spinning wheel for the whole story, because the one who should be doing that is lacking in that department.
I didn't like Riven at all. As a protagonist he doesn't bring anything to the story besides his OP powers. Very bland and boring with no insight that wasn't already pointed out by those around him. And very predictable. It is most likely tough to write a guy like that to be interesting, I felt some shock value would serve him better to spice things up for the next installment. Like for example building his relationship with Elenya more( replacing the cleric since he has absolutely no impact on the story) and then have him focus on her in the end(not wanting to spoil) instead of someone else that was one of the most obvious choices. Seeing the powers he has and what Elenya does.
Right now we will be entering the next book with him as a main character basically in the same place as we left off. Luckily the other cast makes up for his flaws and it helped push the story forward despite having Riven in the lens a really tough time for me.
August 19, 2025
Was lucky to receive an ARC version of this book.
From the very get go the premise and pitch had me hooked. It is a true slow burn, starting slow as we meet our confused amnesiac MC and are slowly introduced to the world and surrounding cast.
The premise and surrounding world building are absolutely fantastic. I don’t want to get into spoilers, but the impact of religion on society, morality (or lack thereof) and impact on the simple folk is hard hitting and unfortunately relevant both historically and now.
The magic is super interesting and well done in this world.
The supporting cast of characters that we meet are also a highlight. While the MC was a bit of a blank slate not knowing his past or anything, the surrounding characters we meet and their interactions makes this book shine.
After a slow burn start, the last 25% of the book had me up till 3am unable to put it down. Incredible landslide of a climax, and I absolutely cannot wait to get my hands on book 2 to see what happens next.
From the very get go the premise and pitch had me hooked. It is a true slow burn, starting slow as we meet our confused amnesiac MC and are slowly introduced to the world and surrounding cast.
The premise and surrounding world building are absolutely fantastic. I don’t want to get into spoilers, but the impact of religion on society, morality (or lack thereof) and impact on the simple folk is hard hitting and unfortunately relevant both historically and now.
The magic is super interesting and well done in this world.
The supporting cast of characters that we meet are also a highlight. While the MC was a bit of a blank slate not knowing his past or anything, the surrounding characters we meet and their interactions makes this book shine.
After a slow burn start, the last 25% of the book had me up till 3am unable to put it down. Incredible landslide of a climax, and I absolutely cannot wait to get my hands on book 2 to see what happens next.
October 14, 2025
I received a copy of Whispers of Oblivion from the author through LibraryThing in exchange for an honest review.
Whispers of Oblivion is the debut novel from J.F. Allan. The story focuses on Riven, who begins the novel having survived a ritual with no memory of who he is. The story is of Riven's journey to discover who he is and what entity has taken up residence within him. Kingdom and Church leaders hunt for him. His antihero journey is compelling as he tries to maintain balance between survival and the means necessary to survive. The author effectively uses a variety of writing styles ranging from clips of sentence fragments to evoke the main character's attempts to discover who he after waking with no memory, to full exposition from characters who know precisely what they mean to do. The story is driving without being frenetic and I look forward to the next book in the series.
Whispers of Oblivion is the debut novel from J.F. Allan. The story focuses on Riven, who begins the novel having survived a ritual with no memory of who he is. The story is of Riven's journey to discover who he is and what entity has taken up residence within him. Kingdom and Church leaders hunt for him. His antihero journey is compelling as he tries to maintain balance between survival and the means necessary to survive. The author effectively uses a variety of writing styles ranging from clips of sentence fragments to evoke the main character's attempts to discover who he after waking with no memory, to full exposition from characters who know precisely what they mean to do. The story is driving without being frenetic and I look forward to the next book in the series.
September 22, 2025
A really gritty, dark fantasy with a broad range of characters and multiple POVs making for a dynamic story. The plot builds slowly but once the action starts it moves along quickly, full of twists that keep the reader engaged. The works building is interesting, while the setting itself is fairly straightforward, the magic system is clever, and the political side of it is very well done. My only criticism is that sometimes the writing style is a little blunt, but as the action picks up this leads itself to the grimdark element nicely.
December 15, 2025
This was a interesting concept. The world was dark and dreary. The supporting characters gave a odd life to it kinda like johnny nemonic. It had some neat aspects that “could” be recognizable as certain class spells from popular roll playing games. I think this author likes a little bit of chaos. The use of the void was creative. I did not get a great amount of human and emotional connection to the book and its world to keep me turning the page. It was just a cool book.
December 16, 2025
He should have died on the altar and now the council want him dead while another group want to use him. A meeting with a young woman may change the direction he will go in. Life is going to be become very complicated and interesting as they explore what happens next
I received an advance copy from hidden gems and a great fantasy read
I received an advance copy from hidden gems and a great fantasy read
September 2, 2025
An enjoyable tale of a victim of dark magic who survives and fights back, with the help of a god/
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews