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A Broken Winter
General Auryn Tyrus is tired of serving an emperor who turns political dissidents into expensive steak and claims to have swallowed Ankari’s sun. He's fed up with pretending not to know Emperor Haken is buying biological weapons and collecting taxes for a war that doesn’t exist. Auryn's role in the entire mirage leads him to drastic choices, but unexpected news halts his plans. Seven-year-old Keita Kaneko, the son of a former lover, is captured by the emperor’s special forces. Auryn secretly intervenes and spares Keita from execution.
Keita changes everything. Instead of feeling helpless and oppressed by a self-proclaimed living god, Auryn works to expose the emperor as a fraud. But he knows exactly what will happen if he’s discovered, and the extent of Emperor Haken’s lies is worse than anticipated. If Auryn expects anyone to believe the truth, he’s going to need proof. And a lot of help.
Shortlisted for the 2020 Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize in the speculative fiction category.
Keita changes everything. Instead of feeling helpless and oppressed by a self-proclaimed living god, Auryn works to expose the emperor as a fraud. But he knows exactly what will happen if he’s discovered, and the extent of Emperor Haken’s lies is worse than anticipated. If Auryn expects anyone to believe the truth, he’s going to need proof. And a lot of help.
Shortlisted for the 2020 Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize in the speculative fiction category.
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First published November 25, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 25, 2019
A Joyfully Jay review.
3.5 stars
A Broken Winter began as a webcomic back in 2009, though I didn’t find it, myself, until around 2015. It didn’t take me long to binge what there was of the comic and I kept up with it for many months until a computer crash took out all my bookmarks. When I realized this book was the same comic, I knew I wanted to read it. While the art in the comic and the writing hinted at complex world building, a comic can only give you so much. The book gives so much more.
The plot in this book is sprawling and, at times, confusing. Time jumps forward and back, from person to person. There is reincarnation of a sort, where people begin to get their memories back — memories that hint of alien plots, nefarious diseases, and interconnected lives and loves. Tiernan and Ari have loved one another before, when Ari was another man; Reisen is struggling to live in the moment while the memories of his past lives keep coming back; there are winged warriors who may be either angels or aliens depending on your point of view, and religious mythology that hints at connections to real world institutions and beliefs, so those sensitive to criticisms of faith and belief might want to approach this book with caution.
Read Elizabeth’s review in its entirety here.
3.5 stars
A Broken Winter began as a webcomic back in 2009, though I didn’t find it, myself, until around 2015. It didn’t take me long to binge what there was of the comic and I kept up with it for many months until a computer crash took out all my bookmarks. When I realized this book was the same comic, I knew I wanted to read it. While the art in the comic and the writing hinted at complex world building, a comic can only give you so much. The book gives so much more.
The plot in this book is sprawling and, at times, confusing. Time jumps forward and back, from person to person. There is reincarnation of a sort, where people begin to get their memories back — memories that hint of alien plots, nefarious diseases, and interconnected lives and loves. Tiernan and Ari have loved one another before, when Ari was another man; Reisen is struggling to live in the moment while the memories of his past lives keep coming back; there are winged warriors who may be either angels or aliens depending on your point of view, and religious mythology that hints at connections to real world institutions and beliefs, so those sensitive to criticisms of faith and belief might want to approach this book with caution.
Read Elizabeth’s review in its entirety here.
November 22, 2019
This is my first foray into a sci-fi book in a while, but I was taken by surprise on how in depth the world building was and how detailed the characters in the world came to be. This is my first book by Kale Night and despite some intense subject matter, mainly what happened to Keita, a young boy in the story that brings Auryn, a general working under an emperor who is evil, and his former lover and Keita's father, Kaneko, together. I enjoyed getting to know the world and the characters in it. The action was perfect, but the heart of the story is between the two men. A great read!!
November 17, 2019
I received an early copy from the publishers via NetGalley, and I extend my gratitude for that - however this does not influence my opinion.
The book could be classified as science fiction with strong undertones of fantasy, featuring some magics and potions.
The plot revolves mainly around general Auryn Tyrus and his former lover Kaneko whose son, Keita, Auryn rescues, and it is brilliant with ups and downs of raising a child who bears a resemblance to someone assumed lost, and the struggles of overcoming torture and abuse. Here is a content warning - the book does feature a brief description of the horrors young Keita has survived, however it is not a great part of the book and could easily be overlooked by those who find themselves spooked away by it.
The world Kale Night has created makes sense in its own universe, with strong notes of dictatorship and the struggles of keeping people under control and running. As much as I would love to spoil the dynamics of races, the details about how said world is run, how the people's needs are covered and the strain of suppressing memories, I can not. You will have to read it yourself.
The book is LGBTQ friendly, the main characters are without a doubt homosexual, and most certainly not flat nor one-dimensional. Each holds their own drives, their own concerns, and frankly, it is rather well written - descriptive, but not needlessly; the conversations between characters are fluid, and as mentioned before, the world stays true to its own limitations. If you want to enjoy a book featuring its share of intrigue, love, angst, drama, and everything else between, wrapped in a sweet blanket of science fiction - this is it.
5/5 stars - I will be waiting for a sequel.
The book could be classified as science fiction with strong undertones of fantasy, featuring some magics and potions.
The plot revolves mainly around general Auryn Tyrus and his former lover Kaneko whose son, Keita, Auryn rescues, and it is brilliant with ups and downs of raising a child who bears a resemblance to someone assumed lost, and the struggles of overcoming torture and abuse. Here is a content warning - the book does feature a brief description of the horrors young Keita has survived, however it is not a great part of the book and could easily be overlooked by those who find themselves spooked away by it.
The world Kale Night has created makes sense in its own universe, with strong notes of dictatorship and the struggles of keeping people under control and running. As much as I would love to spoil the dynamics of races, the details about how said world is run, how the people's needs are covered and the strain of suppressing memories, I can not. You will have to read it yourself.
The book is LGBTQ friendly, the main characters are without a doubt homosexual, and most certainly not flat nor one-dimensional. Each holds their own drives, their own concerns, and frankly, it is rather well written - descriptive, but not needlessly; the conversations between characters are fluid, and as mentioned before, the world stays true to its own limitations. If you want to enjoy a book featuring its share of intrigue, love, angst, drama, and everything else between, wrapped in a sweet blanket of science fiction - this is it.
5/5 stars - I will be waiting for a sequel.
December 18, 2019
Not bad, I was waiting for this book since forever, but I think it needs a lot of editing. Sometimes it's so confusing... and I read the webcomic! I think people who haven't read it will be much more confused ^^U. A bunch of characters who appear suddenly and whose involvement in the story is not clear until almost the end of the book. You're just wondering what the hell are they doing in the story. Also, a lot of time leaps (both forward and backward), which only contribute to make the story even more confusing...
In general it's a very good story, but seriously, it needs some extensive editing. Not to mention that there are no indications that it's the first in a series. That should also be fixed.
Other than that, I am looking forward to reading the second part (I adore Reisen!).
In general it's a very good story, but seriously, it needs some extensive editing. Not to mention that there are no indications that it's the first in a series. That should also be fixed.
Other than that, I am looking forward to reading the second part (I adore Reisen!).
September 10, 2020
Lets start with the good points. A fast paced, action driven plot with complex characters and a decent bleak dystopian world ruled by sinister demi-god despots. There are at least six or more MCs (with some being introduced well into the book) - these quite complex characters come with distinct 'voices' and hidden back-stories that gradually become revealed throughout the book. The M-M romance is subtle - there's no doubt several of the MCs are same-sex attracted, but readers will be sadly disappointed if they're expecting bedroom 'action' of any kind (I didn't find this a negative BTW). This sci-fi/fantasy universe comes with cannibalistic aliens endowed with extreme longevity (500 years plus embodying a slow-aging body is a 'cinch' folks), angelic beings capable of moving across dimension into the place where the deceased reside awaiting rebirth/reincarnation. There's mutant deadly monsters, horrific biological warfare with brutal gory consequences, torture sequences and traumatized children - readers be warned!
However, I do have some quibble points (which did impact my reading enjoyment overall). This book apparently has it's roots in a web-based comic and sometimes, the translation across into written word / page is not always successful. I found the chopping and changing of scenes and POVs (within chapters sometimes) a little discombobulating. I realize characters do not come with fully explained back-stories / identities / motivations at the start of a book or series of books ... these naturally become clearer as the plot unravels. Given the multitude of characters introduced and the fast pacing of the action ... I was frustrated throughout much of the first half of the book by not knowing what the hell was going on, where the plot was heading and why the characters were behaving the way they did. This eventually settled down around three quarters of the way in but by then more 'reveals' started happening to set up the next book in the series ... sigh. The not quite cliff-hanger ending was a little abrupt - kinda like a see y'all next time for the next installment.
I have to say I did not lose interest but this was not an 'easy' read. I also feel quite ambivalent toward most of the MCs - they're not very likeable damaged / broken individuals struggling to survive in a harsh and brutal dystopian environment (an exception being Keita). There's no sign of when the next book is due but I hope it's not so long that I have to re-read this book ... something I'd probably not choose to do with delight. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.
However, I do have some quibble points (which did impact my reading enjoyment overall). This book apparently has it's roots in a web-based comic and sometimes, the translation across into written word / page is not always successful. I found the chopping and changing of scenes and POVs (within chapters sometimes) a little discombobulating. I realize characters do not come with fully explained back-stories / identities / motivations at the start of a book or series of books ... these naturally become clearer as the plot unravels. Given the multitude of characters introduced and the fast pacing of the action ... I was frustrated throughout much of the first half of the book by not knowing what the hell was going on, where the plot was heading and why the characters were behaving the way they did. This eventually settled down around three quarters of the way in but by then more 'reveals' started happening to set up the next book in the series ... sigh. The not quite cliff-hanger ending was a little abrupt - kinda like a see y'all next time for the next installment.
I have to say I did not lose interest but this was not an 'easy' read. I also feel quite ambivalent toward most of the MCs - they're not very likeable damaged / broken individuals struggling to survive in a harsh and brutal dystopian environment (an exception being Keita). There's no sign of when the next book is due but I hope it's not so long that I have to re-read this book ... something I'd probably not choose to do with delight. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.
December 24, 2019
I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Okay.. So when does book two come out? I cannot wait to get my hands on it! I wouldn’t even call this a book, it is more like an experience. This book had such an amazing story line and a great set of compelling and complex characters. I just could not put it down.
I felt this was written in the perfect way for a follow up novel. It left me with tons of questions and I was instantly ready to read the next book. I love how LGBTQ friendly these books are. I really loved how multidimensional the characters were. They didn’t fall flat at all and just had soooo much depth.
The author has created such an interesting universe. The story itself is full of intrigue and suspense. The interactions between the character felt so natural and fluid. I genuinely love this authors writing style.
Thank you so much to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to review this title.
Okay.. So when does book two come out? I cannot wait to get my hands on it! I wouldn’t even call this a book, it is more like an experience. This book had such an amazing story line and a great set of compelling and complex characters. I just could not put it down.
I felt this was written in the perfect way for a follow up novel. It left me with tons of questions and I was instantly ready to read the next book. I love how LGBTQ friendly these books are. I really loved how multidimensional the characters were. They didn’t fall flat at all and just had soooo much depth.
The author has created such an interesting universe. The story itself is full of intrigue and suspense. The interactions between the character felt so natural and fluid. I genuinely love this authors writing style.
Thank you so much to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to review this title.
December 6, 2019
This was a really interesting world to experience. I had so many questions when I finished reading that can only be answered (hopefully!) by the next book in the series. There's a lot of factors to consider with all of the characters, and there's a lot to consider. I will say the POV jumping got really confusing for me. I wasn't always sure who people were or why I should care about them. The connections were sort of made eventually, but I would definitely have liked to have more clues as to who the POVs were and how they related to the rest of the story.
December 15, 2020
A Broken Winter is witty, wildly imaginative, and beautifully written! I’ve been following the web comic since it first came out and have been highly anticipating this book! Kale Night has magically woven a story set in a dystopian world where General Auryn’s life forever changes as he meets 7 year old Keita. The story is full of suspense, tragedy, mystery, and romance. It’ll keep your heart beating until the end! Please, please, please release book 2 soon! This is a must read for anyone who loves dystopian stories!
December 8, 2019
This is my first book from this author and as soon as I finished all I could think was 'How long until I can read book two?'. It has a great cast of complex and compelling characters and a storyline that totally drew me in with it's flow and top-notch world building. I am most certainly going to have my eye out for more from this author.
*I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by NetGalley and NineStar Press*
*I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book provided by NetGalley and NineStar Press*
Want to read
May 7, 2019I read an early version and I'm a HUGE fan of the webcomic that goes with it. Cannot WAIT to have this in my hands!
If you like really dark SF that's super queer, this is soooo good.
Will update once I get the finished copy! :D
If you like really dark SF that's super queer, this is soooo good.
Will update once I get the finished copy! :D
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews