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Tales of the Plains #1
The Hunters: Tales of the Plains, Book 1
Ree is a woman with a violent past – a past she is eager to put behind her. After years of wandering, she and her niece, Javani, have built a small farm in mining country, at the edge of the known world, and Ree is keeping her head down.
But one day two groups of professional killers arrive in town, looking for a young girl and an older woman. A deadly chase through deserts, mountains, and mines begins. And Ree will have to discover her former self if she is to keep them both alive.
But one day two groups of professional killers arrive in town, looking for a young girl and an older woman. A deadly chase through deserts, mountains, and mines begins. And Ree will have to discover her former self if she is to keep them both alive.
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First published July 20, 2023
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August 14, 2023
The Hunters, one of my favorite reads of July. It satisfied my western fantasy cravings in ways I can’t even describe. We have this middle aged woman living on a farm on the outskirts of the desert, she lives with her 12 year old niece, and they find themselves on the run from a very dangerous group of people.
I thought this was so fun. It was a refreshing blast to the past to when I read Red Country by Joe Abercrombie. The writing is smooth and the characters amidst this survival getaway was entertaining. It was a really nice book to read at the tail end of the month and it makes me want to read his previous series even more, the black hawks which I’ve been meaning to read for ages. A big thanks to the author for giving me this digital copy to review, I loved it.
I thought this was so fun. It was a refreshing blast to the past to when I read Red Country by Joe Abercrombie. The writing is smooth and the characters amidst this survival getaway was entertaining. It was a really nice book to read at the tail end of the month and it makes me want to read his previous series even more, the black hawks which I’ve been meaning to read for ages. A big thanks to the author for giving me this digital copy to review, I loved it.
January 21, 2024
7.29 on CAWPILE
May 22, 2023
'You are mad, brother, the plains or the desert will claim us all, coinless, meaningless, bleached bones in sand. And what will we have achieved then? What great mark will you have left on this world?’
What happens when your past comes back to bite you in the ass?
Ree is a woman who comes from a violent, blood-stained past. Having left that life behind, she has been wandering for years searching for a safe place to settle with her young niece, Javani. She thinks she’s found it upon a small farm on the edge of The Mining Country in Kazeraz. The days are long and gruelling, filled with hard labour and little reward, but it is relatively peaceful. That is until two sets of professional killers begin a hunt to find an older woman and a young girl believed to have ties to the Shenak throne. What follows from then is a chaotic chase across the desert through mountains and mines, explosions and battles, and a desperate race to survive.
The Hunters is packed to the brim with madness and mayhem, humour and anarchy, mysticism and alchemy, but most of all it holds characters you will absolutely love, and those you will love to hate.
Though the Plains and the Mining Country is a harsh, barren place filled with corruption, violence and much loss, I would say that The Hunters falls less into the grimdark genre as Wragg’s previous Articles of Faith duology had and sits firmly as a fantasy Western-adventure. Yes, the world is ruthless, and as I would expect from Wragg, the characters are morally grey and are not all that heroic, or even successful, but hey these are characters who continuously try to be better. Javani is a typical teenager, prone to surliness, she’s wilful and demanding but beneath that there is a tender innocence, an endearing kindness and a heartbreaking need to feel loved. Ree, on the other hand, is emotionally hardened, practical and fierce, but in a low-key kind of way so as to not draw attention to herself. Her relationship with her niece Javani is strained, neither seeming affectionate or close to one another, but watching them both grow pulled on my little heartstrings. My next two favourite characters were Anashe and Aki, our tempestuous brother and sister duo—they immediately stole the show for me! Aki thinks he’s a poet, a wordsmith, a blessing from the Goddess and Anashe is immensely irritated by his antics. The dynamics between these two made me laugh out loud. They argue, snipe and irritate each other, but still their love for one another permeates. You can see it in the way Anashe is fiercely protective of Aki, and more than anything she wants to bring him a semblance of peace. After the death of their father and later their mother, both siblings search for answers, for closure. Damn you Wragg, you once again provided plenty of characters who I immediately became attached to and their journey of looking for a place to belong, to find people to belong with, made me sob (a lot) by the end.
‘The work I did, and who I was, or am, are two separate things. I did a lot of jobs, some violent with words, some violent with acts. I am me, and always was.'
This is a book which does hit you emotionally many times, but of course, Wragg also injects much superb humour. Aki was perhaps the funniest of them all, but the more shady characters, the villains of this tale, provided much comedy too. Prince Lazant and his scarily faithful assassin Khalida are both cold-blooded killers, unwavering in their mission, and damn do they cause a lot of chaos. The bandit Movos Guvuli and the giant Horvaun warrior, The White Spear, made me laugh out loud with their antics and their ambiguous motives. Some of my favourite scenes included a battle with camel riders including a headless camel, and a mad chase across the desert ending in an exploding bridge!
'Sister, my words! How am I to compose my works without vocabulary, without lexicon? I am bereft, I am shorn and impoverished, my very-'
'Sounds like you have plenty of words,'
Javani volunteered.
'By the Goddess, you are right! I am restored! The light shines upon me again. Once more shall the desert echo to the sounds of
The muscles of Ree's jaw were standing proud, casting deep shadows.
Are we being fucking followed?'
The Hunters delivers much glorious pandemonium, I tell you! Yet Wragg also balances this fast paced action with many poignant reflections during the quieter moments, the moments by campfire, in the dawn or dusk where all journeys take a lull. Wragg touches upon themes of corruption and morality, which he also explored in the Articles of Faith duology. We are shown how corrupt the Guildmasters are, the ones who are supposed to uphold the law and be just are the ones stealing from the hard working labourers, the miners who risk their lives to make the most money, only to then have the Guild take it away. It’s easy to see why people like Guvuli would turn to banditry and lawlessness. However, what I most loved was the exploration of motherhood, family bonds and the importance of stories. Here is where the characters revealed much more about themselves, where we really dig beneath their skin. The notion that labels such as ‘mother’ come with daunting expectations, one’s that Ree runs from but Javani desperately needs, really hit me. Though it is not the labels which truly matter, it matters more on your deeds and what you mean to one another. Yet to counter this, acknowledging who you are and facing your past has its own freedom, as our characters discover, you can’t run from yourself or your responsibilities forever.
This leads into the importance of stories and of their purposes. Although the fantasy element is rather low-key, with alchemy used in weaponry, there are also the mystical stories Aki tells of a reincarnated minions of the Goddess of creation and of her adversary, Usdohr and his demons hiding in human vessels. Wragg leaves it to his readers to decide if those stories hold truth, if some of our characters are these reincarnated or demonic figures, or whether they were just used to distract Javani from their many dire situations. I loved the ambiguity of that. Stories also hold a significant link to the past, and if you’ve read The Black Hawks, you’ll spot some nice familiar figures within Ree’s stories, which I found fun. Yet they also help us find a connection with the people we have loved and lost, as seen through Aki desperately seeking stories of his mother. I’m tearing up just thinking about it. Though most of all, I loved how these characters shape their own story.
The Hunters was everything I expected and so much more—achingly heartfelt, addictively fast-paced and hilariously chaotic. This is a story of motherhood, of finding your path, and of finding freedom. Wragg delivers an absolutely explosive, quite literally, start to the Tales of the Plains trilogy.
‘History has no end, little one, but the stories we tell are wrapped within it, and some stories are told over and over and over, to begin again as soon as they are ended.'
ARC provided by the author and by Harper Voyager in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for the copy! All quotes used are taken from an early ARC and are subject to change upon publication.
The Hunters is out 20th July 2023
What happens when your past comes back to bite you in the ass?
Ree is a woman who comes from a violent, blood-stained past. Having left that life behind, she has been wandering for years searching for a safe place to settle with her young niece, Javani. She thinks she’s found it upon a small farm on the edge of The Mining Country in Kazeraz. The days are long and gruelling, filled with hard labour and little reward, but it is relatively peaceful. That is until two sets of professional killers begin a hunt to find an older woman and a young girl believed to have ties to the Shenak throne. What follows from then is a chaotic chase across the desert through mountains and mines, explosions and battles, and a desperate race to survive.
The Hunters is packed to the brim with madness and mayhem, humour and anarchy, mysticism and alchemy, but most of all it holds characters you will absolutely love, and those you will love to hate.
Though the Plains and the Mining Country is a harsh, barren place filled with corruption, violence and much loss, I would say that The Hunters falls less into the grimdark genre as Wragg’s previous Articles of Faith duology had and sits firmly as a fantasy Western-adventure. Yes, the world is ruthless, and as I would expect from Wragg, the characters are morally grey and are not all that heroic, or even successful, but hey these are characters who continuously try to be better. Javani is a typical teenager, prone to surliness, she’s wilful and demanding but beneath that there is a tender innocence, an endearing kindness and a heartbreaking need to feel loved. Ree, on the other hand, is emotionally hardened, practical and fierce, but in a low-key kind of way so as to not draw attention to herself. Her relationship with her niece Javani is strained, neither seeming affectionate or close to one another, but watching them both grow pulled on my little heartstrings. My next two favourite characters were Anashe and Aki, our tempestuous brother and sister duo—they immediately stole the show for me! Aki thinks he’s a poet, a wordsmith, a blessing from the Goddess and Anashe is immensely irritated by his antics. The dynamics between these two made me laugh out loud. They argue, snipe and irritate each other, but still their love for one another permeates. You can see it in the way Anashe is fiercely protective of Aki, and more than anything she wants to bring him a semblance of peace. After the death of their father and later their mother, both siblings search for answers, for closure. Damn you Wragg, you once again provided plenty of characters who I immediately became attached to and their journey of looking for a place to belong, to find people to belong with, made me sob (a lot) by the end.
‘The work I did, and who I was, or am, are two separate things. I did a lot of jobs, some violent with words, some violent with acts. I am me, and always was.'
This is a book which does hit you emotionally many times, but of course, Wragg also injects much superb humour. Aki was perhaps the funniest of them all, but the more shady characters, the villains of this tale, provided much comedy too. Prince Lazant and his scarily faithful assassin Khalida are both cold-blooded killers, unwavering in their mission, and damn do they cause a lot of chaos. The bandit Movos Guvuli and the giant Horvaun warrior, The White Spear, made me laugh out loud with their antics and their ambiguous motives. Some of my favourite scenes included a battle with camel riders including a headless camel, and a mad chase across the desert ending in an exploding bridge!
'Sister, my words! How am I to compose my works without vocabulary, without lexicon? I am bereft, I am shorn and impoverished, my very-'
'Sounds like you have plenty of words,'
Javani volunteered.
'By the Goddess, you are right! I am restored! The light shines upon me again. Once more shall the desert echo to the sounds of
The muscles of Ree's jaw were standing proud, casting deep shadows.
Are we being fucking followed?'
The Hunters delivers much glorious pandemonium, I tell you! Yet Wragg also balances this fast paced action with many poignant reflections during the quieter moments, the moments by campfire, in the dawn or dusk where all journeys take a lull. Wragg touches upon themes of corruption and morality, which he also explored in the Articles of Faith duology. We are shown how corrupt the Guildmasters are, the ones who are supposed to uphold the law and be just are the ones stealing from the hard working labourers, the miners who risk their lives to make the most money, only to then have the Guild take it away. It’s easy to see why people like Guvuli would turn to banditry and lawlessness. However, what I most loved was the exploration of motherhood, family bonds and the importance of stories. Here is where the characters revealed much more about themselves, where we really dig beneath their skin. The notion that labels such as ‘mother’ come with daunting expectations, one’s that Ree runs from but Javani desperately needs, really hit me. Though it is not the labels which truly matter, it matters more on your deeds and what you mean to one another. Yet to counter this, acknowledging who you are and facing your past has its own freedom, as our characters discover, you can’t run from yourself or your responsibilities forever.
This leads into the importance of stories and of their purposes. Although the fantasy element is rather low-key, with alchemy used in weaponry, there are also the mystical stories Aki tells of a reincarnated minions of the Goddess of creation and of her adversary, Usdohr and his demons hiding in human vessels. Wragg leaves it to his readers to decide if those stories hold truth, if some of our characters are these reincarnated or demonic figures, or whether they were just used to distract Javani from their many dire situations. I loved the ambiguity of that. Stories also hold a significant link to the past, and if you’ve read The Black Hawks, you’ll spot some nice familiar figures within Ree’s stories, which I found fun. Yet they also help us find a connection with the people we have loved and lost, as seen through Aki desperately seeking stories of his mother. I’m tearing up just thinking about it. Though most of all, I loved how these characters shape their own story.
The Hunters was everything I expected and so much more—achingly heartfelt, addictively fast-paced and hilariously chaotic. This is a story of motherhood, of finding your path, and of finding freedom. Wragg delivers an absolutely explosive, quite literally, start to the Tales of the Plains trilogy.
‘History has no end, little one, but the stories we tell are wrapped within it, and some stories are told over and over and over, to begin again as soon as they are ended.'
ARC provided by the author and by Harper Voyager in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for the copy! All quotes used are taken from an early ARC and are subject to change upon publication.
The Hunters is out 20th July 2023
July 23, 2023
4.5/5
Fast-paced and full of thrills! Wragg continues to delight
I really enjoyed this book. the writing was smooth and the characters are wildly entertaining. What The Hunters boils down to is a high-octane game of cat and mouse. Ree and her entourage flee for their lives from a crazy prince from a faraway kingdom. I can promise laughs, snarky quips, blood, and tears.
My only real critique is the end felt like the end of a standalone novel. The ending was a hair overlong and a bit final. There is def more that can be done with these characters but if this is the only thing you ever read of David Wragg it is IMO a full reading experience and worth the investment of time.
Fast-paced and full of thrills! Wragg continues to delight
I really enjoyed this book. the writing was smooth and the characters are wildly entertaining. What The Hunters boils down to is a high-octane game of cat and mouse. Ree and her entourage flee for their lives from a crazy prince from a faraway kingdom. I can promise laughs, snarky quips, blood, and tears.
My only real critique is the end felt like the end of a standalone novel. The ending was a hair overlong and a bit final. There is def more that can be done with these characters but if this is the only thing you ever read of David Wragg it is IMO a full reading experience and worth the investment of time.
August 14, 2023
I read this a while ago but life got in the way before I could write my review.
This is a fantastic fantasy novel that reads almost like a western - think Red Country, only lighter and not quite as gory.
The characters here are all unique and fun to read from their perspectives. I had so much fun reading The Hunters, there is wit and humour, there is heart and a quickly paced plot, with a few twists and turns along the way that really keep you on your toes. It is not epic in scope but far more intimate and that is one of its many strengths. The relationships of the characters feel real and authentic and the stakes are high enough to have you fully invested and worried for those that you have grown fond of.
A mega-strong entry from Wragg and I cannot wait to read what comes next.
This is a fantastic fantasy novel that reads almost like a western - think Red Country, only lighter and not quite as gory.
The characters here are all unique and fun to read from their perspectives. I had so much fun reading The Hunters, there is wit and humour, there is heart and a quickly paced plot, with a few twists and turns along the way that really keep you on your toes. It is not epic in scope but far more intimate and that is one of its many strengths. The relationships of the characters feel real and authentic and the stakes are high enough to have you fully invested and worried for those that you have grown fond of.
A mega-strong entry from Wragg and I cannot wait to read what comes next.
August 9, 2024
This review was originally published on Before We Go Blog
If Joe Abercrombie’s Red Country and Nicholas Eames’ Kings of the Wyld had a weird lovechild, you’d get something like David Wragg’s The Hunters. Filled with vibrantly quirky characters, exhilarating action, oddly wholesome (found) family vibes, and plenty of darkly amusing humour, this is simply a fast-paced western fantasy done absolutely right!
On the surface, The Hunters might seem like a very plain (pun intended?) story about a jaded older woman whose violent past has come back to haunt her, kicking off a deadly chase through the unforgiving frontier. And yet, it is so much more than that. You see, beneath all the fights, scheming, and hysterical banter hides a powerful tale of survival, legacy, morality, and the power of familial love that touched me in ways I was not anticipating.
Now, while I am normally not the biggest fan of such fast-paced and action-driven narratives, I think Wragg absolutely nailed the execution of The Hunters. I mean, I would not have minded some more moments to breathe and process, but I deeply appreciated that we didn’t sacrifice any of the world building or character work despite the fact that the story barrels along at breakneck speed. From the very first page I was just fully immersed, and even though this is technically a sequel series to Wragg’s Articles of Faith duology, I personally didn’t feel like I was missing any context and found this to be a wonderful entry point into this rich world.
Through the multi-POV set-up, we get such a nuanced look into this vast world, and I loved how each of these vibrant characters just completely sucked me in with their incredibly distinct voices and weirdly irresistible charm. Wragg has a true gift for creating memorable and terrifyingly realistic characters that you can love, hate, love to hate or hate to love, and I really enjoyed seeing all their different storylines either clash or come together in the most unexpected yet satisfying ways.
My personal favourite character was absolutely Javani, and I loved her complicated yet wholesome relationship with her aunt Ree. There’s such a compelling air of intrigue and mystery to their backstory, which kept me on my toes the entire way through. But equally as engaging was Javani’s dynamic with the sibling duo Aki and Anashe, who somehow crept their way into my heart before I had even realised it, for better or worse (ouch, my poor heart!).
Moreover, I really enjoyed the smooth balance between the darkness and the humour in The Hunters, and I am not ashamed to admit that I was snorting and cackling my entire way through this adventure. From the sharp, witty dialogue, to the ridiculous antics, to the subtle tragic irony, and to all the hysterically amusing scenarios, Wragg just knows how to write one hell of an engaging story that will have you crying tears from both joy and sorrow by the end.
While this first instalment in the Tales of the Plains series could work perfectly well as a standalone, I am already very eager to return to these messy yet lovable characters and enjoy more adventures with them. If you are looking for a dark and high stakes fantasy western with a strong emotional core that will keep you grounded amidst all the chaos and mayhem, then I can’t recommend The Hunters highly enough. And pro tip, get this one on audio and do an immersion read if you can, because David Wragg’s immersive storytelling mixed with Sara Powell’s exceptional narration is honestly a match made in heaven!
If Joe Abercrombie’s Red Country and Nicholas Eames’ Kings of the Wyld had a weird lovechild, you’d get something like David Wragg’s The Hunters. Filled with vibrantly quirky characters, exhilarating action, oddly wholesome (found) family vibes, and plenty of darkly amusing humour, this is simply a fast-paced western fantasy done absolutely right!
On the surface, The Hunters might seem like a very plain (pun intended?) story about a jaded older woman whose violent past has come back to haunt her, kicking off a deadly chase through the unforgiving frontier. And yet, it is so much more than that. You see, beneath all the fights, scheming, and hysterical banter hides a powerful tale of survival, legacy, morality, and the power of familial love that touched me in ways I was not anticipating.
Now, while I am normally not the biggest fan of such fast-paced and action-driven narratives, I think Wragg absolutely nailed the execution of The Hunters. I mean, I would not have minded some more moments to breathe and process, but I deeply appreciated that we didn’t sacrifice any of the world building or character work despite the fact that the story barrels along at breakneck speed. From the very first page I was just fully immersed, and even though this is technically a sequel series to Wragg’s Articles of Faith duology, I personally didn’t feel like I was missing any context and found this to be a wonderful entry point into this rich world.
Through the multi-POV set-up, we get such a nuanced look into this vast world, and I loved how each of these vibrant characters just completely sucked me in with their incredibly distinct voices and weirdly irresistible charm. Wragg has a true gift for creating memorable and terrifyingly realistic characters that you can love, hate, love to hate or hate to love, and I really enjoyed seeing all their different storylines either clash or come together in the most unexpected yet satisfying ways.
My personal favourite character was absolutely Javani, and I loved her complicated yet wholesome relationship with her aunt Ree. There’s such a compelling air of intrigue and mystery to their backstory, which kept me on my toes the entire way through. But equally as engaging was Javani’s dynamic with the sibling duo Aki and Anashe, who somehow crept their way into my heart before I had even realised it, for better or worse (ouch, my poor heart!).
Moreover, I really enjoyed the smooth balance between the darkness and the humour in The Hunters, and I am not ashamed to admit that I was snorting and cackling my entire way through this adventure. From the sharp, witty dialogue, to the ridiculous antics, to the subtle tragic irony, and to all the hysterically amusing scenarios, Wragg just knows how to write one hell of an engaging story that will have you crying tears from both joy and sorrow by the end.
While this first instalment in the Tales of the Plains series could work perfectly well as a standalone, I am already very eager to return to these messy yet lovable characters and enjoy more adventures with them. If you are looking for a dark and high stakes fantasy western with a strong emotional core that will keep you grounded amidst all the chaos and mayhem, then I can’t recommend The Hunters highly enough. And pro tip, get this one on audio and do an immersion read if you can, because David Wragg’s immersive storytelling mixed with Sara Powell’s exceptional narration is honestly a match made in heaven!
July 26, 2023
Review originally on JamReads
The Hunters is the initial book in the Tales of the Plains trilogy, a new series written by David Wragg. A fast-paced and full of twists Western story, a tale of what happens when the past comes back to bite your ass, following the story of Ree, a woman who left behind a life of blood and violence, and Javani, her niece and protegee.
Ree has been looking for years for a safe place to live with her niece, Javani; she was tired of her past life, and it seems they've found it on a small farm in Kazerak. It may not be what Ree was expecting some years ago, but the well-being of Javani is her main worry. But when some professional hunters appear looking for an older woman in the company of a young girl, who seems to have blood ties with the royalty, Ree soon understands that her peace time has ended.
Our pair of main characters will be forced to start an escape across the Plains and the Mining Country, plagued with encounters with quirky and memorable characters, such as the Aki-Anashe duo; Ree will show how she's hardened by battle, but still emotionally attached to Javani (even if their relationship is not really as clear), while Javani will continuously grow as a character.
The story, while it has a big emotional charge, especially toward the end, is injected with humor and jokes; it works as a counterbalance to the world the story is set, gritty and dark. I would call it close to grimdark, actually, because the characters tend to end on the grey side of morality, but it fits better in the Western fantasy bracket. The pacing is incredibly fast, pairing well with a plot full of action and fights.
The Hunters is an enjoyable read, which lands on the darker side of fantasy, and which will be loved by those that are looking for some more Western in their books. Curious to see how the series evolves as the ending is quite auto conclusive.
The Hunters is the initial book in the Tales of the Plains trilogy, a new series written by David Wragg. A fast-paced and full of twists Western story, a tale of what happens when the past comes back to bite your ass, following the story of Ree, a woman who left behind a life of blood and violence, and Javani, her niece and protegee.
Ree has been looking for years for a safe place to live with her niece, Javani; she was tired of her past life, and it seems they've found it on a small farm in Kazerak. It may not be what Ree was expecting some years ago, but the well-being of Javani is her main worry. But when some professional hunters appear looking for an older woman in the company of a young girl, who seems to have blood ties with the royalty, Ree soon understands that her peace time has ended.
Our pair of main characters will be forced to start an escape across the Plains and the Mining Country, plagued with encounters with quirky and memorable characters, such as the Aki-Anashe duo; Ree will show how she's hardened by battle, but still emotionally attached to Javani (even if their relationship is not really as clear), while Javani will continuously grow as a character.
The story, while it has a big emotional charge, especially toward the end, is injected with humor and jokes; it works as a counterbalance to the world the story is set, gritty and dark. I would call it close to grimdark, actually, because the characters tend to end on the grey side of morality, but it fits better in the Western fantasy bracket. The pacing is incredibly fast, pairing well with a plot full of action and fights.
The Hunters is an enjoyable read, which lands on the darker side of fantasy, and which will be loved by those that are looking for some more Western in their books. Curious to see how the series evolves as the ending is quite auto conclusive.
June 27, 2023
Wragg's witty, light-hearted style is once more put to excellent use here in the first of a new series, which bounces brilliantly from humour to pathos to tragedy to absurdity with just the right mix.
Great characters, more secrets than you can shake a keg of blasting powder at, and a wonderfully-realised frontier town setting.
I almost docked a star for wilful deployment of the term "cameltastrophe" but in the end was laughing too hard to do so.
Great characters, more secrets than you can shake a keg of blasting powder at, and a wonderfully-realised frontier town setting.
I almost docked a star for wilful deployment of the term "cameltastrophe" but in the end was laughing too hard to do so.
April 30, 2024
5/5 Stars
The past doesn’t always stay where you left it. The Hunters by David Wragg is a thrilling, action packed escape while exploring the meaning of familial bonds and the power of stories.
Told through multiple POVs, we meet a variety of characters including an ambitious girl and her protective aunt with a violent past, bantering siblings, a greedy guildmaster, an intimidating mercenary and a relentless prince. While there are other POVs throughout, they are carefully selected characters that help give a broader insight into specific scenes.
However, the story itself is focused on Ree and her niece, Javani. After years of wandering and finally building a home for themselves at the edge of the known world, Ree’s past catches up with her and they’re sent on the run. Throughout their escape they meet unlikely friends, enemies and face hard truths all while trying to survive in an unforgiving land.
The tone and setting of the world felt like the blending of a low fantasy and western. With deserts, frontiers, and prospectors to swords, alchemy, and stories of gods. Meanwhile, the pacing moves between medium and fast with the ever-present threat looming over Ree and Javani in their wild escape.
When reading, there were two things that surprised me. First was the unexpected violence. Despite knowing this was action packed I wasn’t prepared for how quickly moments escalated. Although there is humour throughout to balance this, when those sudden dark moments hit, it often served as a somber reminder of how high the stakes truly are. I personally loved this as it delves into the best and worst in people, the extremes someone will go to, cultural differences and mob mentality.
Second, the emotionally impactful moments that hit hard. David Wragg doesn’t shy away from exploring the emotional vulnerabilities of the characters and the impacts it has in their escape. This doesn’t end with just the main characters either, but extends to the side cast showing Wraggs skill with character work. I found myself crying at a few scenes and being left with the best kind emotional damage any reader seeks out in stories. There are themes of motherhood, paternal relationships and finding one’s identity which are thoughtfully woven into a thrilling chase.
The dynamics between characters was also spot on, with great dialogue, banter, with many loveable and hateable characters. I can’t forget to mention the secrets that are woven around Ree and Javani. It’s tantalizing! With twists along the way, these secrets impact the characters developments and their relationships in gripping ways.
In addition to reading the paperback, I also listened to the audiobook and the narrator, Sara Powell, did a fantastic job at breathing life into the characters with a stellar performance.
All these elements are woven together seamlessly and made for a binge worthy read. The Hunters is also a contained story featuring a satisfying ending with room for continuation. So, while you can read this as a standalone, there is room for the story to go on.
The Hunters is one I highly recommend for fantasy readers looking for a western mix (or vice versa) a binge-able story, with plenty of action that doesn’t skimp on character work.
The past doesn’t always stay where you left it. The Hunters by David Wragg is a thrilling, action packed escape while exploring the meaning of familial bonds and the power of stories.
Told through multiple POVs, we meet a variety of characters including an ambitious girl and her protective aunt with a violent past, bantering siblings, a greedy guildmaster, an intimidating mercenary and a relentless prince. While there are other POVs throughout, they are carefully selected characters that help give a broader insight into specific scenes.
However, the story itself is focused on Ree and her niece, Javani. After years of wandering and finally building a home for themselves at the edge of the known world, Ree’s past catches up with her and they’re sent on the run. Throughout their escape they meet unlikely friends, enemies and face hard truths all while trying to survive in an unforgiving land.
The tone and setting of the world felt like the blending of a low fantasy and western. With deserts, frontiers, and prospectors to swords, alchemy, and stories of gods. Meanwhile, the pacing moves between medium and fast with the ever-present threat looming over Ree and Javani in their wild escape.
When reading, there were two things that surprised me. First was the unexpected violence. Despite knowing this was action packed I wasn’t prepared for how quickly moments escalated. Although there is humour throughout to balance this, when those sudden dark moments hit, it often served as a somber reminder of how high the stakes truly are. I personally loved this as it delves into the best and worst in people, the extremes someone will go to, cultural differences and mob mentality.
Second, the emotionally impactful moments that hit hard. David Wragg doesn’t shy away from exploring the emotional vulnerabilities of the characters and the impacts it has in their escape. This doesn’t end with just the main characters either, but extends to the side cast showing Wraggs skill with character work. I found myself crying at a few scenes and being left with the best kind emotional damage any reader seeks out in stories. There are themes of motherhood, paternal relationships and finding one’s identity which are thoughtfully woven into a thrilling chase.
The dynamics between characters was also spot on, with great dialogue, banter, with many loveable and hateable characters. I can’t forget to mention the secrets that are woven around Ree and Javani. It’s tantalizing! With twists along the way, these secrets impact the characters developments and their relationships in gripping ways.
In addition to reading the paperback, I also listened to the audiobook and the narrator, Sara Powell, did a fantastic job at breathing life into the characters with a stellar performance.
All these elements are woven together seamlessly and made for a binge worthy read. The Hunters is also a contained story featuring a satisfying ending with room for continuation. So, while you can read this as a standalone, there is room for the story to go on.
The Hunters is one I highly recommend for fantasy readers looking for a western mix (or vice versa) a binge-able story, with plenty of action that doesn’t skimp on character work.
May 8, 2023
Ree has been on the run with her young niece Javani. Running from a violent past that may have just caught up with them. Strangers have arrived in town and are asking questions about a lone woman and child.
As Ree and the kid flee across the deserts and mountains, chased by diehard and greedy mercenaries, can she escape her past one more time?
I loved The Black Hawks and The Righteous by David Wragg, so I jumped at the chance to read this book, which is the first in a new series. It's a gritty, bloodthirsty fantasy with some superb characters. I especially loved the banter between brother and sister, Aki and Anashe. The White Spear was another favourite, too.
Thanks to Netgalley and publishers for the ARC.
As Ree and the kid flee across the deserts and mountains, chased by diehard and greedy mercenaries, can she escape her past one more time?
I loved The Black Hawks and The Righteous by David Wragg, so I jumped at the chance to read this book, which is the first in a new series. It's a gritty, bloodthirsty fantasy with some superb characters. I especially loved the banter between brother and sister, Aki and Anashe. The White Spear was another favourite, too.
Thanks to Netgalley and publishers for the ARC.
August 6, 2024
A very enjoyable high octane mix of fantasy and Wild West adventure as a cast of unusual characters meet and create havoc. Highly recommended!
Full review - https://www.runalongtheshelves.net/bl...
Full review - https://www.runalongtheshelves.net/bl...
September 10, 2024
The first thing that brought David Wragg to my attention was the cover art on his first book. I am a big fan of covers that portray either the characters in the book or a scene in the book. A shout out to Galvin Reese whose cover art for Then Hunters is spot on. Read this in a couple days, the pages flew by. The plot is fairly simple. Killers are after a woman and a child. Face paced with likable characters. I look forward to whatever David Wragg does next.
April 3, 2024
A fantasy western with allies of convenience and murderous royals.
Despite all the “action” I find myself bored and didn’t like any of the characters besides the White Bar.
It contains a plot device I hate - withholding information.
Despite all the “action” I find myself bored and didn’t like any of the characters besides the White Bar.
It contains a plot device I hate - withholding information.
did-not-finish
June 7, 2024Well, I tried. DNFing this one due to nothing taking place for nearly half the page count. Favorite character was Javani, but the plot simply doesn't progress beyond simply running around in a wagon. Was hoping the multiple POVs would start converging to add some intriguing narrative interest but it didn't go anywhere. Really disappointed because the setup and premise of this was great. Fantasy western with alchemical elements is such a fun idea.
December 7, 2023
I don't understand the point of this story, this is supposed to be a Trilogy but it didn't set up anything. The story is a Prince trying to secure his throne by killing a possible threat to his crown. He finds the possible heir, a young girl being guarded by her aunt, who isn't really her aunt. A chase ensues through the desert with multiple people trying to either save the little princess from the tyrant prince or kill her in his name. Turns out in the end she isn't the heir to the throne, that kid died at birth, making the entire point of the story pointless. And it's not like the aunt lied to save the child and then revealed that she lied after killing all the bad guys. The aunt, who is actually her mom but didn't want to get attached to her own child, sticks to the story that she isn't the heir to the throne but the daughter of a mule hearder. And this is supposed to be a trilogy? Why? If she is the heir to the throne it should have been revealed at the end of this book and then the adventure of the next two is about either getting further away from the kingdom or running to take it.
I also had a lot of issues with the characters. None of them were likeable. The aunt/mom who used to be a strong warrior refuses to fight and refuses to let the 14 year old daughter fight. The 14 year old girl goes back and forth between being a teenager and an 8 year old. It got irritating seeing the child go back and forth so much in their behavior. The child was also clever but was never allowed to act as the guardian was too overbearing, which I get because a parent is going to make sure to keep their child safe, but you should also let them be useful.
In the end the evil prince dies, but it was kind of annoying how this happened. The aunt killed the prince while the teenage girl kind of just sat behind a rock in a dark collapsed cave watching (How can you see?). This would have been the perfect opportunity for the girl to show her strength and kill the prince herself while he was focused on the aunt. At least that is my opinion.
The plot was pointless and the characters were not likeable. I would pass on this.
I also had a lot of issues with the characters. None of them were likeable. The aunt/mom who used to be a strong warrior refuses to fight and refuses to let the 14 year old daughter fight. The 14 year old girl goes back and forth between being a teenager and an 8 year old. It got irritating seeing the child go back and forth so much in their behavior. The child was also clever but was never allowed to act as the guardian was too overbearing, which I get because a parent is going to make sure to keep their child safe, but you should also let them be useful.
In the end the evil prince dies, but it was kind of annoying how this happened. The aunt killed the prince while the teenage girl kind of just sat behind a rock in a dark collapsed cave watching (How can you see?). This would have been the perfect opportunity for the girl to show her strength and kill the prince herself while he was focused on the aunt. At least that is my opinion.
The plot was pointless and the characters were not likeable. I would pass on this.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Read
August 26, 2023The Hunters is my first introduction to David Wragg's writing. I have had his other books for such a long while, but haven't had the chance to read them as of yet. So when I saw this new start to his Tales of the Plains, which is billed as being accessible to newcomers without having to read the previous books, I thought this is a perfect place to start. Apparently, this is set in the same world as The Black Hawks and The Righteous, and whilst there are plenty of Easter eggs for returning readers, it is supposed to be good for those of us who haven't read the previous ones.
The story centres around Ree and her young ward, Javani who in a bid to escape an unknown past have become horse farmers in the back end of nowhere. When the guild encroach on Ree, in the form of acting guild master Kurush, Ree learns that her past is about to catch up with her.
This sets off a series of events which involves the appearance of various factions from distant lands hunting Javani in the belief that she is the illegitimate child of the crown prince of some far off land. Enter stage left the bad guys, Prince Lazant and assassinating side kick Khalida
However, along the way, Ree and Javani pick up some unlikely allies in the form Anashe and Aki, a forever quarreling brother and sister duo. Not only that, they pick up a terminator called The White Spear who represents the opposing faction of Prince Lazant.
Full of high octane action and plenty of humour, David Wragg's chase novel is quite enjoyable. There are standout characters such as Anashe and Aki who provide both emotional and comedic clout to the book.
However, I must say that this book is one of those books where my expectations may have spoilt what the book has to offer. David Wragg is one of those writers that is regarded with such high esteem that I went into the book with quite high anticipation, and don't get me wrong the book is good, but I think I was expecting bite yer face off kinda good, and unfortunately, it just didn't.
I think one of the problems that I found was that I just didn't find myself caring enough about the main characters.I found Ree's emotional detachment a little off putting, and Javani, I just found a little annoying. In addition to that I found the constant chase premise a little exhausting if I'm honest.
However, on the whole, this was an enjoyable read that kept me interested and turning pages.
The story centres around Ree and her young ward, Javani who in a bid to escape an unknown past have become horse farmers in the back end of nowhere. When the guild encroach on Ree, in the form of acting guild master Kurush, Ree learns that her past is about to catch up with her.
This sets off a series of events which involves the appearance of various factions from distant lands hunting Javani in the belief that she is the illegitimate child of the crown prince of some far off land. Enter stage left the bad guys, Prince Lazant and assassinating side kick Khalida
However, along the way, Ree and Javani pick up some unlikely allies in the form Anashe and Aki, a forever quarreling brother and sister duo. Not only that, they pick up a terminator called The White Spear who represents the opposing faction of Prince Lazant.
Full of high octane action and plenty of humour, David Wragg's chase novel is quite enjoyable. There are standout characters such as Anashe and Aki who provide both emotional and comedic clout to the book.
However, I must say that this book is one of those books where my expectations may have spoilt what the book has to offer. David Wragg is one of those writers that is regarded with such high esteem that I went into the book with quite high anticipation, and don't get me wrong the book is good, but I think I was expecting bite yer face off kinda good, and unfortunately, it just didn't.
I think one of the problems that I found was that I just didn't find myself caring enough about the main characters.I found Ree's emotional detachment a little off putting, and Javani, I just found a little annoying. In addition to that I found the constant chase premise a little exhausting if I'm honest.
However, on the whole, this was an enjoyable read that kept me interested and turning pages.
August 26, 2023
If I were to summarize The Hunters by David Wragg I’d describe it as a fast paced, action packed getaway adventure that’s filled with humor and its fair share of heart wrenching moments. Narrated in multi-povs this book has no dull moments. This incredibly explosive story that explores the meaning of motherhood, freedom and self discovery is a great beginning to Wragg’s Tales of the Plains trilogy. While The Hunters marks my initial encounter with his work, it is abundantly clear that he is an exceptionally adept author who’s capable of weaving a beautifully chaotic story filled with memorable characters that subtly delivers a touching message to the readers through them.
Even though the fantasy elements in The Hunters were sparse and infrequent, I was impressed by the intricate world building present in this book. The depiction of The Plains and the Mining Country of Kazeraz was richly detailed, offering a comprehensive portrayal of these settings. All the characters were unique and in most cases morally grey. The plot was solid and the mystery surrounding Javani’s birth and Ree’s past was beautifully integrated to the story, making the reader wants to know more. The adrenaline pumping action scenes were brilliantly executed.
Ree’s character was beautifully crafted. She’s mysterious, emotionally stunted, practical and fiery but the way Wragg explores the meaning of motherhood through her characters and how daunting it can be was truly touching. I adored Aki and Anashe. These siblings brought humor and laughter into the book, especially Aki. He had me laughing out loud at times. Their continuous bickering and banter was beautifully written. Through their characters Wragg managed to show the reader the true bond of siblings. Javani was sullen and demanding as much you’d expect from a pre-teen but deep down there was a beautiful layer of innocence to her that was looking for love.
My only qualms with The Hunters was that at times I felt Javani’s narrative read as an adult instead of a adolescent and the ending of the book read as a stand alone novel instead of beginning of a series.
Despite these miniscule things that didn’t really take away much from my reading experience The Hunters was an immensely enjoyable book. I loved every moment of this action packed, funny, thrilling yet heart wrenching story.
Even though the fantasy elements in The Hunters were sparse and infrequent, I was impressed by the intricate world building present in this book. The depiction of The Plains and the Mining Country of Kazeraz was richly detailed, offering a comprehensive portrayal of these settings. All the characters were unique and in most cases morally grey. The plot was solid and the mystery surrounding Javani’s birth and Ree’s past was beautifully integrated to the story, making the reader wants to know more. The adrenaline pumping action scenes were brilliantly executed.
Ree’s character was beautifully crafted. She’s mysterious, emotionally stunted, practical and fiery but the way Wragg explores the meaning of motherhood through her characters and how daunting it can be was truly touching. I adored Aki and Anashe. These siblings brought humor and laughter into the book, especially Aki. He had me laughing out loud at times. Their continuous bickering and banter was beautifully written. Through their characters Wragg managed to show the reader the true bond of siblings. Javani was sullen and demanding as much you’d expect from a pre-teen but deep down there was a beautiful layer of innocence to her that was looking for love.
My only qualms with The Hunters was that at times I felt Javani’s narrative read as an adult instead of a adolescent and the ending of the book read as a stand alone novel instead of beginning of a series.
Despite these miniscule things that didn’t really take away much from my reading experience The Hunters was an immensely enjoyable book. I loved every moment of this action packed, funny, thrilling yet heart wrenching story.
September 7, 2023
Alright, The Hunters. I've had a good time with Dave Wragg's books in the past, so I went in hopeful, but without much idea of what I was getting into. And you know what? What I got was a smart, funny, heartfelt story of a family trying to navigate around each other and the way they saw each other. I saw a woman with a chequered past trying to make something better, and a young woman looking for something better than that, pushing back. I saw some absolutely delightful chase scenes in a fantasy-western motif. I saw a few stark moments that felt like magic and made me go "Huh!". I got some twists and turns in the story that kept me on my toes, and I got some unpleasant villains to rail against and some delightful heroes to cheer along.
This is a good book, is what I'm saying to you here.
Perhaps the book is called The Hunters because everyone in it seems to be looking for something. The central duo are Ree and Javani. Now Javani. Javani is a smart girl, a simmering bowl of resentment of where she is now, in a mining town in the armpit of nowhere. Someone trying to make something of herself and work out what that something is, while trying to define her own identity. She's fast and thoughtful, someone always trying to put a plan together, someone pushing back against a world which seems destined to give her nothing but a provincial quiet life. And one of the main architects is the other half of that duo, her aunt, Ree. Javani is looking for identity and purpose, for parentage and truth, and working out who she wants to be. Ree. Ree knows who she is. Sometimes it seems like she wishes she didn't. Quite what's led her out into a dead-end farmstead in the middle of nowhere is something of a mystery. But you can feel the edges to Ree, the ones rounded away, a sharp blade kept sheathed, both metaphorically and physically. What Ree is looking for is that quiet life Javani rails so hard against - that life of safety, a space to let the girl come into her own. A space where Ree can perhaps walk away from the past, and what it did to her, and what she did, too. Their interactions are fierce and awkward, poignant and perilous in equal measure, and the energy of the space between them sparks with every word struck. It's a good time, this.
On the lighter side, of sorts, are the siblings, Anashe and Aki. Them? They're hunting for information, and they're hunting for history. They're looking to know about their family, about those who died, and why, and what they were like, before the two were born. And that trail has led them to a farmstead in the middle of nowhere. They have a different vibe to Ree and Javani. Aki, in particular, is an effervescent, endlessly positive delight, who assists that disposition by running a full speed motormouth, with a lexicon that would make a thesaurus blush. He's just fun to read. Anashe is the quieter, more contemplative, with a ground down patience for her brother and a vituperative tongue that she wields like a lash (mostly at Aki, which he mostly ignores). They're ruthless enough, and determined, and passionate, and trying to be better. There's a poignant undercurrent to their rare, quieter moments, as they work out what they're doing, and why.
And then, well, there's the others. Lazant and Kahlida are also hunting something. Something more, or less abstract perhaps. Power. Influence. A place of safety, security. The approval of a parent. But they're willing to wade in blood to get it, to grind their way through dust and lightning, blasting powder and blades, to grasp what they feel is theirs. Relentless, entitled, bloody and, at the core, contemptuous of these little towns and their little lives, they're a duo who you can feel festering behind golden smiles on every page where they appear.
This is a story about stories, too. About the stories we tell each other and ourselves. How Ree looks at herself. What she tells Javani about her past. What Javani tells herself about her future. What Aki and Anashe think they know and want to know about their family and why. And what the world tells itself about itself, a mining town slowly being absorbed by a guild with tentacles deep in more urban places, where they don't care about the miners, just the bottom line. Like the people, the place is a liminal space, a place on the edge of things. Straddling the wilderness and what insists on calling itself civilisation. What it's been is a place of safety, but what it might be is somewhere between a thriving town, and a desolate wasteland. I loved the way the quiet desperation of a marginal mining town was evoked, the core economic certainties behind the crossbows and charms, the gold behind the blood and steel.
And it's this blend of a vividly realised world, a world of grit and blood and love and tears, vengeance and joy, along with the strong characterisation, the tightly written, complex, human relationships, filled with simmering tensions, explosions (literal as well as metaphorical), the quiet moments, the drawn breath in the dark. That there's chases and swordfights and banter and, yes, more than one big explosion, is helpful, of course. But it's these things, these human moments that make this a book you want to read, and read again right after you're done.
Anyway. Bloody good book. Give it a whirl.
This is a good book, is what I'm saying to you here.
Perhaps the book is called The Hunters because everyone in it seems to be looking for something. The central duo are Ree and Javani. Now Javani. Javani is a smart girl, a simmering bowl of resentment of where she is now, in a mining town in the armpit of nowhere. Someone trying to make something of herself and work out what that something is, while trying to define her own identity. She's fast and thoughtful, someone always trying to put a plan together, someone pushing back against a world which seems destined to give her nothing but a provincial quiet life. And one of the main architects is the other half of that duo, her aunt, Ree. Javani is looking for identity and purpose, for parentage and truth, and working out who she wants to be. Ree. Ree knows who she is. Sometimes it seems like she wishes she didn't. Quite what's led her out into a dead-end farmstead in the middle of nowhere is something of a mystery. But you can feel the edges to Ree, the ones rounded away, a sharp blade kept sheathed, both metaphorically and physically. What Ree is looking for is that quiet life Javani rails so hard against - that life of safety, a space to let the girl come into her own. A space where Ree can perhaps walk away from the past, and what it did to her, and what she did, too. Their interactions are fierce and awkward, poignant and perilous in equal measure, and the energy of the space between them sparks with every word struck. It's a good time, this.
On the lighter side, of sorts, are the siblings, Anashe and Aki. Them? They're hunting for information, and they're hunting for history. They're looking to know about their family, about those who died, and why, and what they were like, before the two were born. And that trail has led them to a farmstead in the middle of nowhere. They have a different vibe to Ree and Javani. Aki, in particular, is an effervescent, endlessly positive delight, who assists that disposition by running a full speed motormouth, with a lexicon that would make a thesaurus blush. He's just fun to read. Anashe is the quieter, more contemplative, with a ground down patience for her brother and a vituperative tongue that she wields like a lash (mostly at Aki, which he mostly ignores). They're ruthless enough, and determined, and passionate, and trying to be better. There's a poignant undercurrent to their rare, quieter moments, as they work out what they're doing, and why.
And then, well, there's the others. Lazant and Kahlida are also hunting something. Something more, or less abstract perhaps. Power. Influence. A place of safety, security. The approval of a parent. But they're willing to wade in blood to get it, to grind their way through dust and lightning, blasting powder and blades, to grasp what they feel is theirs. Relentless, entitled, bloody and, at the core, contemptuous of these little towns and their little lives, they're a duo who you can feel festering behind golden smiles on every page where they appear.
This is a story about stories, too. About the stories we tell each other and ourselves. How Ree looks at herself. What she tells Javani about her past. What Javani tells herself about her future. What Aki and Anashe think they know and want to know about their family and why. And what the world tells itself about itself, a mining town slowly being absorbed by a guild with tentacles deep in more urban places, where they don't care about the miners, just the bottom line. Like the people, the place is a liminal space, a place on the edge of things. Straddling the wilderness and what insists on calling itself civilisation. What it's been is a place of safety, but what it might be is somewhere between a thriving town, and a desolate wasteland. I loved the way the quiet desperation of a marginal mining town was evoked, the core economic certainties behind the crossbows and charms, the gold behind the blood and steel.
And it's this blend of a vividly realised world, a world of grit and blood and love and tears, vengeance and joy, along with the strong characterisation, the tightly written, complex, human relationships, filled with simmering tensions, explosions (literal as well as metaphorical), the quiet moments, the drawn breath in the dark. That there's chases and swordfights and banter and, yes, more than one big explosion, is helpful, of course. But it's these things, these human moments that make this a book you want to read, and read again right after you're done.
Anyway. Bloody good book. Give it a whirl.
May 23, 2024
This one started off really promising but by the end I didn't feel attached to any of the characters which is lame. It was an enjoyable read but pretty underwhelming.
June 20, 2024
Enjoyable overall and fun escapism. I really enjoyed the characters. I found Ree and Javani to be very well written and seeing their stories unfold is what kept me reading. I do think this could've been a bit shorter, and it suffers from that phenomena where a character takes unsustainable injuries to heighten the drama, but are back to fighting within a few pages through sheer will.
Definitely recommend if you're looking for something fun with well written characters
Definitely recommend if you're looking for something fun with well written characters
July 21, 2023
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TLDR
ＴＬＤＲ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 - ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀꜱ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 - ᴘʟᴏᴛ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 - ꜱᴇᴛᴛɪɴɢ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 - ᴡʀɪᴛɪɴɢ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 - ᴘᴀᴄɪɴɢ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 - ᴇɴᴅɪɴɢ
°
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 - ꜰɪɴᴀʟ ʀᴀᴛɪɴɢ
-
Big thanks to Netgally, the author, and the publisher for letting me read an early copy of the book. My thoughts are my own.
This book is so incredibly packed with action, that it was literally playing in my head like I was watching an action movie. The Hunters feels like a classic western twisted with Mad Max:Fury Road meets Terminator 2. It was wildly good fun. Edge of the seat reading.
There are at least five female powerhouses in this book, and each one was distinct and individual. Wragg has written a huge female cast without a speck of male gaze. His depictions are not only solid but exceptional. This book feels incredibly feminist in such a refreshing and subtle way, and I think this book does an excellent job of exploring the theme of family.
I did wonder how engaging the general setting of the book would be. Deserts in fantasy books aren't usually my jam, but I actually loved how Wragg used the landscape as an obstacle so often. He made what could've been a potentially repetitive landscape into something visually striking on the page.
The Hunters happens to be one of those rare and wonderful cases where I actually feel like a fast reader. The sentence flow is smooth giving the overall narrative high readability. It's quick and easy and addictive. I loved it. I'm immediately going to go buy the book.
Fantastic start to the series. I've no idea where the next one could go but I'm 100% along for the ride, and yes, that pun is very much intended.
Full Review
Plot
This book is tangible proof that execution is everything. I don't normally enjoy Wild West inspired settings. Just not my jam. But I had to request this book from Netgalley. It's David Wragg. Need I say any more?
And let me tell you, the execution is good. I never imagined a book based solely on the hunt to murder a child could be this entertaining.
This book is so incredibly packed with action, that it was literally playing in my head like I was watching an action movie. I could see everything so vividly. It was wildly good fun and makes me wish there were more fantasy books out there that feel like good old-fashioned action romps.
If there isn't a fantasy/action crossover genre then why the hell not? This was so much fun!
The Hunters feels like a classic western twisted with Mad Max:Fury Road meets Terminator 2. Badass car chases through the desert while Lazant sure felt like a motherfucking T1000 at times, and Ree has mad Sarah Conner vibes, while the Black Spear is Arnie, of course. Haaa. I loved the Black Spear's determination to protect Javanni and the initial bait-and-switch with her character. This was edge of the seat reading. I can't praise it enough.
Characters
David Wragg has done something quite remarkable here. He somehow had me invested in every character. I felt all the correct feelings for every character. I loved the ones I was supposed to love and hated the ones I was supposed to hate. Isn't it just the worst when you hate the one you're meant to love? It can happen all too often, but not here. I disliked the bad guys for all the right reasons and grew deeply attached to the good guys, especially Aki!
The twists and turns of Ree and Javanni's relationship kept me on my toes, never quite knowing what the truth was, even right until the end. But I loved how the deeper message was not about what makes family, but who. Blood means little. If someone is your family, then they're family and that's all that matters. I think this book does an excellent job of exploring the theme of family.
The running joke of the White Spear being constantly run over by the same wagon didn't slip my attention and made me laugh every time. Seriously. Never got old. And the fact that despite all of Lazant's posturing and peacocking he's just a dude with mummy issues. So unexpected, but somewhat humanised him. Loved it.
This book feels incredibly feminist in such a refreshing and subtle way. It's like it's not even trying to be feminist, it just is. It's bold and explores a female experience without virtue signalling. God, I hope this book is well-received by male fantasy readers. There's nothing not to like here.
If David Wragg has proven he can do just one thing from his last book series, it was that he knew how to write solid female characters (Lemon still haunts my thoughts regularly). This accolade is only cemented with this novel. His depictions are not only solid but exceptional. This, ladies and gentlemen, is how you do it. There are at least five female powerhouses in this book, including the kid, I'd be remiss not to. And each one was distinct and individual, felt real, and had their own strengths and weaknesses, goals and fears. None of them were the Strong Female Character archetype we've all grown so sick of, but also none of them slipped into other cliches we hate, such as damsels, pure maidens, prostitutes, or just generally hyper-sexualised creatures. Basically, what I'm saying is, Wragg has written a huge female cast without a speck of male gaze. THIS is how you do it, people. If your female characters can be interchangeable with your male characters, then congratulations, you haven't written a 'female character', you've written a human being. And as a fellow human being, it's so damn satisfying and appreciated!
Setting
I did wonder how engaging the general setting of the book would be. Deserts in fantasy books aren't usually my jam just 'cause they aren't the most visually engaging things to picture. While deserts are quite striking to look at, there isn't much variety and one sandy dune can look much like the next, however and thankfully, I never had a chance to get bored with the landscape. There is barely a moment to breathe in this book, much complain about the view. I actually loved how Wragg used the landscape as an obstacle so often. Sandstorms, blistering heat, the perpetual dust clouds surrounding the chase. He made what could've been a potentially boring and repetitive landscape into something visually striking on the page. Bloody good show, chap.
Writing Style
The Hunters happens to be one of those rare and wonderful cases where I actually feel like a fast reader. The sentence flow is smooth giving the overall narrative high readability. It's quick and easy and addictive. The short chapter length also makes it very easy to say 'just one more'.
The humour is always appreciated. Something I loved so much about The Black Hawks books was the humour and the group banter. Wragg just has a knack for it, I suppose. And something I didn't expect to do during this read was cry. I don't just mean tearing up and getting over it as I do in other books. Tears were falling, nose red. I had to reapply my god damn eyeliner.
The only thing I wasn't a fan of, and not a fan of in any book, is storytime. When a plot is paused for characters to sit and talk about how the world was created or some such rather than it being included naturally into the narrative. Just not my thing. Chapter 14 is a little guilty of this. I want to be interested in what's being discussed, but this kind of exposition struggles to hold my attention. But I'm sure there're plenty who love that sort of thing.
But regardless, Wragg is a strong writer who really knows how to paint a scene without overcooking it. Solid writing. I can't wait to read all his future books and see where he creatively goes next.
Final Impression
I loved it. I'm immediately going to go buy the book. I was going to wait until the paperback release as I generally prefer paperbacks but damn it, I want it in my collection now, so I'm straight off to buy the hardback and shout about this book to anyone willing to listen.
There's probably a whole lot more I could say (praise) about this book, but this is all I can think of right now, so I'll leave this review here. Hopefully, I've said enough here to convince at least one reader to buy it.
Fantastic start to the series. I've no idea where the next one could go but I'm 100% along for the ride, and yes, that pun is very much intended.
TLDR
ＴＬＤＲ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 - ᴄʜᴀʀᴀᴄᴛᴇʀꜱ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 - ᴘʟᴏᴛ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 - ꜱᴇᴛᴛɪɴɢ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 - ᴡʀɪᴛɪɴɢ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕 - ᴘᴀᴄɪɴɢ
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌑 - ᴇɴᴅɪɴɢ
°
🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 - ꜰɪɴᴀʟ ʀᴀᴛɪɴɢ
-
Big thanks to Netgally, the author, and the publisher for letting me read an early copy of the book. My thoughts are my own.
This book is so incredibly packed with action, that it was literally playing in my head like I was watching an action movie. The Hunters feels like a classic western twisted with Mad Max:Fury Road meets Terminator 2. It was wildly good fun. Edge of the seat reading.
There are at least five female powerhouses in this book, and each one was distinct and individual. Wragg has written a huge female cast without a speck of male gaze. His depictions are not only solid but exceptional. This book feels incredibly feminist in such a refreshing and subtle way, and I think this book does an excellent job of exploring the theme of family.
I did wonder how engaging the general setting of the book would be. Deserts in fantasy books aren't usually my jam, but I actually loved how Wragg used the landscape as an obstacle so often. He made what could've been a potentially repetitive landscape into something visually striking on the page.
The Hunters happens to be one of those rare and wonderful cases where I actually feel like a fast reader. The sentence flow is smooth giving the overall narrative high readability. It's quick and easy and addictive. I loved it. I'm immediately going to go buy the book.
Fantastic start to the series. I've no idea where the next one could go but I'm 100% along for the ride, and yes, that pun is very much intended.
Full Review
Plot
This book is tangible proof that execution is everything. I don't normally enjoy Wild West inspired settings. Just not my jam. But I had to request this book from Netgalley. It's David Wragg. Need I say any more?
And let me tell you, the execution is good. I never imagined a book based solely on the hunt to murder a child could be this entertaining.
This book is so incredibly packed with action, that it was literally playing in my head like I was watching an action movie. I could see everything so vividly. It was wildly good fun and makes me wish there were more fantasy books out there that feel like good old-fashioned action romps.
If there isn't a fantasy/action crossover genre then why the hell not? This was so much fun!
The Hunters feels like a classic western twisted with Mad Max:Fury Road meets Terminator 2. Badass car chases through the desert while Lazant sure felt like a motherfucking T1000 at times, and Ree has mad Sarah Conner vibes, while the Black Spear is Arnie, of course. Haaa. I loved the Black Spear's determination to protect Javanni and the initial bait-and-switch with her character. This was edge of the seat reading. I can't praise it enough.
Characters
David Wragg has done something quite remarkable here. He somehow had me invested in every character. I felt all the correct feelings for every character. I loved the ones I was supposed to love and hated the ones I was supposed to hate. Isn't it just the worst when you hate the one you're meant to love? It can happen all too often, but not here. I disliked the bad guys for all the right reasons and grew deeply attached to the good guys, especially Aki!
The twists and turns of Ree and Javanni's relationship kept me on my toes, never quite knowing what the truth was, even right until the end. But I loved how the deeper message was not about what makes family, but who. Blood means little. If someone is your family, then they're family and that's all that matters. I think this book does an excellent job of exploring the theme of family.
The running joke of the White Spear being constantly run over by the same wagon didn't slip my attention and made me laugh every time. Seriously. Never got old. And the fact that despite all of Lazant's posturing and peacocking he's just a dude with mummy issues. So unexpected, but somewhat humanised him. Loved it.
This book feels incredibly feminist in such a refreshing and subtle way. It's like it's not even trying to be feminist, it just is. It's bold and explores a female experience without virtue signalling. God, I hope this book is well-received by male fantasy readers. There's nothing not to like here.
If David Wragg has proven he can do just one thing from his last book series, it was that he knew how to write solid female characters (Lemon still haunts my thoughts regularly). This accolade is only cemented with this novel. His depictions are not only solid but exceptional. This, ladies and gentlemen, is how you do it. There are at least five female powerhouses in this book, including the kid, I'd be remiss not to. And each one was distinct and individual, felt real, and had their own strengths and weaknesses, goals and fears. None of them were the Strong Female Character archetype we've all grown so sick of, but also none of them slipped into other cliches we hate, such as damsels, pure maidens, prostitutes, or just generally hyper-sexualised creatures. Basically, what I'm saying is, Wragg has written a huge female cast without a speck of male gaze. THIS is how you do it, people. If your female characters can be interchangeable with your male characters, then congratulations, you haven't written a 'female character', you've written a human being. And as a fellow human being, it's so damn satisfying and appreciated!
Setting
I did wonder how engaging the general setting of the book would be. Deserts in fantasy books aren't usually my jam just 'cause they aren't the most visually engaging things to picture. While deserts are quite striking to look at, there isn't much variety and one sandy dune can look much like the next, however and thankfully, I never had a chance to get bored with the landscape. There is barely a moment to breathe in this book, much complain about the view. I actually loved how Wragg used the landscape as an obstacle so often. Sandstorms, blistering heat, the perpetual dust clouds surrounding the chase. He made what could've been a potentially boring and repetitive landscape into something visually striking on the page. Bloody good show, chap.
Writing Style
The Hunters happens to be one of those rare and wonderful cases where I actually feel like a fast reader. The sentence flow is smooth giving the overall narrative high readability. It's quick and easy and addictive. The short chapter length also makes it very easy to say 'just one more'.
The humour is always appreciated. Something I loved so much about The Black Hawks books was the humour and the group banter. Wragg just has a knack for it, I suppose. And something I didn't expect to do during this read was cry. I don't just mean tearing up and getting over it as I do in other books. Tears were falling, nose red. I had to reapply my god damn eyeliner.
The only thing I wasn't a fan of, and not a fan of in any book, is storytime. When a plot is paused for characters to sit and talk about how the world was created or some such rather than it being included naturally into the narrative. Just not my thing. Chapter 14 is a little guilty of this. I want to be interested in what's being discussed, but this kind of exposition struggles to hold my attention. But I'm sure there're plenty who love that sort of thing.
But regardless, Wragg is a strong writer who really knows how to paint a scene without overcooking it. Solid writing. I can't wait to read all his future books and see where he creatively goes next.
Final Impression
I loved it. I'm immediately going to go buy the book. I was going to wait until the paperback release as I generally prefer paperbacks but damn it, I want it in my collection now, so I'm straight off to buy the hardback and shout about this book to anyone willing to listen.
There's probably a whole lot more I could say (praise) about this book, but this is all I can think of right now, so I'll leave this review here. Hopefully, I've said enough here to convince at least one reader to buy it.
Fantastic start to the series. I've no idea where the next one could go but I'm 100% along for the ride, and yes, that pun is very much intended.
July 19, 2023
This review is also posted on FanFiAddict.com
There’s a moment in David Wragg’s The Hunters, the first book of a new trilogy, where I had a sudden realisation that, to borrow from gamer lingo, Wragg has levelled up as an author. We’re about a quarter of the way in. A bunch of shady characters have arrived at a desert town. It’s a bit chaotic; we’re still trying to guess at their identity and motivations (and keep track of them). Then, with the backdrop of an exciting prison showdown, all the characters meet and the pieces become clearer; a sudden revealing of the narrative waters. We are now fully on board. It sounds like a simple thing, but I’ve read enough fantasies to know how hard this is. The tightness of the execution here tells me something. With his second series, Wragg is here to make a statement.
And what a statement it is. This is an on-the-run action-packed fantasy with wild west vibes – other labels might apply, we’re all friends here – that focuses on a scarred, white-haired, 40ish woman called Ree who lives with her niece Javani in the aforesaid desert town. When their desert plains existence is disturbed by the arrival of some hired killers, Javani will learn the truth about her parents and be forced to flee with her aunt, on the run from a prince from a faraway kingdom, his creepy assassin and a whole lot of mercenaries. Ree and Javani are joined by an eccentric crew that includes a squabbling brother and sister duo seeking the truth about their family and a hulking female mercenary known as the White Spear who may be friend or foe but you definitely don’t want to be mugging in a dark alley or, in fact, any alley.
The remarkable thing about The Hunters is its duality. On the one hand, it is full of action – chock a block with it. In fact, there is a glorious symmetry about it. There’s a stand off… followed by a chase. A stand off… followed by a chase… a stand off… you get the idea. It has a strong Mad Max Fury Road vibe about it (a film reference mentioned by Wragg himself in my interview with him, which is incredibly annoying because I’d already thought of it and now no-one will believe me.) These actions scenes are full of fun and executed with joyful aplomb: explosions, deadly assassins, horse-mounted fighting, more explosions, spear combat, diversions, cavefalls, the lot.
But, on the other hand, we see Wragg focus on characters’ relationships more than before. Wragg’s previous fantasy duology, The Articles of Faith, was the classic “mercenaries with heart” story, equally combining roguish found family with continent-wide political and religious shenanigans – and very good it was too. But here, although there is some interesting talk about guilds and miners’ rights and some discussion of faraway politics, Wragg is in the main laser-focused on the relationship between Ree and Javani. The focus of the world has narrowed to a couple of relationships at the most, and the result is an authorial maturity that raises Wragg’s work to new levels:
The way that Wragg mixes action and blinding pace (this is the most fast-paced fantasy you will read all year) while giving us deeply explored themes of parental duty, found family, family trauma and the power of a personal story, is remarkable. This mix of deep character moments – one at the end will suck the tears out of you like an emotional Dyson – with action is more fun than a champagne mouthwash.
Oh and did I mention it’s funny? This won’t be a surprise to previous Wragg fans, but his brand of Pratchett-esque annoying character traits and snappy, witty banter continues apace here. Of particular joy is Aki, the brother in the sibling duo who accompany Ree and Javani, who has a habit of unnecessary verbiage:
Wragg has a penchant for making minor characters have a day in their sun, too, and along with the POVs of our erstwhile heroes we get a motley crew of mercenaries and criminals following in the wake of our heroes. The star of this show is the White Spear, a massive mercenary who shrugs off arrows and pretty much everything else thrown at her in her quest to fulfill her contract. Every scene she is in she steals the show. But others have their time, too. My favourite was a seemingly insignificant criminal who gets his own backstory and ends up having his own hero moment. It’s this attention to minor characters that tells me I’m reading confidently-written fantasy.
There’s that word again. Confident. You see, with The Hunters, Wragg has ascended to top-tier fantasy status. He’s not afraid to have it all: the relentlessly fast-paced action and the deep character beats. With this trilogy, Wragg is taking his fantasy writing to new heights, and if you’re any kind of fantasy fan, you can’t afford to not be on the road with him.
There’s a moment in David Wragg’s The Hunters, the first book of a new trilogy, where I had a sudden realisation that, to borrow from gamer lingo, Wragg has levelled up as an author. We’re about a quarter of the way in. A bunch of shady characters have arrived at a desert town. It’s a bit chaotic; we’re still trying to guess at their identity and motivations (and keep track of them). Then, with the backdrop of an exciting prison showdown, all the characters meet and the pieces become clearer; a sudden revealing of the narrative waters. We are now fully on board. It sounds like a simple thing, but I’ve read enough fantasies to know how hard this is. The tightness of the execution here tells me something. With his second series, Wragg is here to make a statement.
And what a statement it is. This is an on-the-run action-packed fantasy with wild west vibes – other labels might apply, we’re all friends here – that focuses on a scarred, white-haired, 40ish woman called Ree who lives with her niece Javani in the aforesaid desert town. When their desert plains existence is disturbed by the arrival of some hired killers, Javani will learn the truth about her parents and be forced to flee with her aunt, on the run from a prince from a faraway kingdom, his creepy assassin and a whole lot of mercenaries. Ree and Javani are joined by an eccentric crew that includes a squabbling brother and sister duo seeking the truth about their family and a hulking female mercenary known as the White Spear who may be friend or foe but you definitely don’t want to be mugging in a dark alley or, in fact, any alley.
The remarkable thing about The Hunters is its duality. On the one hand, it is full of action – chock a block with it. In fact, there is a glorious symmetry about it. There’s a stand off… followed by a chase. A stand off… followed by a chase… a stand off… you get the idea. It has a strong Mad Max Fury Road vibe about it (a film reference mentioned by Wragg himself in my interview with him, which is incredibly annoying because I’d already thought of it and now no-one will believe me.) These actions scenes are full of fun and executed with joyful aplomb: explosions, deadly assassins, horse-mounted fighting, more explosions, spear combat, diversions, cavefalls, the lot.
But, on the other hand, we see Wragg focus on characters’ relationships more than before. Wragg’s previous fantasy duology, The Articles of Faith, was the classic “mercenaries with heart” story, equally combining roguish found family with continent-wide political and religious shenanigans – and very good it was too. But here, although there is some interesting talk about guilds and miners’ rights and some discussion of faraway politics, Wragg is in the main laser-focused on the relationship between Ree and Javani. The focus of the world has narrowed to a couple of relationships at the most, and the result is an authorial maturity that raises Wragg’s work to new levels:
‘You always say “she’s not mine”,’ Javani snapped, her voice rising. ‘As fast as you can, just in case people for an instant get the wrong idea. Gods forgive anyone should think we’re related.’
Ree was back on her feet. ‘I wasn’t denying responsibility for you, you goose, I was denying ownership!’
Javani’s mouth was half open. ‘Come again?’
‘People talk about children as if they’re possessions. I know a little bit about what it’s like to be treated as one.’ Ree was breathing hard, her chest rising and falling in the firelight, beads of sweat clear on her brow. ‘I never wanted that for you. You’ve been yours since you could walk, since you could speak. You’ve always been yours. I was only ever a custodian.’
Javani stood for a moment, watching the other woman breathing, feeling her own breath, hot in her throat and chest. ‘Well . . . that’s . . . In that case, it’s time to start treating me like that, and not just saying it.’
The way that Wragg mixes action and blinding pace (this is the most fast-paced fantasy you will read all year) while giving us deeply explored themes of parental duty, found family, family trauma and the power of a personal story, is remarkable. This mix of deep character moments – one at the end will suck the tears out of you like an emotional Dyson – with action is more fun than a champagne mouthwash.
Oh and did I mention it’s funny? This won’t be a surprise to previous Wragg fans, but his brand of Pratchett-esque annoying character traits and snappy, witty banter continues apace here. Of particular joy is Aki, the brother in the sibling duo who accompany Ree and Javani, who has a habit of unnecessary verbiage:
“Aki, indulge me. Tell me more of this agency you worked for.’
He turned to face her, legs and one side of his body crusted with blown sand. ‘It was a small thing, a curio, a trifle, but independent of spirit and endeavour, possessed of a zeal for—’
‘Aki, listen to me. There exist people who are charmed by grandiloquence and sesquipedalianism. I am not one of them. When I ask you a question, I expect an answer that is both short and to the point. Delivering otherwise risks incurring my wrath, which is already wild and abroad this evening. Do you understand me?’
‘Yes,’ he replied with a brilliant smile.
Ree found herself half-smiling in return, shaking her head at the insanity of it all. ‘You may be the most annoying person I’ve ever met,’ she said, ‘and I’ve met some types.’
‘My thanks,’ he said, still smiling. ‘It is flattering to be recognised for one’s talents.’
Wragg has a penchant for making minor characters have a day in their sun, too, and along with the POVs of our erstwhile heroes we get a motley crew of mercenaries and criminals following in the wake of our heroes. The star of this show is the White Spear, a massive mercenary who shrugs off arrows and pretty much everything else thrown at her in her quest to fulfill her contract. Every scene she is in she steals the show. But others have their time, too. My favourite was a seemingly insignificant criminal who gets his own backstory and ends up having his own hero moment. It’s this attention to minor characters that tells me I’m reading confidently-written fantasy.
There’s that word again. Confident. You see, with The Hunters, Wragg has ascended to top-tier fantasy status. He’s not afraid to have it all: the relentlessly fast-paced action and the deep character beats. With this trilogy, Wragg is taking his fantasy writing to new heights, and if you’re any kind of fantasy fan, you can’t afford to not be on the road with him.
August 10, 2024
David Wragg’s The Hunters is a fast paced and addictive story that follows Ree and her twelve year old niece Javani. After many years moving from place to place, they have settled on a farm in a mining community in the middle of nowhere. When a group of killers comes to the town looking for a young girl and an older woman, Ree and Javani are forced to flee across the desert and mountains. A deadly chase occurs, but will Ree be able to keep them both alive and keep her secrets intact?
David Wragg is such a fantastic writer and I knew going in that I was going to love this one. The story is full of twists and surprise moments and there’s plenty of action and edge of your seat moments. Wragg has a writing style that’s really gripping and there were lots of times I told myself I should put this book down but ended up reading one more chapter. The witty dialogue works really well and the sandy desert setting really comes to life in Wragg’s prose.
The Hunters has some really compelling characters and I found myself really growing attached to Ree, Javani and of course Aki and Anashe. The characters are really well crafted and it was really interesting the way family dynamics were explored between these characters. While there are some light hearted moments in the story, there are also plenty of dark and gritty moments too. The Hunters is the first book in this series and I can’t wait to see where Wragg takes the story next. If you’ve read The Black Hawks you’ll absolutely fall in love with The Hunters . If you’re looking for a fast paced, blood thirsty fantasy tale to sink your teeth into, you definitely don’t want to miss this one.
David Wragg is such a fantastic writer and I knew going in that I was going to love this one. The story is full of twists and surprise moments and there’s plenty of action and edge of your seat moments. Wragg has a writing style that’s really gripping and there were lots of times I told myself I should put this book down but ended up reading one more chapter. The witty dialogue works really well and the sandy desert setting really comes to life in Wragg’s prose.
The Hunters has some really compelling characters and I found myself really growing attached to Ree, Javani and of course Aki and Anashe. The characters are really well crafted and it was really interesting the way family dynamics were explored between these characters. While there are some light hearted moments in the story, there are also plenty of dark and gritty moments too. The Hunters is the first book in this series and I can’t wait to see where Wragg takes the story next. If you’ve read The Black Hawks you’ll absolutely fall in love with The Hunters . If you’re looking for a fast paced, blood thirsty fantasy tale to sink your teeth into, you definitely don’t want to miss this one.
August 14, 2023
‘Ree is a woman with a violent past – a past she thought she’d left behind. After years of wandering, she and her niece Javani have finally built a small life for themselves at the edge of the known world.
But sometimes the past refuses to stay there, and Ree’s is about to catch up with her. This time, there will be blood.’
Oh guys, I wanted to absolutely love this book, I was so sold on the premise but for me personally I wasn’t able to find that connection to the characters this time. Don’t get me wrong it is beautifully written and the world building was very thorough but I find myself not caring about whether they were caught up to or not.
I did find there were some great comedy moments and some of the characters relationships to each other were loving shown to be very strong.
I just have a personal ick against secret keeping and there was a ton of it being dragged out knowingly for no apparent reason.
You definitely found the villainous characters deserving of their trials and tribulations throughout the story.
Overall a good read but I thought it would be a standalone until the last sentence.
Thanks to Harper Collins and Netgalley for the ARC.
But sometimes the past refuses to stay there, and Ree’s is about to catch up with her. This time, there will be blood.’
Oh guys, I wanted to absolutely love this book, I was so sold on the premise but for me personally I wasn’t able to find that connection to the characters this time. Don’t get me wrong it is beautifully written and the world building was very thorough but I find myself not caring about whether they were caught up to or not.
I did find there were some great comedy moments and some of the characters relationships to each other were loving shown to be very strong.
I just have a personal ick against secret keeping and there was a ton of it being dragged out knowingly for no apparent reason.
You definitely found the villainous characters deserving of their trials and tribulations throughout the story.
Overall a good read but I thought it would be a standalone until the last sentence.
Thanks to Harper Collins and Netgalley for the ARC.
November 18, 2023
A must read
August 27, 2023
What an absolutely wonderful read!
We get to follow Ree, a woman who comes from a violent and blood-stained past. She has left that life behind, having found her safe place in a small farm on the edge of a mining country in Kazeraz. Life is hard but peaceful until two sets of professional killers begin a hunt to find an older woman and a young girl believed to have ties to the Shenak throne. What follows is a chase across the desert and a desperate race to survive.
I want to start this off by saying that I absolutely adore Aki and Anashe. Their bickering and fighting is so typical of a sibling relationship and so spot on that I can do little else but to love them. Aki thinks he’s a poet, a wordsmith, a blessing from the Goddess and Anashe is immensely irritated by his antics.
"Sister, my words! How am I to compose my works without vocabulary, without lexicon? I am bereft, I am shorn and impoverished, my very-"
"Sounds like you have plenty of words," Javani volunteered.
"By the Goddess, you are right! I am restored! The light shines upon me again. Once more shall the desert echo to the sounds of-,"
Ree and Javani was also a duo that was very interesting to follow. Javani is a typical teenager, hands down. She's prone to surliness and she's demanding, but it's also mixed with an innocence, a kindness and a need to feel loved. Ree however, is an emotionally hardened woman. She is as practical as she is fierce. Her relationship with her niece Javani is strained at best really. Neither of them seem affectionate toward each other, but following them through their journey sure pulled on my heartstrings.
The White Spear, a giant mercenary, was also a character that I greatly enjoyed reading about (and the amount of times she got ran over by a wagon).
Wragg's prose is witty and grips the reader in such a way that it is hard to actually put the book down. He creates characters that are engaging and interesting, none of them really fading to the background or having other personalities completely take over. Like I previously stated, the pure banter and arguments between the siblings were my favorite (perhaps mainly because it reminds me of me and my own sister). It sounds and comes across so naturally that it's enjoyable. Sometimes banter like this can come across as quite forced, but not here. The story, while it has a big emotional charge, especially toward the end, is injected with humor and jokes; it works as a counterbalance to the world the story is set, gritty and dark.
"I'm quite aware of your station Guildmaster." Guvuli spat the last word. "Or did you forget your public delight in ordering the hanging of my brothers?"
"And I'd do it again!" Roared Kurush. "I'd string up a thousand of your kind in the Guild's name, parasites and vexations all. A justified act of cleaning."
"Seems to me right now that the only difference between parasites like and and parasites like you is that seal in your hand."
The Hunters by David Wragg is one of my favorite reads of the year so far. I will most definitely look forward to following these characters in future books!
A huge thank you to the publisher for the ARC.
We get to follow Ree, a woman who comes from a violent and blood-stained past. She has left that life behind, having found her safe place in a small farm on the edge of a mining country in Kazeraz. Life is hard but peaceful until two sets of professional killers begin a hunt to find an older woman and a young girl believed to have ties to the Shenak throne. What follows is a chase across the desert and a desperate race to survive.
I want to start this off by saying that I absolutely adore Aki and Anashe. Their bickering and fighting is so typical of a sibling relationship and so spot on that I can do little else but to love them. Aki thinks he’s a poet, a wordsmith, a blessing from the Goddess and Anashe is immensely irritated by his antics.
"Sister, my words! How am I to compose my works without vocabulary, without lexicon? I am bereft, I am shorn and impoverished, my very-"
"Sounds like you have plenty of words," Javani volunteered.
"By the Goddess, you are right! I am restored! The light shines upon me again. Once more shall the desert echo to the sounds of-,"
Ree and Javani was also a duo that was very interesting to follow. Javani is a typical teenager, hands down. She's prone to surliness and she's demanding, but it's also mixed with an innocence, a kindness and a need to feel loved. Ree however, is an emotionally hardened woman. She is as practical as she is fierce. Her relationship with her niece Javani is strained at best really. Neither of them seem affectionate toward each other, but following them through their journey sure pulled on my heartstrings.
The White Spear, a giant mercenary, was also a character that I greatly enjoyed reading about (and the amount of times she got ran over by a wagon).
Wragg's prose is witty and grips the reader in such a way that it is hard to actually put the book down. He creates characters that are engaging and interesting, none of them really fading to the background or having other personalities completely take over. Like I previously stated, the pure banter and arguments between the siblings were my favorite (perhaps mainly because it reminds me of me and my own sister). It sounds and comes across so naturally that it's enjoyable. Sometimes banter like this can come across as quite forced, but not here. The story, while it has a big emotional charge, especially toward the end, is injected with humor and jokes; it works as a counterbalance to the world the story is set, gritty and dark.
"I'm quite aware of your station Guildmaster." Guvuli spat the last word. "Or did you forget your public delight in ordering the hanging of my brothers?"
"And I'd do it again!" Roared Kurush. "I'd string up a thousand of your kind in the Guild's name, parasites and vexations all. A justified act of cleaning."
"Seems to me right now that the only difference between parasites like and and parasites like you is that seal in your hand."
The Hunters by David Wragg is one of my favorite reads of the year so far. I will most definitely look forward to following these characters in future books!
A huge thank you to the publisher for the ARC.
September 30, 2023
This is, pretty much, a Western-inflected fantasy saga. Beyond one of the minor characters, a merchant, having the spice of the Silk Road, we're in the world of dusty mining outposts, deserts galore, rocky places, impenetrable mountain frontiers, and so on. Munitions are alchemy, crossbows and variously-shaped swords are chief arms, and a mahoosive armoured horse-drawn wagon is key to the drama's movement at times, however much other people ride camels. Ree and the girl she looks after, Javani, are trying their best to settle down – for once in their lives – but being leant on by the local greaseball politician is not ideal. That will soon stop, as we might guess, when we see other people all converge on the town. It turns out Javani has A Secret Destiny, meaning some people want her dead, others will lay their lives down for her, and a lot of Stuff has to be worked out.
As interesting as this gets, and as dramatic the Western-styled action, such as an attack on said wagon, this is very flawed, and partly from the pacing. It can't all be one-note drama, but the lull before that attack was painful, and the way too much of the story hinges on yawnsome Family Issues really never had a chance of appealing to me. Elsewhere, one character is so strong it's like the author doesn't know what to do with them – they're seemingly a perfect warrior and he has to be very heavy-handed in thunking them off the page for the others to show their merits. There is also the strong tang of contrivance, too – the jailbreak deus ex machina during the first third, for one. Oh, and why does the text allow itself to mention once how damnably awkward it would be if anyone – ANYONE – were to attack the wagon through its team of eight horses, then refuse to allow any actual character to think as sensibly as that?
Leaving, then, a read that has what I would call minor benefits, but may well be essential in making this a delight for others. The cinematic scope is a given, considering the genre – the female-led action not. The world building is strong (as is the language borrowed from ours, if that is an issue), to the extent we get several verbose and unlikeable people on these pages to even out the heroic females. But this is an action piece, for me, hampered by two things. One definitely is the yack about mummies – even when trying to go pell-mell through the set pieces, it's mummy this, family that, ooh my childhood, the other mummy once more. The other has to be the insufferable number of switcheroo attempts about who is dead and who isn't. It's interminable (or is it?!). And the way the vulnerable horses have to combine to make the characters stupid is a distant second to how stupid the book makes you feel when the characters all turn into Pythonesque Black Knights, fighting on gamely long after they should be corpses. This did start out alright, but by the end had left all hope of me trying to read the rest of the trilogy long behind. One and a half stars.
Oh, and how can so much be seen inside an abandoned mine?
As interesting as this gets, and as dramatic the Western-styled action, such as an attack on said wagon, this is very flawed, and partly from the pacing. It can't all be one-note drama, but the lull before that attack was painful, and the way too much of the story hinges on yawnsome Family Issues really never had a chance of appealing to me. Elsewhere, one character is so strong it's like the author doesn't know what to do with them – they're seemingly a perfect warrior and he has to be very heavy-handed in thunking them off the page for the others to show their merits. There is also the strong tang of contrivance, too – the jailbreak deus ex machina during the first third, for one. Oh, and why does the text allow itself to mention once how damnably awkward it would be if anyone – ANYONE – were to attack the wagon through its team of eight horses, then refuse to allow any actual character to think as sensibly as that?
Leaving, then, a read that has what I would call minor benefits, but may well be essential in making this a delight for others. The cinematic scope is a given, considering the genre – the female-led action not. The world building is strong (as is the language borrowed from ours, if that is an issue), to the extent we get several verbose and unlikeable people on these pages to even out the heroic females. But this is an action piece, for me, hampered by two things. One definitely is the yack about mummies – even when trying to go pell-mell through the set pieces, it's mummy this, family that, ooh my childhood, the other mummy once more. The other has to be the insufferable number of switcheroo attempts about who is dead and who isn't. It's interminable (or is it?!). And the way the vulnerable horses have to combine to make the characters stupid is a distant second to how stupid the book makes you feel when the characters all turn into Pythonesque Black Knights, fighting on gamely long after they should be corpses. This did start out alright, but by the end had left all hope of me trying to read the rest of the trilogy long behind. One and a half stars.
Oh, and how can so much be seen inside an abandoned mine?
July 18, 2023
The Hunters is the first in the new Tales of Plains series by David Wragg
Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Voyager for the digital arc. The Hunters will be released this week on Thursday 20th July.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Black Hawks and The Righteous by the author and so was very excited when I saw he has a new book set in the same world.
Ree and her niece Javani have been wandering for a long time and finally think they have found a place to settle down outside a mining town on the frontier. All appears to be going well, that is until the groups of professional killers arrive in town looking for an older woman and a young girl. They flee into the desert and must find their way to freedom.
I really enjoyed ‘The Hunters’ ; it was a thoroughly enjoyable, wonderfully humourous romp. The setting was really well done. I loved the frontier town with its different groups such as the guild and the Guvuli brothers and from there into the desert and mountains and mines it all felt so natural. The plot flowed really well and it most certainly kept me hooked and wanting more. I loved the characters. The characters absolutely made the book. Ree and Javani had a wonderfully complex dynamic and the different groups chasing the duo had their own relationships but the standout characters for me were Anashe and her brother Aki. Aki stole the show as a lovably verbose protective poet one might even call him a warrior philosopher. Their banter and sibling affection was a high point.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to any fans of fantasy and especially if you enjoyed the author’s first series Articles of Faith as you might find a small connection to that series. I cannot wait for the next one.
Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Voyager for the digital arc. The Hunters will be released this week on Thursday 20th July.
I thoroughly enjoyed The Black Hawks and The Righteous by the author and so was very excited when I saw he has a new book set in the same world.
Ree and her niece Javani have been wandering for a long time and finally think they have found a place to settle down outside a mining town on the frontier. All appears to be going well, that is until the groups of professional killers arrive in town looking for an older woman and a young girl. They flee into the desert and must find their way to freedom.
I really enjoyed ‘The Hunters’ ; it was a thoroughly enjoyable, wonderfully humourous romp. The setting was really well done. I loved the frontier town with its different groups such as the guild and the Guvuli brothers and from there into the desert and mountains and mines it all felt so natural. The plot flowed really well and it most certainly kept me hooked and wanting more. I loved the characters. The characters absolutely made the book. Ree and Javani had a wonderfully complex dynamic and the different groups chasing the duo had their own relationships but the standout characters for me were Anashe and her brother Aki. Aki stole the show as a lovably verbose protective poet one might even call him a warrior philosopher. Their banter and sibling affection was a high point.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to any fans of fantasy and especially if you enjoyed the author’s first series Articles of Faith as you might find a small connection to that series. I cannot wait for the next one.
September 5, 2024
It took me a while to get into the flow of this one. Most characters are talkative to the point where I did occasionally tune out dialogue until I could refocus. Ironically, Aki's segments were a wonderful cleanser and anchored me pretty well. He and Javani were delightful to read whenever they got the spotlight.
With 'The Hunters' being only the first in a series, it's understandable that some of the background mysteries will remain just that. Still, I would've liked to gain more insight into the pasts of Anashe, Ree, and the White Spear, as well as an inkling of what the future might hold for them. I hope we'll get a chance to learn more about each of them in the future installments.
Oddly enough, it was the chase and the action packed sequences that threw me for a loop. I kept expecting for Ree to be more impactful on the flow of the scene each time, to see the badass past self be revealed. And each time, a different twist served as the solution to their trouble. Some of these moments were solid and entertaining, so no complaints. Still, after going 'is this when Ree does something cool' so many times, I guess I was worn out by the time when that actually does happen.
Verdict? Countles 'how about now' moments out of 5 and one torn reader...
Will I pick up a sequel? I think so. Javani is precocious and endearing, there are great moments between her and Ree, and their small group of allies. My rating here would be somewhere between 'liked it' and 'really liked it' because there were many side plots and story fragments that had me intrigued (e.g. the progression for Movos Guvuli's arc, Aki and Ashane's quest, etc.) but the main storyline dragged on too often.
With 'The Hunters' being only the first in a series, it's understandable that some of the background mysteries will remain just that. Still, I would've liked to gain more insight into the pasts of Anashe, Ree, and the White Spear, as well as an inkling of what the future might hold for them. I hope we'll get a chance to learn more about each of them in the future installments.
Oddly enough, it was the chase and the action packed sequences that threw me for a loop. I kept expecting for Ree to be more impactful on the flow of the scene each time, to see the badass past self be revealed. And each time, a different twist served as the solution to their trouble. Some of these moments were solid and entertaining, so no complaints. Still, after going 'is this when Ree does something cool' so many times, I guess I was worn out by the time when that actually does happen.
Verdict? Countles 'how about now' moments out of 5 and one torn reader...
Will I pick up a sequel? I think so. Javani is precocious and endearing, there are great moments between her and Ree, and their small group of allies. My rating here would be somewhere between 'liked it' and 'really liked it' because there were many side plots and story fragments that had me intrigued (e.g. the progression for Movos Guvuli's arc, Aki and Ashane's quest, etc.) but the main storyline dragged on too often.
October 31, 2025
This book started off well enough for me. Fairly light, some good action and some characters that seemed interesting at the very least (I'd not come across David Wragg's work before). The first half was decent enough. And then the book got going! The pace picked up, those characters that seemed OK became vivid, powerful, special (and that included some of the really quite minor ones - I really like Movos!).
Ree and Jivani's relationship is at the heart of this. It has highs and lows to it but it is never uninteresting. Ultimately it is very powerful, very well written dialogue that might just bring a tear to the eye... Mine was an audio book and for me the narration was really good. It kept me completely engaged and brought the characters to life in very colourful ways. I've got the second book and will look forward to listening to it.
This is quite lightweight humourous fantasy however don't let fool you into thinking it is something inferior. This is good storytelling. People who have enjoyed Jonathan French's books or Scott Lynch's Gentleman Bastard series might well be interested in this.
Ree and Jivani's relationship is at the heart of this. It has highs and lows to it but it is never uninteresting. Ultimately it is very powerful, very well written dialogue that might just bring a tear to the eye... Mine was an audio book and for me the narration was really good. It kept me completely engaged and brought the characters to life in very colourful ways. I've got the second book and will look forward to listening to it.
This is quite lightweight humourous fantasy however don't let fool you into thinking it is something inferior. This is good storytelling. People who have enjoyed Jonathan French's books or Scott Lynch's Gentleman Bastard series might well be interested in this.
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