What do you think?
Rate this book
War Pigs
Among the tribes of the Wagani war is life, and for Lut, war is his way out of the poverty that he was born into. A reaver, a warrior, and the chosen of the enigmatic goddess the Azure Queen, he has dedicated his existence to furthering her glory by the bite of his axe. Bloodthirsty, powerful, and without mercy, he marches upon the world to spread the name of his beloved deity.
But what happens when the goddess no longer loves her champion?
From the award-winning author of The Saga of The Panther comes a dark tale of violence, betrayal, and redemption where David Gemmell's Legend fights alongside Steven Erickson's Gardens of the Moon. In this world victory always comes at a price, love is forever the final victim, and not even the gods can stop the ruthless march of history. This is the world where only the strong and cunning survive.
But what happens when the goddess no longer loves her champion?
From the award-winning author of The Saga of The Panther comes a dark tale of violence, betrayal, and redemption where David Gemmell's Legend fights alongside Steven Erickson's Gardens of the Moon. In this world victory always comes at a price, love is forever the final victim, and not even the gods can stop the ruthless march of history. This is the world where only the strong and cunning survive.
- GenresFantasy
120 pages, Paperback
Published July 21, 2017
8 people want to read
About the author
Jay Requard
35 books20 followersRisen from the hills of North Carolina, Jay Requard is an award-winning fantasy author known for “heroes with genuine emotions and concerns for the word they live in” facing off against the darkest powers with little more than love, courage, steel, and magic to set things right. From the pulse- pounding heists of Thief of Destiny to the dark desert romance of Death & Dust and other tales of wonder, readers have noted his modern take on the genre feels like “diving into new hero mythology.”
After leaving the biomedical and legal industries, as well as helping to establish two independent genre publishers, Jay currently lives in New York City with his beautiful wife, a wonderful son, and a rambunctious shadow cat named Mona Underfoot. When not with his family or writing he enjoys meditating, reading, martial arts, cooking, and or course, wandering off for the next adventure.
After leaving the biomedical and legal industries, as well as helping to establish two independent genre publishers, Jay currently lives in New York City with his beautiful wife, a wonderful son, and a rambunctious shadow cat named Mona Underfoot. When not with his family or writing he enjoys meditating, reading, martial arts, cooking, and or course, wandering off for the next adventure.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 11, 2017
War Pigs
Jay Requard
copyright 2016
Falstaff Books
It isn't easy being mean. Especially if your meanness is culturally induced and includes tusks and unnaturally green skin. Life for an Orc is so tough even their gods betray them.
It's even harder for Orcs who just happen to live at the very bottom of the caste system: these orcs are forced to sleep outside in the harshest conditions because it is believed they are not worth enough to receive shelter.
Meet Lut. He's from the homeless caste. His father, Grus, watched Lut's mother die the day Lut was born. Grus has honed Lut into becoming the finest warrior possible. Turns out there is a way to move up in the Orc world: win a deadly challenge with a more respected orc.
But Lut wants more than a mere tent. He is in love with the Azure Goddess,
a living female entity who will only bed the finest champions. He explains his goal to his father knowing that reaching it will remove his father's ability to see him forever. "Will you watch me?" Lut asks.
Grus gives Lut a bitter smile and replies, "You are my only son. Of course I will watch."
In a way, Requard's novel reminded me of the first Rocky movie with Sylvester Stallone: I kept expecting a giant dog to show up while Lut chugged raw eggs. The song, "Gonna Fly Now" works well for a fantasy novel.
Requard manages to make a normally despisable character (Lut, an orc who kills for fun) into a protagonist you will root for. The side of the orcs has rarely been presented in Fantasy fiction:
Grunts justified bad Orc behavior by showing how hypocritical elves were, and Orcs by Stan Nicholls revealed that Orcs are basically conned into killing by an evil master.
Requard doesn't bother with these explanations, instead revealing that the lifestyle of an orc is so unpleasant that little more than violence can be expected. Orcs don't have time to invent concert hall worthy music or paint paintings. Orcs are too busy trying to eke out an existence every
day to do anything else.
From Here on out there are spoilers.
That is the setup for the novel. The most important part of the novel isn't the battle that Lut must win to gain the favor of the Azure Goddess. The most important part of the novel is the following question: "what happens when the fickle Azure Goddess grows tired of Lut and decides to get rid of him?"
Lut realizes that every assumption he has made as an orc has been unfavorable for him. He begins to question whether some orcs deserve to live in tents while others are forced to sleep outside. He also reconnects with his father. Finally, he questions the decency of enslaving other races to serve the Azure Queen, setting some of her potential slaves free. He does not realize this choice will only bring him more followers, one of which is capable of healing his arthritic knee.
Think "pay it forward" only accidental and Orcs somehow get involved. Who could have believed kindness would be so useful?
I recommend this novel highly to anyone who understands what it is like to have to fight to survive. I recommend this novel to anyone who has played D&D and has wondered what it would be like to live as an Orc whom his or her hero has just slain.
Requard is a talented writer. I look forward to seeing more of his work.
Jay Requard
copyright 2016
Falstaff Books
It isn't easy being mean. Especially if your meanness is culturally induced and includes tusks and unnaturally green skin. Life for an Orc is so tough even their gods betray them.
It's even harder for Orcs who just happen to live at the very bottom of the caste system: these orcs are forced to sleep outside in the harshest conditions because it is believed they are not worth enough to receive shelter.
Meet Lut. He's from the homeless caste. His father, Grus, watched Lut's mother die the day Lut was born. Grus has honed Lut into becoming the finest warrior possible. Turns out there is a way to move up in the Orc world: win a deadly challenge with a more respected orc.
But Lut wants more than a mere tent. He is in love with the Azure Goddess,
a living female entity who will only bed the finest champions. He explains his goal to his father knowing that reaching it will remove his father's ability to see him forever. "Will you watch me?" Lut asks.
Grus gives Lut a bitter smile and replies, "You are my only son. Of course I will watch."
In a way, Requard's novel reminded me of the first Rocky movie with Sylvester Stallone: I kept expecting a giant dog to show up while Lut chugged raw eggs. The song, "Gonna Fly Now" works well for a fantasy novel.
Requard manages to make a normally despisable character (Lut, an orc who kills for fun) into a protagonist you will root for. The side of the orcs has rarely been presented in Fantasy fiction:
Grunts justified bad Orc behavior by showing how hypocritical elves were, and Orcs by Stan Nicholls revealed that Orcs are basically conned into killing by an evil master.
Requard doesn't bother with these explanations, instead revealing that the lifestyle of an orc is so unpleasant that little more than violence can be expected. Orcs don't have time to invent concert hall worthy music or paint paintings. Orcs are too busy trying to eke out an existence every
day to do anything else.
From Here on out there are spoilers.
That is the setup for the novel. The most important part of the novel isn't the battle that Lut must win to gain the favor of the Azure Goddess. The most important part of the novel is the following question: "what happens when the fickle Azure Goddess grows tired of Lut and decides to get rid of him?"
Lut realizes that every assumption he has made as an orc has been unfavorable for him. He begins to question whether some orcs deserve to live in tents while others are forced to sleep outside. He also reconnects with his father. Finally, he questions the decency of enslaving other races to serve the Azure Queen, setting some of her potential slaves free. He does not realize this choice will only bring him more followers, one of which is capable of healing his arthritic knee.
Think "pay it forward" only accidental and Orcs somehow get involved. Who could have believed kindness would be so useful?
I recommend this novel highly to anyone who understands what it is like to have to fight to survive. I recommend this novel to anyone who has played D&D and has wondered what it would be like to live as an Orc whom his or her hero has just slain.
Requard is a talented writer. I look forward to seeing more of his work.
May 26, 2020
On one hand while reading this, this would be easy to group with LitRPG - the main character is unmistakably an orc. You follow him surviving his first levels, gaining the favor of a goddess, and acquiring an enchanted weapon. Further adventures continue and he goes from solo hero to building his fortress, etc.
On the other hand, there are no stats tracked. This isn't a game within the story or any of the typical requirements for LitRPG. It's full of actual story features like the point-of-view character undergoing a growth arc. You root for the character, not the dice rolls.
Sword & Sorcery, down and dirty. The Orc, Lut, isn't a good guy. He will never be a good guy. But he is a guy with a plan to get out of the dirtiest, lowest, downtrodden places of his species - through fighting and focus. Blood, sacrifice, raids, sex.
With a Plan and Focus he is able to beat his species short life span to reach the pinnacle of existence. Then betrayal happens, destroying everything he worked to. His betrayer left him alive as a lesson to others.
Lut, though, is really good at lessons and learning from them. He gets a new Plan and a new Focus. Even the gods should fear the results.
(Read through Kindle Unlimited)
On the other hand, there are no stats tracked. This isn't a game within the story or any of the typical requirements for LitRPG. It's full of actual story features like the point-of-view character undergoing a growth arc. You root for the character, not the dice rolls.
Sword & Sorcery, down and dirty. The Orc, Lut, isn't a good guy. He will never be a good guy. But he is a guy with a plan to get out of the dirtiest, lowest, downtrodden places of his species - through fighting and focus. Blood, sacrifice, raids, sex.
With a Plan and Focus he is able to beat his species short life span to reach the pinnacle of existence. Then betrayal happens, destroying everything he worked to. His betrayer left him alive as a lesson to others.
Lut, though, is really good at lessons and learning from them. He gets a new Plan and a new Focus. Even the gods should fear the results.
(Read through Kindle Unlimited)
March 27, 2018
"Free audiobook from author, optional reiew and all that jazz."
A short but but entertaining listen. The author has a twist on the fantasy tale, this time with the ever-beleaguered orcs as the focus. According to the author, akin to Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the life of the orc is "nasty, brutish and short". They spend their days raiding pesky humans and fighting each other, happy with their station.
Step forward Lut, whose goal is only to serve the Azure Queen, a god of the orcs, and will do whatever it takes to achieve his goal. However, when the Azure Queen ultimately rejects him, Lut sets on a path of revenge that will cast down the orc gods and potentially change their society forever. Can a mortal assail the gods?
The book is dark and violent, with blood and guts aplenty. Lut is a likable character (for an orc) and you will root for him as he rails against his jilted lover mantle. The narrator does a solid job, but I reckon he spent a fortune on lozenges after voicing so many guttural accents.
A short but but entertaining listen. The author has a twist on the fantasy tale, this time with the ever-beleaguered orcs as the focus. According to the author, akin to Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the life of the orc is "nasty, brutish and short". They spend their days raiding pesky humans and fighting each other, happy with their station.
Step forward Lut, whose goal is only to serve the Azure Queen, a god of the orcs, and will do whatever it takes to achieve his goal. However, when the Azure Queen ultimately rejects him, Lut sets on a path of revenge that will cast down the orc gods and potentially change their society forever. Can a mortal assail the gods?
The book is dark and violent, with blood and guts aplenty. Lut is a likable character (for an orc) and you will root for him as he rails against his jilted lover mantle. The narrator does a solid job, but I reckon he spent a fortune on lozenges after voicing so many guttural accents.
February 27, 2024
This book was a welcome surprise. I loved the worldbuilding aspect of creating this fantasy world so different from our own. It was worth my time. Kudos, Jay Requard.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews