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Blood and Masks
Calidus Varin, a member of an ancient order of elven demon hunters, has lived in the shadow of his master, Tullius the Black, for the better part of a century. Varin coasts on their combined fame, earning a reputation for recklessness, a taste for wine and women, and a irresistible inclination for boasting about his precious few exploits.
When a routine hunt on the city's outskirts demands the execution of an innocent child, Varin is forced to reconsider his master’s teachings (and sanity). By delaying the execution and investigating a subsequent rash of inexplicable demon infestations, Varin stumbles upon an apocalyptic conspiracy that leads straight to his temple's doorstep. Everyone he knows becomes suspect. His life—and the lives of his friends—are thrust into mortal peril.
Faced with the sudden arrival of a cunning Imperial magus, Varin enlists the aid of his closest friends: a wizard, a forest spirit, a skilled huntress, and a goddess. He also might have made an alliance with the creatures he’s sworn to dispatch. As the city threatens to sink into the abyss, Varin must fight to protect the city he loves—or die trying.
When a routine hunt on the city's outskirts demands the execution of an innocent child, Varin is forced to reconsider his master’s teachings (and sanity). By delaying the execution and investigating a subsequent rash of inexplicable demon infestations, Varin stumbles upon an apocalyptic conspiracy that leads straight to his temple's doorstep. Everyone he knows becomes suspect. His life—and the lives of his friends—are thrust into mortal peril.
Faced with the sudden arrival of a cunning Imperial magus, Varin enlists the aid of his closest friends: a wizard, a forest spirit, a skilled huntress, and a goddess. He also might have made an alliance with the creatures he’s sworn to dispatch. As the city threatens to sink into the abyss, Varin must fight to protect the city he loves—or die trying.
- GenresFantasy
483 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 29, 2015
1 person is currently reading
33 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 29, 2015
I picked up this book because Alex is someone I know of from the World of Warcraft website where he is editor in chief of: blizzardwatch.com. His signature on the site mentioned the book and, as an aspiring author myself, I thought I would give it a shot. It is pretty obviously a first novel, but I say that more as an observation than a warning. All authors have to start somewhere, and since his first one is pretty good I can only expect them to get better from here!
Blood and Masks is the story of Varin, an apprentice demon hunter. He is also an elf, but you aren't going to find the idealistic Tolkien-esque elves here. Varin and his master, Tullius the Black, are called on a mission for a rich family that, at first, seems quite routine. But when completing the distruction of the demon would also mean killing an innocent child, Varin finds himself hesitating and truly starting to question his master for the first time. This event starts a chain of event that sweeps Varin in to the role of protector of the city of Neva Cora-- a task he must complete at any cost.
As always, this is completely subjective. What I may love about a story may be tedious to someone else, and vice versa. Take this, as with all reviews, with a grain of salt.
The Good:
The best parts about this book, for me, are the excerpts from the journal of Odo the Old. It is such a clever way to explore details of the world of Neva Cora that the main character takes for granted as being the way the world is. It explores history and culture in a way that Varin, being illiterate, may not even know about. It enriched the world substantially and gave it a truly interesting picture. There is a lot of inspiration from Rome in the story, which Alex doesn’t try to hide, and I think that is spectacular. It is fun to play with and tweak actual cultures from the past and see what small changes will do to it. I find drawing on ancient cultures to be an excellent thing.
The plot was clear and easy to follow in a very good way. At no point in the story did I have to stop and figure out how we had gotten from point A to point E. I could follow the story smoothly, which makes me a happy reader.
The details in both city and fight scenes were very well done. Alex took the time to go over very fine details. Someone reading the story might even, at the end, be able to draw a rough map of the city and locations.
I enjoyed the grey area the book brought up. The demons are not good, but there is a certain ambiguity to the morality of their complete destruction that I find fascinating. There are also good spirits that are addressed that I quite like and bring a good level of where the supernatural falls that is good for the growth of the story.
I find the religion to be an interesting concept. I love well developed religions in my book, and (Title) has them a plenty. You get the sense of a larger world with a great deal of history, and the choices of worship when the Gods pretty demonstrably exist are interesting.
The Bad:
It took me over 400 pages to find a character I really felt I could like. While all the characters were brilliantly flawed, it seemed to come at the expense of the characters actually being likeable. The flaws are so in your face and driving the characters that anything good about them is forced in to the background. Varin is, for me, the worst example of this. For most of the novel he appears to be flying by the seat of his pants and isn’t particularly clever. He is difficult to read, and I was as surprised as the antagonists when he started to turn the tables. This wouldn’t be a problem, except he is the view point character. There should be some hint in his thoughts, with which we are intimately familiar, that he knows more of what is going on. That he has a plan or suspicions hidden from us.
I also feel like character motivations were not thoroughly thought out. This could be because Varin is not a reliable narrator in the slightest, but I found some of the characters actions jarring and confusing. Tullius’s actions throughout the book trended in to predictability, but the why never really made any sense to me. I couldn’t figure out why he was doing what he was doing beyond Alex wanted him to. I also found Varin’s constant tiredness to be, while realistic, a bit tedious. He was always hurt and always tired and it was as exhausting to read as it was to live it. I think the book might have benefited from one or two places where Varin was allowed to sit and recover some for a couple of sentences instead of constantly rushing head long in to things.
Final Thoughts:
I enjoyed the book, overall. It wasn’t one of those I couldn’t put down, but I didn’t feel like I was wasting my time reading it either. If you like fantasy with a flavor very different from Eddings, Tolkien, or Brooks, then I would recommend “Blood and Masks” as something that would be up your alley. It was well edited and a pretty solid little story, though there is certainly room for improvement. Over all, I would give it a 3/5 star rating as an above-average read.
Blood and Masks is the story of Varin, an apprentice demon hunter. He is also an elf, but you aren't going to find the idealistic Tolkien-esque elves here. Varin and his master, Tullius the Black, are called on a mission for a rich family that, at first, seems quite routine. But when completing the distruction of the demon would also mean killing an innocent child, Varin finds himself hesitating and truly starting to question his master for the first time. This event starts a chain of event that sweeps Varin in to the role of protector of the city of Neva Cora-- a task he must complete at any cost.
As always, this is completely subjective. What I may love about a story may be tedious to someone else, and vice versa. Take this, as with all reviews, with a grain of salt.
The Good:
The best parts about this book, for me, are the excerpts from the journal of Odo the Old. It is such a clever way to explore details of the world of Neva Cora that the main character takes for granted as being the way the world is. It explores history and culture in a way that Varin, being illiterate, may not even know about. It enriched the world substantially and gave it a truly interesting picture. There is a lot of inspiration from Rome in the story, which Alex doesn’t try to hide, and I think that is spectacular. It is fun to play with and tweak actual cultures from the past and see what small changes will do to it. I find drawing on ancient cultures to be an excellent thing.
The plot was clear and easy to follow in a very good way. At no point in the story did I have to stop and figure out how we had gotten from point A to point E. I could follow the story smoothly, which makes me a happy reader.
The details in both city and fight scenes were very well done. Alex took the time to go over very fine details. Someone reading the story might even, at the end, be able to draw a rough map of the city and locations.
I enjoyed the grey area the book brought up. The demons are not good, but there is a certain ambiguity to the morality of their complete destruction that I find fascinating. There are also good spirits that are addressed that I quite like and bring a good level of where the supernatural falls that is good for the growth of the story.
I find the religion to be an interesting concept. I love well developed religions in my book, and (Title) has them a plenty. You get the sense of a larger world with a great deal of history, and the choices of worship when the Gods pretty demonstrably exist are interesting.
The Bad:
It took me over 400 pages to find a character I really felt I could like. While all the characters were brilliantly flawed, it seemed to come at the expense of the characters actually being likeable. The flaws are so in your face and driving the characters that anything good about them is forced in to the background. Varin is, for me, the worst example of this. For most of the novel he appears to be flying by the seat of his pants and isn’t particularly clever. He is difficult to read, and I was as surprised as the antagonists when he started to turn the tables. This wouldn’t be a problem, except he is the view point character. There should be some hint in his thoughts, with which we are intimately familiar, that he knows more of what is going on. That he has a plan or suspicions hidden from us.
I also feel like character motivations were not thoroughly thought out. This could be because Varin is not a reliable narrator in the slightest, but I found some of the characters actions jarring and confusing. Tullius’s actions throughout the book trended in to predictability, but the why never really made any sense to me. I couldn’t figure out why he was doing what he was doing beyond Alex wanted him to. I also found Varin’s constant tiredness to be, while realistic, a bit tedious. He was always hurt and always tired and it was as exhausting to read as it was to live it. I think the book might have benefited from one or two places where Varin was allowed to sit and recover some for a couple of sentences instead of constantly rushing head long in to things.
Final Thoughts:
I enjoyed the book, overall. It wasn’t one of those I couldn’t put down, but I didn’t feel like I was wasting my time reading it either. If you like fantasy with a flavor very different from Eddings, Tolkien, or Brooks, then I would recommend “Blood and Masks” as something that would be up your alley. It was well edited and a pretty solid little story, though there is certainly room for improvement. Over all, I would give it a 3/5 star rating as an above-average read.
February 5, 2015
TL;DR: Quite a good read, few flaws, well worth the $3.
Quite well done for a first novel. Blood and Masks is a refreshing fantasy novel and quite possibly the only Urban Fantasy that stays in the High Fantasy setting. Never leaving the confines of the highly Roman-esque city of Neva Cora, it still sticks to the classic "Swords 'n' Sorcery" style and tropes, something unusual in the Urban Fantasy genre, and something I felt was refreshing. Few dare to set a medieval fantasy entirely in a city as few remember how truly metropolitan Rome was in its days as an empire.
The characters feel well rounded and unique within themselves, and the balance between genders and sexualities was more than welcome. Ziebart's female characters are rounded, well-written, and aren't simply stuck in the "write women first as people" trope; he's not afraid to flex their femininity (for the most part).
Ziebart's writing style is fluid and grabbed me within the first seventy pages easy. He isn't afraid to play with age-old tropes, but he puts them to use in a way that feels fresh. While the dialog isn't always perfect, sometimes bordering on stilted or overdramatic (almost belonging on a stage rather than a novel), the characters more often than not are fluid and have a life of their own. The good dialog far, far outnumbers the stilted bits to the point that the poor could be counted.
If there is anything to truly criticize, I can only conjure two things that stood out to me. I counted eight or nine typos (which I won't blame the writer for, and after all, it is self-published; in over 400 pages, eight typos ain't bad). The other complaint might be the sex scenes.
While there are few (four, if I counted right), all but one felt unnecessary, explainable simply as "character building," loosely threaded into the plot, though easily written out. Are they completely and truly unnecessary? Perhaps not, they did build character, and they certainly weren't gratuitous (far less egregious than I've read in other books), though they bothered me for the almost James Bond-ish quality to them. It felt like the scenes only served to show us how suave the main character is, how he can get or bed anyone, any time. It took me a bit out of it how suddenly they came and went, barely tied into the plotline. Perhaps all I'm asking for is more necessity tied to them, although it's entirely debatable that they weren't necessary.
If the only things I have to complain about are typos and something I'm having a hard time justifying, I gotta say this is a solid read. Great job for a first-time author, a highly enjoyable read, and I'm definitely looking forward to the sequel. And might I say, this is most definitely a self-contained story; don't fear the sudden drop-off, it gives closure.
Pick it up. It's good stuff. Buy it so he writes more.
Quite well done for a first novel. Blood and Masks is a refreshing fantasy novel and quite possibly the only Urban Fantasy that stays in the High Fantasy setting. Never leaving the confines of the highly Roman-esque city of Neva Cora, it still sticks to the classic "Swords 'n' Sorcery" style and tropes, something unusual in the Urban Fantasy genre, and something I felt was refreshing. Few dare to set a medieval fantasy entirely in a city as few remember how truly metropolitan Rome was in its days as an empire.
The characters feel well rounded and unique within themselves, and the balance between genders and sexualities was more than welcome. Ziebart's female characters are rounded, well-written, and aren't simply stuck in the "write women first as people" trope; he's not afraid to flex their femininity (for the most part).
Ziebart's writing style is fluid and grabbed me within the first seventy pages easy. He isn't afraid to play with age-old tropes, but he puts them to use in a way that feels fresh. While the dialog isn't always perfect, sometimes bordering on stilted or overdramatic (almost belonging on a stage rather than a novel), the characters more often than not are fluid and have a life of their own. The good dialog far, far outnumbers the stilted bits to the point that the poor could be counted.
If there is anything to truly criticize, I can only conjure two things that stood out to me. I counted eight or nine typos (which I won't blame the writer for, and after all, it is self-published; in over 400 pages, eight typos ain't bad). The other complaint might be the sex scenes.
While there are few (four, if I counted right), all but one felt unnecessary, explainable simply as "character building," loosely threaded into the plot, though easily written out. Are they completely and truly unnecessary? Perhaps not, they did build character, and they certainly weren't gratuitous (far less egregious than I've read in other books), though they bothered me for the almost James Bond-ish quality to them. It felt like the scenes only served to show us how suave the main character is, how he can get or bed anyone, any time. It took me a bit out of it how suddenly they came and went, barely tied into the plotline. Perhaps all I'm asking for is more necessity tied to them, although it's entirely debatable that they weren't necessary.
If the only things I have to complain about are typos and something I'm having a hard time justifying, I gotta say this is a solid read. Great job for a first-time author, a highly enjoyable read, and I'm definitely looking forward to the sequel. And might I say, this is most definitely a self-contained story; don't fear the sudden drop-off, it gives closure.
Pick it up. It's good stuff. Buy it so he writes more.
October 8, 2015
If you're a gamer, specifically MMOs like World of Warcraft, then you will enjoy this book. If you happen to read Blizzard Watch frequently then you should know this author. Alex Ziebart is the Editor-in-Chief and owner of the Blizzard Watch blog site. This book was his debut novel as a fantasy author.
I'd say, for a newbie author, his first book was well done. I haven't read a lot of fantasy novels but the world he created in Blood and Masks seemed pretty unique to me. That's not to say he didn't borrow from the vast world of fantasy races, but he doesn't violate any canon rules (i.e. elves). He does create his own class of fantasy race called "minari", which does have some "demon hunter" influence but still remains unique. The minari world Ziebart creates is intriguing and I hope to learn more about their kind in future novels.
I hope this novel brings Alex success and motivation to continue writing fantasy. I think, with Blood and Masks, he is off to a great start.
Recommended for any fantasy reader.
I'd say, for a newbie author, his first book was well done. I haven't read a lot of fantasy novels but the world he created in Blood and Masks seemed pretty unique to me. That's not to say he didn't borrow from the vast world of fantasy races, but he doesn't violate any canon rules (i.e. elves). He does create his own class of fantasy race called "minari", which does have some "demon hunter" influence but still remains unique. The minari world Ziebart creates is intriguing and I hope to learn more about their kind in future novels.
I hope this novel brings Alex success and motivation to continue writing fantasy. I think, with Blood and Masks, he is off to a great start.
Recommended for any fantasy reader.
March 10, 2015
Smart, funny and enjoyable. Great characters, good plot, fantastic dialogue, and excellent twists and quips. Pacing doesn't feel quite as tight as it could be. Easy to put down and easy to pick back up again. Looking forward to more.
September 11, 2017
More of a Noir Detective novel than your standard high fantasy, Alex Ziebart knocks it out of the park. I can't wait to read more of this fantastically built world and mythology. Well worth the time and money.
February 25, 2015
Well written, good plot, sometimes happening too fast, sometimes feeling too slow.
Overall really good :D
Overall really good :D
May 16, 2015
Excellent book and well written. Looking forward to more stories featuring Varin and Alenia
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews