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The Last King of Osten Ard #0.75
Brothers of the Wind
Pride often goes before a fall, but sometimes that prideful fall is so catastrophic that it changes history itself.
Among the immortal Sithi of Osten Ard, none are more beloved and admired than the two sons of the ruling family, steady Hakatri and his proud and fiery younger brother Ineluki - Ineluki, who will one day become the undead Storm King. The younger brother makes a bold, terrible oath that he will destroy deadly Hidohebhi, a terrifying monster, but instead drags his brother with him into a disaster that threatens not just their family but all the Sithi - and perhaps all of humankind as well.
Set a thousand years before the events of Williams's The Dragonbone Chair, the tale of Ineluki's tragic boast and what it brings is told by Pamon Kes, Hakatri's faithful servant. Kes is not one of the Sithi but a member of the enslaved Changeling race, and his loyalty has never before been tested. Now he must face the terrible black dragon at his master's side, then see his own life changed forever in a mere instant by Ineluki's rash, selfish promise.
Kes and his master will range the world, risking countless dangers and meeting both mortals and immortals of many kinds as they try to undo the tragedy that springs from Ineluki's fatal pledge. During this journey, the seeds are planted for events that will culminate centuries later in the Storm King's War in Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn and the dreadful Norn Queen Utuk'ku's assault on humanity in The Last King of Osten Ard.
In the end, Pamon Kes must question everything about his life - and risk everything, too - as he struggles to save his beloved master, Hakatri. But will anything Kes does be enough? Or has Ineluki's rash promise already set the entire world on an unstoppable course toward destruction?
Among the immortal Sithi of Osten Ard, none are more beloved and admired than the two sons of the ruling family, steady Hakatri and his proud and fiery younger brother Ineluki - Ineluki, who will one day become the undead Storm King. The younger brother makes a bold, terrible oath that he will destroy deadly Hidohebhi, a terrifying monster, but instead drags his brother with him into a disaster that threatens not just their family but all the Sithi - and perhaps all of humankind as well.
Set a thousand years before the events of Williams's The Dragonbone Chair, the tale of Ineluki's tragic boast and what it brings is told by Pamon Kes, Hakatri's faithful servant. Kes is not one of the Sithi but a member of the enslaved Changeling race, and his loyalty has never before been tested. Now he must face the terrible black dragon at his master's side, then see his own life changed forever in a mere instant by Ineluki's rash, selfish promise.
Kes and his master will range the world, risking countless dangers and meeting both mortals and immortals of many kinds as they try to undo the tragedy that springs from Ineluki's fatal pledge. During this journey, the seeds are planted for events that will culminate centuries later in the Storm King's War in Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn and the dreadful Norn Queen Utuk'ku's assault on humanity in The Last King of Osten Ard.
In the end, Pamon Kes must question everything about his life - and risk everything, too - as he struggles to save his beloved master, Hakatri. But will anything Kes does be enough? Or has Ineluki's rash promise already set the entire world on an unstoppable course toward destruction?
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First published November 2, 2021
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About the author
Tad Williams
350 books7,848 followersTad Williams is a California-based fantasy superstar. His genre-creating (and genre-busting) books have sold tens of millions worldwide, in twenty-five languages. His considerable output of epic fantasy and science fiction book-series, stories of all kinds, urban fantasy novels, comics, scripts, etc., have strongly influenced a generation of writers: the ‘Otherland’ epic relaunches June 2018 as an MMO on steam.com. Tad is currently immersed in the creation of ‘The Last King of Osten Ard’, planned as a trilogy with two intermediary novels. He, his family and his animals live in the Santa Cruz mountains in a suitably strange and beautiful house. @tadwilliams @mrstad
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November 29, 2024
4.5/5 stars
Super underrated. Brothers of the Wind is beautifully written, melancholic, and layered with impactful details.
First things first, I am not sure why some readers deemed Brothers of the Wind as a novella. It is not. At 104,000 words count, Brothers of the Wind is a relatively short novel. And I am so satisfied by my reading of this. I honestly think this is one of Tad’s best works so far. I have longed to read Brothers of the Wind since I finished The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams last year. The story of Ineluki the Storm King in the past was so intriguing and immersive to me when I read it in The Dragonbone Chair, and when I heard Brothers of the Wind depicts the tale of Ineluki and his brother Hakatri, I was feeling impatient to read this book. I, however, followed the publication reading order, and I’m truly glad I did. I doubt I would’ve loved Brothers of the Wind as much if I hadn’t read at least Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy. By publication order, you should read The Heart of What Was Lost, The Witchwood Crown, and Empire of Grass first as well. That’s my recommendation.
Brothers of the Wind is chronologically a prequel novel to the entire Osten Ard Saga. The story is set a thousand years before the events of The Dragonbone Chair. As mentioned above, Brothers of the Wind is a story about pride and the downfall it brings to the two brothers, Hakatri and Ineluki. The novel focuses on Ineluki and the aftermath of his oath to defeat the black dragon Hidohebhi, which drags his brother Hakatri with him into a disaster that threatens not just their family but all of the Sithi—even humankind as we know in Memory, Sorrow, and Thorntrilogy. This tale is told from the first-person writing and perspective of Pamon Kes, Hakatri's extremely loyal servant. In this tale, Pamon Kes’ loyalty will be tested as he must face the black dragon together with Hakatri and Ineluki, the future Storm King.
Since last year, I've been a fan of Tad Williams and his storytelling. Expecting to enjoy Brothers of the Wind and having it delivered is not a surprising phenomenon. However, the content of the novel itself is different than my expectations and better for it. As mentioned above, Pamon Kes is the sole POV character in Brothers of the Wind, and through his perspective, I believe the tale and narrative turned stronger. I originally thought this tale would be told from the POV of Ineluki or Hakatri. Tad Williams did a terrific job in shedding light on the opposite personality of the brothers through Pamon Kes. At the same time, displaying the deep affection the brothers have for each other and also Pamon Kes's loyalty to Hakatri.
Additionally, I thought the entire novel would deal with the slaying of Hidohebhi, but what I got went beyond that. Do not let the 104,000 word count delude you into thinking this is a quick read. Although, technically, this book can be read before you read The Dragonbone Chair, the multiple layers of context and details that can be reaped if you read the series in publication order are nothing short of staggering. Many familiar names, locations, and terms like Ineluki, Hidohebhi, Utuk’ku, Amerasu, Asu'a, Sesuad’ra, the witchwood, and many more are spread throughout the narrative. Too many to mention and explain. If Ineluki is a blazing fire that burns intensely, I highly recommend you to be patient and kind like the calm water that is Hakatri. Read this in publication order, and savor the tale of suffering and tragedy embedded in Brothers of the Wind at its height with all the necessary in-world knowledge in your mind.
At the end of the day, Brothers of the Wind is an amazing prequel novel. As my fourth favorite title in The Osten Ard Saga so far, right after The Dragonbone Chair, To Green Angel Tower, and The Witchwood Crown, I personally think this is a criminally underrated novel. Even though I have not read Into the Narrowdark and The Navigator's Children yet, I have a good feeling based on what I have read here that Brothers of the Wind will enhance the storytelling in Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy, and the tale I read here will be crucial to the maximum enjoyment of Into the Narrowdark and The Navigator's Children. The writing was sublime, enchanting, and dense, as expected of Tad Williams. But those are not weakness. On the contrary. They are some of the main strengths of Brothers of the Wind. I am more excited than before to read the remaining two books in The Last King of Osten Ard series.
You can order this book from: Amazon | Blackwells (Free International shipping)
You can find this and the rest of my reviews at Novel Notions | I also have a Booktube channel
Special thanks to my Patrons on Patreon for giving me extra support towards my passion for reading and reviewing!
My Patrons: Alfred, Aliysa, Ambrosius, Andrew, Andrew S, Annabeth, Anne, Arliss, Barbara, Bev, Cade, Chris, Christopher, Crystal, Cullen, Dan, Donuts, Dylan, Edward, Elaine, Elias, Erich, Feanor, Francesca, Frank, Gary, Gregory, Hamad, Helen, James, Jason, Jeff, Jenn, Jesse, Johnny, Joie, Jonathan, Katrina, Kim, Kristina, Lara, Lourdes, Luis, Melinda, Michael, Michael, Mike, Miracle, Mordie, Nicholas, Radiah, Rando, RCT, Redmischief, Rue, Samuel, Sarah, Scott, Sean, Shawn, Stephanie, Trish, TS, Wick, Woodman, Xero, Yuri, Zoe.
Super underrated. Brothers of the Wind is beautifully written, melancholic, and layered with impactful details.
“Duty is honor,” my stern father often used to tell me. “And honor is all.” But I would amend his saying. I have learned that our first duty is to truth, because without truth, honor itself is hollow.
First things first, I am not sure why some readers deemed Brothers of the Wind as a novella. It is not. At 104,000 words count, Brothers of the Wind is a relatively short novel. And I am so satisfied by my reading of this. I honestly think this is one of Tad’s best works so far. I have longed to read Brothers of the Wind since I finished The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams last year. The story of Ineluki the Storm King in the past was so intriguing and immersive to me when I read it in The Dragonbone Chair, and when I heard Brothers of the Wind depicts the tale of Ineluki and his brother Hakatri, I was feeling impatient to read this book. I, however, followed the publication reading order, and I’m truly glad I did. I doubt I would’ve loved Brothers of the Wind as much if I hadn’t read at least Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy. By publication order, you should read The Heart of What Was Lost, The Witchwood Crown, and Empire of Grass first as well. That’s my recommendation.
“The chief lesson fate can teach us, I think, is to trust no certainties.”
Brothers of the Wind is chronologically a prequel novel to the entire Osten Ard Saga. The story is set a thousand years before the events of The Dragonbone Chair. As mentioned above, Brothers of the Wind is a story about pride and the downfall it brings to the two brothers, Hakatri and Ineluki. The novel focuses on Ineluki and the aftermath of his oath to defeat the black dragon Hidohebhi, which drags his brother Hakatri with him into a disaster that threatens not just their family but all of the Sithi—even humankind as we know in Memory, Sorrow, and Thorntrilogy. This tale is told from the first-person writing and perspective of Pamon Kes, Hakatri's extremely loyal servant. In this tale, Pamon Kes’ loyalty will be tested as he must face the black dragon together with Hakatri and Ineluki, the future Storm King.
“If you are a friend to all,” he would say, “then you are no better a friend to those closest to you than to those you barely know.” But Hakatri would only shake his head at these complaints. “And if I decided whom to help simply by their closeness in blood or friendship, I would not be a lord-errant at all but a paymaster, tallying up the figures before deciding how much assistance to give to others.”
Since last year, I've been a fan of Tad Williams and his storytelling. Expecting to enjoy Brothers of the Wind and having it delivered is not a surprising phenomenon. However, the content of the novel itself is different than my expectations and better for it. As mentioned above, Pamon Kes is the sole POV character in Brothers of the Wind, and through his perspective, I believe the tale and narrative turned stronger. I originally thought this tale would be told from the POV of Ineluki or Hakatri. Tad Williams did a terrific job in shedding light on the opposite personality of the brothers through Pamon Kes. At the same time, displaying the deep affection the brothers have for each other and also Pamon Kes's loyalty to Hakatri.
“It is nothing so simple. When you declare yourself to the powers that watch over our world—over all worlds—you cannot simply turn around again and say, ‘I did not mean it. Forget my words.’ Fate, or whatever name you choose to give those powers, has already heard you. Like a great millstone driven by a rushing river, the engines that force our actions have begun to grind and they cannot so easily be stopped again.”
Additionally, I thought the entire novel would deal with the slaying of Hidohebhi, but what I got went beyond that. Do not let the 104,000 word count delude you into thinking this is a quick read. Although, technically, this book can be read before you read The Dragonbone Chair, the multiple layers of context and details that can be reaped if you read the series in publication order are nothing short of staggering. Many familiar names, locations, and terms like Ineluki, Hidohebhi, Utuk’ku, Amerasu, Asu'a, Sesuad’ra, the witchwood, and many more are spread throughout the narrative. Too many to mention and explain. If Ineluki is a blazing fire that burns intensely, I highly recommend you to be patient and kind like the calm water that is Hakatri. Read this in publication order, and savor the tale of suffering and tragedy embedded in Brothers of the Wind at its height with all the necessary in-world knowledge in your mind.
“If tonight’s spirit is mournful, so be it. But even sad old songs can remind us that bad times pass and are remembered in later, better days.”
At the end of the day, Brothers of the Wind is an amazing prequel novel. As my fourth favorite title in The Osten Ard Saga so far, right after The Dragonbone Chair, To Green Angel Tower, and The Witchwood Crown, I personally think this is a criminally underrated novel. Even though I have not read Into the Narrowdark and The Navigator's Children yet, I have a good feeling based on what I have read here that Brothers of the Wind will enhance the storytelling in Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy, and the tale I read here will be crucial to the maximum enjoyment of Into the Narrowdark and The Navigator's Children. The writing was sublime, enchanting, and dense, as expected of Tad Williams. But those are not weakness. On the contrary. They are some of the main strengths of Brothers of the Wind. I am more excited than before to read the remaining two books in The Last King of Osten Ard series.
“He was good to me, and even if I were to live as long as one of the highest Zida’ya, I still could never forget the glad sight of Hakatri and his brother Ineluki as they rode side by side in days that are now gone—swift as a storm, so fair and full of laughter, the Brothers of the Wind. I wish my onetime master only happiness and an end to his suffering, that he might someday find his way back home—as, in my own way, I have done.”
You can order this book from: Amazon | Blackwells (Free International shipping)
You can find this and the rest of my reviews at Novel Notions | I also have a Booktube channel
Special thanks to my Patrons on Patreon for giving me extra support towards my passion for reading and reviewing!
My Patrons: Alfred, Aliysa, Ambrosius, Andrew, Andrew S, Annabeth, Anne, Arliss, Barbara, Bev, Cade, Chris, Christopher, Crystal, Cullen, Dan, Donuts, Dylan, Edward, Elaine, Elias, Erich, Feanor, Francesca, Frank, Gary, Gregory, Hamad, Helen, James, Jason, Jeff, Jenn, Jesse, Johnny, Joie, Jonathan, Katrina, Kim, Kristina, Lara, Lourdes, Luis, Melinda, Michael, Michael, Mike, Miracle, Mordie, Nicholas, Radiah, Rando, RCT, Redmischief, Rue, Samuel, Sarah, Scott, Sean, Shawn, Stephanie, Trish, TS, Wick, Woodman, Xero, Yuri, Zoe.
February 27, 2022
Tad Williams is one of my favourite fantasy writers and I’m so proud to have my review of The Empire of Grass quoted on the back of this book. I just love it when my words make it onto books and most of the time I don’t even know unless I see it print. I wish someone would tell me or ask permission, so I know it’s been used and then I can brag about it on here more often.
Anyway, as I expected, this is another fantastic novel by a very talented writer. The story just seems to flow naturally and effortlessly, though I know that’s not really the case. Tad Williams is what I like to call a careful fantasy writer; he takes his time, and he lets the plot momentum build up slowly. He introduces his characters, sets the scene and then things just seem to unfold naturally. In this, he reminds me a little bit of the great Robin Hobb. And, of course, Tad Williams writes about dragons too.
More specifically, he writes about a dragon hunt in Brothers of the Wind. Without becoming too bogged down with the plot particulars here, this focuses on an oath made by Ineluki to slay a dragon and save the mortals the worm is assaulting without mercy. The action scenes are superb and cinematic in quality, but the highlight of the book is Ineluki's relationship with his older (and much more capable) brother Hakatri. So, this instalment is a prequal to the Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy which started with The Dragonbone Chair back in the 80s. Here Tad Williams provides the backstory of his series’ antagonist. And it is such a fantastic backstory that puts much of what follows into perspective. It all stems from Ineluki’s relationship with his brother and the consequences of fighting the dragon, which leads to him eventually becoming the much-feared Storm King.
What sets Tad Williams apart from the crowd is his world building. This is old school fantasy at its finest. The world is big; it is full of lore and history and there are numerous races that have a lot of stories to tell. I always feel like we are just stepping foot into it. There’s so much more here and we are getting but a glimpse of something much larger. For me this is one of the most important aspects of successful fantasy. I need to be able to feel like this world has existed for a long time and will continue to exist once the novel has ended. Tad Williams does this particularly well. I always go away wanting more and even though I don’t read much fantasy anymore, I continue to return to the genre when one of my favourites releases a new book.
Overall, this is a very good novel and I stormed through it in less than a day. I really do recommend this author. I feel his books are often a little overlooked in today’s massive fantasy market, which is a shame because this is one of the writers that helped to establish it.
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You can connect with me on social media via My Linktree.
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Anyway, as I expected, this is another fantastic novel by a very talented writer. The story just seems to flow naturally and effortlessly, though I know that’s not really the case. Tad Williams is what I like to call a careful fantasy writer; he takes his time, and he lets the plot momentum build up slowly. He introduces his characters, sets the scene and then things just seem to unfold naturally. In this, he reminds me a little bit of the great Robin Hobb. And, of course, Tad Williams writes about dragons too.
More specifically, he writes about a dragon hunt in Brothers of the Wind. Without becoming too bogged down with the plot particulars here, this focuses on an oath made by Ineluki to slay a dragon and save the mortals the worm is assaulting without mercy. The action scenes are superb and cinematic in quality, but the highlight of the book is Ineluki's relationship with his older (and much more capable) brother Hakatri. So, this instalment is a prequal to the Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy which started with The Dragonbone Chair back in the 80s. Here Tad Williams provides the backstory of his series’ antagonist. And it is such a fantastic backstory that puts much of what follows into perspective. It all stems from Ineluki’s relationship with his brother and the consequences of fighting the dragon, which leads to him eventually becoming the much-feared Storm King.
What sets Tad Williams apart from the crowd is his world building. This is old school fantasy at its finest. The world is big; it is full of lore and history and there are numerous races that have a lot of stories to tell. I always feel like we are just stepping foot into it. There’s so much more here and we are getting but a glimpse of something much larger. For me this is one of the most important aspects of successful fantasy. I need to be able to feel like this world has existed for a long time and will continue to exist once the novel has ended. Tad Williams does this particularly well. I always go away wanting more and even though I don’t read much fantasy anymore, I continue to return to the genre when one of my favourites releases a new book.
Overall, this is a very good novel and I stormed through it in less than a day. I really do recommend this author. I feel his books are often a little overlooked in today’s massive fantasy market, which is a shame because this is one of the writers that helped to establish it.
__________________________________
You can connect with me on social media via My Linktree.
__________________________________
September 25, 2021
Osten Ard is one of my favorites worlds in fantasy genre. It's so rich in details, history and characters that I never get enough reading about it.
The present novel(la) is an important addition to this universe. Set about a thousand years before the events in The Dragonbone Chair, it tells the story of Hakatri and Ineluki in their quest to kill the black dragon Hidohebhi and beyond, told from the PoV of Pamon Kes, Hakatri's Armiger.
As usual, Williams' characterization is flawless. Even the smallest character has a well defined personality. Hakatri will rip your heart off, Ineluki will make you angry and frustrated, but at the same time you'll pity him for his burden afterwards, and Pamon Kes will make his way under your skin little by little, wishing him all the luck he can get to have a life of his own.
It's a heartbreaking story, however beautifully crafted, but a rewarding one, as is the case with all Williams' novels. The first half is more slow than usual, but as the story progresses and Pamon Kes grows on you, you will be unable to put it down.
I can't wait for The Navigator's Children to be published, so I can immerse myself again in this universe!
>>> ARC received thanks to Hodder & Stoughton via NetGalley <<<
The present novel(la) is an important addition to this universe. Set about a thousand years before the events in The Dragonbone Chair, it tells the story of Hakatri and Ineluki in their quest to kill the black dragon Hidohebhi and beyond, told from the PoV of Pamon Kes, Hakatri's Armiger.
As usual, Williams' characterization is flawless. Even the smallest character has a well defined personality. Hakatri will rip your heart off, Ineluki will make you angry and frustrated, but at the same time you'll pity him for his burden afterwards, and Pamon Kes will make his way under your skin little by little, wishing him all the luck he can get to have a life of his own.
It's a heartbreaking story, however beautifully crafted, but a rewarding one, as is the case with all Williams' novels. The first half is more slow than usual, but as the story progresses and Pamon Kes grows on you, you will be unable to put it down.
I can't wait for The Navigator's Children to be published, so I can immerse myself again in this universe!
>>> ARC received thanks to Hodder & Stoughton via NetGalley <<<
November 10, 2021
Brothers of the Wind is a great, but not perfect, prequel novella to The Dragonbone Chair. I'm really wondering how, or if, the events that take place in this novella might factor into the last two books of Williams' Last King of Osten Ard series.
My rating/score: 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads' rating system / 8 out of 10 on my own personal scoring system.
My rating/score: 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads' rating system / 8 out of 10 on my own personal scoring system.
June 30, 2022
Context, context, context. I loved this addition to the Tad Williams universe.
But first, I need to point out that it takes place a thousand years before the events in the first trilogy, when Ineluki, the then great and terrible Storm King, was merely a brave immortal warrior, who, with his ill-fated brother, destroy a great dragon in these pages.
What follows is a tragic tale, as told by an amazingly loyal Ocean-kin who would follow his master across the land to heal him from the burns of the dragon's blood, a pain that would remain forever and bring prophetic visions.
I personally love it for the main story, the desperate loyalty, the despair of happiness, and the loss of love, while following his ever-tortured master. *chef's kiss*
Even so, while the core story is so good, I can't quite decide whether it is as good as the context or whether the context catapults it. :) So good.
But first, I need to point out that it takes place a thousand years before the events in the first trilogy, when Ineluki, the then great and terrible Storm King, was merely a brave immortal warrior, who, with his ill-fated brother, destroy a great dragon in these pages.
What follows is a tragic tale, as told by an amazingly loyal Ocean-kin who would follow his master across the land to heal him from the burns of the dragon's blood, a pain that would remain forever and bring prophetic visions.
I personally love it for the main story, the desperate loyalty, the despair of happiness, and the loss of love, while following his ever-tortured master. *chef's kiss*
Even so, while the core story is so good, I can't quite decide whether it is as good as the context or whether the context catapults it. :) So good.
November 3, 2021
Synopsis: A Great Worm has come down again from the north, a beast called Hidohebhi, the Blackworm.
A thousands years before the tale of Memory, Sorrow & Thorn starts with the Dragonbone Chair, two brothers of the immortal fay folk of the Sithi live in the beautiful town Asu’a. One is the stupid and proud younger brother Ineluki, who will later be known as the undead Storm King. The other brother and the main protagonist of this novel is steady and loyal Hakatri, whose tale features him as the Burning Man, one of the greatest tragic heroes of the Zida’ya (as the Sithi call themselves).
Hakatri lives as a well-reknown member of the Sithis’ leaders together with his beautiful wife, his children, cosseted by his faithful servant Pamon Kes.
One day, a human leader comes to Asu’a and asks for help, because they can’t handle a beast alone which destroys their livestock and killed men. Ineluki makes a terrible oath that he will destroy the monster. Hakatri follows him to protect his brother and is dragged into a disaster changing his life forever, and not in a good way.
Their investigations lead to the identification of the monster as one of the Great Worms which they won’t be able to fight all alone. They have to find help, not only in fighting force, but also in knowledge how to fight the beast.
The story is told from Pamon Kes’s perspective, who has to face questions about his identity as one of the Tinukeda`ya, a Changeling, as he struggles to save his master Hakatri.
Review: I am so happy that Tad Williams decided to return to Osten Ard in order to investigate this epic tale from the distant past. It fully dives into the culture and setting of the Sithi, Norns, and Changelings in a time when they still lived in cities.
Readers of the series know the antagonist Ineluki, the Storm Lord. In parts, this novel tells also his way to destruction. But mostly, it focuses on the heroic deeds and tragic fate of his older brother Hikatri.
Where the human tales of Memory, Sorry & Thorn was often light-hearted and even funny, you won’t find such a thing in this very short novel. It is a tragedy just like Tolkien’s Children of Húrin. I don’t know if this a tale for everyone, but I loved it even more than the trilogy.
Both main protagonists, Hikatri as well as Pamon Kes, are relatable, positive characters who are developing in different ways: Pamon Kes needs to redefine his place within the society, and Hikatri has to face his tragedy which changes everything.
The novel covers a lot of ground, the killing of the dragon just one of several parts, followed by a long journey through Osten Ard.
Two things I’d love to see changed: One, the logical but abrupt ending. Second, the length: my heart longs for far more than only 271 pages while my brain tells me that the tale’s density can’t be better. In a time of doorstoppers (looking at you, Sanderson!) this book honors the tradition of Earthsea’s short novels.
Wow, now I’ve touched Tolkien and Le Guin within one single review. I’ve been up to assess this as a four star book, but looking back I upgrade it to five stars. Because it’s just the kind of thoughtful Epic Fantasy I love to read.
A thousands years before the tale of Memory, Sorrow & Thorn starts with the Dragonbone Chair, two brothers of the immortal fay folk of the Sithi live in the beautiful town Asu’a. One is the stupid and proud younger brother Ineluki, who will later be known as the undead Storm King. The other brother and the main protagonist of this novel is steady and loyal Hakatri, whose tale features him as the Burning Man, one of the greatest tragic heroes of the Zida’ya (as the Sithi call themselves).
Hakatri lives as a well-reknown member of the Sithis’ leaders together with his beautiful wife, his children, cosseted by his faithful servant Pamon Kes.
One day, a human leader comes to Asu’a and asks for help, because they can’t handle a beast alone which destroys their livestock and killed men. Ineluki makes a terrible oath that he will destroy the monster. Hakatri follows him to protect his brother and is dragged into a disaster changing his life forever, and not in a good way.
Their investigations lead to the identification of the monster as one of the Great Worms which they won’t be able to fight all alone. They have to find help, not only in fighting force, but also in knowledge how to fight the beast.
The story is told from Pamon Kes’s perspective, who has to face questions about his identity as one of the Tinukeda`ya, a Changeling, as he struggles to save his master Hakatri.
Review: I am so happy that Tad Williams decided to return to Osten Ard in order to investigate this epic tale from the distant past. It fully dives into the culture and setting of the Sithi, Norns, and Changelings in a time when they still lived in cities.
Readers of the series know the antagonist Ineluki, the Storm Lord. In parts, this novel tells also his way to destruction. But mostly, it focuses on the heroic deeds and tragic fate of his older brother Hikatri.
Where the human tales of Memory, Sorry & Thorn was often light-hearted and even funny, you won’t find such a thing in this very short novel. It is a tragedy just like Tolkien’s Children of Húrin. I don’t know if this a tale for everyone, but I loved it even more than the trilogy.
Both main protagonists, Hikatri as well as Pamon Kes, are relatable, positive characters who are developing in different ways: Pamon Kes needs to redefine his place within the society, and Hikatri has to face his tragedy which changes everything.
The novel covers a lot of ground, the killing of the dragon just one of several parts, followed by a long journey through Osten Ard.
Two things I’d love to see changed: One, the logical but abrupt ending. Second, the length: my heart longs for far more than only 271 pages while my brain tells me that the tale’s density can’t be better. In a time of doorstoppers (looking at you, Sanderson!) this book honors the tradition of Earthsea’s short novels.
Wow, now I’ve touched Tolkien and Le Guin within one single review. I’ve been up to assess this as a four star book, but looking back I upgrade it to five stars. Because it’s just the kind of thoughtful Epic Fantasy I love to read.
August 21, 2024
Reread Update: I'm updating this to a 5/5 because while everything I said the first time is still true I got so much more out of this reread. I believe it really should be read after the first 2 books in Last King of Osten Ard. I picked up so much more what I believe to be foreshadowing and lore about the Tinukeydaya that went over my head before.
I was reading this book eyes only and despite only being 258 pages it took me a long time to read. That's not because the book was bad. It was actually quite good. It was because despite its length it is quite dense. The book serves as a prequel to Memory Sorrow and Thorn and is about two brothers who set out to slay a dragon. Any more than that would be spoilers, but this book is so much more than that basic premise. It is told from the perspective of a squire of one of the brothers who is of a different and subservient race. The perspective is what really makes it an interesting story.
By telling the story from the perspective of a squire who is an outsider who was brought up with the ruling class Tad gets to bring in a lot of themes of service, loyalty, and self-identity. With the brothers themselves we see themes of family, fealty to oaths, and destiny. But besides those interesting themes you also get a compelling story with dragons and magic and visions that should make any fantasy fan happy. And of course it provides some insight into events that happen in Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn and why they happen. And finally it's Tad Willams so the writing and prose are phenomenal.
So if I liked it so much why did it take me so long? Well thematically it's dense, but I think it is a book that took me longer to read and process mostly due to the worldbuilding. Even as a veteran of Memory Sorror and Thorn and having some background with Williams' Sithi characters, this book was challenging because there are very few human characters and a ton of complex Sithi names, families, and locations. It becomes a bit overwhelming for my eyes and brain to process. You'll notice I didn't use any of them in this review because even though I read them with my eyes there's no way I could spell them correctly. It doesn't detract much from the experience. Just know that going in and take it slow.
Overall, I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who has finished Memory Sorrow and Thorn.
I was reading this book eyes only and despite only being 258 pages it took me a long time to read. That's not because the book was bad. It was actually quite good. It was because despite its length it is quite dense. The book serves as a prequel to Memory Sorrow and Thorn and is about two brothers who set out to slay a dragon. Any more than that would be spoilers, but this book is so much more than that basic premise. It is told from the perspective of a squire of one of the brothers who is of a different and subservient race. The perspective is what really makes it an interesting story.
By telling the story from the perspective of a squire who is an outsider who was brought up with the ruling class Tad gets to bring in a lot of themes of service, loyalty, and self-identity. With the brothers themselves we see themes of family, fealty to oaths, and destiny. But besides those interesting themes you also get a compelling story with dragons and magic and visions that should make any fantasy fan happy. And of course it provides some insight into events that happen in Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn and why they happen. And finally it's Tad Willams so the writing and prose are phenomenal.
So if I liked it so much why did it take me so long? Well thematically it's dense, but I think it is a book that took me longer to read and process mostly due to the worldbuilding. Even as a veteran of Memory Sorror and Thorn and having some background with Williams' Sithi characters, this book was challenging because there are very few human characters and a ton of complex Sithi names, families, and locations. It becomes a bit overwhelming for my eyes and brain to process. You'll notice I didn't use any of them in this review because even though I read them with my eyes there's no way I could spell them correctly. It doesn't detract much from the experience. Just know that going in and take it slow.
Overall, I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who has finished Memory Sorrow and Thorn.
November 4, 2021
I was going to write a thoughtful review, but I can't. So many layers, so much to say. Admittedly, I am one of the Storyteller's Children, and there is backstory and nuance but...I don't know that I've ever enjoyed a book so much. Stunning.
[The violence is gently, kindly presented, but strong content notes for acid/fire damaged skin and chronic pain.]
Update: A major retail site apparently thought, like, by saying "children" - Tad is my Dad? As opposed to an in-world reference as part of an acknowledgment of what an admirer I am as both a reader and a writer. So I did leave this updated review there:
I have maybe never enjoyed a book so much. Both for the story, the connection to the Osten Ard world, and the absolute skill of fantasy craft within these pages. This is Fantasy. Both ancestral and reborn. As a reader, I couldn't put it down. As a writer, I just gasp at the ever-growing skill and nuance of Tad Williams. This is a stunning, tremendous, book.
[The violence is gently, kindly presented, but strong content notes for acid/fire damaged skin and chronic pain.]
Update: A major retail site apparently thought, like, by saying "children" - Tad is my Dad? As opposed to an in-world reference as part of an acknowledgment of what an admirer I am as both a reader and a writer. So I did leave this updated review there:
I have maybe never enjoyed a book so much. Both for the story, the connection to the Osten Ard world, and the absolute skill of fantasy craft within these pages. This is Fantasy. Both ancestral and reborn. As a reader, I couldn't put it down. As a writer, I just gasp at the ever-growing skill and nuance of Tad Williams. This is a stunning, tremendous, book.
April 24, 2024
There's no way to adequately explain how much Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn meant to me when I was a teenager. I feel like that trilogy became part of my soul. I feel like I didn't read it so much as roll around in it until it it just soaked into my skin. (See also: A Song for Arbonne and The Fionavar Tapestry, and Dune.) My absolute joy when Tad (I've met him, I get to call him Tad) started to write more Osten Ard stories can also not be explained. And this? THIS? The actual story of how Ineluki Storm King went down his awful path after fighting Hidohebdi with his brother, beloved Hakatri?! I mean, thirty years ago I might have fainted at the very announcement. As it is I had to be alone with the book to read it with the care and attention it deserved!
August 22, 2025
Beautiful prose keeps this melancholic, slow-burn prequel from being underwhelming.
Ultimately, this just got me hyped to read Into the Narrowdark soon.
Ultimately, this just got me hyped to read Into the Narrowdark soon.
August 7, 2024
Wow, this was a perfect read! I admit for me it was hard to get into, since in the previous Osten Ard books I was never really interested in the immortals (Norns/Sithi). The humans and trolls were just so much more relatable to me. But after maybe a hundred pages, I got really into the story of the Brothers of the Wind from the viewpoint of Changeling Servant Pamon Kes. Ofcourse, it was the writing that really drew me in. This is a prequel to the original Memory, Sorrow & Thorn series and describes the events that happened between the brothers Hakatri and Ineluki before Ineluki "became" the Storm King. Now I want to know even more!
May 6, 2022
Tad Williams‘ Prequel zur Osten Ard-Saga spielt Tausende Jahre vor den Ereignissen dieser Reihe. Es geht um die Sithi-Brüder Hakatri und Ineluki – den späteren Storm King. Dessen Charakter ist von Unberechenbarkeit und Leichtsinn geprägt – und so spricht er einen Schwur aus, der Unglück über seinen geliebten Bruder bringen wird. Die Handlung des Buches, das aus Sicht von Hakatris Tinukeda’ya-Diener Pamon Kes geschrieben ist, besteht aus der Jagd auf einen schrecklichen Drachen und der Suche nach einem Heilmittel für Hakatris Verwundung durch dessen Blut, das ihn verbrennt und nicht enden wollende Schmerzen beschert.
Das Prequel kommt ähnlich wie der Zwischenband „The Heart of What Was Lost“ nicht an die Hauptbände der Saga heran, zumal die geliebten Charaktere natürlich fehlen, liest sich jedoch wie gehabt gut und lässt mich vermuten, dass wir im finalen Band (bzw. den finalen Bänden) von „The Last King of Osten Ard“ noch einmal von Hakatri und seinem Schicksal hören werden. Interessant ist auch die Perspektive – wir erfahren mehr über die Tinukeda’ya, aber auch über das Sithi-Haus, dem sowohl die positiven als auch die negativen Sithi-Charaktere aus der Saga entstammen. In dem Sinne ein Must-Read für Osten Ard-Fans.
Das Prequel kommt ähnlich wie der Zwischenband „The Heart of What Was Lost“ nicht an die Hauptbände der Saga heran, zumal die geliebten Charaktere natürlich fehlen, liest sich jedoch wie gehabt gut und lässt mich vermuten, dass wir im finalen Band (bzw. den finalen Bänden) von „The Last King of Osten Ard“ noch einmal von Hakatri und seinem Schicksal hören werden. Interessant ist auch die Perspektive – wir erfahren mehr über die Tinukeda’ya, aber auch über das Sithi-Haus, dem sowohl die positiven als auch die negativen Sithi-Charaktere aus der Saga entstammen. In dem Sinne ein Must-Read für Osten Ard-Fans.
April 20, 2022
Nachdem ich bisher alle Bücher um Osten Ard verschlungen habe, war klar, dass ich diese Vorgeschichte um die beiden Brüder der Sithi auch lesen muss!
Pamon Kes erzählt rückblickend in seiner Eigenschaft als Waffenträger. Obwohl er zu dem unterdrückten Volk der Tinukeda´ya gehört, hat ihn einer der Söhne des Herrschers in diesen Stand erhoben, der ihn mit Stolz und Ehrgefühl erfüllt. Pamon dient Hakatri, dem ruhigen und besonnenen Bruder.
Hitzköpfig und launisch dagegen ist Ineluki, der zweite Sohn des Herrschers, bekannt durch seinen unterhaltsamen Witz, aber eben auch durch die schnelle Änderung seines Gemüts, dass in Beleidigungen und unbedachte Wut umschlagen kann. Er ist ehrlich, aber auch verletzend, was in seiner Position schwierige Konsequenzen nach sich ziehen kann.
Diese beiden ungleichen Brüder sind Mittelpunkt der Geschichte, in der sie von Sterblichen gebeten werden, einen plötzlich aufgetauchten Drachen unschädlich zu machen.
Natürlich kenne ich den Namen Ineluki, der später in den Büchern um Osten Ard eine größere Rolle spielt. Umso mehr war es etwas schade, dass seine Rolle nach und nach in den Hintergrund gedrängt wurde, ich hätte hier gerne noch etwas mehr erfahren. Warum Ineluki später zum Sturmkönig wird, nimmt hier seinen Anfang, aber der Autor kratzt hier nur an der Oberfläche. Vielleicht hab ich aber schon wieder zu viele Details aus der Drachenbeinthron-Reihe vergessen und kann deshalb weniger Verbindungen sehen.
Hakatri und sein Diener Pamon dagegen haben eine Menge Schwierigkeiten zu meistern, Entscheidungen zu treffen und Konsequenzen zu ertragen, die sie auf einer ungewissen Reise quer durch das Land führen.
Während die Drachenjagd auf einen spannenden Kampf zusteuert, wirkt der Rest relativ ruhig und gediegen. Das Tempo ist gemächlich, wobei der Autor durchaus mit den vielen Details und den Gedanken Pamons zu fesseln weiß. Vor allem die erste Hälfte des Buches hat mich sehr gut unterhalten!
Man erfährt einiges über die Machtspiele zwischen den Völkern, was vor allem den Diener, der kaum Kontakt zu seinen eigenen Ursprüngen hat, besonders beeinflusst. Lebte er doch bisher in Ehrfurcht zwischen all den einflussreichen Zida´ya, entfernte er sich mehr und mehr seiner eigenen Abstammung, mit all ihren Sagen, Riten und Verbundenheit.
Gerade anfangs haben die vielen ja doch ungewöhnlichen Namen etwas überfordert. Auch wenn mir einige schon aus den anderen Büchern geläufig waren, gab es Absätze, denen man nicht so gut folgen konnte.
Dafür war es besonders schön, von Orten zu hören, die man schon kennt, wie die sagenumwobene Stadt Asu´a, den Rabenhorst, Nabban - oder auch auf das Volk der Nakkiga trifft oder die uralte Utuk´ku, die Herrscherin der Hikeda´ya. Der Weltenaufbau ist einfach phänomenal - die verschiedenen Schauplätze, die Völker, ihre Geschichten und Überlieferungen, alles greift hier nahtlos ineinander. Das Bild, das während dem Lesen entsteht, wirkt echt und authentisch!
Wer die anderne Bücher schon kennt, werden diese Namen sicher bekannt vorkommen - ich weiß nicht, ob man sie jetzt unbedingt vorher gelesen haben muss. Ich denke, man kann auch durchaus zuerst mit dieser Vorgeschichte starten...
Teilweise fand ich es etwas zu langatmig, grade in der zweiten Hälfte und manche Entscheidungen wirkten in der Logik etwas schwammig. Trotzdem hab ich den Band gerne gelesen, der viel sanfte Tragik und bewegende Emotionen ich sich getragen hat. Ich hab mich gefreut, wieder etwas mehr über die Hintergründe der späteren Kriege und Auseinandersetzungen erfahren zu haben.
Weltenwanderer
Pamon Kes erzählt rückblickend in seiner Eigenschaft als Waffenträger. Obwohl er zu dem unterdrückten Volk der Tinukeda´ya gehört, hat ihn einer der Söhne des Herrschers in diesen Stand erhoben, der ihn mit Stolz und Ehrgefühl erfüllt. Pamon dient Hakatri, dem ruhigen und besonnenen Bruder.
Hitzköpfig und launisch dagegen ist Ineluki, der zweite Sohn des Herrschers, bekannt durch seinen unterhaltsamen Witz, aber eben auch durch die schnelle Änderung seines Gemüts, dass in Beleidigungen und unbedachte Wut umschlagen kann. Er ist ehrlich, aber auch verletzend, was in seiner Position schwierige Konsequenzen nach sich ziehen kann.
Diese beiden ungleichen Brüder sind Mittelpunkt der Geschichte, in der sie von Sterblichen gebeten werden, einen plötzlich aufgetauchten Drachen unschädlich zu machen.
Natürlich kenne ich den Namen Ineluki, der später in den Büchern um Osten Ard eine größere Rolle spielt. Umso mehr war es etwas schade, dass seine Rolle nach und nach in den Hintergrund gedrängt wurde, ich hätte hier gerne noch etwas mehr erfahren. Warum Ineluki später zum Sturmkönig wird, nimmt hier seinen Anfang, aber der Autor kratzt hier nur an der Oberfläche. Vielleicht hab ich aber schon wieder zu viele Details aus der Drachenbeinthron-Reihe vergessen und kann deshalb weniger Verbindungen sehen.
Hakatri und sein Diener Pamon dagegen haben eine Menge Schwierigkeiten zu meistern, Entscheidungen zu treffen und Konsequenzen zu ertragen, die sie auf einer ungewissen Reise quer durch das Land führen.
Während die Drachenjagd auf einen spannenden Kampf zusteuert, wirkt der Rest relativ ruhig und gediegen. Das Tempo ist gemächlich, wobei der Autor durchaus mit den vielen Details und den Gedanken Pamons zu fesseln weiß. Vor allem die erste Hälfte des Buches hat mich sehr gut unterhalten!
Man erfährt einiges über die Machtspiele zwischen den Völkern, was vor allem den Diener, der kaum Kontakt zu seinen eigenen Ursprüngen hat, besonders beeinflusst. Lebte er doch bisher in Ehrfurcht zwischen all den einflussreichen Zida´ya, entfernte er sich mehr und mehr seiner eigenen Abstammung, mit all ihren Sagen, Riten und Verbundenheit.
Gerade anfangs haben die vielen ja doch ungewöhnlichen Namen etwas überfordert. Auch wenn mir einige schon aus den anderen Büchern geläufig waren, gab es Absätze, denen man nicht so gut folgen konnte.
Dafür war es besonders schön, von Orten zu hören, die man schon kennt, wie die sagenumwobene Stadt Asu´a, den Rabenhorst, Nabban - oder auch auf das Volk der Nakkiga trifft oder die uralte Utuk´ku, die Herrscherin der Hikeda´ya. Der Weltenaufbau ist einfach phänomenal - die verschiedenen Schauplätze, die Völker, ihre Geschichten und Überlieferungen, alles greift hier nahtlos ineinander. Das Bild, das während dem Lesen entsteht, wirkt echt und authentisch!
Wer die anderne Bücher schon kennt, werden diese Namen sicher bekannt vorkommen - ich weiß nicht, ob man sie jetzt unbedingt vorher gelesen haben muss. Ich denke, man kann auch durchaus zuerst mit dieser Vorgeschichte starten...
Teilweise fand ich es etwas zu langatmig, grade in der zweiten Hälfte und manche Entscheidungen wirkten in der Logik etwas schwammig. Trotzdem hab ich den Band gerne gelesen, der viel sanfte Tragik und bewegende Emotionen ich sich getragen hat. Ich hab mich gefreut, wieder etwas mehr über die Hintergründe der späteren Kriege und Auseinandersetzungen erfahren zu haben.
Weltenwanderer
November 4, 2021
[4.5 stars]
This one is definitely for the fans of Osten Ard, as you need a firm foundation of that world to jump in and fully enjoy this story and setting. It’s a very unique and engaging book that shows just how much history and depth Tad Williams has put into this universe.
In the end, the story is more about Pamon Kes, and not as much about the Brothers of the Wind, Ineluki and Hakatri. This story definitely does not give a full and satisfying end to Ineluki and his role in this tale, but a full length sequel to this could be amazing as the seeds were firmly planted for Ineluki’s downfall.
Fans of Tad Williams work are used to him taking his time to develop and flesh out his characters, plot and overarching story; for what it is, he did a great job telling a fantastic story in just a novella, but more would have been better.
This one is definitely for the fans of Osten Ard, as you need a firm foundation of that world to jump in and fully enjoy this story and setting. It’s a very unique and engaging book that shows just how much history and depth Tad Williams has put into this universe.
In the end, the story is more about Pamon Kes, and not as much about the Brothers of the Wind, Ineluki and Hakatri. This story definitely does not give a full and satisfying end to Ineluki and his role in this tale, but a full length sequel to this could be amazing as the seeds were firmly planted for Ineluki’s downfall.
Fans of Tad Williams work are used to him taking his time to develop and flesh out his characters, plot and overarching story; for what it is, he did a great job telling a fantastic story in just a novella, but more would have been better.
November 5, 2021
Brothers of the Wind was a fine addition to Tad Williams Osten Ard books. Half the Story is about Hakatri and Ineluki (the Storm King) and the terrible oath to slay a dragon. The other half is the consequences from this encounter and the quest for healing. Some might not enjoy the second half as much but for invested readers it has so many ties with the other books and seems to be setting up a few things for future books (the conclusion to The Last King of Osten Ard).
I really enjoyed all of it and readers do not read Tad Williams for non-stop popcorn action scenes. I read him for his rich prose, world building and character development. The books reminds me a bit of the Silmarillion and other great myths with its lessons on hubris and fateful oaths. Looking forward to more books in this world!
I really enjoyed all of it and readers do not read Tad Williams for non-stop popcorn action scenes. I read him for his rich prose, world building and character development. The books reminds me a bit of the Silmarillion and other great myths with its lessons on hubris and fateful oaths. Looking forward to more books in this world!
October 29, 2021
Originally published at Reading Reality
It’s hard to believe that The Dragonbone Chair was published over 30 years ago. A whole lifetime ago. I read it as it was published, and I remember loving it and waiting impatiently for each book but don’t remember anything about the story. I DO remember attempting to read one of the author’s later series (Otherland) and failing miserably.
But that was a long time ago, and the past is another country, so when this book popped up on Edelweiss I thought, “Why not?” As this is a prequel to Memory, Sorrow and Thorn, the trilogy that began with The Dragonbone Chair, I figured that I didn’t NEED to remember anything at all to get into this one.
And I was right. The writing was as lush and descriptive as I sorta/kinda remembered, but I didn’t need to look up anything about the plot of the original books to get into this one – because none of those events had happened in this world. Not yet anyway.
So the story here stood alone. And thankfully didn’t stand nearly as long as the original trilogy, which I may remember fondly but also remember as doorstop-sized. Each. (Also, don’t worry about the designation of this book in some places as following or being part of the Last King of Osten Ard series. Last King is a sequel to Memory, Sorrow and Thorn and Brothers is a prequel.)
Brothers of the Wind is, as it says right there on the label, a story about brothers and brotherhood. But the brothers are immortal princes in their world, so the family dynamics and family squabbles and sibling rivalries are both neverending and potentially world-shattering in their impacts.
A shattering that is still being felt a thousand years later.
Escape Rating A-: More than anything else, Brothers of the Wind is a story about overweening pride going before a very big fall. And it’s a story about the difference between pride and honor. It’s also, playing into that pride, a story about the braying of privilege and the horrifying results of its exercise.
As I was reading, I found myself wondering if Ineluki was what we would call bipolar or something much too similar. He doesn’t have much of a brain-to-mouth filter, but that reads like a consequence of his overwhelming privilege. When Ineluki has a tantrum, which he does, frequently and often and with terrible consequences, he gets placated and indulged because he’s a prince which makes him powerful in his own right. He doesn’t face the consequences of his actions because everyone, especially his brother Hakatri, cleans up after him. Which just makes Ineluki resent him all the more.
But Ineluki really reads like someone who has a gigantic dose of impostor syndrome. He never seems to feel like he’s equal to his brother Hakatri in the hearts of either their parents or their people. The way that the brothers’ actions play out over the course of the story read very much like the dynamic between Thor and Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and wasn’t that a surprise?
I think it fits though. Hakatri, like Thor, is the golden favorite, the older brother who is beloved by absolutely everyone and seems utterly perfect to everyone he meets. While Ineluki is dark and always trying to make his own mark in a world where it seems like his older brother has already taken all the best bits. Ineluki is a resentful second son who nurses his grudges and his temper like a spoiled child.
A spoiled child whose tantrums remake the face of the world, and not for the better, with consequences that will ring down through the ages in the tolling of funeral bells.
But this isn’t just the story of the two brothers, because the perspective of the story is told by Hakatri’s faithful servant, Pamon Kes. While Brothers of the Wind isn’t quite as epic as The Lord of the Rings, The Dragonbone Chair and the whole of Memory, Sorrow and Thorn definitely are. Which means that this book reads very much as if The Lord of the Rings had been written by Sam Gamgee entirely from his first-person perspective. A perspective that shows that even the compassionate, golden Hakatri took a tremendous amount of advantage of the goodwill and hero worship of an awful lot of people, whether his motives were pure or not.
So Brothers of the Wind can be read on more than one level. It’s a story about brothers who can’t manage to escape the roles that have been ordained for them. It’s certainly a story about a whole lot of pride going before a huge, world-shattering fall. And it’s a fascinating prequel for one of the modern classics of epic fantasy, a story that will take lovers of the original straight back to Osten Ard, and will hopefully carry a new legion of readers off to those faraway shores.
It’s hard to believe that The Dragonbone Chair was published over 30 years ago. A whole lifetime ago. I read it as it was published, and I remember loving it and waiting impatiently for each book but don’t remember anything about the story. I DO remember attempting to read one of the author’s later series (Otherland) and failing miserably.
But that was a long time ago, and the past is another country, so when this book popped up on Edelweiss I thought, “Why not?” As this is a prequel to Memory, Sorrow and Thorn, the trilogy that began with The Dragonbone Chair, I figured that I didn’t NEED to remember anything at all to get into this one.
And I was right. The writing was as lush and descriptive as I sorta/kinda remembered, but I didn’t need to look up anything about the plot of the original books to get into this one – because none of those events had happened in this world. Not yet anyway.
So the story here stood alone. And thankfully didn’t stand nearly as long as the original trilogy, which I may remember fondly but also remember as doorstop-sized. Each. (Also, don’t worry about the designation of this book in some places as following or being part of the Last King of Osten Ard series. Last King is a sequel to Memory, Sorrow and Thorn and Brothers is a prequel.)
Brothers of the Wind is, as it says right there on the label, a story about brothers and brotherhood. But the brothers are immortal princes in their world, so the family dynamics and family squabbles and sibling rivalries are both neverending and potentially world-shattering in their impacts.
A shattering that is still being felt a thousand years later.
Escape Rating A-: More than anything else, Brothers of the Wind is a story about overweening pride going before a very big fall. And it’s a story about the difference between pride and honor. It’s also, playing into that pride, a story about the braying of privilege and the horrifying results of its exercise.
As I was reading, I found myself wondering if Ineluki was what we would call bipolar or something much too similar. He doesn’t have much of a brain-to-mouth filter, but that reads like a consequence of his overwhelming privilege. When Ineluki has a tantrum, which he does, frequently and often and with terrible consequences, he gets placated and indulged because he’s a prince which makes him powerful in his own right. He doesn’t face the consequences of his actions because everyone, especially his brother Hakatri, cleans up after him. Which just makes Ineluki resent him all the more.
But Ineluki really reads like someone who has a gigantic dose of impostor syndrome. He never seems to feel like he’s equal to his brother Hakatri in the hearts of either their parents or their people. The way that the brothers’ actions play out over the course of the story read very much like the dynamic between Thor and Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and wasn’t that a surprise?
I think it fits though. Hakatri, like Thor, is the golden favorite, the older brother who is beloved by absolutely everyone and seems utterly perfect to everyone he meets. While Ineluki is dark and always trying to make his own mark in a world where it seems like his older brother has already taken all the best bits. Ineluki is a resentful second son who nurses his grudges and his temper like a spoiled child.
A spoiled child whose tantrums remake the face of the world, and not for the better, with consequences that will ring down through the ages in the tolling of funeral bells.
But this isn’t just the story of the two brothers, because the perspective of the story is told by Hakatri’s faithful servant, Pamon Kes. While Brothers of the Wind isn’t quite as epic as The Lord of the Rings, The Dragonbone Chair and the whole of Memory, Sorrow and Thorn definitely are. Which means that this book reads very much as if The Lord of the Rings had been written by Sam Gamgee entirely from his first-person perspective. A perspective that shows that even the compassionate, golden Hakatri took a tremendous amount of advantage of the goodwill and hero worship of an awful lot of people, whether his motives were pure or not.
So Brothers of the Wind can be read on more than one level. It’s a story about brothers who can’t manage to escape the roles that have been ordained for them. It’s certainly a story about a whole lot of pride going before a huge, world-shattering fall. And it’s a fascinating prequel for one of the modern classics of epic fantasy, a story that will take lovers of the original straight back to Osten Ard, and will hopefully carry a new legion of readers off to those faraway shores.
April 7, 2022
Mortals have come to Asu'a from the west with dire news: the dragon Hidohebhi has descended from the mountains to wreak destruction and death on innocent farmers and settlers. The immortal Sithi usually pay little heed to the doings of mortals, but, recognising that the dragon presents a threat to everyone, the fiery and proud young prince Ineluki rides out to confront the beast. His steadier, calmer brother Hakatri rides with him, but the power of the dragon is greater than they could have feared. Their quest to slay the beast takes them far across the lands of Osten Ard, and their adventure is chronicled by Pamon Kes, Hakatri's faithful servant.
Brothers of the Wind is a stand-alone prequel to Tad Williams' masterwork of epic fantasy, the Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy, and its currently ongoing sequel quartet, The Last King of Osten Ard. Set more than a thousand years before the previous books in the series, it chronicles an important event from the backstory to those novels. It is also a short, self-contained work which can be read as a standalone.
Williams is best-known for his immense doorsteppers of books. Case in point, the final Last King of Osten Ard novel was recently deemed unpublishable in a single volume and has been split in two. However, Williams is also a skilled writer of shorter fiction, in which his always carefully-crafted prose and finely-honed characterisation is also given an impressive sense of pace and focus. That could be seen in The Heart of What Was Lost, his 2017 short novel released as a prequel to The Last King of Osten Ard, and can be seen even more here.
Brothers of the Wind can be read as a tragedy. It has two lead characters, Hakatri and Ineluki, both seen through the eyes of Hakatri's servant Pamon. We get a much clearer view of Hakatri, whilst Ineluki - destined to become the Storm King of Memory, Sorrow and Thorn - is a more transient figure, flitting in and out of the story according to events and his changeable mood. Seeing mythical characters from one series, described in awe or terms of legend, as real flash-and-blood characters in another can be deflating, but the POV device Williams employs here lets us both get to know Ineluki better without damaging or reducing his mythic power.
The novel is divided into several parts. In the first part, the brothers seek out the great dragon to slay it, only to be comprehensively defeated. They find themselves wandering western Osten Ard in search of allies, lore or weapons that can help them in their quest. This part of the book is fascinating, as we see lands we know much better from the earlier novels in a more primitive state of existence: the people of Hernystir before the kingdom becomes known as that, and many more areas where the Sithi are still extant. Williams is a great travelogue writer and worldbuilder, and his skills here are put to good use, painting this earlier era of Osten Ard's history in as much colour and detail as his larger books.
In the latter part of the novel, the great dragon is once again confronted, but the consequences of that confrontation have wide-ranging affects. Those who have read the other books will get glimpses of the path that Ineluki sets out on that will lead to the events of the Storm King's War, but others will be more concerned with the relationship with Pamon and Hakatri, which takes an interesting turn. The story turns into one of a servant caring for his master and having to make hard choices on behalf of another, sometimes in ways that hurt himself.
The sheer size of the average Williams novel allows for a relaxed pace, sometimes too relaxed (the very first Osten Ard novel, The Dragonbone Chair, famously takes the better part of 200 pages to get moving), but Brothers of the Wind (****½) moves faster and with greater focus. It starts off as an adventure and gradually turns into a tragedy of genuine moving power, as well as foreshadowing events in the other books in the setting.
The third volume in The Last King of Osten Ard, Into the Narrowdark, is due for publication in July, and should be followed by The Navigator's Children.
Brothers of the Wind is a stand-alone prequel to Tad Williams' masterwork of epic fantasy, the Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy, and its currently ongoing sequel quartet, The Last King of Osten Ard. Set more than a thousand years before the previous books in the series, it chronicles an important event from the backstory to those novels. It is also a short, self-contained work which can be read as a standalone.
Williams is best-known for his immense doorsteppers of books. Case in point, the final Last King of Osten Ard novel was recently deemed unpublishable in a single volume and has been split in two. However, Williams is also a skilled writer of shorter fiction, in which his always carefully-crafted prose and finely-honed characterisation is also given an impressive sense of pace and focus. That could be seen in The Heart of What Was Lost, his 2017 short novel released as a prequel to The Last King of Osten Ard, and can be seen even more here.
Brothers of the Wind can be read as a tragedy. It has two lead characters, Hakatri and Ineluki, both seen through the eyes of Hakatri's servant Pamon. We get a much clearer view of Hakatri, whilst Ineluki - destined to become the Storm King of Memory, Sorrow and Thorn - is a more transient figure, flitting in and out of the story according to events and his changeable mood. Seeing mythical characters from one series, described in awe or terms of legend, as real flash-and-blood characters in another can be deflating, but the POV device Williams employs here lets us both get to know Ineluki better without damaging or reducing his mythic power.
The novel is divided into several parts. In the first part, the brothers seek out the great dragon to slay it, only to be comprehensively defeated. They find themselves wandering western Osten Ard in search of allies, lore or weapons that can help them in their quest. This part of the book is fascinating, as we see lands we know much better from the earlier novels in a more primitive state of existence: the people of Hernystir before the kingdom becomes known as that, and many more areas where the Sithi are still extant. Williams is a great travelogue writer and worldbuilder, and his skills here are put to good use, painting this earlier era of Osten Ard's history in as much colour and detail as his larger books.
In the latter part of the novel, the great dragon is once again confronted, but the consequences of that confrontation have wide-ranging affects. Those who have read the other books will get glimpses of the path that Ineluki sets out on that will lead to the events of the Storm King's War, but others will be more concerned with the relationship with Pamon and Hakatri, which takes an interesting turn. The story turns into one of a servant caring for his master and having to make hard choices on behalf of another, sometimes in ways that hurt himself.
The sheer size of the average Williams novel allows for a relaxed pace, sometimes too relaxed (the very first Osten Ard novel, The Dragonbone Chair, famously takes the better part of 200 pages to get moving), but Brothers of the Wind (****½) moves faster and with greater focus. It starts off as an adventure and gradually turns into a tragedy of genuine moving power, as well as foreshadowing events in the other books in the setting.
The third volume in The Last King of Osten Ard, Into the Narrowdark, is due for publication in July, and should be followed by The Navigator's Children.
May 27, 2024
I give this five stars
What a great backstory to an awesome series !
What a great backstory to an awesome series !
July 7, 2024
Really liked this one. Honor and heartache. Service and sacrifice.
I went into this novel expecting a more detailed version of the story of the brothers (Hakatri and Ilenuki) that we got in Dragonbone Chair. This is not what this is. We got something better. Honor and obligation are the main themes here, and they are expressed through some high level prose.
The plotting and character-work issues I experienced with Dragonbone Chair were not present here at all. Beautifully plotted. Pamon Kes, our main character, I my favorite Osten Ard character yet. Might take some time for anyone else in this series to reach his level in my heart. Hakatri as the solemn honorable-to-a-fault trope was captivating as well. Snotty, fuckboy Ineluki had his place, too, and drove plot in all the ways he needed to.
We got Whole Williams on this one.
I went into this novel expecting a more detailed version of the story of the brothers (Hakatri and Ilenuki) that we got in Dragonbone Chair. This is not what this is. We got something better. Honor and obligation are the main themes here, and they are expressed through some high level prose.
The plotting and character-work issues I experienced with Dragonbone Chair were not present here at all. Beautifully plotted. Pamon Kes, our main character, I my favorite Osten Ard character yet. Might take some time for anyone else in this series to reach his level in my heart. Hakatri as the solemn honorable-to-a-fault trope was captivating as well. Snotty, fuckboy Ineluki had his place, too, and drove plot in all the ways he needed to.
We got Whole Williams on this one.
November 7, 2021
4.5/5
I just finished up and my overall reaction is that Tad is just moving from strength to strength. I've always enjoyed this world and at this point its redundant for me to say but I think this current visit to Osten Ard (LKoOA) is his best writing yet.
This installment fleshes out the oft-told story of Hakatri and Ineluki taking out a massive wyrm and the events that spiral from this encounter. It's a small epic, filled with Williams melancholic yet beautiful prose, jaw dropping vistas, intrigue and mystery, and prophesies galore.
As such, this gave me big Great Tales vibes from JRR Tolkien. It read like an entry from The Silmarillion and while I desperately need the concluding volumes of LKoOA, I want Tad to continue working out the world in this bard-like way. He hinted at more of this in his latest newsletter.
Man. I'm sad it's over and a new wait begins.
I just finished up and my overall reaction is that Tad is just moving from strength to strength. I've always enjoyed this world and at this point its redundant for me to say but I think this current visit to Osten Ard (LKoOA) is his best writing yet.
This installment fleshes out the oft-told story of Hakatri and Ineluki taking out a massive wyrm and the events that spiral from this encounter. It's a small epic, filled with Williams melancholic yet beautiful prose, jaw dropping vistas, intrigue and mystery, and prophesies galore.
As such, this gave me big Great Tales vibes from JRR Tolkien. It read like an entry from The Silmarillion and while I desperately need the concluding volumes of LKoOA, I want Tad to continue working out the world in this bard-like way. He hinted at more of this in his latest newsletter.
Man. I'm sad it's over and a new wait begins.
December 5, 2021
Reading Brothers of the Wind brought back some childhood memories. The Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy was the first epic fantasy series I read, and I remember getting lost in the world and loving every minute of it. I may not remember the details of the story, but that special feeling I associate with the series is still there. I'm sure this was what cemented my love for the genre.
Brothers of the Wind is set about a thousand years before MS&T and focuses on the tragic tale of the brothers Hakatri and Ineluki, told from the POV of Hakatri's servant, Pamon Kes, which adds a very interesting perspective. The story starts out rather slow, and it may be a bit hard at first to keep track of all the details, but the fantastic world-building and well fleshed-out characters really make up for it. By the second half of the book I was fully drawn in and couldn't put it down. I wouldn't have minded a few more chapters ^^
It may not be necessary to read MS&T first, however, I do feel I would've gotten more out of this story had I re-read the trilogy before diving into this one. But I definitely wanna do so now, so it will be on my TBR for 2022. I can't wait to re-immerse myself in the world of Osten Ard and see how the books hold up!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Brothers of the Wind is set about a thousand years before MS&T and focuses on the tragic tale of the brothers Hakatri and Ineluki, told from the POV of Hakatri's servant, Pamon Kes, which adds a very interesting perspective. The story starts out rather slow, and it may be a bit hard at first to keep track of all the details, but the fantastic world-building and well fleshed-out characters really make up for it. By the second half of the book I was fully drawn in and couldn't put it down. I wouldn't have minded a few more chapters ^^
It may not be necessary to read MS&T first, however, I do feel I would've gotten more out of this story had I re-read the trilogy before diving into this one. But I definitely wanna do so now, so it will be on my TBR for 2022. I can't wait to re-immerse myself in the world of Osten Ard and see how the books hold up!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
November 28, 2021
Siempre es un placer regresar al mundo de Osten Ard y la fantasía de Tad Williams. En esta ocasión nos adentramos en una aventura que funciona como precuela a la saga de Añoranzas y pesares, una saga injustamente tratada en el mundo editorial español pero que bajo mi punto de vista es una de las mejores dentro del género fantástico clásico( El señor de los anillos, la rueda del tiempo,ect).
No en vano, George Martin nombra esta saga como una de sus preferidas y sus influencias se pueden ver claramente en las descripciones que se hacen de los hombres del norte y del rey Sitha no muerto, Ineluki, que es el claro antecesor del rey de los muertos de Juego de truenos.
En esta historia averiguamos como Ineluki se convirtió en el villano de la saga cuando siendo joven partió junto a su hermano para matar a un dragón que estaba asediando sus reinos. Aquí veremos porque Ineluki acaba odiando a los humanos y nos daremos un viaje por todo Osten Ard, visitando los diferentes reinos que aparecen más tarde en la saga. Tanto el narrador, como Hatraki, el hermano de Ineluki, me parecieron personajazos y el estilo de Tad Williams es una delicia.
No en vano, George Martin nombra esta saga como una de sus preferidas y sus influencias se pueden ver claramente en las descripciones que se hacen de los hombres del norte y del rey Sitha no muerto, Ineluki, que es el claro antecesor del rey de los muertos de Juego de truenos.
En esta historia averiguamos como Ineluki se convirtió en el villano de la saga cuando siendo joven partió junto a su hermano para matar a un dragón que estaba asediando sus reinos. Aquí veremos porque Ineluki acaba odiando a los humanos y nos daremos un viaje por todo Osten Ard, visitando los diferentes reinos que aparecen más tarde en la saga. Tanto el narrador, como Hatraki, el hermano de Ineluki, me parecieron personajazos y el estilo de Tad Williams es una delicia.
December 7, 2021
This will be more rewarding for those with preexisting knowledge of Osten Ard, but I think this works really well as a standalone story, too. For me, this is one of my favorite books of the year.
While Williams fills in some of Ineluki’s backstory (prior to his descent into supervillainy), there’s more emphasis on Ineluki’s brother, Hakatri, and Hakatri’s faithful servant, Pamon Kes. This duo’s story is incredibly compelling, with Pamon Kes as the standout star. I’d happily read more stories from Pamon’s perspective and I hope Williams tells additional tales from this era in Osten Ard’s history.
All in all, this was a wonderful novella that I struggled to put down. Bonus points for an outstanding cover and a stunning map!
See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf.
My thanks to DAW and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
While Williams fills in some of Ineluki’s backstory (prior to his descent into supervillainy), there’s more emphasis on Ineluki’s brother, Hakatri, and Hakatri’s faithful servant, Pamon Kes. This duo’s story is incredibly compelling, with Pamon Kes as the standout star. I’d happily read more stories from Pamon’s perspective and I hope Williams tells additional tales from this era in Osten Ard’s history.
All in all, this was a wonderful novella that I struggled to put down. Bonus points for an outstanding cover and a stunning map!
See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf.
My thanks to DAW and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
July 28, 2023
4.5/5 I'm all in on Osten Ard. This is my 7th Osten Ard book I've read this year and the 5th one I've re-read, you could say I'm a fan.
This is an essential novel either before starting Last King of Osten Ard or before Navigator's Children. It's hard to stress just how relevant this book is to that series and I had no idea how much it was until reading Witchwood Crown and Empire of Grass.
These books reward immersion and attention to detail as new mysteries emerge and the lore gets deeper and richer since this is the only prequel novella so far. It's incredibly interesting what the intrinsic mysteries of this world are that even the ancient Zadaya, Hikadaya, and Zinukadaya races disagree and debate on.
The characters Tad creates and has perspectives on here are some of his best where they're easy to empathize with and they're usually trying to do the right thing but go through terrible hardships that they must overcome, great stuff.
Can't praise the series highly enough, some of the most beautiful writing I've ever read and one of the best worlds I've been immersed in in any fantasy series.
This is an essential novel either before starting Last King of Osten Ard or before Navigator's Children. It's hard to stress just how relevant this book is to that series and I had no idea how much it was until reading Witchwood Crown and Empire of Grass.
These books reward immersion and attention to detail as new mysteries emerge and the lore gets deeper and richer since this is the only prequel novella so far. It's incredibly interesting what the intrinsic mysteries of this world are that even the ancient Zadaya, Hikadaya, and Zinukadaya races disagree and debate on.
The characters Tad creates and has perspectives on here are some of his best where they're easy to empathize with and they're usually trying to do the right thing but go through terrible hardships that they must overcome, great stuff.
Can't praise the series highly enough, some of the most beautiful writing I've ever read and one of the best worlds I've been immersed in in any fantasy series.
December 19, 2021
Mention the word prequel and what comes to mind? Star Wars, probably. Maybe Better Call Saul. Tad Williams’ newest novel in his world of Osten Ard is more Better Call Saul than Star Wars.
Set 1,000 years before his classic fantasy trilogy Memory, Sorrow and Thorn this book is a similar story type shift to the lawyer spinoff of Breaking Bad. Memory, Sorrow and Thorn inspired George R.R. Martin and led to Game of Thrones: an army of pale elf-like people called the Norns descend from the snowy North, beyond a wall called The Wall, during an all-consuming winter to seek revenge.
That trilogy is a quest narrative that still wanted to add complexity to the genre, especially for 80s fantasy. The enemies have a genuine motive beyond evil to avenge a genocide, even if they are misguided and misled. Even on the good side, no one is too ready to help each other for petty reasons. Cultural differences prevent those that do. Etc. But Brothers of the Wind is set at the tail end of a Golden Age for the Norn and their “cousins,” the equally immortal Sithi, and presents a different picture of the world some might know and others might discover.
This book’s plot is very simple, very welcoming to new readers: a dragon is killing in human lands and the prideful Sithi Ineluki swears an oath to kill the dragon himself. Ineluki’s brother, Hakatri pursues him to try and stop him from killing himself, while a loyal servant named Pamon Kes narrates.
Rare for a fantasy book, no one is at war or threatening to go to war in the entire novel. Tangents are Williams speciality—his strength, in truth, for creating such dense worlds that they feel more real—but Brothers of the Wind is a focused narrative. The other Osten Ard books are third person, but this is first person.
At first our narrator Pamon Kes, a servant from a race formerly fully slaves to the Sithi, seems curiously without interior. This is completely intentional. As the novel develops, a novel that he insists is only about those greater than himself, like his master Hakatri or the prideful Ineluki who will go on to become one of the central villains of Memory, Sorrow and Thorn, Kes develops that missing self. In the early sections, he had only been living for those who look down on him (if they even look on him at all). It couldn’t be written in anything other than first person.
This main thread of the quest to kill the dragon lets Williams show that despite the world being in a Golden Age, with no war threatened and even their more violence loving Norn cousins up North freely welcoming to a visit, the seeds of this society’s destruction is plain. Nor is this Golden Age innocent.
Kes encounters ghettos of his own people while the surrounding Sithi go on with self-involved happiness, barely aware of the suffering they profit from. This isn’t the generic whips and slurs portrayal of prejudice from other fantasy novels, but a more realistic one, done with a welcoming smile.
Elsewhere, some ignore a threat as basic and universal as a rampaging dragon. We’re not effected right now, maybe we will be in the future but that’s not now, so it’s not our problem. There are no looming threats, as I said, but self-interest rules: what else could bring about actual threats in future books but that?
The first half of Brothers of the Wind is the quest to kill the dragon, but Osten Ard fans will know this is only the start of the story. The outcome of Ineluki’s pride is that Hakatri is horribly burned by the dragon’s fire. The rest is surprisingly sprawling for a sub-300 pages novel, taking readers on a whirlwind tour of places only whispered of as once existing in the main Osten Ard novels.
Meanwhile, hints for the currently ongoing sequel books The Last King of Osten Ard are drip fed in and pieces of the overall series lore are even delivered up. One scene in particular will leave readers of the sequels debating until the conclusion of Last King is released.
In other words, this is way more book than you would expect. A story of brothers. A story of self-realization from Pamon Kes. A story of a world teetering, not yet on the brink, the brink not even visible, but too busy patting itself on the back over past glories to realize it is there.
Like the best prequels, it adds to what came before instead of taking away with meaningless fan service. Certain tangents in Memory, Sorrow and Thorn take on far more meaning. Depth is added to a supporting character from it and the Last King books by seeing her as a small child.
I won’t reveal how, or why. But most of all, the story of Hakatri we had heard—and his brother Ineluki with him—is revealed to be a glow up. “The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there,” as L.P. Hartley wrote. Differently in people’s cases tends to mean better. More as we wished it had been done. The Tolkien comparison is overused in fantasy reviews, but it fits here: this is tragic myth, melancholic and wistful.
As much as the new books in this world have impressed me for their massive scope, complex plot, sense of approaching doom, subtly, and weaving of themes tightly into narrative I am once again left surprised by a new Tad Williams novel. Brothers of the Wind is not what I expected, which makes it the perfect prequel in a landscape of Star Wars prequel wannabes.
Where should you start these Osten Ard books? That’s up to you. This one is a welcoming pick up to new readers, since Kes is writing a memoir he can quickly explain a custom or person to the reader, the shorter page count commitment, and focused narrative. Of course, this novel will pay off some lore mysteries built up in the others, which is part of what makes it such an effective prequel, one missing tile to a vast, beautiful mosaic.
Set 1,000 years before his classic fantasy trilogy Memory, Sorrow and Thorn this book is a similar story type shift to the lawyer spinoff of Breaking Bad. Memory, Sorrow and Thorn inspired George R.R. Martin and led to Game of Thrones: an army of pale elf-like people called the Norns descend from the snowy North, beyond a wall called The Wall, during an all-consuming winter to seek revenge.
That trilogy is a quest narrative that still wanted to add complexity to the genre, especially for 80s fantasy. The enemies have a genuine motive beyond evil to avenge a genocide, even if they are misguided and misled. Even on the good side, no one is too ready to help each other for petty reasons. Cultural differences prevent those that do. Etc. But Brothers of the Wind is set at the tail end of a Golden Age for the Norn and their “cousins,” the equally immortal Sithi, and presents a different picture of the world some might know and others might discover.
This book’s plot is very simple, very welcoming to new readers: a dragon is killing in human lands and the prideful Sithi Ineluki swears an oath to kill the dragon himself. Ineluki’s brother, Hakatri pursues him to try and stop him from killing himself, while a loyal servant named Pamon Kes narrates.
Rare for a fantasy book, no one is at war or threatening to go to war in the entire novel. Tangents are Williams speciality—his strength, in truth, for creating such dense worlds that they feel more real—but Brothers of the Wind is a focused narrative. The other Osten Ard books are third person, but this is first person.
At first our narrator Pamon Kes, a servant from a race formerly fully slaves to the Sithi, seems curiously without interior. This is completely intentional. As the novel develops, a novel that he insists is only about those greater than himself, like his master Hakatri or the prideful Ineluki who will go on to become one of the central villains of Memory, Sorrow and Thorn, Kes develops that missing self. In the early sections, he had only been living for those who look down on him (if they even look on him at all). It couldn’t be written in anything other than first person.
This main thread of the quest to kill the dragon lets Williams show that despite the world being in a Golden Age, with no war threatened and even their more violence loving Norn cousins up North freely welcoming to a visit, the seeds of this society’s destruction is plain. Nor is this Golden Age innocent.
Kes encounters ghettos of his own people while the surrounding Sithi go on with self-involved happiness, barely aware of the suffering they profit from. This isn’t the generic whips and slurs portrayal of prejudice from other fantasy novels, but a more realistic one, done with a welcoming smile.
Elsewhere, some ignore a threat as basic and universal as a rampaging dragon. We’re not effected right now, maybe we will be in the future but that’s not now, so it’s not our problem. There are no looming threats, as I said, but self-interest rules: what else could bring about actual threats in future books but that?
The first half of Brothers of the Wind is the quest to kill the dragon, but Osten Ard fans will know this is only the start of the story. The outcome of Ineluki’s pride is that Hakatri is horribly burned by the dragon’s fire. The rest is surprisingly sprawling for a sub-300 pages novel, taking readers on a whirlwind tour of places only whispered of as once existing in the main Osten Ard novels.
Meanwhile, hints for the currently ongoing sequel books The Last King of Osten Ard are drip fed in and pieces of the overall series lore are even delivered up. One scene in particular will leave readers of the sequels debating until the conclusion of Last King is released.
In other words, this is way more book than you would expect. A story of brothers. A story of self-realization from Pamon Kes. A story of a world teetering, not yet on the brink, the brink not even visible, but too busy patting itself on the back over past glories to realize it is there.
Like the best prequels, it adds to what came before instead of taking away with meaningless fan service. Certain tangents in Memory, Sorrow and Thorn take on far more meaning. Depth is added to a supporting character from it and the Last King books by seeing her as a small child.
I won’t reveal how, or why. But most of all, the story of Hakatri we had heard—and his brother Ineluki with him—is revealed to be a glow up. “The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there,” as L.P. Hartley wrote. Differently in people’s cases tends to mean better. More as we wished it had been done. The Tolkien comparison is overused in fantasy reviews, but it fits here: this is tragic myth, melancholic and wistful.
As much as the new books in this world have impressed me for their massive scope, complex plot, sense of approaching doom, subtly, and weaving of themes tightly into narrative I am once again left surprised by a new Tad Williams novel. Brothers of the Wind is not what I expected, which makes it the perfect prequel in a landscape of Star Wars prequel wannabes.
Where should you start these Osten Ard books? That’s up to you. This one is a welcoming pick up to new readers, since Kes is writing a memoir he can quickly explain a custom or person to the reader, the shorter page count commitment, and focused narrative. Of course, this novel will pay off some lore mysteries built up in the others, which is part of what makes it such an effective prequel, one missing tile to a vast, beautiful mosaic.
September 16, 2022
A fantastically beautiful story that takes us into a very different time of Osten Ard that we have known before. I found it nice to read from the point of view of a Tinukeda'ya and to realise once again that the Sithi are not the innocent ones either. The Tinukeda'ya's thoughts were very profound and questioned a lot of things in the world, so I could sympathise with him a lot. This actually rather sad story was mixed with an exciting adventure that made this book an absolute highlight!
I want more short stories like this from Tad Williams.
I want more short stories like this from Tad Williams.
September 7, 2022
I listened to the audiobook version of this novel and loved it from the first sentence. Williams’ Osten Ard books have been favorites of mine for many years, and it’s satisfying to have the history behind the mysterious Sithi explained.
Ineluki, the great Sithi prince known as the Storm King in the series, is as proud and impetuous and his elder brother, Hakatri, is grounded and considerate. The dynamic between the two brothers exerts a constant tension on the events leading up to the break between Asua and Nakiga, the two ruling cities of the Sithi. The rift between the two kingdoms has already separated those who dwell there, but it is Ineluki’s vain and selfish vows that forever sunder the two and lead to the decline of their race and the ascension of humans in Osten Ard.
Williams’ prose perfectly reflects the grand civilization of the Sithi, and the world he builds is complete and well planned. His descriptions of the lands and cities are magnificent, and the personalities, prejudices, and foibles of the inhabitants are fully formed and draw the reader into the drama.
One of the great fantasy authors, Willams continues to create unforgettable people and places for our enjoyment.
Ineluki, the great Sithi prince known as the Storm King in the series, is as proud and impetuous and his elder brother, Hakatri, is grounded and considerate. The dynamic between the two brothers exerts a constant tension on the events leading up to the break between Asua and Nakiga, the two ruling cities of the Sithi. The rift between the two kingdoms has already separated those who dwell there, but it is Ineluki’s vain and selfish vows that forever sunder the two and lead to the decline of their race and the ascension of humans in Osten Ard.
Williams’ prose perfectly reflects the grand civilization of the Sithi, and the world he builds is complete and well planned. His descriptions of the lands and cities are magnificent, and the personalities, prejudices, and foibles of the inhabitants are fully formed and draw the reader into the drama.
One of the great fantasy authors, Willams continues to create unforgettable people and places for our enjoyment.
May 1, 2025
Nun neigt sich meine Reise durch Osten Ard dem Ende zu. Wer meine Lesegeschichte mit Tad Williams kennt, weiß, dass der Autor und ich nicht nur angenehme Stunden miteinander verbrachten. Während ich den Drachenbeinthron (nach anfänglichen Schwierigkeiten) verschlang, maulte ich bei der nachfolgenden Trilogie - bald Tetralogie - regelmäßig herum.
Doch dann begann ich mit den „Zwischenbänden“ und fand in diesen genau die Geschichten, die ich suchte. Das Bindeglied zwischen dem Drachenbeinthron und der nachfolgenden Trilogie („Das Herz der verlorenen Dinge“) hatte ich im Februar bereits bewertet, heute habe ich die Vorgeschichte ausgelesen.
Die Vorgeschichte spielt gut 1000 Jahre vor dem Drachenbeinthron, dennoch treffen wir Charaktere wieder, die später in der Hauptgeschichte eine wichtige Rolle spielen. Es dreht sich in diesem kurzen Werk alles um die Sithi. Für Herr der Ringe Leser: Die Sithi sind praktisch das Pendant zu Tolkiens Elben. Langlebig, geheimnisvoll und sich von der Menschenwelt stark absondernd.
In diesem Buch geht es um die beiden Brüder Ineluki und Hakatri, die nicht unterschiedlicher sein können. Während der Ineluki launisch, teilweise fast schon jähzornig anmutet, ist es Hakatri der ältere Bruder, der die Launen seines Bruders mit Vernunft und Ruhe ausgleicht - bis Ineluki den Schwur leistet, den furchtbaren Drachen Hidohebhi töten zu wollen. Und damit seinen Bruder zu einem furchtbaren Schicksal verdammt.
Das Buch hat ein langsames Tempo. Es geht viel um die Geschichte der Sithi, doch fast noch mehr um das Thema Identität. Pamon, der Diener Hakatris, steht dabei im Mittelpunkt und sorgte dafür, dass ich die Sithi mit anderen Augen sah/sehe.
Pamon stammt von einem Volk ab, das den Sithi seit Jahrtausenden dient und dabei seine Wurzeln verloren hat, jedoch nie als gleichwertig angesehen wird. Er ist ein stolzer Diener, der es als große Ehre ansieht, den Sithi dienen zu dürfen. Doch hat er seine Sprache verloren, kennt nicht die Geschichten seines Volkes und muss erkennen, dass er sich nirgends zugehörig fühlt.
Die gesamte Geschichte wird aus der Sicht des Dieners Pamon erzählt, es ist ein Rückblick, erzählt aus der Ich-Perspektive. Während ich regelmäßig Bücher mit der Ich-Perspektive abbreche, empfand ich hier die Erzählweise nicht störend. Dies liegt daran, dass für mich Tad Williams zu dem fast schon altmodischen Stil zurückfindet, den ich beim Drachenbeinthron so mochte und bei den nachfolgenden Bänden vermisste. Und, ein wichtiges Detail, die Geschichte hat einen klaren Fokus. Keine oberflächlichen Nebencharaktere, nicht zig Seitenstränge, sondern eine Hauptgeschichte. Ich wünschte, diesen Fokus und diese Tiefe bei den Charakteren hätte es auch bei der Fortsetzung des Drachenbeinthrons gegeben.
Ich bin froh, dass ich Osten Ard mit diesem Band abschließen kann. Mit einer Empfehlung bin ich vorsichtig. Ich würde, wenn ihr Interesse an Osten Ard habt, mit dem Drachenbeinthron beginnen, „Das Herz der verlorenen Dinge“ anschließend lesen und die Reihe mit der Vorgeschichte beenden.
Doch dann begann ich mit den „Zwischenbänden“ und fand in diesen genau die Geschichten, die ich suchte. Das Bindeglied zwischen dem Drachenbeinthron und der nachfolgenden Trilogie („Das Herz der verlorenen Dinge“) hatte ich im Februar bereits bewertet, heute habe ich die Vorgeschichte ausgelesen.
Die Vorgeschichte spielt gut 1000 Jahre vor dem Drachenbeinthron, dennoch treffen wir Charaktere wieder, die später in der Hauptgeschichte eine wichtige Rolle spielen. Es dreht sich in diesem kurzen Werk alles um die Sithi. Für Herr der Ringe Leser: Die Sithi sind praktisch das Pendant zu Tolkiens Elben. Langlebig, geheimnisvoll und sich von der Menschenwelt stark absondernd.
In diesem Buch geht es um die beiden Brüder Ineluki und Hakatri, die nicht unterschiedlicher sein können. Während der Ineluki launisch, teilweise fast schon jähzornig anmutet, ist es Hakatri der ältere Bruder, der die Launen seines Bruders mit Vernunft und Ruhe ausgleicht - bis Ineluki den Schwur leistet, den furchtbaren Drachen Hidohebhi töten zu wollen. Und damit seinen Bruder zu einem furchtbaren Schicksal verdammt.
Das Buch hat ein langsames Tempo. Es geht viel um die Geschichte der Sithi, doch fast noch mehr um das Thema Identität. Pamon, der Diener Hakatris, steht dabei im Mittelpunkt und sorgte dafür, dass ich die Sithi mit anderen Augen sah/sehe.
Pamon stammt von einem Volk ab, das den Sithi seit Jahrtausenden dient und dabei seine Wurzeln verloren hat, jedoch nie als gleichwertig angesehen wird. Er ist ein stolzer Diener, der es als große Ehre ansieht, den Sithi dienen zu dürfen. Doch hat er seine Sprache verloren, kennt nicht die Geschichten seines Volkes und muss erkennen, dass er sich nirgends zugehörig fühlt.
Die gesamte Geschichte wird aus der Sicht des Dieners Pamon erzählt, es ist ein Rückblick, erzählt aus der Ich-Perspektive. Während ich regelmäßig Bücher mit der Ich-Perspektive abbreche, empfand ich hier die Erzählweise nicht störend. Dies liegt daran, dass für mich Tad Williams zu dem fast schon altmodischen Stil zurückfindet, den ich beim Drachenbeinthron so mochte und bei den nachfolgenden Bänden vermisste. Und, ein wichtiges Detail, die Geschichte hat einen klaren Fokus. Keine oberflächlichen Nebencharaktere, nicht zig Seitenstränge, sondern eine Hauptgeschichte. Ich wünschte, diesen Fokus und diese Tiefe bei den Charakteren hätte es auch bei der Fortsetzung des Drachenbeinthrons gegeben.
Ich bin froh, dass ich Osten Ard mit diesem Band abschließen kann. Mit einer Empfehlung bin ich vorsichtig. Ich würde, wenn ihr Interesse an Osten Ard habt, mit dem Drachenbeinthron beginnen, „Das Herz der verlorenen Dinge“ anschließend lesen und die Reihe mit der Vorgeschichte beenden.
January 28, 2022
Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy by Tad Williams is a seminal piece of fantasy work. One that I read when it was first published. Williams returns to the world of Osten Ard with a standalone prequel novel set 1000 years before MST.
The story is about two brothers of the ruling Sithi family, Hakatri, and his proud and impulsive younger brother Ineluki, who will go on to become the Storm King in MST. The story is told from the point of view of Kes, Hakatri’s servant. Ineluki makes a rash promise that his pride and stubbornness will not allow him to change, in the fight against the deadly worm Hidohebhi. Ineluki with the aid of Hakatri and Kes must embark on a quest to undo the damage this promise causes.
The story is told by Kes, it gives us an explanation and sows the seeds for the events which unfold in Memory, Sorrow and Thorn. In particular, the role that Ineluki will take as the Storm King. More importantly, why Ineluki takes the course of action he does.
One of the delights of reading Tad Williams is his writing. The prose is concise and descriptive, often beautiful. The quest and journey that Kes, Hakatari and Ineluki undertake is well-plotted and feels natural.
Even though Williams wrote Memory, Sorrow and Thorn, 23 years ago, judging by this story, it's like Williams has never been away from Osten Ard. It will delight fans wondering how we arrived at Dragon Bone Chair, the first book in Memory, Sorrow and Thorn. The world-building is impeccable he's one of the very best. The relationship between Kes and Hakatri is well drawn out and utterly believable. As is the relationship between the two brothers, Williams gives us some well-observed nuances of family relationships. There is also a kind of unending sadness to the story.
It was a real pleasure revisiting Ost Ard. To be introduced to well-known characters and given a backstory we didn't know. A brilliant book and highly recommend.
The story is about two brothers of the ruling Sithi family, Hakatri, and his proud and impulsive younger brother Ineluki, who will go on to become the Storm King in MST. The story is told from the point of view of Kes, Hakatri’s servant. Ineluki makes a rash promise that his pride and stubbornness will not allow him to change, in the fight against the deadly worm Hidohebhi. Ineluki with the aid of Hakatri and Kes must embark on a quest to undo the damage this promise causes.
The story is told by Kes, it gives us an explanation and sows the seeds for the events which unfold in Memory, Sorrow and Thorn. In particular, the role that Ineluki will take as the Storm King. More importantly, why Ineluki takes the course of action he does.
One of the delights of reading Tad Williams is his writing. The prose is concise and descriptive, often beautiful. The quest and journey that Kes, Hakatari and Ineluki undertake is well-plotted and feels natural.
Even though Williams wrote Memory, Sorrow and Thorn, 23 years ago, judging by this story, it's like Williams has never been away from Osten Ard. It will delight fans wondering how we arrived at Dragon Bone Chair, the first book in Memory, Sorrow and Thorn. The world-building is impeccable he's one of the very best. The relationship between Kes and Hakatri is well drawn out and utterly believable. As is the relationship between the two brothers, Williams gives us some well-observed nuances of family relationships. There is also a kind of unending sadness to the story.
It was a real pleasure revisiting Ost Ard. To be introduced to well-known characters and given a backstory we didn't know. A brilliant book and highly recommend.
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