The Flesh of War

The Warsworn Trilogy #1

by Ben Hale

Forged for combat, the rock trolls have no equal. They train from birth, endure brutal conditioning, and mark their skin with every kill. They have become the very flesh of war, but their history of honor has been forgotten. Now a bounty has been issued, one which calls for the extermination of their race. To survive they must awaken to what they have lost, before their enemies begin to gather.

Born in the midst of a bloody conflict, Tryton bears a heart of peace. His talent will command respect, but his nature is the true weapon. To wield it he must rise to lead them all—without sacrificing his soul. The fate of his people lies with him, but the seeds of destruction have already been sown.

And the harvest has come.

Genres: Fantasy, Magic, Fiction, Action

354 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 6, 2015

About the author

As an avid snowboarder from Utah, Ben grew up with a passion for learning. This thirst for knowledge led him to sports, music, and academic endeavors. After a year of college, he did volunteer work in Brazil and became fluent in three languages. Graduating from the University of Central Florida, he started and ran several successful businesses before publishing his first novel in June of 2012. By the end of the year he'd sold almost ten thousand copies of The Second Draeken War, and he began writing full-time. Now spanning 10,000 years, ten titles, and two series, The Chronicles of Lumineia represents a sprawling YA series that has sold over fifty thousand copies, and continues to expand its readership across all ages. Each of his books has been inspired by his wonderful wife and five beautiful children.

To contact the author, discover more about Lumineia, or find out about upcoming novels, check out his website at Lumineia.com. You can also follow Ben on twitter @ BenHale8 or on Facebook.

Reviews

[Jena · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was describing this book to a friend, and no matter how I tried, I could not make it sound cool.

"Well you see there's this race of trolls, but they look like humans except nine feet tall. They take the babies away and give them to the Blademaster and train them for war..."

"Some of the trolls have like, wind magic, and some of them are just fighters, and they are all sad because they don't have real families..."

"Tryton hides how good he is, but he is slaying tigers and stuff when he is five years old..."

Nevertheless the writing was good, so it disguised how simple and formulaic the story was. Totally enjoyable to read, just don't tell anyone I said that.

[Marius · Rating 5 out of 5]

The birth and childhood story of Tryton, a troll growing up among his people.
A race who's tradition is fighting and war, each one raised and trained by a blade master from the moment they can walk and hold a weapon.
While they resemble humans, they are much taller, 9 feet in fact, stronger and with skin tough as armor.

Fast-paced and action-packed from beginning to end.

However, this is not just a coming of age story, one of fighting. This is a story about family, a story about love, friendship and loyalty.

The author does a great job in telling the story. The writing is clean and precise. It reads beautifully.

[Robert Wheeler · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been a long time since a fantasy novel has intrigued me as much as this one. Recently many of the better fantasy novels are more young adult orientated. Good stories, but quick reads without large concepts. Not so with this series. I got this book free off of BookBub, but it was good enough I bought, and am reading, the second, The Age of War. Not LotR sophisticated, but very good.

[Flying Monkey · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars!

A great first book in The Warsworn Trilogy. It helps that the audible version has one of my favorite narrators (Ralph Lister).

I'm only giving this 4 stars as I really think Ben Hale could have provided more insight into the magic system in The Flesh of War. Hopefully, this is explained during the rest of the trilogy. I'm hoping for more history on the various magical creatures the trolls encounter as well.

Overall, The Flesh of War is still a fun, enjoyable read.

[Jay Collins · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 Stars
Pretty good, worth the read, I will be looking for other books from this author.

[Jo Critchley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved every minute, the characters are unforgettable and the plot just propels you to the next book!

[Randy Daugherty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Forged for combat, the rock trolls have no equal. They train from birth, endure brutal conditioning, and mark their skin with every kill. They have become the very flesh of war, but their history of honor has been forgotten. Now a bounty has been issued, one which calls for the extermination of their race. To survive they must awaken to what they have lost, before their enemies begin to gather.

Born in the midst of a bloody conflict, Tryton bears a heart of peace. His talent will command respect, but his nature is the true weapon. To wield it he must rise to lead them all—without sacrificing his soul. The fate of his people lies with him, but the seeds of destruction have already been sown.
This was really a good read to the start of a new fantasy trilogy.
We are few they are many, this has been the Rock Trolls creed, a creed of War and Death, but Tryton feels there is more, that yes fight to die but you need to live, so he refuses to kill those weaker, earning him disdain by some and respect by others. Can he change decades of training and traditions, all for the love of family.

[Sydney Winward · Rating 5 out of 5]

They weren't born for war, but created for it. If trolls don't change their ways, they could be wiped from the earth completely.

The Flesh of War is a unique concept from start to finish. I really enjoyed the characters, the storyline, but especially the action scenes. Tryton makes for an awesome MC who doesn't pride himself in adding to his sundering, but in protecting those he loves.

Ben Hale excels in writing detailed fight scenes that keep you on the edge of your seat. The ending will blow you away! I really enjoyed reading this book and I look forward to discovering more books by this author.

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read all of Ben Hale's books and that is mostly due to starting with this book. The Flesh of War grabbed my attention from the beginning and never let me go. There are many familiar classes & races but he put a new spin on all of them. The writing is clean, fresh and doesn't have the new age obscenities that seem to be prerequisite in current fantasy. I won't get into the details but will say that The Warsworn series is one of my favorites of all time.

[Lukas Lovas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't enjoyed this book quite as much as I had hoped. It was very difficult to sympathise with most of the characters for me and the fight scenes, I guess one of the most important parts of this book, have been boardedline boring for me.

That said, I liked the idea of the book and it still hasn't left my mind.

[Deryk Allan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the fourteenth book iv'e read in Ben Hales epic universe of Lumineia, iv'e read them all in the proper chronological order (I think), and they are one of the best fantasy/sci-fi series i have ever read, and iv'e read a lot, what does surprise me, is that the ratings are only in the hundreds, instead of the hundred of thousands because they are brilliantly written.

[Yemic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite an interesting book. Tryton's character reminds me of Naruto, someone who is capable f or changing others mind by his action and words. I was expect the dwarfs to join the finally should in favor of ... I guess the path of the story will be visited in the next book.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stopped reading not because it was bad, I stopped because the book is not for adults. Targeted at kids and I think would be a hit in the young adult/teens area. Its simple, very simple mary sue with swords. Nothing bad about it, just not for me.

[Peter Cornell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great adventure

Almost epic In itself, the first book in the series a magnificent adventure. The story draws the reader into th life of a young troll and continues through to his first rite of passage.

[Kian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book, I enjoyed it and the main character is interesting from the begining.

[Pickyreader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great tale

This was a great heart felt tale of what is lost when love and family is forsaken for hate and bigotry. Can’t wait to read the next in the tale.

[Paw Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

the story it self is not that special, but it is written really well, and before i really thought about it, i`d read the entire book

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting to hear a story from the point of view of a troll. Really innovative!

[Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Of all the characters in Hale's books, Tryton the Rock Troll king has probably been the one that I wanted to hear more about the most. He played a huge roll in the original "Second Draeken War" series and his history was teased briefly in "The List Unseen", but Hale has, thankfully, made Tryton the focus of a new trilogy (?), about which I'm very excited. Indeed, this book starts at the very beginning as Tryton is born and his mom dies in childbirth. Through genetics or something else, Tryton is different from the Rock Trolls; wants something more than endless cycle of war and death that has been eating away at the Trolls.

This book catalogs the culture of the Trolls; how they are raised and trained, their tattoos, and their heirarchy and social structures. This book is still, obviously, a long time before the events of the Second Draeken War, or even "The List Unseen". It will be interesting to see where Hale fits either of those into the story line. Will the series end with the events of "The List Unseen", or will it end with the arrival of Taryn and his group? In any case, I really enjoyed this book and love that it is a whole series about one of my favorite characters. Thanks Ben!

[M.J. Marsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now, this is what I'm talking about!

Trolls. No, not the stinky, shaggy grime dripping hippy kind, but brutal behemouth psychopaths. Brilliant.

Basically ticks all my boxes. Honour bound (baby) boy trains hard, gets good, levels up, magic sword, negotiates internal politics, sprinkle of romance, heaps of respect. Ideal series really. Other authors, please stick to the programme….

Our anti-hero Tryton is born special, the archetype strong silent type he seeks to overhaul his species, dial back the bloodlust and bring back family values. Needless to say, it's a struggle, and he needs all his cunning and strength of purpose.

By the second and third books, this gets dragged back into overall already established Luminea world build, but by that time you're already invested.

Is Tryton a bit tryhard Peter Perfect? Yes, but to be honest, his whole race are, war machines. Tryton's character keeps it simple, letting his actions speak louder than words, and subsequently doesn't second guess-himself and get annoying.

OVERALL: Very gratifying and I give it five stars for the first one. Then four or four and a half for the other two. If anyone knows any series along the same lines, I'm interested. This is quality.

[Simon Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great read, taking a look at a race that has long been overlooked Trolls, these Trolls are bad ass and you seriously wouldn't want to get on their wrong side!
A classic fantasy book with all races and elements counted for, including some bone crunching fight scenes. Well worth a read and I most definitely will be checking out the next in the series.

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed seeing things from the troll's point of view. Can't wait to read the next book in the series.

[Joe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!!!! I loved it!!!!