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A review by josiah17
The Way of Edan by Philip Chase
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I'm floored by how good this was. And I'm so glad that it is indeed an incredible book. The book is a perfect blend of modern writing and classical fantasy.
The prose, which is not something I'm normally super observant or picky about, is quite incredible. The story flows almost lyrically and never feels dull. I was engaged in the mundane scenes, which really stood out to me for whatever reason with this book.
The worldbuilding is just phenomenal. It's another reason I was completely engaged throughout the entirety of the book. The world feels vast and lived-in. There's really intriguing conflicts and an array of different monsters and kingdoms. It's awesome.
The magic system was quite innovative as well, in my opinion. It creates a ton of epic imagery and presents a distinct element of mystery with the way priests and sorcerers chant and cast spells. And a character shoots lightning from her finger tips at 14 people, which was flippin awesome!!!
The characters were also written quite well. The protagonist, Dayraven, is loveable and you become attached to him fairly quickly. Many of the side characters are solid, and the Dweorgs (basically dwarfs) are great fun. But the villains REALLY stand out in this world. Supreme Priest Bledla, and ultimately most of the priests, are some of the most terrifying villains I've ever read. I love when authors give you POV's of the villains, which is what happens here. It bumps up the stakes and the intensity of the story by quite a few notches.
Lastly, I'll mention how amazing the battle scenes were. Not only were they epic and vivid, but the actual writing of the battle scenes is in contention for the best battle scene writing I've read. It reminded me of John Gwynne quite a bit.
Overall, just a phenomenal debut by a beloved BookTuber. I think he hit an absolute home run with this book. Can't wait for books two and three!
Edit 8/5/23: I think I was a little overhyped with my initial review. I still really like this book, but the characters have not aged the best in my mind. The villains are still phenomenal, but I don't feel very strongly about the protagonists. Bumping it down to a 4.75.
The prose, which is not something I'm normally super observant or picky about, is quite incredible. The story flows almost lyrically and never feels dull. I was engaged in the mundane scenes, which really stood out to me for whatever reason with this book.
The worldbuilding is just phenomenal. It's another reason I was completely engaged throughout the entirety of the book. The world feels vast and lived-in. There's really intriguing conflicts and an array of different monsters and kingdoms. It's awesome.
The magic system was quite innovative as well, in my opinion. It creates a ton of epic imagery and presents a distinct element of mystery with the way priests and sorcerers chant and cast spells. And a character shoots lightning from her finger tips at 14 people, which was flippin awesome!!!
The characters were also written quite well. The protagonist, Dayraven, is loveable and you become attached to him fairly quickly. Many of the side characters are solid, and the Dweorgs (basically dwarfs) are great fun. But the villains REALLY stand out in this world. Supreme Priest Bledla, and ultimately most of the priests, are some of the most terrifying villains I've ever read. I love when authors give you POV's of the villains, which is what happens here. It bumps up the stakes and the intensity of the story by quite a few notches.
Lastly, I'll mention how amazing the battle scenes were. Not only were they epic and vivid, but the actual writing of the battle scenes is in contention for the best battle scene writing I've read. It reminded me of John Gwynne quite a bit.
Overall, just a phenomenal debut by a beloved BookTuber. I think he hit an absolute home run with this book. Can't wait for books two and three!
Edit 8/5/23: I think I was a little overhyped with my initial review. I still really like this book, but the characters have not aged the best in my mind. The villains are still phenomenal, but I don't feel very strongly about the protagonists. Bumping it down to a 4.75.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Violence
Minor: Sexual content