The Fires of Vengeance by Evan Winter. The next book in The Burning series. A review and look at this next entry that continues Tau's adventures, and sees just how far he'll go to protect those he loves and avenge those he's lost.

 

The Fires of Vengeance, by Evan Winter.

 

    I picked up the previous book after watching a review by Daniel Greene. It turned out that the disheveled Goblin had it spot on for the brilliant first entry into the series by Evan Winter. To my great relief, this book continues that run brilliantly. The story picks up immediately from where the last one finished. Tau is now the Queen's champion and finds himself in a position no lesser had ever hoped to achieve. Now those loyal to the Queen face the challenge of dealing with a split amongst the Omehi and the potential for civil war, whilst the threat of the Xiddeen looms. This book centers more on the growing relationship between Tau and his Queen whilst keeping the narrative moving towards the inevitable conflict between Tsiora and her sister.

    The story opens up mere hours after the attack. The Xiddeen have retreated in the face of the Guardians' wrath, and Tau is reeling from yet another loss. Jabari is now heavily burned and bedridden, the petty Noble horribly scarred by Dragon's breath. Here we see Tau make a choice that looks like it will come back to bite him, confessing things to Jabari in the belief that the other is unable to hear him. That is not the case, and this will play out further down the road. This story is very much a look at the bigger world of the Omehi and their history, Tau discovering more than he had imagined as he delves fully into his role as the Queen's champion. We continue to look at the disparity between Lessers and the Nobles, how the social standings work, and how Tau's placing challenges those long-standing ideals. I would like to say that our protagonist had a moment to catch his breath, but that is not so, from the outset he is faced with dealing with assassins, injured further, and then forced to give chase after the Xiddeen. Tau pushes himself further than he should be able, driven by that need to be better, to do more, and save those around him regardless of the damage he does to himself. Tau's time in Isihogo has changed him so utterly that he is a creature of pure will, even poisoned by Dragon's blood, he manages to remain one of the deadliest men in the Queen's army. It is Tau's actions that often lead to how the story unfolds, even his decision to save Kana comes back to bite him, and we watch how he continues to view himself as a failure. The strongest part of this book remains the relationship between Tau and his sword brothers, the bonds there are unbreakable, and without them, Tau would truly fall foul of his worst instincts.

    The story largely follows the split in the Omehi people, the capital of their nation taken by general Odili with Queen Tsiora's sister now declared as Queen. The potential civil war sits at the worst time as the threat of the Xiddeen is never far away, though they believe they have bought themselves some time with the War Chief's demise. Determined to take back her capital, Tsiora, is willing to risk much, she demands that the fiefs support her and is willing to force them to comply if they refuse. Evan's political world feels real, with the social standings well defined and the views of the Greater Nobles feeling reminiscent of standings in the real world.  The story moves at quite a fast pace, with Tau lurching from one challenge to the next. Again, Evan continues to create a world and characters that feel so real, fleshing it out so well that you are truly immersed in the story. He focuses on Isihogo more in this book as Tau has to utilize the demon prison far more than in the previous book, its dangers becoming more real in some ways, and yet a piece on the board of play that proves more important. The backstory of the Omehi is fleshed out through the discourse between Tau and his Queen, and we learn of where they came from and the threat that looms ever in the background. 

  

    What impressed me most was the choice Evan made around Tau's rage and his revenge. I had wondered if Tau would become totally lost to that rage, but throughout the story, he is pulled from it. It is not always easy, but the life he has now pulled him back from fully indulging in it. Events threaten to push him back to that familiar wrath, but he is never completely consumed by it in the way he had been in the first novel. This book looks at the destructive power of anger and the cost of it. Evan Winter is great at these themes, they are at the core of the book, but they never feel that they loom over everything to its detriment. The action scenes remain a highlight of the book. Evan's fight scenes are visceral and carry a weight to them, especially when they fight the demons in Isihogo. Tau still feels a mark above those around him, but that gap is narrowed in this book. I have to say that I am so glad that the dragons in this world are not real. They feel far more dangerous than many of their contemporaries in other works of fiction

    This book is a brilliant continuation of the story that began in The Rage of Dragons. I would recommend that anyone give this book a look. This is a fully realized world with strong characters and brilliant action throughout. I hope that Evan's next entry keeps the momentum going, and I am excited to discover where the story will lead.

    This is an easy 4.5 out of 5. Give this a look if you enjoy fantasy or just a damn good read. Evan Winter has rapidly become one of my favourite authors, and I can't wait to see what he will do next.

The Rage of Dragons, by Evan Winter. A review and look at this brilliant debut novel, a self-published piece that stands as an example of what self-published authors can achieve.

 

The Rage of Dragons, by Evan Winter. The Review.

    I decided to give this book a look after hearing positive reviews through several booktubers that I follow. It was the right move, this book is one of the best things I've read in years. I was reading another book for review and immediately lost any interest in it after the first two pages of this book. The premise is a good one, opening up with a people forced into exile, landing on a continent far from their own home as they fight to establish a beachhead and force back the natives that threaten to annihilate them. It is a bloody, hard-fought battle that is won at great sacrifice. We then flash forward to the future and the established nation that sits within hostile lands. Here we are introduced to our central protagonist and his father. Tau is the son of a lesser Common, part of the caste system that we are introduced to within the empire, a young man being taught all that his father knows in the hopes of passing his own testing. Winter created a world so different from the many western-inspired fantasy worlds that I have read. I found the direct correlation between the standings and the physical attributes a refreshing change, those of a higher noble standing being bigger, stronger, and faster than those below them. This plays into the story itself and influences how the world around Tau operates.

    Tau is a young man with particular ideas of how his life will play out. These change as the story unfolds, but in the first part, he merely wants a life similar to his father's. That is until the first time he is forced to kill, forced to face the horror of killing, his ideas change, and he begins to look for an out from military life, a way to avoid service. Piled on top of that, he is dealing with his feelings for Zuri, a young woman awaiting her own testing. I would like to highlight that Tau is not a perfect character, he is impulsive, childish in some ways, and his view of the world is narrow due to his upbringing and experience. I should point out that the army of the chosen is bolstered by the 'Gifted' woman that can call down dragons, turn warriors into enormous engines of destruction and send the souls of men to hell through the skill of enervation. This is the reason they have held back the Hedeni as long as they have. Tau continues to train with his friend and Petty Noble, Jabari, the two young men looking forward to their testing. As Jabari's training partner Tau struggles with the death he inflicted. His plan to injure himself after his time training with the army is still in his mind as time goes by. Unfortunately for him, that will never come to pass as events beyond his control shape the young man's future. A singular mistake at Jabari's testing causes Tau's entire life to be broken, creating a fury in the young man that will drive his entire path in life.

    Tau returns home and is exiled from his home. He attacks Jabari's brother in a fit of rage and should be hanged for this offense only Jabari's interference keeps him from that fate. The night before he is due to leave, Zuri comes to him and begs him to leave with her. The young woman has passed her testing and is destined to become gifted, but she does not want that life, a life without him. Tau is too lost to his pain and rage to hear her and leaves, determined to make the Nobles pay for what they have done to him. This is what the story is primarily about, revenge. Tau is driven by it, his whole fate decided by it, and he will do anything to see it done. As he takes to the north, after a bloody encounter with Leskan, Tau finds himself in Kigambe and the testing there. Soon it is proven that Tau isn't as skilled as he believed, only winning his first bout after goading his opponent into making a mistake. His fifth bout is against a giant of a man, Uduak, and there is no way he can win. Tau doesn't win against his opponent but refuses to fall, fighting until the two hundred counts, something that seems almost impossible. This is the prime attribute that carries Tau forward, he isn't the biggest, the fastest, or the most talented, but he refuses to fall. The young man will not surrender no matter what it costs him. As a character, this makes him unrelenting but so single-focused that he is hard to like, though it is easy to understand the fury that makes him so. Even with that, he makes stupid choices, is too hard on those around him, and loses himself to his fury more than once. Taken into the army, he is trained with other lessers, his squad leader eager to prove that they can be as an effective fighting force as the higher nobles above them. It is a gamble to prove this, and he rests his hopes on Tau and several of his sword brothers. He tries to teach Tau the way to be greater than his natural talents, that dedication and hard work will allow him to reach his goals but it is not enough for the young man. Determined to push himself harder, Tau walks a dark path to become more to push his skills to the extreme. This singular decision is one of the craziest made by the lesser. I loved how Winter filled out his characters, made them feel so real, with their own agendas and agency, not just driving the narrative through Tau's own place in the world. This builds then to the end of the book and Tau's need to kill those he holds responsible for his father's death. 

    Nothing is so simple, the climax of the book leading to an invasion and an attempted coup, Tau, and his scale caught up in it as he is forced to fight by the side of one of the men responsible for Aren's death. Winter does a great job of building the tension and keeping the pace fast as they are driven from one scene of carnage to another, determined to save the queen from those that would see her slain, all the well the Hedeni invading the lands around the capital. It is a desperate race to her, and it leads to several choices that influence how events play out, Tau and his scale doing all they can to survive amid the chaos. This ending leads directly into the next book, and I can't wait to read it. 

 

    This is easily one of the best books I've read in recent years. With its different settings, cultures, and a protagonist that is not so easily likable, it stands apart from so many fantasy books I've read. Winter has a solid authorial voice, his prose is not overly flowery, but it holds your attention, and his character work is brilliant. I can't wait to read The Fires of Vengeance, and my attempt to read a certain book has been put back as I found it so lackluster in comparison. 

    The Rage of Dragons is an easy 5 out of 5. Any fan of fantasy should pick this book up and delve into a world that stands so well on its own. I'm looking forward to what else Winter will bring out in the future. He is definitely a talent to watch.