Seeds of Hatred

by Christian Nadeau

As a former assassin, a man on the run for years, Marac survived taking on odd jobs, living on society’s fringe, never putting down roots for fear of having to run again. Until he’s hired to steal a trinket from the Brotherhood.

Newly graduated, Soren is ready to shoulder the responsibilities that come with an officer’s commission. Serving in the Brotherhood of Khan is a privilege, one he abandoned everything for. But when an Angel calls on him, he knows his first assignment is more than it seems to be.

As a Lightbearer, gifted with the power to shape light to her will, Alex lived a sheltered life in Tyranor’s monastery. Should the Brotherhood find out what she was, they’d kill her, but the monastery is underground, safely hidden from their prying eyes.

Then it all comes crashing down. A terrible game is played, and when the powerful move, pawns are doomed to be sacrificed.

Are they?

Genres: Fantasy

506 pages, Paperback

Published April 9, 2017

Reviews

[A.D.T. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seeds of Hatred breeds an interesting world. Without going into spoilers, it tells the tale of Marac, a former assassin who is hired after an early retirement by ‘the Brotherhood’, and his former life kicks up a fuss again.
This is a great book. From the get-go you know exactly what type of story this is going to grow into, but you never quite expect what comes round the bend.
I’m not a fan of intense fantasy, especially of the dark kind, so saying that is a lot from me.
However, if we’re being picky, from a personal perspective I am not a fan of books with mystical sounding names and places either, and this is full of them. It feels very inspired by Game of Thrones-styled fantasy novels, which is fine if you love that sort of stuff. Still, the narration felt almost stuffy, overdone at times in its attempts to sound professional. Not much warmth to it at all. Clinical at its worst. But most fantasy novels are. There always has to be a human detail to the narration no matter how otherworldly the plot may be.
Despite that the plot was fantastic and quite original (despite some ‘Book Thief’ thoughts I had before reading it).
There’s a great sense of detail, though, to everything in this book. It is pure fantasy, and great fantasy at that. Highly recommended.

[Vrushali Pathak · Rating 5 out of 5]

PLOT
The story basically revolves around these three people, as mentioned in the book blurb, but it isn’t just limited to that. As the book started I thought- “So only these character’s point of view is used.” And I was wrong.
There are many short paragraphs (basically they’re sections) which change the point of views some times. And they didn’t confuse me at all. Now I haven’t read many fantasy books and I know the struggle to literally get into the book. And the start seems to be the most difficult part because all the characters are getting introduced. (AND THIS BOOK HAD 80+ CHARACTERS) And so when I started reading it flowed smoothly. I understood what was going on. No unnecessary action sequence to throw me off. The whole book was crisp, up to the point and just the best example for why we really should concentrate on editing more.
(The author ‘Christian Nadeau” himself told me that the original draft was 320k words and he edited to make it 180k and still it’s a lot of words.)
So plot wise, I’m impressed. There are like different factions made up – Brotherhood, Lightbearers, Darkbearers, Fey, Thrall, Revenants, etc. And they all had their own reasons to start a war. Some were trying to stop it and some were in favour it. It just was a mix of opinions and egos.
But the book ends in a CLIFFHANGER. I seriously thought the war was going to take place in this book but IT DIDN’T. And it’s okay no hard feelings (though I screamed a little inside because I wanted to KNOW MORE) *deep breaths* And seriously does any war just start like that? No it doesn’t. Hence the book was REALISTIC.

CHARACTERS
Now this is what I call a ‘strong character’ book. Every character was well thought out. But there was this minor problem. I thought about how the characters, which I repeat were 80+ could have been cut short a little. Because somehow the author named every soldier and every slave and I know it could’ve been hard on him too. But that’s just creative criticism.
I couldn’t actually write about each and every character there is but I can assure it will be like Game of Thrones level characters in a single book (and I haven’t even read Game of Thrones, so don’t quote me on that!)

WRITING
The writing was sharp and not too much description but just enough to make you know what was really happening. And I can’t just write anything more about it because by now you would’ve known that I love this book! (Not forgetting that it ends in a cliffhanger!) *runs away to sob again*

MY REVIEW
Overall just because it was huge to read and took me almost 10 days of my life I would give it 5 stars. No. that wasn’t the real reason. The real reason being that I haven’t read a good from a very long time (like 6 months) and reading was a fresh experience for me.

You’ll LIKE it if:

1) You like a fantasy world based novel
2) You like a book with a truck load of characters
3) You like a book that’s well thought
4) You want to really not want to miss out on a great book
You want to read a series

You’ll NOT LIKE it if:

1) You want a light read
2) You don’t like too many characters
3) You don’t want to read a series

*The author provided me a copy and it in now way affects what I think and my review*

[Peter Diggins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review Summary:

A good fantasy adventure story. Swords, sorcery, and a reasonable amount of debauchery. Lots of characters, a grandly fleshed out fantasy world and a good read.

Rating: 79%

Review in a bit more detail:

The short and curly of it: Five of the six powerful Scions are accounted for, and one more is out there, waiting to be found. The whole thing is a bit of a conflict between light and dark; and fifty shades of fey. There’s lots of intrigue, backstabbing and front stabbing.

Out of the miasma of humanity (and other species), the three main characters who take up most of our attention are:
Marac, a former assassin, Soren, an officer of the Brotherhood, and Alex the Lightbearer.

Seeds of Hatred gets right into the action, introducing a lot of the main characters in the first chapters. There are a lot of characters, and there is a lot going on. I really enjoyed this aspect of the narrative. Having said that, I can see where some readers may get lost in the vastness of scale. It’s a little difficult at the start to discern who is important or not. We get introduced to many more people as the story goes on.

There is a very detailed world contained within the pages. Sometimes, I think, a little bit too much detail; the reader gets a lot of perspectives and background from a lot of characters. But it ends up working well for Christian’s story. It just takes a little getting used to.

In Seeds of Hatred, the characters are powerful, on all sides of the good/ evil equation. There is a great support cast, who help and hinder the heroes and villains. A vast array of magic, including blood sorcery, shadow beings, lightbearers, darkbearers and others, enhances the immense detail of the work.

There are twists and turns as the story progresses. Some of the developments are a little more left field than others. But overall, I found it all gels and relates back and forth quite well.

There’s a very good (but long) dramatis personae at the front, after the prophecy bit, that helps the reader keep track of who’s who. And… I really like the cover. It looks great!

I’d recommend this to any fan of grand-scale fantasy fiction. It’s good read.

Pete Diggins
22 July 2017

[Leo McBride · Rating 4 out of 5]

You know, there's a real love and care that's been put into the creation of this book. From the cover, with its beautifully balanced image that draws you in, through the characters who could have just sauntered in from a Fritz Leiber or Katherine Kurtz tale, you can tell the amount of effort the author has put into the book's creation.
The story itself tells the tale of a war between the Lightbringers and Darkbringers - opposing sides often treated as myth until their conflict bursts brutishly into reality.
It's a world of assassins and mercenaries, of magic wielders and shades, most often just trying to stay alive as the protagonists move from urban landscapes to seagoing adventures and more.
The focus is perhaps sometimes a little too wide, but when we catch up with the adventures of the sword-for-hire Marac or the refugee Lightbringer Alex, the story really takes off, bustling with verve and flair.
All told, I'm delighted to have discovered Christian Nadeau's work - this is the kind of carefully crafted world that evokes the spirit of classic old-school fantasy. I look forward to more!

[Harini · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED THIS BOOK !!
Its been a very long time since i've read a good fantasy book And i'm so glad this was the book i read to quench my fantasy thirst.

This story revolves around this three people, and well their lives. (I'm not gonna write a summary)

So I have ZERO complaints about this book.
The writing was great. I loved the switch in POV'S here and there. I loved the plot , the pace and everything about this book.

JUST GO READ IT!!

* I WOULD LIKE TO THANK THE AMAZING AUTHOR OF THIS BOOK FOR SENDING ME A ECOPY OF IT*

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seeds of Hatred was written by Christian Nadeau and published on 9 April 2017

“As a former assassin, a man on the run for years, Marac survived taking on odd jobs, living on society’s fringe, never putting down roots for fear of having to run again. Until he’s hired to steal a trinket from the Brotherhood.

Newly graduated, Soren is ready to shoulder the responsibilities that come with an officer’s commission. Serving in the Brotherhood of Khan is a privilege, one he abandoned everything for. But when an Angel calls on him, he knows his first assignment is more than it seems to be.

As a Lightbearer, gifted with the power to shape light to her will, Alex lived a sheltered life in Tyranor’s monastery. Should the Brotherhood find out what she was, they’d kill her, but the monastery is underground, safely hidden from their prying eyes.

Then it all comes crashing down. A terrible game is played, and when the powerful move, pawns are doomed to be sacrificed.

Are they?”*

I was given a complementary copy of Seeds of Hatred (Scions Awakened Book I) to review. It in no way, shape, or form influenced my opinion/review of the book.

Within the very first few pages, it became evident that Seeds of Hatred could benefit from a heavy edit. Judging by other Goodreads reviews, the complaint of the character list is not an uncommon theme. There are at least four pages of characters, which is an absurd amount to not only have in a book, but to also deem important enough to put their name and description in the beginning. It’s overwhelming, and had I been thumbing through this book at the store, I probably would have put it back on the shelf and opted for a simpler one instead. It’s just too many characters. There’s no way all of them – or even half – were important. It has always been my philosophy that characters should be introduced as I read, and have enough of a “voice” that I can easily distinguish one from the other.

That being said, the map is beautiful. I’m a bit of a sucker for a quality map of the land in any novel. This one is beautiful in it’s simplicity, yet detailed enough to provide an effective scope of the land. On that same note, the book is gorgeous in terms of the cover. The dark brown and black colours actually stand out as opposed to blend in. Also, at 500 pages, Seeds of Hatred is a hefty book that I’m confident is solid enough to last for years with no issues. (I’m guilty of reading books so often that the pages fall out.)

Of course, there is so much more good than bad within this book. Alex and Dorn’s relationship was a highlight for me. They balance each other out very well. Moreover, Alex’s powers are decently thought out, and her character arc and development was organic. At times she can come across as flat; yes, I know she bites her nails and has a fiery temper…but what else? This can easily be solved by, again, omitting POVs to focus more on the main characters. For example, Dorn’s perspective could have been easily cut. While Alex ponders Dorn’s past, we’ve already known about it for a good while. This halts any and all suspense and tension, all because another POV spoiled it some pages earlier. If a reader is left wondering, they’ll continue on with the book.

The concept of Lightbearers and Darkbearers along with “blood puppets” was something I’ve never seen before. It was an interesting twist on the battle between night and day. The creativity behind how each power was crafted is abundantly clear. Not every author can write scenarios like these and get away with it, but Nadeau does it with ease. Nothing ever comes across as hokey or juvenile.

Another highlight was Soren Kline and his command. The transition from Soren’s blind belief in the Brotherhood to becoming a wanted rogue was particularly interesting. The dynamic between the few men was natural, and this is when Nadeau’s writing is most effective. To see Soren struggle with his morals and values in times of war was heartbreaking – he’s such a beautifully written character that you can’t help but root for him. Sure, he’s naive (and a little bit too fearful at times), it’s these flaws that really do round him out and make him someone you’d want to root for.

Finally, perhaps the best writing done by Nadeau is the fight scenes. Each played out in my head like a movie. The terms used were simple enough for everyone to understand while also providing sufficient descriptions for the imagination. I loved every bit of these scenes, and I know in the next book there will be a lot more as the war goes on.

Nadeau has a unique writing style that takes some time to adjust to. There are commas where one might expect periods or transition words. That being said, the prose is exceptional when not bogged down by the many mistakes. I am so upset at the editing for this book. There are missing punctuation marks, messy contractions, completely wrong words, and much more throughout the whole novel. How the multitude of mistakes got past everyone and into the published, physical copy astounds me. A book as wonderfully written as this one should not have sloppy mistakes like these:

Get out a few word (16)

Let her pass “go on in” (41)

You’d don’t want to tell (43/44)

Wasn’tmuch time (77)

Those two were shy about more that the wounds (188)

The amount of mistakes do not lessen the farther you get in the book. The reason some (though not all) of them are included here is to point out that oftentimes these simple mistakes can and do draw a reader out of the fantasy world Nadeau had so painstakingly woven. A third party was needed to catch these – it’s easy to accidentally skip over the issues when you’re proofreading your own work. Still, when written correctly, I found the novel to be refreshing in its concept and writing style. Fantasy is my all-time favourite genre, so I don’t mind reading much-needed exposition that sets up an entirely new world. Though some might be put off by the slow start, it’s usually necessary in such a genre (fans of Queen of the Tearling will definitely resonate with Seeds of Hatred).

One big issue that stems from the character list is the multiple (and that’s putting it lightly) POVs in this book. Even halfway through, the reader is still being introduced to new characters, some of which only have one chapter and are not featured again. Without spoiling too much, there is a war brewing, and we see every. Single. Perspective. It’s easy to get lost – who is the protagonist here? The antagonist? The answer is never clear. I’m not saying you have to distinguish this (many plot-driven books don’t), but when there are so many angles and so many people, we need an anchor. Who can we keep coming back to? I would have liked it to be Marac, Soren, or Alex. Unfortunately they are minimized by other, less developed, much less important characters.

In the notes that I keep for each book, I wrote down the word ‘inconsequential’ for this one. Looking back, this is a pretty decent word to describe certain aspects. Entire sections and characters could be cut out and it wouldn’t impact the plot whatsoever. A good book doesn’t have to be a long one, and I’m confident this novel could lose roughly 150 pages and be the same, if not better. If there wasn’t so much fluff, it would be easier to see the plot and the fight about to ensue. Instead, it’s muddled. The three characters included in the blurb of this book should have been the only voices used. It would have been more than enough, and would have simplified the conflict.

Overall, it comes down to this: I want the next book. I want to know what happens to the core group of characters. I WANT it, and that is the best thing you can ask for from a reader.

3 out of 5 stars

*Blurb by Goodreads

[Stacie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seeds of Hatred, by Christian Nadeau, is the first book in the Scions Awakened fantasy series. With a complex cast of characters, a richly developed fantasy world, magic and mayhem - it packs a punch. At over 500 pages, it is also a book of giant proportions.

Though there are many characters in this novel, there are three protagonists who remain at the heart of the story: Marac, a hired assassin, Alex, a Lightbearer - and Soren, a soldier in the Brotherhood. Each has their own cross to bear, and an ancient, evil enemy to fight. This is a book filled with battles, betrayals, unexpected alliances and magic on a grand scale. There are Lightbeareres and Darkbearers, evil elves called Fay or Vhaell - and a dark blood magic at work. And at the center of it all are six mortals called the Scions, who are cursed with the prophecy that begins it all: "Six mortals are cursed/ By love, allegiances twisted/ By loss, paths are decided/ By vengeance, fates are sealed."

Fans of epic fantasy series that are hefty tomes with complex worlds like Game of Thrones or Lord of the Rings will not be disappointed. Seeds of Hatred is a novel that readers can dive into and explore with the kind of abandon that richly-written fantasy allows. And by the end of its 500-odd pages, readers are left with a cliffhanger that will have them anticipating Book 2 in the Scions Awakened series.

[S.D. Reeves · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seeds of Hatred, is a solid debut novel, with deep roots reaching back into the golden age of Sword-and-Sorcery fiction. Christian Nadeau navigates this long, winding tale expertly. And while not perfect, there was never a moment where I didn't want to continue on.

The first chapters introduce us to several characters, of which many will get their own POV. The initial opening scenes with hired thief/assassin Marac, for example, soon plow into strings involving Alex, Dorn, Caras, Murin, Soren, Elyas, and a few more through the middle arcs. Tying these individual pieces together is a daunting task, but Nadeau manages it somehow - albeit with a loss of characterization (more on this later) - by nursing the intertwining political turmoil plot-line with the pursuit and rediscovery of ancient, dark magic. It is an effective effort, what clearly must have taken an enormous amount of work to garden.

But Seeds of Hatred isn't perfect. There are the normal miss-spellings, and editing errors, and the lack of characterization that makes all of the various names blend together. The latter is a casualty to the amount of people introduced in this novel, and is one of those hallmarks of the old D&D/Forgotten Realms stories, of which this piece is obviously inspired by. In the end - though I know it is cliche - towards the latter half the only 'person' I was really invested in, was the world itself. This is in part because Nadeau is very strong at world building, and setting the atmosphere.

This came to me at just the right time; a month or two later, or earlier, and it would not likely have been such an easy pick up. It is a long book, and one that requires a bit of patience to navigate. But patience and timing are always important with good books, and gardening. Personally, I would recommend planting Nadeau's books in your library, at the very least, to see this author grow.

[C.E. Clayton · Rating 4 out of 5]

You want an epic fantasy of Tolkien proportions? What am I saying, of course you do! Which makes “Seeds of Hatred” PERFECT for that itch! I mean at almost 500 pages (I’m not including the glossary of characters or places, though that became a serious lifeline—I’ll explain later), “Seeds of Hatred” follows three main characters as they struggle against mysterious forces that have turned their beliefs and morals upside down, and constantly threaten their lives through a prophecy-esque fantasy tale (it even has a prophecy poem which should be familiar to lovers of The Lord of the Rings stories). Now, I say three main characters, but there are a lot more than just that in the book… Nadeau has fleshed out all of supporting characters personalities and provided them with complex goals so they not only feel substantial (which is awesome) but they also connect the main characters plot-lines together (which got confusing).

Let me start by saying that I enjoyed this book a great deal. Nadeau crafted a complex plot with well thought-out characters, unique magic systems, religions and their corresponding cults, as well as a new world that felt both familiar to the classic fantasy realms we all know and love, but also distinct from things such as Lord of the Rings despite the overall vibe of the novel. In “Seeds of Hatred” the elves are not called elves, but Fey and feel more like the dark skinned Drow of Dungeons & Dragons lore, which I loved (because you know me and elves). I also enjoyed that the Fey weren’t necessarily “good” creatures either, for they were once the slave masters of the entire human race. And I enjoyed how full and rich Nadeau makes his world by filling it with so much intrigue—he definitely took a page out of George R. R. Martin’s playbook with that one! But ultimately, the sheer amount of plots, sub-plots, and characters had me struggling to keep track of who was who, and what side they were on, what the different secret cults hidden within each “side” wanted, and who the ultimate “boss” bad guy was, because there are a lot of nasty little villains in Nadeau’s world.

This is why the glossary was such a lifeline, but that only works in the paperback versions because it’s not as easy to flip to in an ereader, but as it’s a big book, sometimes carrying it around gets troublesome (I traveled with this bad boy). Even with the help the author provides, I found it hard to keep track of everyone, as the secondary characters have their own chapters which become pretty important to following along with the complicated storyline (which I can’t go into, because unraveling that would take way, way too long, but trust me, it’s interesting). Not only are the secondary characters given so much weight (maybe too much) but there are about 2 to 3 different conflicts and a handful of power struggles going on simultaneously that all ladder up to the bigger central prophecy, which starts to get substantial attention maybe 80% in after being teased in various small sections throughout the book. These conflicts are exciting, but they felt big and complex enough to carry their own book. When they get crammed into one novel (even if a long one), they couldn’t be explored fully, which made them a little hard to grasp. Which, again, wasn’t helped much by all the little characters that get introduced and then (sometimes) killed along the way. Given this is the first book in the series, I’m confident that Nadeau will explore all these conflicts and sub-plotlines more in subsequent books, but, at times, I didn’t enjoy feeling like I had lost the main thread of the story and needed to backtrack.
Even with this confusion, I would have rated the book a bit higher, but there were a few things that kept popping up and rubbed me the wrong way. Namely, the author crafts such a wonderful world, that each time there was a modern cliché, I frowned. It pulled me out of the world he’s crafted, and back into the modern world, disrupting my flow and reminding me that I had been reading the book for hours on end and maybe it was time to stop. Also, all the female characters seem to yearn for male companionship, for the men to find them attractive and sexually desirable, and when they aren’t, it impacts their self-worth. Given some of the strong female characters he has (like Alex), I found this stereotype irritating. That and the repetition of certain phrases like describing a characters eyes going “as wide as teacups”. If this had been used a few times for one character, no big deal, but it’s used multiple times across several characters, and I couldn’t stop noticing it. Again, pretty nit-picky all things considered, and I only mention it in hopes of helping the author for later books.

“Seeds of Hatred” is a rewarding epic fantasy that will whisk you away to a dark world on the verge of all-out war across the various cities, religions, and ruling groups. The first book gets the reader to the precipice of when everything is about to explode, and I can’t wait to continue on in this series! Even though the book didn’t end with the BANG I was expecting, I did like where it left off, so to speak. So if you like seriously epic tales with prophecies, magic, fantasy creatures, action-adventure, and you have the time to put your attention into this book, I highly recommend you do! But given the length, some of the detail of violence, and some of the language, I think this is best for a more mature reader as they will appreciate the tale more. Given that the complexity became a hindrance (which might have been fixed with spending less time with some of these smaller characters), and the personal qualms I had, I give this book a well-deserved 4 stars, and I can’t wait to see what happens next! Thank you to the author for providing me with a copy of his work to review!

[Matt Cowper · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this novel would end up on one of my mental “best of” lists when I first started reading. Nadeau's writing is as sharp as the daggers one of his characters expertly wields, and his fantasy world is inviting. He has a firm grasp of psychology, battle tactics (both small- and large-scale), diplomatic strategies, and so on – all the heavier concepts that give a fantasy novel depth.

Unfortunately, as the tale went on, I was wearied by the endless cast of characters. Every time I thought I had a handle on someone, we'd jump to another scene with a person I had only a dim memory of. It's reminiscent of the hefty number of viewpoints in the “Game of Thrones” series, but in GOT, we usually get beefy chapters with a lot happening, so the characters can develop in our minds. In “Seeds of Hatred,” things bounce around so much it's difficult to understand the characters. Oftentimes a character's section is superficial, with them having a largely uneventful conversation with an underling, or staring out of a window and plotting.

But, as my four star rating indicates, there's still a lot to like about this novel. The characters Nadeau spends the most time on are fantastic (the time spent, of course, having a lot to do with them being fantastic), such as Alex, Dorn, and Marac. All three of these characters seem to be one-dimensional at first, but they slowly evolve until they become realistic and memorable.

The characters of Elyas and Soren are worth mentioning, since they're important to the plot, but I found these two to be less interesting than the ones above. Elyas's transformation from bookworm to bloodsucking mage/shapeshifter/badass should've been a satisfying beginning to a revenge angle, and it has its macabre moments, but as he lost his basic humanity, so too did he lose my sympathy. Part of the problem is that he's mostly by himself in the latter part of the novel, and it's hard to develop someone when they don't have another character to play off of. Soren is too much of a bleeding heart, and, frankly, a wimp – I thought for sure his grizzled soldiers would turn on him, but they remain loyal, even though he's the least inspiring character in the novel.

The plot itself concerns the machinations of various factions, mainly the Brotherhood, the Lightbearers, the Darkbearers, and the Fey. If those weren't enough, there are disagreements within these groups, or outright schisms, and there are shadowy players pulling strings from afar, which means you can't paint any group with a broad brush. Oh, there's a group of disgruntled nobles as well...and the Lutherians, rebels who've broken away from the Brotherhood...and the mysterious Scions...and...you get the point. It's convoluted, and there's going to be a lot of fighting, backstabbing, shifting allegiances, and pure chaos as this multifaceted conflict develops.

But, again, the novel goes overboard, and gives us too many factions like it gives us too many characters. If you love convoluted stories, where you need an organizational chart to keep track of everyone, this novel will satisfy your craving for the labyrinthine. Myself, I prefer simpler fare.

If Nadeau trimmed down his tale, it'd be, as I said, a “best of.” The story as it is has plenty of action, some intriguing characters, strong prose, and enough moral ambiguity to make it more than a “defeat the Dark Lord” plot. If this author adopts a leaner, meaner writing style for subsequent books, I'll gladly read them.

[Robin Goodfellow · Rating 4 out of 5]

-I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.

Seeds of Hatred, Christian Nadeau, is an epic fantasy about political pawns endeavoring to survive in a world filled with the tragic beauty of war.

Marac is a former assassin who was hired to guard the blood sorcerer Elyas. Alex is a sheltered Lightbearer who must travel to Morador to warn the monasteries of the savage purges taking place. Soren is a young, naive military officer who becomes embroiled with the corruption of his own organization. Their seemingly distant stories come crashing down the moment three powerful organizations decide to attack one another, both on the war front and through polite society. Heartbreak after heartbreak, with betrayal lingering near, Marac, Alex, and Soren must use their wits to stay alive and bring down those who seek to ruin them.

I loved reading about these three characters, and how their interactions inadvertently affected one another. It was like I was looking through mirrors during a sunset, with the light bouncing against each surface, creating a kaleidoscope of colors that I could stare at for hours. Nadeau even shows just how important the supporting characters, from Elyas attempting to avenge his family, to Caras’s manipulative games. Each had something to offer to the story, and it helped the main protagonists with their development.

Not only that, but I also enjoyed what appeared to be a complex chess game between the nobles, the Fey, and the Brotherhood; characters like the noblewoman Laera, whose daughter was just murdered, and Aldazar, who had only wanted to live with his human bride, were all wonderfully written. Whatever side they were on, they all had loved ones, and they all had reasons for doing what they did. Nadeau illustrates just how convoluted war can truly be, where one side is neither truly right. Whenever I read about these characters, it was as if I was seeing at the various governments of the real world, whether that be from America or Russia. And personally, I saw a part of myself in each of them.

But while the book was good in those two respects, a major detractor was the fact that there were so many characters to keep track of. While their backgrounds were incredibly interesting, there were times I had to refer to my notes just to remind myself what character I was reading about. I also wanted certain character’s story lines to be a bit more fleshed out, and would’ve preferred reading more about the supporting characters, rather than the main protagonists themselves.

Nevertheless, I did like the book. The characters and political background was good, though I had trouble keeping up with the various characters. The prose was also vivid, so much so I could practically see myself walking alongside Marac, or being with Alex as she was ambushed. Thus, I would give this book a rating of a 3.8 out of 5 stars, and would recommend it to those who are fans of Flavio Santonocito and Jesse Teller.

[Erika Winterlia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seeds of Hatred is an epic fantasy that doesn’t just scratch the surface of the world he’s build. It’s political, beautiful, tragic. Seemingly separate stories weave in beautifully in this story and it all comes together very nicely.

It took me longer than I’d care to admit to finish this book, and it wasn’t only because of the books lengths. Moving to a new house and completely renovating it meant little time to read, but when did find the time, this book was a great escape.

I think Nadeau managed to bring his world alive and he has a way with words that makes it fun to read. His scenes play in my mind like a movie, and that’s just how I like it. His characters seem well thought out and are developed nicely. They all have their own personality and you get a feeling of knowing them.

There is a style of writing here that instantly lets you know that this is going to be a strong fantasy novel in the likes of Game of Thrones. This is one of the books strongest benefits, but in one aspect it’s also one of its weaknesses. There are a lot of words here, and a lot of characters. It’s the kind of book that you cannot just fly through. It requires concentration and a good memory.

I do feel like the book could be edited down quite a bit. All those characters don’t need to be there, at least not by name. It gets overwhelming. It would have been better to focus on fewer characters and instead flesh them out even more. They are interesting and at times I felt compelled to skip parts of the novel just to get back to the story of a character I read about earlier.

At times I felt like the writing may have been a bit forced. And by that I mean that it seemed like the author tried too hard to write like someone else, like other fantasy authors out there instead of sticking to his own voice. But I’m sure that this is something that will be sorted with time when Christian Nadeau has released a bunch more books in the series and really found his voice.

So, should I talk about the ending? I don’t know if I’m disappointed, or intrigued. As a rule, I hate cliffhangers, I really do. I want a somewhat complete story. And I can feel that with a story this long, there should have been more closure in the end. But, I can see the lure in ending with a cliffhanger, it’s a great way to make sure your readers will pick up the next book in the series.

Overall, this was a great read that I think will appeal to those who like to read a proper fantasy with all that goes with it.

[Alex Avrio · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Seeds of Hatred you are immersed in an extremely rich, complex fantasy world, which ticks many of the boxes for an epic fantasy adventure. We have five main groups – nobles, the religious brotherhood, the light mage cult, the dark mage cult, and the Fey, all of whom either are currently in conflict with each other, or have fought major wars with each other. Within each group there are different factions, infighting amongst themselves, and other lone wolves or rebel groups with their own agendas. The world is well constructed and imagined, and incorporates other classic fantasy elements – assassins, mercenaries, and monsters. The monsters are the six Scions of Darkness, all with their own special skills, whose allegiances are split between at least two of the sides.

Overall, I found the plot interesting and as you would expect with such a complex tale, some of the plot-lines and characters are more engaging than others. I’m sure each reader will have their own favourites but the highlights for me were the Lightbearer, Alex, and her mercenary sidekick Dorn. The methods of using light and dark in magical battles were wonderfully imaginative. When I read the first few chapters, I found the book highly polished, and it felt like I was in the hands of an accomplished author, and was looking forward to being able to rate this as a 5 star book.

However, as I got deeper into the book, a few issues arose that caused me to knock a star off. First, the editing seems to tail off after the first few chapters, as more editing issues arise. In addition to typos and punctuation errors creeping in, there are over-used phrases (so many eyebrows quirking up, looks being thrown, etc), and redundant sentences that I felt ought to have been smoothed out in the edits prior to publication. The other issue was that there were times when, due to the sheer number of character points of view, I struggled to remember which character from which faction I was hearing from. With such a complex narrative, there’s always likely to be a fine line between complexity and confusion, but I would have preferred the author to have concentrated on the points of view of just five or six characters to help me keep everything in order in my little head.

In summary, this is an enjoyable book if you like complex epic fantasy, and can keep track in your head of multiple characters and plot lines.

[Darrell Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seeds of Hatred, Flowers of Love.

This book is the exception to the rule (that also proves it).
One of the automatic rejections that agents give is for the sentence: "This million word epic fantasy novel was based on a Dungeons and Dragons game that we played over the course of a few years." So when I read that this novel evolved out of a D&D game, I groaned. When I saw that it had a character list of 80+ characters I groaned again. Then a glossary, sigh.
However the professional formatting did give me hope. Then I started reading. It is clear that the author spent a long, long time editing it. It is easy to imagine that of the half million words this novel started out as, none of them survived without being replaced at least once.
The scenes were well fleshed out and flowed well. Going back over them you can imagine the author carefully balancing getting the right amount of description without slowing things down. Same with the characters and everything else.
The (years of) editing does make this an exception to the automatic rejection, it does also prove it because unless you've done so much work after writing the half million word novel based on a D&D game, that you could say the final product is based on a novel that was based on a D&D game, like this was, then the rule holds true.
I will still cringe at the words "Epic" or "Fantasy" before the word novel, but I do like pleasant surprises. This was one of them and I liked it. If you are into "Epic Fantasy" you should love this.

[Rob Cummings · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Seeds of Hatred, the author has crafted a world rife with dissenting factions poised on the brink of all-out war. The question we are presented in the story is who will side with whom to wage the war. Which factions are planning and scheming to clean up the mess once the warmongers have finished with the battles? Will the Lightbearers and the Darkbearers cancel out the other thus paving the way for the six prophesied Scions to do battle on opposing sides? What part will the Fey / Vhaells play in the impending conflict?

The starts off slow with the introduction of the characters but this is understandable, and the author did a fine job spreading this out in a way that didn’t get the reader bogged down in the back story. When the action starts, the ride is intense and thrilling.

I get the feeling, there is more to this story than what is floating around on the surface. Why are the different players willing to be lead like lemmings to the demise of their world?

I have to say when I sit down to read a book epic fantasy isn’t my first, second or third choice, but I have to say I really enjoyed this tale and look forward to the next installment. I’m anxious to see how the character's actions will play out in this battle for power and control of their world. All in all, this was a very fun read. Thanks for the journey and I look forward to the next one.

[James Maxstadt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let me begin by saying that Seeds of Hatred is a long book. That isn’t a bad thing, as I’ve read plenty of books longer than this one. But if you’re going to enjoy it, you need to be a fan of deep world-building.
There are a lot of characters in this book, although the number of major players is at a manageable level. They have interesting stories and you do turn the pages waiting to find out what will happen with them. The only problem with this is that the author sometimes puts large sections in-between seeing a particular character, and it can take a minute or two to remember what was happening with them.
So don’t be turned off by the immense list of names at the front of the book. Ignore it, start reading and refer back to it if you really need it.
The story is well written and for the most part moves along at a good pace. There is a lot of description, which adds to the realism, even while magic is being used and dangerous creatures are rising up. There are a couple of places where the story drags for a bit, as people sit in a council and talk, and those sections could be cut down considerably.
Overall, this is a very good, very ambitious book. If you’re a fan of epic-fantasy, give this one a read.

[Bibliophile Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seeds of Hatred is an extremely well-written novel that provides a wonderful place where the reader can escape into a land of exciting fantasy. Nadeau is a skilled and artistic creator, forming and coloring his sweeping world with amazing depth, showing off his rich imagination. Powers of Light and Dark compete with sword-wielding characters and different races in a thoroughly entertaining tapestry. I was wholly excited to turn the pages to find what final story the well-placed threads would reveal. I am a fan of Nadeau’s writing and will be a reader of the next in the series, waiting to find what will happen to the last Scion that is just awakening.

[Ed Morawski · Rating 3 out of 5]

I pretty much know from the first page if I’m going to like a book. That’s an age old adage: hook the reader from the start. In any case by the end of chapter one I should know for sure what the book is about and if it’s going to be entertaining. The main problem for me with ‘Seeds of Hatred’ is that six of those first pages were used up by a cast of characters. For the record, there are 74 characters listed in the cast!!! Yes indeed I’m not exaggerating—I counted them. I once put a cast of characters in one of my books (at the end) and as soon as I read it I knew I was in trouble, and was only twenty. I cut it to ten and still thought it was too much. If you have to list them then there are way too many!

By the end of chapter one I honestly had no idea what was going on. By the end of chapter two I was pretty much lost. There were already dozens of characters mentioned. I would have to take notes to keep my sanity and that seems like a little much when trying to be entertained by a book. Maybe I’m too old and not the intended audience for this because keeping track and being invested in 74 characters was too much. I did follow and enjoy Alex’s and Dorn’s exploits but because this is book one of a series it seemed to end abruptly.

I must say though the actual prose is excellent. The fantasy world is richly described and textured, and as one reader commented: it is lovingly constructed. I know an immense amount of work went into this and I would guess fans of this genre will adore it.

[E.M. Swift-Hook · Rating 2 out of 5]

A Forlorn Fantasy

'Six mortals are cursed/ By love, allegiances twisted/ By loss, paths are decided/ By vengeance, fates are sealed'

Marac has stolen an artefact made by the Fey, the former rulers of humanity, from the Brotherhood for a man named Elyas and must get both it and his employer safe out of Tyranor and away from the Khanite soldiers hunting him. Alex is the sole survivor of a massacre. She is an Ezekan Lightbearer and the Abraxan Darkbearers and their shades had found her home, murdering two hundred followers of Ezekiel. Her duty, placed upon her by Bishop Judas himself, is to somehow take warning to Morador. Laera Cullings is in a vital meeting when her lover and master-of arms Veylor brings her the most terrible news a parent can ever have. But even her blood-vow of vengeance must be kept secret. First Lieutenant Soren Kline has just graduated officer school and in the Citadel of Khan the High Inquisitor hands him first command - to hunt the heretic Elyas, with Paladin Calvin Hox and his troop. But then an Angel called Mia adds to his responsibilities…. And this is just the start of a truly epic novel which has the scope of any of the classic examples of its genre.

I love great epic fantasy books, the kind where you are transported into a realm of magic and wonder, where great events are moving the lives of those who live there. So I was thoroughly excited to give ‘Seeds of Hatred’ a read. But I was left disappointed. It has scope and depth in it’s world, but the characters are wanting, the writing is limited and the story itself failed to grab me.

‘There had to be others who didn’t believe their destiny could be forced by a few words written down ages ago, and she was going to find them.’

This is high fantasy aimed at Tolkien level. In fact, everywhere you look there are tributes to Tolkien. At the start there is a poem of prophecy about ‘six mortals’, and a character list of over seventy characters who are significant enough to need a mention. There are place names like ‘Barat-Mor’ and the ‘Swamps of Dhergan’ and there are elves - although these are evil elves and called ‘Fey’ or Vhaell: tall, slender and with pointy ears. There are epic battles and long histories, magic, betrayals and intrigue.

The strength of this book has to be in the world building, it is in depth and well thought out. It has the feel of a world with a history and geography well known to the author already and written in, rather than being created around the story he tells. The various story threads are well juggled, even though they sometimes diverge widely. The pace of the book is usually quite well maintained, but sometimes seems to fade away due to the need for excessive exposition to support the superstructure of the detailed world-building.

‘She pushed away from the corner with a smirk, her right eyebrow quirking up as eyes the color of dark chocolate glanced at his hammer.’

The book is not so well written in a number of irritating ways. Chocolate only exists as an eye colour not as a drink, foodstuff or even a flavour. We have excessive smirking, endless eyebrows quirking and eyes (or should I call them ‘orbs’ ) rolling all over the place. There are a very large number of overused and unoriginal turns of phrase - for example, things fit ‘like a glove’ and hearts beat ‘like a drum’ on multiple occasions. Characters are not so much well rounded as extensive. Many are stereotypes, lack depth and tend to have very similar personalities and functions, such that I often needed cues to remind me who I was supposed to ‘be’ in the story.

And that is the other major problem, the number of characters whose heads we enter left my own head spinning. There is nothing wrong with multiple points of view, but too many and reader immersion is lost in confusion. The author tries too hard to make every character, no matter how minor, that we encounter an individual - one painful scene involved Soren breaking some bad news to his men and we then have two pages of how each one reacts, by name, to what he says. If the book had contained fewer points of view and individualised characters, it would have been a great deal stronger, in my opinion.

If you love detailed worldbuilding and enjoy a book with lots of characters, the kind of book where you need a glossary and character list to keep track of everything, then this may well be your kind of fantasy.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

Epic fantasy stories need a good history, lots of intriguing back story and a large cast of likeable yet differentiated characters. Seeds of Hatred comes very close to achieving all this and yet I'll admit I struggled a little to keep up with who was who, what they were meant to be doing and who there allegiance was with. It didn't help that there were a few characters with very similar names and the occasionally the leap to a different story arc had me head scratching for a while until I figured where we were again. I very much enjoyed Alex and had secret hopes that she would be the next Scion but I suspect we will get a lot more from her in the next book. The writing style flowed well with only the occasional awkward moment - mostly with the sex scenes feeling a little forced. There's a an awful lot to absorb in this novel - two different cults, a Brotherhood and Fey all with many layers of leadership and deception plus all the grunts doing the floor work so at times it seemed we read about the same grizzled veteran over and over but it's really tough to build a massive cast of characters so points for effort. I'm intrigued enough to know what happens next with a few of the individual storylines like Elyas, Alex, Soren and Damien but I'm not that invested in the rest.

[J C Steel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marac is an assassin, and unlike most of his previous colleagues, not a dead one. Alex is a Lightbearer, one of the rare, gifted members of a cult that the Brotherhood reviles. Soren is a Brotherhood soldier, one of the few born of the nobility that the Brotherhood seeks to control. Each, in their own way, has been affected by the rise of an ancient enemy, and each, in their own way, has chosen to fight something that most of society doesn’t believe still exists.

Seeds of Hatred is written in the classic epic fantasy style; ancient enemy awakening, chosen few leading the fight, unexpected allies, magic that no one has seen in generations, you name it, the book has it. The world-building is solid, with a magic system that supports the plot, and an interesting take on a type of magic that requires drinking blood, as opposed to the classic vampire. For me, the characters were the weak point in the story; while some of the back-stories were very strong, on the whole the gender stereotypes were so ingrained that some actions and reactions were regrettably predictable. Alex was the only character who managed to partially break free of the mould, and even she was gifted early on with a male protector to explain the world to her. There are also quite a few viewpoints, leaving me in a few spots having to flip back to check whose story I’d just arrived in. However, I have to give this book points on pacing: I didn’t find myself fading out or being tempted to skip parts – the various plot lines were well-maintained and the continuity was good. This is a book that epic fantasy fans will find worth the read.

Reviewed for By Rite of Word.

[Onidas J Beaudin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Assassins and esoteric monasteries. Loved it. There always seemed to be something going on. A fantasy adventure worth reading. Soren is the strong silent type that seems to observe and act rather than be reactive. It keeps him as a solid character throughout the book and sets a tone for the story.

Parts of the book, as with following Marac through assassinations reminds me of assassin's creed. I have never followed in writing the descriptions of someone being killed with a sword or knife before, so I found it interesting how it was worded to place me at the scene and what exactly was happening. The cat and mouse games with the soldiers was also new to me in reading and found myself caught up in it.

Its an inner world that most of us will never experience. This book gives an inside look at what it is like to be a person who lives every day where death is normal and what that does to a person who carries that out.

The story is dark and set in a time so different than ours that I felt transported from my reality. The only thing I found was there were a lot of names of characters. I read too fast sometimes and miss names and had to stop to clarify who we were talking about but overall it showed a large group of people with a common purpose. The book is very long so it got very intricate at times and I found myself reading through parts quickly to get to the next scene or issue.

I hadn't read this type of book or genre and it was a very good experience. I would recommend reading this book to find yourself in a time much different than our own where honor and purpose still carried a lot of weight to your decisions in life.

[Tia Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seeds of Hatred is an epic fantasy. Fantasies lately have been hit or miss for me. For instance, I loved Alonica: Rise of the Dragon Heirs, but had a hard time getting into The Way of Kings by Sanderson. Seeds of Hatred fell somewhere in between these two for me.
I had a hard time connecting with this book at first because the beginning took a long time introducing all the characters. Once introduced this story got better and the plot is great. I had a hard time in Game of Thrones with all the characters and to be honest even with Martin’s brilliant writing I found myself skipping whole chapters of new characters he threw into Dances with Dragons.
Anyhow, tons of fantasies have multiple POV I just have a hard time keeping up when there is too many. I also feel that I didn’t really get into the characters emotions. There is just so much going on I didn’t get to know what the characters are really like. What makes them tick and what makes them human.
With all that said, besides a great plot I did really love the characters Alex and Dorn. In fact, if the book was only about those two I would have given it more stars. I was really able to connect with these two characters and the way that they were polar opposites with large hearts on an epic journey made a great dynamic.
It was easy to tell that the author put a lot of thought and creativity into this book and I admire anyone taking on this epic of a book.
If you enjoy Fantasy as your favorite genre I recommend Seeds of Hatred.

[Esther · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to the author for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Even though I DNF-ed this book, I'm not going to give it 1 star. This book is nicely written and I do believe it has a solid story, that's completely made up by the author, including a totally different world, with different factions and a TON of characters. Still, I sadly had to DNF, because I could not concentrate and wan't involved in the story after 110 pages. The book gave me a little bit of a Game of Thrones vibe, and I think that I would try to read this book some other day.

A longer review can be found at Bite Into Books

Not a bad book, not a bad writer. This just wasn't the right book at the right time for me. It's a harsh books with a lot of POV's and I wasn't ready for that.
If you're into Fantasy and liked books like Game of Thrones, this is a book for you! It's always hard for me to DNF books that I promised to read and review. I do want to thank the author for being so supportive and understanding!

[Bianca Sierra · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you love epic fantasy, you will enjoy diving into this story. It literally has everything you could possibly think of to be epic plus of few beings you've never heard of. The author is clearly much smarter than I am. The biggest barrier for me was the odd names and numerous factions. There is a character guide that I referred to often to keep things straight. Overall the book was a lot of work to get through. I felt like I was stepping into the middle of the story which is what I believe the author intended. Even with the backstory coming forward in bits and pieces, there was too much going on for me. HOWEVER, I know there is a huge audience for this kind of story and I don't want to deter others from reading. The plot is unique and fans of high fantasy should definitely check it out.

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always been fond of epics--you get a variety of characters, a wealth of motivations, various locations and some classic battles.

The author is skilled in endowing all his characters with qualities that make you want to root for them even while you suspect that they're on the wrong side of the ensuing battles.

While there are several intriguing characters to get to know, I was most taken with the Lightbearer, Alex, and her Mercenary-for-hire, Dorn, as they made their way through this interesting and well thought-out world in turmoil.

Naturally, while I longed for total resolution, I went into this knowing it was going to have a sequel, and so...on to the next!

If you're up for adventure, well-rounded characters, magic and blood-shed, this one is a good bet!

[Christian Nadeau]

This is my book, so I'm not going to rate it, that wouldn't feel right. What I can do and will do is explain what I like or not and perhaps give a fair warning to those who might pick it up.

First of all, I think that everyone believes in what they fight for. It might be misguided, it might be driven by emotion, irrational fear of the other, or anything really, but aside from psychotics, I'm not sure anyone ever thought "I'm the bad guy!". I hope my antagonists are not mustache twirling villains, because if that's what I did, then I failed...badly.

Second, I tend to believe that multiple viewpoints enhance the story rather than detract from it. Having different viewpoints gives different angles with which to look at the same events, angles that wouldn't be possible by limiting the number of point of views to a few characters (unless you had someone omniscient as a character, which I would find boring). Perhaps it's because I'm viewing this novel and the following two more as the story of a world, or rather a conflict, than as the story of the people living it.

I also try to have clear, established rules as to what magic can and cannot do (or at least on the major limitations if it would be too expository to detail the above). Otherwise it becomes just a deus ex machina for the author to pull his characters out of any situation.

That being said, if you're considering reading my book, then I hope those few words will have helped you make the right decision, whether it is to pass on it, or to pick it up.