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The Shattering of Kingdoms #3
The Stones of Aer
The battle lines have been drawn.
The An’Dari and his allies have embarked upon their quest for one of the missing Stones of Aer. The lost artifact of legend may hold the key to saving those trapped in the Grey. Pursued by the enemy, the survival of an entire ancient race is in their hands.
With the summer months fast approaching, defiant mercenary companies continue to clash with the forces of the new Protectorate Empire. The prince’s army, now camped at the Dwarven fortress of Celig Helme, hones its skills in preparation for all-out war. In the lands of the Northern Council, Elizabeth Mayne continues to navigate the political arena in Hallenford. Meanwhile, in the occupied port city of Edentor, rebels plan the daring rescue of a foreign noblewoman.
And, fulfilling a Silveryn prophecy, an infamous name from the past reaches out from the shadows - Kaleris has returned.
The An’Dari and his allies have embarked upon their quest for one of the missing Stones of Aer. The lost artifact of legend may hold the key to saving those trapped in the Grey. Pursued by the enemy, the survival of an entire ancient race is in their hands.
With the summer months fast approaching, defiant mercenary companies continue to clash with the forces of the new Protectorate Empire. The prince’s army, now camped at the Dwarven fortress of Celig Helme, hones its skills in preparation for all-out war. In the lands of the Northern Council, Elizabeth Mayne continues to navigate the political arena in Hallenford. Meanwhile, in the occupied port city of Edentor, rebels plan the daring rescue of a foreign noblewoman.
And, fulfilling a Silveryn prophecy, an infamous name from the past reaches out from the shadows - Kaleris has returned.
- GenresFantasy
701 pages, Paperback
Published November 3, 2020
53 people are currently reading
76 people want to read
About the author
Emmet Moss
6 books41 followersEmmet Moss writes epic fantasy that whisks readers away to worlds far removed from our own while evoking the classic, sweeping fantasy of yesteryear. He is widely known for his four book saga, The Shattering of Kingdoms (completed in 2021). A labour of love over fifteen years in the making, the first book in the series, The Mercenary Code, won the prestigious Voice Arts Award for Audiobook Narration – Fantasy thanks to the impeccable performance of narrator Simon Vance.
In his latest two novels - A Mantle of Bones (2022) and The Knight of Fulton Court (2023) - Moss introduced his readers to the Earldom of Essenburg. In the midst of these two tales, a new continent in the world of Kal Maran was revealed, expanding the world first introduced in The Shattering of Kingdoms.
The stage has now been set for an epic new saga that will connect many threads from the previous books and reintroduce characters readers have grown to love. Moss is hard at work on a new four-book series and true sequel to The Shattering of Kingdoms. The first book in this new series is planned for release in 2025.
In his latest two novels - A Mantle of Bones (2022) and The Knight of Fulton Court (2023) - Moss introduced his readers to the Earldom of Essenburg. In the midst of these two tales, a new continent in the world of Kal Maran was revealed, expanding the world first introduced in The Shattering of Kingdoms.
The stage has now been set for an epic new saga that will connect many threads from the previous books and reintroduce characters readers have grown to love. Moss is hard at work on a new four-book series and true sequel to The Shattering of Kingdoms. The first book in this new series is planned for release in 2025.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
January 28, 2023
This was a nice read. I found the second book in this series to be a bit of a lull, and this third book really brought back my level of investment.
Plots started in the second book, that I was not big on then, really paid off in this one. The larger scope of the series fell more into place here.
As far as writing/prose - you can clearly see traces of Gwynne and Erickson in Moss's style. He doesn't live up to either, but he still manages to stand on his own. He's not a spectacular writer, but he is solid in his craft.
Excited to read the fourth and final book next.
Plots started in the second book, that I was not big on then, really paid off in this one. The larger scope of the series fell more into place here.
As far as writing/prose - you can clearly see traces of Gwynne and Erickson in Moss's style. He doesn't live up to either, but he still manages to stand on his own. He's not a spectacular writer, but he is solid in his craft.
Excited to read the fourth and final book next.
August 2, 2022
TLDR: Book 3 has a damnably dragging beginning and middle but a hell of an ending. If only Moss could spread that wonderfully spicy storytelling more evenly, then he’d have a book in need of devouring instead of nibbling.
Personal Score: 3.75 stars
Professional Score: 4.0 stars
More reviews at: https://www.fsfreviews.com/
Review:
What to say about our third outing into The Shattering of Kingdoms? Well, in short, this book took me a bloody age to get through the first 75%. I was really struggling to finish it, all the while loading a scattergun of scathing cuts to fire off for this review. But then came the last 25% and forced me to slide the safety back on with some brilliantly entertaining prose. Emmet Moss, you are not making it easy to review your novels.
So we re-join our heroes and heroines immediately following the events of the last book, with our varying characters now weaving in and out of each other’s overall arcs. My trouble with the first 75% of the book is simple: there are certain characters whose storylines don’t grip me most of the time, and when those storylines account for half of the book, it makes getting through said book more of an arduous slog intermittently peppered with rays of sunshine as opposed to a truly great read/listen. Now I know that a lot of people won’t agree with me. By having the varied character perspectives and storylines going on, Moss tries to ensure that this series has a bit of something for everyone, which it absolutely does. However, in doing so I am reminded of the old adage ‘jack of all trades, master of none’. Instead of sticking with the most gripping storylines, Moss gives equal time to all of them, even when some of those storylines take an eternity for anything interesting to occur. Now again, some of my less favoured storylines may be the favourites for other people, and that’s why I think this book will have a wide general appeal. It’s well-written, the language is good, and the characters (if you like them) can be engaging and have real depth. But in trying to hit so many bases all at once you lose out on that one key factor that I always swing back to in my reviews, the one thing that can pump even a mediocrely written book up to throw down with the heavyweights. And that factor is… pacing. By the gods, some of the sections of this book are slow, and when you have multiple slow storylines all coinciding, you’re just left with a slovenly soup that you know you have to gulp down in order to get to your pudding (yes, more food metaphors. Guess I’m hungry). However, there does come a point when no amount of gourmet ganache is worth guzzling down a gallon of gloopy gruel, and this book nearly reached that point for me.
Again, I’m not saying that this book isn’t good in the technical sense. All the elements are there and Moss’s skill as a writer is clear and well deserved. It’s just the manner in which he places all of his components together that could be done with more finesse. You have lots of coinciding storylines. Great. However, having the long build-ups for all of them occurring at the same time so that you’re hit with a flood of awesome at the end may sound good in theory, but in practice it leaves you with a significant dead zone right in the heart of your book that becomes tiresome to traverse. The ending was awesome. Truly. I went from having to force myself to listen to the book to being unable to put it down, but why could we not have had some of that awesomeness spread out through the entire novel? Enough at least to keep that fire he intermittently lights under or arses from snuffing out. I’ve said it for the first two books and I’ll say it again now. This series has a great deal of potential, it just needs its wonderful content to be wielded with as great a skill as was used to invent it. So close, yet not cigar.
As for narration, as ever Simon Vance’s performance was great. He’s got a knack for producing older voices in that breathy manner of folk who’ve lived a long life and are about knackered out from all the shit they’ve still got to deal with. He’s great.
Personal Score: 3.75 stars
Professional Score: 4.0 stars
More reviews at: https://www.fsfreviews.com/
Review:
What to say about our third outing into The Shattering of Kingdoms? Well, in short, this book took me a bloody age to get through the first 75%. I was really struggling to finish it, all the while loading a scattergun of scathing cuts to fire off for this review. But then came the last 25% and forced me to slide the safety back on with some brilliantly entertaining prose. Emmet Moss, you are not making it easy to review your novels.
So we re-join our heroes and heroines immediately following the events of the last book, with our varying characters now weaving in and out of each other’s overall arcs. My trouble with the first 75% of the book is simple: there are certain characters whose storylines don’t grip me most of the time, and when those storylines account for half of the book, it makes getting through said book more of an arduous slog intermittently peppered with rays of sunshine as opposed to a truly great read/listen. Now I know that a lot of people won’t agree with me. By having the varied character perspectives and storylines going on, Moss tries to ensure that this series has a bit of something for everyone, which it absolutely does. However, in doing so I am reminded of the old adage ‘jack of all trades, master of none’. Instead of sticking with the most gripping storylines, Moss gives equal time to all of them, even when some of those storylines take an eternity for anything interesting to occur. Now again, some of my less favoured storylines may be the favourites for other people, and that’s why I think this book will have a wide general appeal. It’s well-written, the language is good, and the characters (if you like them) can be engaging and have real depth. But in trying to hit so many bases all at once you lose out on that one key factor that I always swing back to in my reviews, the one thing that can pump even a mediocrely written book up to throw down with the heavyweights. And that factor is… pacing. By the gods, some of the sections of this book are slow, and when you have multiple slow storylines all coinciding, you’re just left with a slovenly soup that you know you have to gulp down in order to get to your pudding (yes, more food metaphors. Guess I’m hungry). However, there does come a point when no amount of gourmet ganache is worth guzzling down a gallon of gloopy gruel, and this book nearly reached that point for me.
Again, I’m not saying that this book isn’t good in the technical sense. All the elements are there and Moss’s skill as a writer is clear and well deserved. It’s just the manner in which he places all of his components together that could be done with more finesse. You have lots of coinciding storylines. Great. However, having the long build-ups for all of them occurring at the same time so that you’re hit with a flood of awesome at the end may sound good in theory, but in practice it leaves you with a significant dead zone right in the heart of your book that becomes tiresome to traverse. The ending was awesome. Truly. I went from having to force myself to listen to the book to being unable to put it down, but why could we not have had some of that awesomeness spread out through the entire novel? Enough at least to keep that fire he intermittently lights under or arses from snuffing out. I’ve said it for the first two books and I’ll say it again now. This series has a great deal of potential, it just needs its wonderful content to be wielded with as great a skill as was used to invent it. So close, yet not cigar.
As for narration, as ever Simon Vance’s performance was great. He’s got a knack for producing older voices in that breathy manner of folk who’ve lived a long life and are about knackered out from all the shit they’ve still got to deal with. He’s great.
February 25, 2022
I have read the four books in this series prior to writing this review. This summary will be repeated for all books with additional comments on book 3.
First of all, I enjoyed this series. Had all the elements generally found in this genre. The author does an excellent job of bringing a feeling of intimacy with the characters. You feel their losses. You admire certain characters in the same way that of the characters. This isn't so unusual in lengthy stories except that the I felt much closer to the individuals in this story than I have in other works.
I developed a genuine appreciation several of the main characters who brought vitality and mystery to the story line.
Excellent job. Starts slow but builds up toward a satisfying conclusion.
I was slightly disappointed in book 3. The format for book is to switch from one character to another in each respective chapter. Not unusual. It is generally fairly easy to follow except in situations where there are several multiple characters in diverse situations. I began to lose the flow and needed to read several paragraphs to reacquaint myself with their respective situation.
Additionally, it seemed like the author painted himself into a corner in one specific situation and thought by introducing a new element would allow the characters to move forward. But this additional element left that story line open-ended and truly unresolved.
First of all, I enjoyed this series. Had all the elements generally found in this genre. The author does an excellent job of bringing a feeling of intimacy with the characters. You feel their losses. You admire certain characters in the same way that of the characters. This isn't so unusual in lengthy stories except that the I felt much closer to the individuals in this story than I have in other works.
I developed a genuine appreciation several of the main characters who brought vitality and mystery to the story line.
Excellent job. Starts slow but builds up toward a satisfying conclusion.
I was slightly disappointed in book 3. The format for book is to switch from one character to another in each respective chapter. Not unusual. It is generally fairly easy to follow except in situations where there are several multiple characters in diverse situations. I began to lose the flow and needed to read several paragraphs to reacquaint myself with their respective situation.
Additionally, it seemed like the author painted himself into a corner in one specific situation and thought by introducing a new element would allow the characters to move forward. But this additional element left that story line open-ended and truly unresolved.
September 14, 2021
I liked the character arcs better in this book than in the previous two. It was interesting how he has woven several story lines into each other, bringing characters together and then sending them off again. I'm looking forward to seeing how he concludes the story in the next book and how things wrap up with my favorite characters.
April 23, 2023
I enjoyed this book more and now feel invested. I am listening to the audiobook and I am very annoyed by many names sounding similar. Gavin Silveron / Silveryn order? Leoric / Ioric? Danys / Tinays (written as I hear it). I still feel like I missed some details. From the start it felt like there was another books that I did not read.
March 30, 2024
unbelievable
The detail in this book is staggering. The poetry, the languages, the battles, and the audio narrative. Just brings it to life! Well done can’t wait to get into the next book.
The detail in this book is staggering. The poetry, the languages, the battles, and the audio narrative. Just brings it to life! Well done can’t wait to get into the next book.
December 5, 2020
Great continuation of the story.
Can't wait for the next installment of this series. Moss does a fantastic job creating characters you grow to care about.
Can't wait for the next installment of this series. Moss does a fantastic job creating characters you grow to care about.
January 5, 2022
Excellent!
January 9, 2025
The Gorimm sought to become gods and received endless sleep for their troubles; now, Cealis, Andros, Alkeson, and Fae are trying to awaken them. To do that, they bring the Aer stone to the Gorimm capital.
In another part of the world, Danys Ford is forced to marry Kaimon's mad father. On the Eve of her marriage, the old steward cuts her down as well as the king as he tries to start a war between three Drayen and the protectorate. She survives and becomes Queen of the Drayen.
Gavin has gathered an army and is moving toward the port of tender.
Lady Mayne has contracted the weeping disease and is faced with a choice.
Will any of them survive?
In another part of the world, Danys Ford is forced to marry Kaimon's mad father. On the Eve of her marriage, the old steward cuts her down as well as the king as he tries to start a war between three Drayen and the protectorate. She survives and becomes Queen of the Drayen.
Gavin has gathered an army and is moving toward the port of tender.
Lady Mayne has contracted the weeping disease and is faced with a choice.
Will any of them survive?
December 22, 2020
Love these books
This is a gem. Multiple plots in and of themselves are building individually in every book . Each plot is a page turner. I have not stopped reading these books every available hour.
This is a gem. Multiple plots in and of themselves are building individually in every book . Each plot is a page turner. I have not stopped reading these books every available hour.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews